When will the new Samsung Galaxy S8 be released? Very detailed review of Samsung Galaxy S8 (SM-G950F)

I am writing this material for people who really want to know an explanation of the characteristics of the Galaxy S8, how they work in practice, and my personal opinion about this or that point in the device. And for this, just a 10-minute video and beautiful pictures are not enough. Therefore, if you are just such a reader, then get ready to spend 10 minutes of your life reading. If not, then I have selected for you under this material 10-minute video reviews of top bloggers on YouTube, which will tell you clearly, quickly and superficially.

So, let's begin! Samsung Galaxy S8 (SM-G950F) at the start of sales costs 55,000 RUB in Russia, 25,000 UAH in Ukraine, 1,800 BYN in Belarus, 301,000 KZT in Kazakhstan. For fun, I converted all these prices into dollars and summarized them in the chart below:

In this section I will tell you all the characteristics: from the body to the cameras.

Design, elements on the case, materials and dimensions of the smartphone

The design of the flagship is not similar to any other device, but the Samsung style is noticeable. Everything is very smooth and in your hands it feels like a piece of glass polished to perfection. I can’t find fault with the joints of the elements; everything fits very well and without cracks. I have a black version, but in our market you can still find gold and amethyst.

By thickness The smartphone is 8 mm, nothing protrudes in the planes. The metal frame on the left and right ends is only 3.5 mm wide, to which the front and rear windows are rounded off. Samsung calls this "Edge Design". Width The S8 is quite narrow - 68 mm, which is one and a half millimeters narrower than the Galaxy S7. Samsung smartphones have always been distinguished by their compact size in terms of body/display ratio. By height The device is 6.5 mm taller than its predecessor and is 149 mm. Weight is 155 g, and as for me this is the optimal indicator that you want to feel in your hand.

Even though the S8's screen diagonal is quite large, I still want to call it a compact smartphone that will be convenient for people with small hands. When I hold it in my hand, I think that this is exactly how it should be and I don’t understand why smartphones were different before.

Ok Steve! In terms of design, I want the Galaxy S8.

On the front there is a large display, with very narrow frames at the top and bottom (each almost 7 mm). There's nothing on the bottom bezel, and part of me says, "So if the area is empty, then remove it entirely in favor of an EVEN larger display!" But the normal part of me (I think it’s normal) understands that before this there were no such screen-to-body ratios, and the engineers tried very hard to create what we have in front.

Above the screen in the center there is a neat earpiece, to the left of which there are two sensors (light and proximity), infrared illumination for recognizing the iris of the eye even in pitch darkness, followed by an indicator light (lit in blue or red). To the right of the speaker are the front camera and a sensor for scanning the iris of the eye. The front camera is not used for iris scanning.

On the back panel we have a protective glass that is scratch-resistant and does not have an oleophobic coating. Just above the center is the Samsung logo, which is not shiny chrome, but has a modest gray color. Above the logo in the center there is a camera, to the left of which is a heart rate sensor and a single-LED flash. I can’t say that the flash stands out in terms of brightness and has a warm tint. To the right of the camera there is a fingerprint scanner, which is inconvenient for me and I don’t use it.

At the top end there is a hybrid tray for two Nano SIM cards, or one card and a memory card. The tray is made of flexible plastic, which is a little disappointing, although this is not so important. The metal frame at the top and bottom ends is wider than the side edges, since the adjacent glass there is not rounded. On top we also have a microphone for noise reduction and two plastic dividers for antennas, which are practically invisible.


At the bottom end there is a USB Tape-C connector, a headphone jack, an external speaker, a conversational microphone and two more dividers for antennas.

On the left side there is a volume rocker and a button that calls up the interface of the Bixby virtual assistant, but more on that later.

On the right side, the power/lock button is located alone in a convenient place.

Chipset

The heart of the flagship SM-G950F is the top-of-the-line 2017 chipset of its own production, Exynos 8895 (analogue). It has 8 cores, 4 of which are low-power for light tasks and energy saving - ARM Cortex-A53 with a maximum frequency of 1690 MHz. The remaining 4 cores are manufactured using Samsung's own Exynos M1 (Mongoose) architecture. It handles complex tasks at a maximum frequency of 2314 MHz.

The biggest feature of the processor is its 10-nanometer (nm) manufacturing technology. Manufacturers have stopped increasing gigahertz and power, and are striving for energy efficiency and compactness. So that you understand, 10 nm is almost half the size of the already small 14 nm top-end Snapdragon 821 chip. At the same time, performance has not gone by the wayside, and energy costs are several times less.

See the comparison of chipset sizes in the picture:

Diagram from Intel presentation

In terms of performance, this is not the most powerful smartphone. In AnTuTu it scores 173 thousand points and gives way to the iPhone 7 Plus. At maximum graphics settings in tanks, the frames per second of the Galaxy S8 does not reach 60. On average it shows 50 frames per second. But this is not critical, since the human eye can capture a maximum of 30 frames per second.

In summer, when the weather is very hot, the smartphone gets a little warm and holding it in your hands is very uncomfortable. Heating was noticed not only in games under maximum load, but this problem can be much more noticeable in other smartphones with a similar powerful chip.

Considering that the chipset is made using the finest technical process, I don’t understand the heating. However, I have not previously heard about heating problems from other users, and I am almost sure that this point concerns my device, which is not commercial (sent for review by the manufacturer). Plus, given that the processor and core architecture are new, over time all games and programs will be better optimized for this solution.

Memory

The device has 4 GB of RAM. This is quite enough for all tasks and I did not feel any shortcomings. The AIDA64 application shows an honest 3.5 GB of RAM. 64 GB of permanent memory, and no other versions found. 54 GB available for use. It is possible to expand the memory using a MicroSD card up to 256 GB, and the card slot is separate from the SIM card.

Memory speed is excellent and reaches 787 MB/s when reading and 195 MB/s when transferring. This is the fastest indicator currently in smartphones.

Autonomy

I’ll say right away that autonomy is not the strong point of the Samsung S8. The battery capacity is 3000 mAh, and it shows average survivability. But if you take into account the display resolution and its diagonal, then everything is pretty good.

After an hour of playing, the battery drained by 20%, meaning you can play for 5 hours without interruption at maximum resolution. Plays video over Wi-Fi – 7.5 hours. But working with a GPS navigator with a rarely active display will drain the battery in 20 hours. Still, the high resolution of the display makes itself felt (by the way, it can be lowered, which will have a positive effect on autonomy).

The Korean flagship is infected from 0 to 100% in 1 hour 15 minutes. The included charger charged the battery from 0 to 50% in 40 minutes. This means that there is fast charging, but the S8 does not focus on quickly recharging the charge in the first minutes.

If you are not a hardcore multimedia user, then the smartphone will last 2 days under gentle loads. Especially if you lower the display resolution.

Display

But the screen here is quite interesting. It has an unusual aspect ratio of 18.5:9 and is made using Super Amoled technology. The screen diagonal, with such compact dimensions, is 5.8 inches. Compactness is achieved thanks to the same narrow frames mentioned earlier. This means that it is more elongated in length, and all this is due to the reduction of the upper and lower frames. The maximum display resolution is WQHD (2950x1440), but it can be reduced in the settings to FullHD or even HD. Reducing the resolution will have a positive effect on autonomy.

It is noticeable only when compared point-blank.

It’s hard to find fault with the display – it’s large, clear, frameless and very bright (1000 nits). However, there is a minus: with a white color, the picture turns a little red at a direct viewing angle. This moment is visible only if you put another smartphone next to it.

The company is already sending out an update that will correct this shortcoming, but at the time of review, this update had not yet reached my sample.

The screen has an "Always on Display" feature, where when the device is locked, the display shows the clock and date, notifications and battery percentage.

Sound

I'm not a music lover, but with the Samsung S8 I wanted to become one. The sound in the headphones is simply stunning. Perhaps I just hadn’t heard high-quality sound before, but I downloaded the track in flac format and, in comparison with the Galaxy A5, I realized that the S8 sounds like a god. Complete immersion in music. My A-5, compared to the 2017 flagship, sounds like a leprechaun drowned in a toilet.

The external speaker of the flagship also plays well, but there are no stereo speakers. The sound comes from one speaker at the bottom end, it is loud and moderately rich, like for a smartphone. The volume reaches 70.3 dB.

Perhaps the sound was influenced by collaboration with the top audio device manufacturer Harman/Kardon. AKG branded headphones are included. They can be purchased separately for $100. At the presentation, Samsung said that the S8 has a 32-bit digital-to-analog converter.

I listen to the Samsung Galaxy S8 through headphones and I can’t remember what disadvantages I talked about earlier... I don’t know how I’ll live without such sound now.

The device supports two Nano-SIM cards. Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, supports dual-channel data transmission at 5000 MHz. Bluetooth also has a surprise, it . This means you can play your favorite tracks through Bluetooth headphones and go to the other side of the house or even go out into the yard without a signal source. The range is increased 4 times compared to Bluetooth 4.2. You can also connect two headsets at once (two speakers or two pairs of headphones). These are not all the advantages of the fifth version of Bluetooth, but to use it you need a headset that supports this format.

GPS navigation works flawlessly.

Software

The Samsung S8 runs on the latest Android 7 operating system at the time of release, of course. The Samsung Experience shell is installed on top; I currently have version 8.1. Everything works quickly, but with a certain proprietary animation, which is similar to the effect of minimizing windows in Windows. The main desktop displays the clock, weather, and Google search bar by default, but by default, you can pinch to install widgets, app icons, and add screens that you can swipe right to. By swiping from bottom to top or vice versa, the “app drawer” is called up. If you swipe your finger from the right edge to the left, the EDGE panel will be called up with the ability to quickly access selected applications, contacts and various opportunities to take screenshots.

The GPU processes the interface without slowdowns at maximum frame rates. No lags were noticed in third-party applications either.

Bixby

By swiping from left to right on the main screen, as well as a separate button on the end, you can open the Bixby interface, in which you can find cards that you can configure yourself. I have an alarm clock, Gallery for today, the number of steps taken, the weather and a summary of the latest news. At the moment, the assistant's capabilities are limited. Apart from the listed capabilities, the assistant can’t do anything else; it doesn’t react to voices in any way (neither Russian, nor English, nor even Korean). It is unknown when the Russian-speaking audience will be able to fully use Bixby.

However, the intentions of his work were noticed; a recommendation appeared in the notification shade to listen to music in good quality with a link to a recommended site (I had previously downloaded music on another site). I look forward to all the capabilities of Bixby's artificial intelligence and his destruction of the human race the moment he acquires it.

For now, Bixby only has a name.

Camera

The main camera on the Galaxy S8 takes 12 MP photos. The aperture is widened to F/1.7, which allows the sensor to capture more light in low light conditions. This is the widest aperture in a smartphone in my memory. There is phase detection autofocus and optical stabilization. If the smartphone cannot focus (which happens very rarely when taking photos), for example when shooting video in 4K resolution, then tapping on the display sensor can help the camera. Autofocus works using technology, it is very fast and in most cases trouble-free.

The matrix in the main camera is manufactured by ISOCELL, model S5K2L2. I assume that the American and Korean versions use a Sony sensor, model IMX333 (or another name IMX260 Pro). They say that there is no difference in the quality of pictures of the Samsung S8 with different matrices. In the S7 there was a situation where the Sony sensor took photographs in warmer tones. The size of the S5K2L2 is quite large - 1/2.5". The pixel is also not small - 1.4 microns.

I would like to note that despite all the indicators, the camera does not protrude from the body.

The main camera of the Galaxy S8 is practically no different from the Galaxy S7 in photography. In the video I think the S8 dominates.

Below is an example of shooting on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S7 in HDR modes. Last year's flagship did better.

For comparison, I’ll give another example of a photo taken under the same conditions on the Galaxy S8 and Xiaomi Note 4x to clearly show the quality of flagships and budget phones.

Below is a gorgeous shot with bokeh effect on the Galaxy S8. When taking photographs in good lighting, the smartphone focuses at lightning speed (I never tire of writing this).

Another macro shot:

Shooting in the blinding sun in automatic mode was not impressive. But there are many manual settings in the "Pro" mode: ISO adjustment, aperture effect, presets, manual focus, etc.

Night shot with and without flash. When using a flash, the algorithm works well, there are no highlights and in some cases it is difficult to tell that the photo was taken with a flash.

Selfie camera

The selfie camera, a first for smartphones, has autofocus. This is an 8 megapixel ISOCELL S5K3H1 matrix with an F/1.7 aperture. It takes excellent pictures for a selfie camera, nothing more to say.

Video shooting

Samsung shoots video in resolutions from VGA to 4K (UHD) resolution. When recording Full HD at 30 frames per second, video shooting in HDR mode is available. There is optical and electronic stabilization. I was amazed by the color reproduction, focusing and stabilization capabilities. You don’t need a lot of words here, you just have to see:

Youtube decided to cut the resolution down to 2k over time.

Peculiarities

Among the features of the smartphone is the ability to connect to a monitor using the DeX docking station. You can also connect a mouse and keyboard to it. The monitor displays Samsung's operating system based on Android, externally similar to Windows. Standard Microsoft applications and office solutions are designed for it. I was not able to use this gadget for a long time, but the reviews about it are not bad.

With DeX, you can open a browser, work in office applications, view and even edit photos. Applications open in full windows. Even Instagram and others are launching, but few applications have yet been adapted for this platform.

The second feature is the ability to unlock the device using the iris of the eye or face. They say that a face scanner can be fooled by a printed photo, but it’s not so simple and who would bother with this? If the options above do not always work quickly, especially if you are walking, then with the finger scanner everything happens at lightning speed, but it is not located in a very convenient place and does not recognize a wet finger.

The third feature I would like to note is the presence of a heartbeat scanner.

The fourth feature, which I did not mention earlier, is the presence of moisture and dust protection according to the IP68 standard.

Pros and cons of Samsung Galaxy S8

It's time to sum up all of the above.

pros

• thin frames around the display;
• clear, bright and elongated display, with the ability to adjust the resolution;
• convenient design and well-assembled body;
• good cameras in all respects;
• user-friendly interface;
• support for the upcoming version of Bluetooth 5;
• great sound in headphones;
• loud external speaker;
• notification indicator;
• moisture and dust protection.

Minuses

• staining the rear glass, which is prone to scratches;
• the sharp edges of the USB connector rub your finger while playing;
• Due to such a premium design, the smartphone can be fragile, you need to wear a case;
• sometimes it gets quite hot under load (perhaps this is a problem with my sample or raw software, this should be fixed by updating and optimizing games for the new kernel);
• All unlocking means are inconvenient.

My review of the Galaxy S8

The smartphone scored 5 points. Many people talk about it as the emperor of smartphones. Personally, the camera is important to me, and here it is very decent. Is it the best? This is questionable, and when compared with the Galaxy S7, they are very similar. Although the Galaxy S8's video recording is impressive.

And so the question hung in my head: is it worth buying a Galaxy S8 for the photo capabilities of the camera, if the Galaxy S7 has the same level for more affordable money? I would consider buying a Galaxy S8 for the excellent sound in the headphones and cool display, for the sake of video recording and good design. Although the design is secondary, and I would rather show off cool photographs than the cool design of a glass rectangle (as you can see, the WOW effect from the design gradually faded away for me, you get used to good things very quickly).

Review of the thin metal smartphone Samsung Galaxy A5 A500H/DS Review of the second generation smartphone Samsung Galaxy A7 SM-A710F 2016
Review of the Huawei P10 Plus smartphone: a thin flagship phablet

In this article you will learn about the release date of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, and you will also learn about the characteristics, prices and capabilities of the new flagships.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus will be released this spring. However, the fewer days left before the announcement of the flagships, the more information about them appears on the Internet. Thus, based on the latest information leak, we learned more about the details of the Guard S8 program and the release of a new "blue" smartphone colors.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: price, color and configuration

Korean news site ET News reports that to meet early demand for the S8 flagships, 12.5 million units will be produced in March and April. Of those 12.5 million, 7.1 million will be the 5.8-inch version, and 5.4 million will be the 6.2-inch version. These numbers, if true, show that the smaller device is projected to be more popular among consumers. Moreover, these figures also show that the S8 is expected to be much more attractive to consumers than its predecessor S7, which sold around 10 million units in its first 20 days.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: memory options

IHS Research Director Kevin Wang claims that the 6GB RAM version of the S8 will only be available for sale in China, and that it will only be sold with 4GB RAM everywhere else. Samsung hasn't confirmed this, so we'll have to wait and see what happens after the announcement.

Prices for Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus

According to numerous leaks, Samsung Galaxy S8 will cost 799 euros (about 849 dollars), and 48,345 in rubles, A S8 Plus will cost 899 euros (about 948 dollars), and 53,983 in rubles when it will be released. Thus, the price difference was 100 euros, as was the case with its predecessors - the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: blue version of the flagships

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: release date, sales date

Evan Blass announced on Twitter that the release of the Samsung Galaxy S8 has been delayed by a week, until April 28th.

Typically, Samsung unveils new additions to the S-series on the Sunday before MWC Barcelona. But this year, Samsung confirmed that it will unveil the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus on March 29 with its own launch event.

Also, if you are interested, you can find out the latest information about the release of the famous series of smartphones, the release date and characteristics of the future smartphone.

Pre-order Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus

According to the Dutch site Androidworld, pre-orders for the Galaxy S8 and S8 will be available in the Netherlands on the day of the official launch (which will take place on March 29), giving European customers the opportunity to get their hands on the device much earlier than others.

Other sites have also reported that pre-orders will be available much earlier than in stores, giving fans even more incentive to pre-order the S8. There's no word yet on when pre-orders will be available for Russian smartphone consumers, although we should expect them to be available for pre-order around the same time as in Korea.

Korean news site Investor reports that Samsung will introduce subsidy plans earlier than usual during the pre-order period, which will be from April 7 to 17. Pre-ordered devices can be available from as early as April 18 until the official release on April 21.

However, other rumors suggest that the devices could be released on April 21, not to mention the pre-order situation.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: technical specifications at a glance

Rumors about the technical characteristics of the S8 and S8 Plus are quite consistent and do not have much controversy. Thus, we have summarized them in the following table to give you an overview of the device.

Since the above information is based on rumors and leaks, the actual specifications can only be confirmed after the official release of the S8 and S8 Plus.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: camera

For generations, Samsung Galaxy S smartphones have had good cameras. The camera became a highlight in 2016, but the competition has since caught up. Samsung should make more modifications to the camera of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. The camera needs improvement, especially in low light conditions. However, Samsung won't be making any big steps forward or jumping two heads higher in camera specs for the S8 or S8 Plus.

Recent rumors indicate that the rear camera is 12MP. A report on Korean news site Naver states that the camera will be able to shoot video at 1000 fps by adding a camera to the sensor DRAM (buffer memory). Their source said it can capture a frame eight times faster than the iPhone 7 (120 frames per second).

An 8-megapixel front camera will also be available for high-quality selfie shots. This will be a nice upgrade from the previous 5-megapixel ones on the S6, S7 and Note 5. There are also rumors that the front camera will feature autofocus. For the rear cameras on both smartphones, Samsung has come up with a way to make them small enough that they don't protrude from the smartphone by mounting the actuator on the side of the lens rather than in the middle.

The competition is fierce and camera improvements are urgently needed. Most importantly, there should be improvements in low light and JPEG compression artifacts. A dual camera isn't necessary, but unless major improvements happen, the S8's camera will be one of 2017's weaker cameras.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: display

The two flagships are likely to feature Egde displays, and in terms of inches, the S8 will have a 5.8-inch screen, while the S8 Plus will have a 6.2-inch screen. The resolution on both smartphones will be 2960x1440.

There are rumors that both smartphones will have AMOLED screens, but this is, as they say, the latest rumor, and it is unlikely to be true.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: Software

Up until this point, we didn't know much about possible software changes or changes that the Galaxy S8 might bring with it. While we've heard that the S8 will have some common features - such as IP86 protection technology (which makes the device waterproof) and a fingerprint scanner - we haven't spotted any leaks related to the interface or icon design. Thanks to the new screenshots, we've got a good look at what the Galaxy S8's launcher and app icons look like.

The screenshots below were taken by "Durim"— and originally appeared on SamMobile, which we discovered in the APK of the latest version of Samsung's Smart Switch app. The overall look is simple and minimalist with rounded and stylized icons, a trend we've seen adopted more and more over the years.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: audio and other interfaces

Apple ditched the headphone jack with the iPhone 7, but Samsung won't go that route. Although the Galaxy S8 will have a USB Type-C port, and therefore the 3.5 mm port will not disappear anywhere and will not be replaced by another.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: battery, processor and RAM

The new Snapdragon 835 chipset will be manufactured on Samsung's 10nm FinFET processing technology, and it is highly likely that this processor will be used in the US version of the Galaxy S8. The Snapdragon 835 processor will be much more efficient in terms of performance and system capabilities than the previous Snapdragon 820 model. The 835 processor contains 4 cores that operate at 2.45 GHz and 4 efficiency cores that operate up to 1.9 GHz. In addition, there will be an integrated Adreno 540 graphics adapter, which promises 25 percent improved performance and HDR support.

As for the Galaxy S8 smartphones sold in other markets, they are rumored to come with an Exynos processor, which was previously dubbed as the 8895 model. It is now suspected to be called the Exynos 9810 (from the Exynos 9 series). The use of a different processor in the smartphone market does not come as a surprise as producing devices with different chipsets is not something new for the Korean smartphone giant.

The SoC in question will do better than the 8890 that powers the S7 and Note 7. An Exynos processor that is said to be capable of up to 4GHz speeds, which would provide a 30% performance improvement on the Exynos 8890 found in the Galaxy S7 (in some regions) , if the rumored claims are accurate. The chipset uses the latest ARM Mali-G71 GPU, which is rumored to be 1.8 times faster than the MPI Mali-T880 MP12 GPU found in the Galaxy S7.

The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus will have 64GB of internal storage linked to a fast UFS 2.1 interface. The MicroSD slot remains. There may also be a variant that has 128GB of storage.

The Note 7 battery has put the South Korean smartphone giant at risk. You can expect Samsung to endure all the shutdowns to ensure the Galaxy S8 shuts down without a hitch. Thus, the Galaxy S8 will most likely have a 3000 mAh battery, and the S8 Plus will have a 3.6 thousand mAh battery.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: design

The specifications are mostly known, and thanks to a series of leaks, the design of the device is close to being confirmed.

With just hearing sizes in mind, it's hard to imagine how the size of the S8 and S8 Plus will compare to other devices. But now we know what the size differences are between the S8 and S8 Plus, and we've also compared them to other phones, including the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. At 159x74mm, the S8 Plus will be slightly larger than the iPhone 7 Plus, but also slightly smaller.

Here are some of the latest images to emerge from the Samsung Galaxy S8, clearly showing the home screen and the dimensions of the new flagship device.

New features and functions on S8 and S8 Plus

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: S Pen and possible PC mode

Samsung may introduce the S8 with some accessories. Sammobile says the device may have an S Pen, but it won't have its own storage slot in the device for connectivity. It's also possible that Samsung could ship new wireless headphones with the device.

Samsung may also be working on a competitor to Microsoft's Continuum, according to AllAboutWindowsPhone.com. This technology will allow the smartphone to extend to the external display and use peripherals such as keyboard and mouse. So it will function just like a desktop computer and in the picture we can see that it looks similar to Chrome OS.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: iris scanner

The Galaxy S8 will likely come with an iris scanner.

The Iris scanner offers an additional layer of security that cannot be tampered with, and the API will allow third-party applications to use the Iris scanner to allow users to unlock sensitive files.

A leading Korean advertising portal has released a new teaser video that seems to hint at an iris scanner. The video contains a maze and an eyeball, and there is no other explanation for it other than a hint from the iris scanner. You can watch it, but please note that Adobe Flash Player is required to view it.

According to a report by Korean news site Naver, an official said the S8 will come with a 3.7MP front-facing camera for iris scanning.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus: facial recognition

In addition to the aperture scanner, Korea Economic Daily reported that the S8 will feature facial recognition. This additional security feature is also meant to improve convenience as it will take less than 0.01 seconds to unlock the phone according to their source, which was an unnamed Samsung official. Apparently prototypes are already being tested.

However, facial recognition will serve more than just unlocking your phone. According to a Bloomberg report, facial recognition will also be used for Samsung Pay in addition to fingerprint and iris scanning. Their source also says Samsung is working with banks to help them implement the technology in the coming months.

Conclusion: Almost all details are known by the end

Samsung has put security in place to prevent leaks, but it apparently doesn't work very well. Currently, almost all the details of the S8 and S8 Plus are known. There is some uncertainty hanging around the software features, but everything has been said about the hardware specifications.

What do you expect to see on the Galaxy S8? Do you like the specs and design so far? Let us know about it in the comments!

Video: Samsung S8 "Presentation announcement"

Video: Samsung Galaxy S8 Review

The Samsung Galaxy S8 was released relatively long ago by industry standards - March 29, 2017. But thanks to the power reserve provided by the manufacturer, the smartphone remains relevant to this day. The model differs from its predecessors in its larger screen, as well as the absence of a “home” button. It has been replaced by a tactile element - it is located under the glass. A similar technology was used on the iPhone 7. Reviews of the Samsung Galaxy S8 are positive, users liked it.

The design of the Samsung Galaxy S8 is somewhat different from its analogues. The first thing you should pay attention to is that the Samsung inscription above the screen is missing. The company's engineers simply could not find a place for it. At the same time, the shape of the smartphone is unique; in terms of design, there are no analogues on the market today. What sets the phone owner apart from other smartphone users.

The flagship itself is made of glass and metal. You should be careful when using it. The device is not only slippery, but also instantly covered with fingerprints. It is worth using napkins more often - this will keep your smartphone looking attractive throughout the day. Glass completely covers the front and back sides of the case. The frame is made of metal.

The model is presented in several colors simultaneously:

• ⦁ golden;
  ⦁ blue;
  ⦁ gray;
  ⦁ black

The speakers on the back side disappeared. The case itself is assembled as reliably as possible. But there is a small gap between the glass of the front panel and the metal frame. The nail doesn't fit there. But dust will easily get in. This is especially unpleasant if the phone is black. Contamination will immediately become visible against a dark background.

There is a fingerprint sensor on the back cover - right next to the lens. Moreover, the latter is now made flush with the plane of the body. There is a heart rate monitor, as well as an oxygen saturation analyzer in the user’s body.

The smartphone is a good solution for those involved in sports. It is possible to keep a training diary and automatically record your body indicators. A stylish and expensive case will set the S8 owner apart from other smartphone users.

Design and ergonomics

The curve of the Samsung Galaxy S8 case strongly resembles the geometry of the Note 7. But at the same time, the model in question is small and lies comfortably in the hand. The Samsung Galaxy S8 easily holds up when compared to its closest competitor, the iPhone 8, in terms of characteristics and appearance. The dimensions of the model are relatively small:

• length – 148.9 mm;
• width – 68.1 mm;
• thickness – 8 mm.

Moreover, the weight is only 152 g. The model will look great both in a strong man’s palm and in thin women’s fingers. The device is universal. The geometry of the case and the location of the home button make it comfortable for everyone, regardless of the length of the fingers and the width of the palm. The S8 doesn't feel big. The main reason for this is that it is a little elongated compared to its counterparts with the same screen diagonal.

Thanks to good balancing, it is convenient to work with the phone; despite the sloping body, it does not slip out. On the left side there is a “swing” that makes it easy to adjust the volume. There is also a special key for launching the Bixby assistant. It doesn't work in our country. But you can find a special application on Google Play that allows you to easily reassign a button to another action.

Display

The screen of the Samsung Galaxy S8 is the first thing that attracts attention. Moreover, developers and marketers together even came up with a special name for it - Infinity Display. The display occupies 97% of the front area of ​​the body and has a QHD+ resolution (2,960 × 1,440 pixels). The installed screen is of very high quality, there are no dots.

SuperAmoled matrices were used during assembly. This is the latest generation, improved in comparison with those used in the Note 7 model. The automatic brightness control algorithm has undergone significant changes, depending on external lighting conditions. Experts have improved a mode called AlwaysOn Display. Buttons located on the screen are hidden when applications are running. The display diagonal is exactly 5.8 inches.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 model began to use technologies that were previously used only in the development of televisions. In addition, the phone itself constantly analyzes the image present on the screen. There is not only a light quantity indicator, but also an RGB color analyzer. It independently, without user intervention, adjusts screen tones in accordance with external conditions.

Serious advantages over competitors include the use of Mobile HDR Premium technology. It was developed literally in 2017 specifically for devices that support 4K resolution. According to experts, the screen in the Galaxy S8 is the most technologically advanced in the world. Its main differences:

• automatic brightness adjustment sets 1000 candelas at maximum illumination - you can easily read even small text under sunlight;
• DCI-P3 Color is used - also used in TVs with 4K resolution;
• there are simultaneously 2 sensors that analyze the amount of light - on both front panels;
• night mode eliminates the presence of blue color in the light spectrum - this allows you to avoid excessive stimulation of the psyche;
• a separate circuit is built in to work with Always On technology, which can significantly save battery power.

Equipment

The delivery package contains a standard list of items:

1. the smartphone itself;
2. a device for connecting to a 220 V electrical network to recharge the battery;
3. paperclip – allows you to remove the tray to place a SIM card in it;
4. headset type AKG – wired type;
5. special adapter - for connecting additional equipment - OTG;
6. instructions.

The OTG cable deserves special attention. With its help, you can connect various external devices to your smartphone. Including all kinds of storage media. These are USB flash drives, as well as other equipment. The AKG headset allows you to listen to music. It cannot boast of an impressive sound. But for watching movies, videos from the Internet are perfect. The device is delivered in a cardboard box.

Specifications Samsung Galaxy S8

Even a year after its release, the device remains relevant. This may be due to the characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S8:

• CPU – Exynos 8895, 8 cores, 2.3 GHz each;
• built-in video accelerator – Mali-G71 MP20;
• volume of RAM (random access memory) – 4 GB;
• ROM volume (read-only memory) – 64 GB (several GB are deducted for installing the operating system).

It must be remembered that the model is produced for different markets with different technical characteristics. For example, the Chinese version is equipped with not 4, but 6 GB of RAM. In the USA, the exclusive Samsung Galaxy S8 is sold on the Snapdragon 835 processor. This is why some devices show higher results in various synthetic tests.

Performance

Various software tests don't always show how fast the Samsung Galaxy S8 is. But it is worth noting that there is no gap at all between clicking on the application icon and launching it. Even in comparison with the S7 and Note 7, which have never had any complaints in terms of speed, the S8 is a serious winner.

Separately, it is worth highlighting the changes in terms of memory. The improvement is already visible in the transition from UFS 2.0 to UFS 2.1. This allows you to significantly reduce the time required to boot your smartphone. In addition, switching time between different applications is reduced to a minimum. It was the S8 that became the first device from Samsung equipped with UFS 2.1 memory.

There are still rumors among users of alternative devices about the slowness of Samsung smartphones. But such stereotypes are usually a consequence of installing a huge amount of third-party software on the device. The Samsung Galaxy S8 review will give you an idea of ​​the actual performance of the device.

Cameras

Using the device to take pictures and record videos is appropriate - the Samsung Galaxy S8's camera is worthy of all praise. The front resolution is as much as 8 megapixels, while it is fast. The maximum open aperture is f/1.7. Due to this, pictures can be taken bright and sharp even with a significant lack of light. There are many built-in effects.

It seems to many that the main camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels has remained the same. DualPixel technology is used. As with earlier models, Sony is the supplier. Separately, we need to dwell on the increased system performance. Photos of Samsung Galaxy S8 are more saturated. The camera model has its own memory.

Due to this, the speed of work increases by an order of magnitude. There is also a comfort mode called Burst Mode. Thanks to it, you can take several dozen pictures in a row. The high performance of the system allows the camera to focus faster and handle complex scenes better. This is especially noticeable in comparison with the Galaxy S7.

Photo

A special feature of the Samsung Galaxy S8 photography is the ability to form a panorama with an impressive 50.6 megapixels. Which makes the quality of the pictures simply fantastic.

A high-power LED flash will highlight shadows and also make the subject more detailed in the shadows.

Video

Shooting video on the Samsung Galaxy S8 is as good as shooting photos. It is possible to shoot video up to Ultra HD resolution. Recording is carried out at a speed of 60 frames per second. There is electronic image stabilization. But only in Full HD mode. In night mode, the video will also delight the smartphone user. Dynamic range, vibrant colors and good range resolution at high ISO make shooting easy and fun.

Front-camera

The characteristics of the front camera in comparison with the external one cannot be called outstanding. But it offers a completely acceptable result. Perfect for filming yourself while traveling.

Care must be taken when working in areas with insufficient lighting. It all depends on the amount of light and other factors.

Sound and music playback quality

The sound of the Samsung Galaxy S8 deserves special attention. Since Samsung uses a completely new development in its smartphone. It constantly analyzes the actions performed by the user. For example, if the owner of a smartphone is talking on Skype, the volume in the headphones is automatically increased. All frequencies and extraneous noises that can interfere with communication are also cut off.

In addition, the smartphone constantly evaluates the sound level around the device itself. Automatic adjustment to the situation is carried out. Moreover, the sound processor does not carry out all these actions; only the amplifier is used to solve the assigned tasks.

Another “trick” of the model is the automatic recognition of repeating sounds. For example, if headphones constantly rub against clothing or skin, then the device tries to remove such noise from the music while listening to it. The sound quality depends on the headphones used, as well as the sound profiles that are used in a particular case.

Samsung has designed and assembled the included headset to the specifications of the S8. All the delights of musical compositions are perfectly revealed thanks to the Cirrus Logic SC43130 DSP. The main feature of the module is its versatility; it fits well with most headphones - without any exceptions.

Communication capabilities

Like its competitors, the Samsung Galaxy S8 supports USB Type C version 3.0. This is the first smartphone of its year to feature the latest generation Bluetooth communication protocol – 5.0. There is also aptX, as well as other built-in audio codecs for audio playback. There is an LTE module; the frequencies used will depend on the specific operator, as well as the country in which the device is used. Moreover, in an LTE network, the device shows the maximum possible data download speed.

In a network in Moscow with the cellular operator MTS, the download speed reached 430 Mbit/s. Moreover, the theoretical limit of this indicator is only 450 Mbit/s. There is dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11. There are simply no major improvements from Samsung in this direction.

operating system

At the time of release of the device, the latest operating system was installed on it - Android 7.0. The proprietary Experiense 8.1 shell is installed on top. It functions quite quickly and features proprietary animation. In some ways it is similar to similar effects in Windows.

The GPU processes all actions in the operating system as quickly as possible, without delays, lags, or artifacts on the screen.

Autonomy

The standard Samsung Galaxy S8 battery has a capacity of 3,500 mAh. Charging can be done in two ways:

• via a standard USB Type C connector;
• using a wireless charger.

Moreover, in the second case, recharging is carried out automatically - you just need to place the device on a special wireless station. Separately, several energy saving profiles should be noted. They became more aggressive. This allows you to save battery and extend the operating time of the device. For example, video playback time is 18-19 hours with maximum brightness.

Pros and cons of a smartphone

Samsung Galaxy S8 has its pros and cons. The main advantages include:

1. elongated display - this makes it convenient to use;
2. high-quality parts, bright screen;
3. high-quality cameras, the ability to shoot video in Ultra HD resolution;
4. comfortable interface and performance;
5. notification indicator, protection from dust and moisture;
6. external speaker volume.

There are also obvious disadvantages. The Samsung Galaxy S8 smartphone is discussed in detail in the review; the main disadvantages include:

1. the case is easily soiled - fingerprints always remain;
2. the rear glass is highly scratch-prone;
3. if you use your smartphone for games, the edge of the USB connector constantly rubs your finger;
4. fragile design requires the use of a cover;
5. lack of a convenient way to quickly unlock the device.

In general, all the disadvantages are easily offset by a large number of advantages. The device copes well with all the functions assigned to it.

Comparison with competitors

The main competitor in this price category for the Samsung Galaxy S8 is the iPhone 8. Comparison of the device according to the main parameters:

• The S8's display is 5.8 inches versus 4.7 on the iPhone 8. The advantages of Samsung's product lie not only in size, but in more advanced technology and resolution;
• In terms of performance, the Snapdragon 835 processor is one step lower than the A11 Bionic. Apple's developments in this industry are products of a completely different category (this is easily confirmed by the Geekbench test);
• The cameras of these devices produce almost identical results. Apple's product has some advantage in brighter light;
• A wireless charging station comes standard with Samsung products. For an Apple product, you will need to purchase it separately;
• In terms of offline mode, both devices will not let their users down. Samsung Galaxy S8 lasts 1 hour longer in active talk mode.

Overall, both devices will be an excellent solution. But it is worth remembering that there are differences in performance and functionality. It is important to take into account the fundamental differences between operating systems.

Final review

Despite the fact that the Samsung Galaxy S8 model was released a relatively long time ago (more than 1 year ago), it is still in high demand in stores. The reason for this is good performance, high-quality images and long battery life. It is worth remembering that using this device without a case risks scratching the rear glass. There are other operating nuances.

Samsung Galaxy S8 shows good performance regardless of the installed processor. The quality of communication is at the highest level. The ability to work with Wi-Fi in two bands simultaneously deserves special attention. Another advantage is that the cost of the model decreased significantly within a year after its release.

Long, frameless, with an excellent camera and top performance

Samsung recently officially introduced its long-awaited flagship smartphones Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ in Russia. Even despite major setbacks in the recent past, Samsung's flagship devices not only continue to be the main competition for Apple's iPhones, but are also some of the most technically advanced Android smartphones. Compared to the previous (seventh) generation, a lot has changed here, from the design in general to the arrangement of individual elements in particular, not to mention the improved hardware and updated software. Not all the changes are for the better, but there are so many of them that we can say that Samsung decided to start from scratch. It is worth noting that, to the delight of many, the difference in the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ models is only in size; almost everything else is the same. There are no various modifications with varying amounts of built-in memory or RAM, different performance, the presence or absence of certain elements. The user does not need to agonize over the choice; they just need to decide on the preferred dimensions of the device. The technical characteristics of both models are almost identical, and we will begin this review by listing them, choosing the Galaxy S8+ model as a sample.

Main characteristics of Samsung Galaxy S8+ (Model SM-G955F)

• SoC Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa, 8 cores: [email protected] GHz (Exynos M1) + [email protected] GHz (ARM Cortex-A53)
  (another modification of the smartphone is based on SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 835)
• GPU Mali-G71
• Operating system Android 7.0
• Touch display Super AMOLED 6.2″, 2960×1440, 529 ppi
• Random access memory (RAM) 4 GB, internal memory 64 GB
• Nano-SIM support (2 pcs.)
• MicroSD support up to 256 GB
• GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
• WCDMA/HSPA+ networks (850/900/1900/2100 MHz)
• FDD LTE Band 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 32, 66 networks
• Networks TD LTE Band 38—41
• Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz) MIMO
• Bluetooth 5.0LE
• GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, BDS
• USB Type-C, USB OTG
• Main camera 12 MP (f/1.7), autofocus, 4K video
• Front camera 8 MP (f/1.7), autofocus
• Waterproof IP68
• Proximity, lighting, heart rate, magnetic field, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer
• Iris scanner, fingerprint scanner
• Battery 3500 mAh, fast charging
• Wireless charging (WPC, PMA)
• Dimensions 160×73×8.1 mm
• Weight 173 g

Contents of delivery

The Samsung Galaxy S8+ received a stylishly designed matte black cardboard box with a laconic design as packaging. The lid is not completely removable, it folds back like a box. The contents are neatly packaged in separate cells.

The kit, in the best Samsung traditions, turned out to be extensive. The smartphone package includes a USB Type-C connecting cable, a network adapter with variable output current and voltage 5/9 V 1.67/2 A, an unusually shaped key for removing cards, a Micro-USB to USB Type-C adapter, a second USB adapter - USB Type-C.

The company also included high-quality wired dual-driver AKG stereo headphones with a set of interchangeable in-ear pads.

Appearance and ease of use

The design of the Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+ turned out to be unusual and attractive. The streamlined body is made entirely of metal and glass, there is no plastic here. A metal frame rounded on all sides, symmetrically tapering at the sides and widening at the top and bottom ends, connects two glass panels - front and back. Gorilla Glass 5 is used as a coating; the glass has noticeable curves on the sides. The frame in the front plane of the screen is completely hidden behind the curve of the glass, so here we can talk about a truly frameless option.

The body of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ is absolutely symmetrical; the back side is also completely covered with Gorilla Glass 5 with curved edges. The edges of the glass are rounded so much that they flow almost seamlessly (not counting the frame) into one another, creating a complete shape without a single sharp corner or straight edge. For this shape, Samsung marketers dubbed their new brainchild a “smartphone without borders.”

The Samsung Galaxy S8+ looks very attractive. And although such a design may seem too “sleek” and “pampered”, but these are modern realities, the vast majority of users liked it.

Due to the unusual aspect ratio of the display (not 16:9, but 18.5:9), the body turned out to be very elongated in height. At the same time, the absence of a frame on the sides of the screen in the front plane made it possible to make the body so narrow that it is quite comfortable to hold in the hand even with a screen diagonal of 6.2 inches. True, the device is quite slippery due to its glass panels, smooth frame and streamlined shape.

The curved edges of the front glass work in conjunction with the corresponding software in the same way as in previous models of the Galaxy Edge series. Above the screen you can find a full range of elements, including an LED event indicator and even an iris scanner.

The scanner works tolerably, but the process of setting the lock and constant recognition is quite tedious, because this system only works in certain light conditions and at a certain distance from the eyes. It is much easier and faster to use the fingerprint scanner, although its location here causes some confusion.

There are no more control buttons under the screen, only on the screen itself. This is atypical for Samsung; its Galaxy smartphones have always had a hardware key on the front (in the latest models, with an integrated fingerprint sensor). Now its place has been taken by a virtual button on the screen, but it is also not quite ordinary. To ensure that the static button, which is constantly illuminated in the Always On Display mode, does not cause pixel burnout, it was made movable. Thus, the seemingly static central button on the screen actually constantly moves imperceptibly in different directions.

The fingerprint scanner has been moved to the back. At the same time, it is greatly shifted from the center to the right, so that it is inconvenient for a left-handed person to reach it with his finger. In addition, the tactile area of ​​the fingerprint sensor does not differ from neighboring elements; it is difficult to feel it blindly, you need to get used to it. In general, this is perhaps the most unusual and inconvenient option for the location of this element that we have previously encountered; Samsung again went too far with the fingerprint sensor.

Next to the scanner you can find a camera module with a flash, as well as a heart rate sensor familiar to Samsung smartphones. None of the elements protrude beyond the surface, so the smartphone lies stable on the table and does not wobble when you touch the screen. The flash is as bright as possible.

There are no complaints about the operation of the fingerprint scanner itself; it works quickly, clearly and accurately. But, as already mentioned, reaching for it while holding a smartphone in your left hand is very inconvenient.

The slot for installing cards is located at the top end. The cover of the removable slide on which the cards are placed has a rubberized gasket, since the Samsung Galaxy S8+, like the LG G6, meets the IP68 protection category, that is, the case is completely protected from dust and allows immersion in water to a depth of 1.5 m for 30 minutes. However, the developers did not go further: the design here is not designed for harsh operating conditions, like the LG G6, so the hero of the review does not have military standard certification.

A standard hybrid connector is used, into which you can install either two Nano-SIM cards, or one SIM card and one microSD memory card. The slides are made of flexible plastic; the device itself reports the need to tightly close the connector cover to protect it from water.

The volume button has been moved to the left side, where it is adjacent to a separate key for calling the Bixby intelligent assistant, with which you can work with available services and applications via the touch screen, voice or text commands. The power key remains on the right side. The buttons are not very large, but handling them is quite comfortable; the keys are easy to feel blindly.

All other interface elements are located at the bottom end. There is a USB Type-C connector installed here, which supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode, the main speaker is located here, as well as a 3.5 mm headphone jack and a speaking microphone hole. Surprisingly, the developers were unable to install any of the elements exactly; each of them turned out to be offset relative to the longitudinal axis of the end, which spoils the impression a little.

Having studied the structure of the Galaxy S8+ case, let's compare it with the previous Galaxy S7 Edge model. The naked eye can see that the width of these smartphones is almost identical.

However, the Galaxy S8+ has a longer screen with a non-standard aspect ratio, which allows for more surface area to be devoted to the screen. As a result, the Galaxy S8+ with a 6.2″ screen fits as comfortably in the palm of your hand as the Galaxy S7 Edge with a 5.5″ screen.

In addition, the sides of the case of the review hero have become less slippery due to the increased width of the metal frame: the curved edges of the screen on the Galaxy S8+ have been reduced, the frame is now located exactly in the middle between the front and rear panels. So, in general, the changes only benefited the new product.

Samsung Galaxy S8+ is presented on the Russian market in three colors: black (“Black Diamond”), gray (“Mystical Amethyst”) and golden (“Yellow Topaz”).

Screen

Samsung Galaxy S8+ is equipped with a Super AMOLED display with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection with highly curved edges. The physical dimensions of the screen are approximately 70x142 mm with a diagonal of 6.2 inches, that is, the aspect ratio is 18.5:9. The screen resolution is 2960x1440, the pixel density is about 529 ppi. The corner parts of the screen, like the LG G6, are rounded, there are no side frames as such in the front plane of the screen, the upper and lower segments surrounding the screen are only approximately 8.5 mm in height.

You can manually adjust the display brightness or set automatic settings based on the ambient light sensor. HDR10 mode is supported. The AnTuTu test diagnoses support for 10 simultaneous multi-touch touches. There is a vision protection mode (preventing eye fatigue). In Always-on mode, information about the current time and date, as well as missed events, is displayed on the switched off screen.

In the screen settings section, you can select the resolution and applications that should be used in full-screen proportions. It seems that the developers first made a screen with an unusual aspect ratio, just to make it “not like everyone else,” and then added various “crutches” to the software so that the programs would work normally with such a screen.

A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the “Monitors” and “Projectors and TV” sections Alexey Kudryavtsev. Here is his expert opinion on the screen of the sample under study.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface that is scratch-resistant. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are better than those of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) screen (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected when the screens are turned off (on the left is Nexus 7, on the right is Samsung Galaxy S8+, then they can be distinguished by size):

The screen of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ is slightly darker (photo brightness is 107 versus 115 for the Nexus 7) and does not have a pronounced tint. The ghosting of reflected objects on the Samsung Galaxy S8+ screen is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen. Due to the smaller number of boundaries (glass/air type) with very different refractive indices, screens without an air gap look better in conditions of intense external illumination, but their repair in the case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be replaced. On the outer surface of the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (effective, better than that of the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much easier and appear at a lower speed than in the case of regular glass.

When displaying a white field in full screen and manually controlling the brightness, its maximum value was 370 cd/m² in normal conditions and rises to 580 cd/m² in very bright light. You also need to take into account the fact that in this case, the smaller the white area on the screen, the brighter it is, that is, the actual maximum brightness of the white areas will almost always be higher than the specified value. For example, when displaying a white field on half the screen and a black field on the other half, we obtained values ​​of 460 cd/m² and 725 cd/m² for the above conditions. As a result, readability during the day in the sun should be at a good level. The minimum value is 1.6 cd/m². The reduced brightness level allows you to use the device even in complete darkness without any problems. Automatic brightness adjustment works based on the light sensor (it is located to the left of the front speaker slot). The operation of this function depends on the position of the brightness adjustment slider; with it, the user can try to set the desired brightness level in the current conditions. If in an office environment the brightness slider is set to maximum, then in complete darkness the auto-brightness function reduces the brightness to 6.4 cd/m² (dark), in an office illuminated by artificial light (approximately 550 lux) it sets it to 340 cd/m² (excessively bright) , in a very bright environment (corresponding to lighting on a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or a little more) increases to 545 cd/m² (sufficient). If in complete darkness and in an office environment, use the slider to set the brightness a little higher and lower, then the screen brightness for the three conditions indicated above is as follows: 13, 180, 545 cd/m² (ideal combination). It turns out that the auto-brightness function works adequately and to some extent allows the user to customize their work to individual requirements. At any brightness level there is significant modulation with a frequency of approximately 60 or 240 Hz. The figure below shows brightness (vertical axis) versus time (horizontal axis) for several brightness settings:

It can be seen that at maximum and close to it brightness the modulation amplitude is not very large; as a result, there is no visible flicker. However, as the brightness decreases, modulation appears with a large relative amplitude; its presence can already be seen in a test for the presence of a stroboscopic effect or simply with rapid eye movement. Depending on individual sensitivity, this flickering may cause increased fatigue.

This screen uses a Super AMOLED matrix - an active matrix on organic light-emitting diodes. A full-color image is created using subpixels of three colors - red (R), green (G) and blue (B), but there are twice as many green subpixels, which can be referred to as RGBG. This is confirmed by a fragment of a microphotograph:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

In the fragment above you can count 4 green subpixels, 2 red (4 halves) and 2 blue (1 whole and 4 quarters), and by repeating these fragments, you can lay out the entire screen without breaks or overlap. For such matrices, Samsung introduced the name PenTile RGBG. The manufacturer calculates the screen resolution based on the green subpixels; based on the other two, it will be two times lower. The location and shape of the subpixels in this version is close to the case of the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and some other newer Samsung devices (and not only) with AMOLED screens. This version of PenTile RGBG is better than the old one with red squares, blue rectangles and stripes of green subpixels. However, some unevenness of contrast borders and other artifacts are still present. However, due to the very high resolution, they only have a minimal impact on image quality.

The screen has excellent viewing angles. True, the white color, when deviated even at small angles, alternately acquires a light blue-green and pinkish tint, but the black color remains simply black at any angle. It is so black that the contrast setting is not applicable in this case. For comparison, here are photos in which the screens of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ (profile Basic) and the second comparison participant, identical images were displayed, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to approximately 200 cd/m², and the color balance on the camera was forced to switch to 6500 K.

White field:

We note good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field (with the exception of slight darkening and a change in hue towards the curved edges).

And a test picture (profile Basic):

Color rendition is good, the colors are moderately saturated, the color balance of the screens varies slightly. Recall that photography can not serve as a reliable source of information about color rendering quality and are provided for illustrative purposes only. In particular, the pronounced reddish tint of the white and gray fields present in photographs of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ screen is visually absent when viewed from a perpendicular view, which is confirmed by hardware tests using a spectrophotometer. The reason is that the spectral sensitivity of the camera sensor does not exactly match this characteristic of human vision. Note that in this case, the image occupies the height (at this screen orientation) of the entire area available for image display and extends onto the curved edges of the screen, which leads to darkening and color distortion. Also, in the light, these areas almost always glare, which makes it even more difficult to view images displayed on the entire screen. And even the picture of films with an aspect ratio of 16:9 bends, which greatly interferes with watching movies.

The photo above was taken after selecting a profile Basic in the screen settings, there are four of them:

Profile Adaptive display differs in some kind of automatic adjustment of color rendering to the type of output image and environmental conditions:

Saturation and color contrast are greatly increased, it looks terrible. What happens when you select the two remaining profiles is shown below.

Movie AMOLED:

Saturation and color contrast are also increased, but not as much.

Photo AMOLED:

Saturation is slightly lower, but color contrast is slightly higher than in the case Movie AMOLED.

Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen (profile Basic).

White field:

The brightness at an angle for both screens has noticeably decreased (to avoid strong darkening, the shutter speed has been increased compared to previous photographs), but in the case of Samsung the drop in brightness is much less pronounced. As a result, with formally the same brightness, the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ visually looks much brighter (compared to LCD screens), since you often have to look at the screen of a mobile device from at least a slight angle.

And a test picture:

It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens and the brightness of the Samsung smartphone at an angle is noticeably higher. Switching the state of the matrix elements is performed almost instantly, but at the switching edge there may be a step with a width of approximately 17 ms (which corresponds to a screen refresh rate of 60 Hz). For example, this is what the dependence of brightness on time looks like when moving from black to white and back:

In some conditions, the presence of such a step can lead to plumes trailing behind moving objects. However, dynamic scenes in films on OLED screens are distinguished by high clarity and even some “jerky” movements.

A gamma curve constructed using 32 points with equal intervals based on the numerical value of the shade of gray showed that there is no significant blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.09, which is slightly less than the standard value of 2.2, while the real gamma curve deviates little from the power dependence:

Let us recall that in the case of OLED screens, the brightness of image fragments dynamically changes in accordance with the nature of the displayed image - it decreases for generally light images. As a result, the resulting dependence of brightness on hue (gamma curve) most likely slightly does not correspond to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential display of shades of gray on almost the entire screen.

Color gamut in the case of a profile Adaptive display very wide:

In profile Movie AMOLED coverage is a little narrower:

When selecting a profile Photo AMOLED coverage is adjusted to Adobe RGB boundaries:

When selecting a profile Basic coverage is compressed to sRGB boundaries:

Without correction, the spectra of the components are very well separated:

In case of profile Basic with maximum correction, the color components are already noticeably mixed with each other:

Note that on screens with a wide color gamut, without appropriate correction, the colors of regular images optimized for sRGB devices appear unnaturally saturated. Hence the recommendation - in most cases, watching movies, photographs and everything natural is better when choosing a profile Basic, and only if the photo was taken on an Adobe RGB setting, does it make sense to switch the profile to Photo AMOLED. Profile Movie AMOLED, despite the name, is the least suitable for watching movies or anything else.

The grayscale balance is good. The color temperature is close to 6500 K, while in a significant portion of the gray scale this parameter does not change very much, which improves the visual perception of color balance. The deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) remains below 10 units across most of the gray scale, which is considered good for a consumer device:

(The darkest areas of the gray scale can in most cases be ignored, since color balance there is not very important, and the error in measuring color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

For some reason only when selecting a profile Adaptive display It becomes possible to adjust the color balance by three adjustments of the intensity of the primary colors, but due to the too wide color gamut in this profile there is no point in correcting the balance.

Let's summarize. The screen has a very high maximum brightness and has excellent anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems, even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. It is acceptable to use a mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works adequately. The advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, as well as a color gamut close to sRGB and good color balance. At the same time, let us recall the general advantages of OLED screens: true black color (if nothing is reflected in the screen), a noticeably smaller drop in image brightness than LCDs when viewed at an angle. Disadvantages include modulation of screen brightness. For users who are particularly sensitive to flicker, this may cause increased fatigue. However, overall the screen quality is very high. Separately, we note that from the point of view of image quality, curved edges are only harmful, since this design discovery introduces very noticeable distortions of the color tone and reduces the brightness at the edges of the picture, and in ambient light conditions it leads to inevitable glare along at least one long side of the screen.

Camera

The front 8-megapixel camera does not have its own flash, but it has a fast f/1.7 lens and even supports intelligent autofocus with face detection. As a front-facing flash, you can use the “fill in” bright backlight of the screen directly at the moment of shooting. Naturally, there is a mode for retouching selfie photos. The front camera shoots well for its level, there are no special complaints about detail and sharpness, but it’s hard to say that this camera is in any way better than analogues from Huawei, for example. Not bad, but nothing more.

The main camera uses a 12-megapixel sensor with a pixel size of 1.4 microns, as well as a fast lens with an f/1.7 aperture, an optical stabilization system and Dual Pixel technology, which is designed to provide autofocus so fast that even the sharpest movements can be captured in low light conditions. There is a very bright LED flash.

The camera takes pictures in automatic or manual mode. In manual settings mode, you can adjust shutter speed (from 1/24000 to 10 s), light sensitivity (up to ISO 800), white balance and exposure compensation. There is the possibility of retouching images, support for HDR auto and a selective focus mode for changing the depth of field in the finished image. The camera is also connected to the Bixby intelligent assistant, which should recognize subjects, find places and translate texts from the screen.

Using the Camera2 API, you can transfer camera control to third-party applications. It is also possible to save pictures in RAW.

The camera can shoot video in 4K resolution (3840x2160), but only at 30 fps, and 60 fps is only available in Full HD (1920x1080). There is also a shooting mode in an intermediate resolution of 2560×1440, also at a speed of 30 fps. There is an optical stabilization feature that really makes handheld shooting on the go extremely smooth. In any of the resolutions, the camera copes with video shooting very well: sharpness, color rendition and detail are normal, there is enough brightness, there is no question of artifacts and slowdowns. There are no complaints about sound recording either: the sensitivity of the microphones is high, the sound is clear and loud, and the noise reduction system adequately copes with wind noise.

• Video No. 1 (87 MB, 3840×2160@30 fps, H.264, AAC)
• Video No. 2 (33 MB, 2560×1440@30 fps, H.264, AAC)
• Video No. 3 (28 MB, 1920×1080@60 fps, H.264, AAC)

	Good sharpness across the frame.
	Good detail in the background.
	For indoor shooting, the detail is excellent.
	The camera handles small and complex details well.
	Good detail when shooting at dusk.
	The text was done perfectly.
	The camera copes well with macro photography.
	Good sharpness across the frame and in the plans.
	As the shot is removed, the sharpness drops slowly and smoothly.

We also tested the camera on a laboratory bench using our method.

JPEG	RAW
Lighting ≈3200 lux.
Lighting ≈1400 lux.
Lighting ≈130 lux.
Lighting ≈130 lux, flash.
Lighting<1 люкс, вспышка.

Samsung continues to work on the quality of its cameras. The megapixel race, fortunately, has been forgotten, and now the manufacturer pays more attention to the little things. Even in complex scenes, the camera does not forget about small details, so images look good even in low light. The soapiness is gradually fading away, which means the program’s algorithms have improved. The program has practically stopped “eating” parts, and sharpening is almost invisible. Of course, if you look closely, you can find both, but this is nitpicking.

A laboratory test confirms that the camera has remained virtually unchanged since the previous generation. However, there are differences, they just lie in little things that are difficult for the stand to reflect. For those who like to tinker with photo processing, the manufacturer has made a very good RAW, which in some situations actually allows you to get better results than in-camera JPEG.

In general, the camera turned out to be quite flagship and will cope well with many different scenes.

Telephone and communications

The communication capabilities of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ include support for advanced LTE Cat.16 technology, all three LTE FDD frequency bands of interest to us are supported (Band 3, 7, 20), and there is also support for four TDD LTE bands (Band 38-41). It supports two Wi-Fi bands (2.4 and 5 GHz), has Bluetooth 5.0 LE, and you can organize a wireless access point via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth channels. The developers claim that thanks to support for Wi-Fi 1204-QAM and LTE Cat.16 standards, download speeds compared to previous flagships Samsung Galaxy S7/S7 edge have been increased by 20% both over Wi-Fi and via the mobile Internet. In the city limits of the Moscow region, the device behaves confidently, the quality of signal reception is not satisfactory, the device demonstrates high speeds in the usual test places, and quickly restores communication after a break.

The device has an NFC module, but it does not support working with electronic travel cards. The USB Type-C connector supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode; the corresponding adapter is included in the accessory kit. The data transfer speed between a computer and a smartphone via a cable connected in the case of a PC to the USB 3.1 Type-C ports is about 26 MB/s.

The navigation module works with GPS (with A-GPS), with the domestic Glonass and the Chinese Beidou. During a cold start, the first satellites are detected within the first seconds, positioning clarity is maximum. There is a built-in magnetic compass.

The phone application supports Smart Dial, that is, while dialing a phone number, a search is immediately carried out by the first letters in contacts. In conversational dynamics, the voice of a familiar interlocutor is clearly recognizable, there is no extraneous noise, the sound is natural, clear, and there is enough volume reserve. The vibrating alert is much higher in power than the average level; its intensity can be changed manually.

Software and multimedia

The Samsung Galaxy S8+ uses Android OS version 7.0 Nougat with its own proprietary shell as a software platform. There is a convenient option to quickly transfer all data from your old smartphone to the new Samsung Galaxy S8 or S8+ using the OTG adapter that is included in the package.

First of all, it should be noted that the larger display with a changed aspect ratio and high resolution provides more space for any information, text or graphics, so a lot of attention is paid to the dual-window mode. Not every application here can be made to work in a small window; for this, each has a corresponding icon displayed in the menu of recent open programs. That is, you first need to launch and minimize the application to understand whether it has the ability to work in two-window mode, and then find a second one of the same kind. Not a very simple and intuitive option, but you can get used to it. In addition, the size of such windows can be changed. It is also possible to reduce the entire working area of ​​the screen for ease of operation with the fingers of one hand. We can’t say that this functionality is convenient in practice, since all the elements on the screen become too small, especially the virtual keyboard buttons, but it is possible.

Due to the non-standard aspect ratio of the screen, the video in the player appears with black bars on the sides, but using scaling you can stretch the image to the very edges of the screen. Some games have reported potential display issues, but overall we haven't encountered any issues that can't be resolved.

Another feature of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ screen is the ability to use its curved sides, which are accessible for finger interaction due to the lack of frames. There is nothing new here: as before, you can display an illuminated virtual strip on the side of the screen, which, when pressed, opens a menu responsible for quick contacts and instant access to the most used applications. Also here it becomes possible to select and save any part of the screen with further text recognition.

But of course, the main feature of the software of the new Korean smartphones was the appearance of the Samsung voice assistant - Bixby, which is a direct competitor to both Siri and Google Assistant, which, by the way, remained in place. According to the developers, Bixby will not only be able to answer questions by collecting information on the Internet, but also identify a product using a camera and search for it on Amazon, translate texts in real time, and recognize landmarks. But the functions that will allow you to fully control your smartphone through voice commands are not yet available and will appear later.

As already mentioned, the smartphone camera is connected to the Bixby intelligent assistant, which should recognize shooting objects, find places and translate texts from the screen. True, in practice, for Russian realities, he still manages to do all this with difficulty. Even if the main language of the device is Russian, the program will persistently offer to translate from any other language, but not from Russian. The assistant doesn’t yet know everything about the sights either. At the same time, there were no problems with translation from English into Russian.

There are very few additional programs, and those that exist are mainly represented by a set of Microsoft applications. Of particular note is Game Launcher, a convenient game aggregator that automatically collects all installed gaming applications in one place, and also provides additional functions related to it. For example, it is possible to start recording the gameplay from the screen right during the game, with its further broadcast on the network. You can also use Game Launcher to improve system performance when launching selected games to improve your gaming experience.

To listen to music, only the standard Google Play Music player is provided, supplemented by a powerful set of manual settings and equalizer presets, as well as Adapt sound technology for headphones. The smartphone comes with dual-driver AKG headphones with very good sound quality for their level. But while the sound in the headphones is fine, the main speaker of the smartphone is not so impressive. It produces a rather monotonous and flat sound, without noticeable depth and richness, although there are no complaints about the purity and volume reserve.

Performance

The Samsung Galaxy S8+ hardware platform is built on the Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa SoC with 8 cores in two clusters: 4 Exynos M1 cores with a frequency of up to 2.3 GHz and 4 ARM Cortex-A53 cores with a frequency of up to 1.7 GHz. This SoC is made using the latest 10-nanometer process technology. The Mali-G71 video accelerator with support for the Vulkan graphics API is responsible for graphics processing. The amount of RAM is 4 GB, and the internal memory is 64 GB, of which about 1.6 GB of RAM and 52.5 GB of ROM are initially free.

It is worth noting that traditionally for Samsung, Galaxy devices can be based on different SoCs: in this case, it is Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8895. As always, the issue of supply of one or another modification will depend on the region. The smartphone we received for testing ran on the Samsung Exynos 8895 platform.

Based on the results of all tests without exception, the Samsung Exynos 8895 SoC showed maximum results; this is the most powerful mobile platform of all those we have tested so far. Accordingly, the Samsung Galaxy S8+ is one of the most powerful modern smartphones, and it has a significant performance reserve for future updates. The smartphone confidently copes with any tasks in real scenarios, and thanks to a powerful video accelerator, it performs well in the most demanding games. These videos recording gameplay in Modern Combat 5 and Mortal Kombat X were recorded using the built-in means of the smartphone itself using the Game Launcher application.

Testing in comprehensive tests AnTuTu and GeekBench:

For convenience, we have compiled all the results we obtained when testing the smartphone in the latest versions of popular benchmarks into tables. The table usually adds several other devices from different segments, also tested on similar latest versions of benchmarks (this is done only for a visual assessment of the obtained dry figures). Unfortunately, within the framework of one comparison it is impossible to present the results from different versions of benchmarks, so many worthy and relevant models remain “behind the scenes” - due to the fact that they once passed the “obstacle course” on previous versions of test programs.

Testing the graphics subsystem in gaming tests 3DMark, GFXBenchmark and Bonsai Benchmark:

When testing in 3DMark, the most powerful smartphones now have the ability to run the application in Unlimited mode, where the rendering resolution is fixed at 720p and VSync is disabled (which can cause the speed to rise above 60 fps).

	Samsung Galaxy S8+ (Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa)	LG G6 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 821)	Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe (Qualcomm Snapdragon 820)	Honor 8 Pro (HiSilicon Kirin 960)	Meizu Pro 6 Plus (Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa)
3DMark Ice Storm Sling Shot ES 3.1 (more is better)	2628	2409	2676	1417	1869
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (Onscreen, fps)	19	12	31	18	13
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen, fps)	36	24	32	21	24
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (Onscreen, fps)	57	38	59	46	52
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (1080p Offscreen, fps)	103	61	92	57	71

Browser cross-platform tests:

As for benchmarks for assessing the speed of the javascript engine, you should always make allowance for the fact that their results significantly depend on the browser in which they are launched, so the comparison can only be truly correct on the same OS and browsers, and this is possible during testing not always. For Android OS, we always try to use Google Chrome.

Playing video

To test the omnivorous nature of video playback (including support for various codecs, containers and special features, such as subtitles), we used the most common formats, which make up the bulk of the content available on the Internet. Note that for mobile devices it is important to have support for hardware video decoding at the chip level, since it is most often impossible to process modern options using processor cores alone. Also, you shouldn’t expect a mobile device to decode everything, since the leadership in flexibility belongs to the PC, and no one is going to challenge it. All results are summarized in a table.

According to the testing results, to our surprise, this was a rare case when the standard player does not reproduce AC3 sound, but the third-party MX Player successfully copes with all test files without exception.

Further testing of video playback was performed Alexey Kudryavtsev.

We were unable to check the theoretically possible support for adapters for outputting images to an external device due to the lack of an adapter option that connects to the USB Type-C port, so we had to limit ourselves to testing the output of video files to the screen of the device itself. To do this, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see “Method for testing video playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices) Red marks indicate possible problems associated with the playback of the corresponding files.

According to the criterion of frame output, the quality of playback of video files on the screen of the device itself is very good, since frames (or groups of frames) can be output with more or less uniform alternation of intervals and without skipping frames. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 (1080p) on a smartphone screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the narrow border of the screen, extending to the bends. The picture clarity is high, but not ideal, since there is no escape from interpolation to the screen resolution. However, for the sake of experimentation, you can switch to the one-to-one mode by pixel; there will be no interpolation, but the features of PenTile will appear - the vertical world through the pixel will be in a grid, and the horizontal one will be slightly greenish. The latter is true for test worlds; the described artifacts are absent in real frames. The brightness range displayed on the screen actually corresponds to the standard range of 16-235: in the shadows only a couple of shades merge with black, but in the highlights all gradations of shades are displayed. Note that in the region of the darkest shades on the gray scale, variation in color tone is noticeable.

Battery life

The non-removable battery installed in the Samsung Galaxy S8+ has a capacity of 3500 mAh (for the regular Galaxy S8 this value is 3000 mAh). The new Korean device demonstrates very decent results in autonomy; this level is clearly above average, although far from records. In real use scenarios under normal average operating conditions, the hero of the review is quite capable of lasting a whole day without recharging, but this cannot be done without daily overnight charging.

	Samsung Galaxy S8+ (Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa)	LG G6 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 821)	Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe (Qualcomm Snapdragon 820)	Honor 8 Pro (HiSilicon Kirin 960)	Meizu Pro 6 Plus (Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa)
Mozilla Kraken (ms, less is better)	2535	2494	2931	3139	13047
Google Octane 2 (more is better)	9905	10036	9287	10155	3116
SunSpider (ms, less is better)

Testing has traditionally been done at normal power consumption levels without using power-saving features. In the settings of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ you can find operating modes from high-performance to economical, the choice of which will affect many things, including brightness and even screen resolution.

Continuous reading in the Moon+ Reader program (with a standard, light theme) at a minimum comfortable brightness level (brightness was set to 100 cd/m²) with auto-scrolling lasted 21.5 hours until the battery was completely discharged, and when continuously watching videos in high quality (720p ) with the same brightness level via a home Wi-Fi network, the device operates for up to 14.5 hours. In 3D gaming mode, the smartphone can work for more than 5 hours.

The smartphone should support fast charging, but we were not able to test this because at the time of writing the review, there was no AC adapter included with the test unit. However, from a conventional charger (5 V 2 A) the device charges quite quickly, within about an hour and a half with a current of 1.75 A at a voltage of 5 V. Wireless charging (WPC and PMA) is also supported.

Bottom line

Prices for the Russian market are as follows: On April 28, the Galaxy S8 and S8+ smartphones went on sale in Russia at a recommended retail price of 54,990 and 59,990, respectively. It is not entirely clear why the difference in the cost of devices that are identical in functionality with a slight difference only in the size of the display and battery is as much as 5 thousand. Be that as it may, in the case of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ for 60 thousand, the manufacturer offers one of the best smartphones in many respects, including camera quality, hardware platform performance and very advanced communication capabilities, in an attractive and very unusual case, as well as with a lot of additional functions, many of which, however, were also available in previous models of the series.

At the same time, it cannot be said that the smartphone has become some kind of breakthrough, a new word in the creation of mobile devices and is completely devoid of disadvantages. The single main camera, although it is one of the best on the market, still looks rather strange against the background of the general movement towards increasing the number of modules. We also cannot praise the sound of the main speaker: in terms of sound, the device is clearly inferior to the flagship smartphones of Apple and Huawei. The decision to move the fingerprint scanner to the back side, and even to such an unsuccessfully chosen place, was also very questionable. Well, we can’t help but recall the recent problems with the batteries of Samsung mobile devices catching fire, against the backdrop of which users may now be wary of immediately paying the very high price that the manufacturer asked for its new mobile products. And yet, interest in the flagship devices of the Korean company has not weakened, this is clear. Even those who had no intention of shelling out 60 thousand rubles for a smartphone are now eagerly discussing its capabilities on the Internet. However, something during the testing process remained undisclosed for us, since we did not have the final commercial sample in our hands. Most likely, we are still waiting, at a minimum, to meet with the Bixby assistant, which has been brought to life, as well as with camera firmware updates, which may well expand its already remarkable capabilities.

In conclusion, we suggest watching our video review of the Samsung Galaxy S8+ smartphone:

We also suggest watching our video review comparing the Samsung Galaxy S8+ and Galaxy S7 Edge smartphones:

A smartphone for 55 thousand rubles, which earns every ruble - and is worth every tear of Tim Cook.

To appreciate the coolness of the Galaxy S8, pick it up. Take it quickly. Forget about prejudices and your attitude towards Android. And forget about the iPhone.

Here I am holding the Galaxy S8 in my hands. I would like to treat him calmly, even skeptically, but I can’t. On the contrary, you constantly catch yourself delighted: wow, it fits in one hand, but its screen is larger than the iPhone 7 Plus (5.8 inches versus 5.5 inches). There is both water protection and a headphone jack.

What seems impossible to us on an iPhone works here.

The eighth “galaxy” has actually been brought to perfection. Even phantom clicks on curved edges of the screen have been resolved! If such a smartphone had been shown to me three years ago, I would not have believed it.

How is it possible for one thin device to fit so much advanced hardware with such a large battery? The answer is simple: courage and real innovation. And not emoticons and “forstachi”.

We have the Galaxy S8, and there is also a version of the Galaxy S8+ - a larger version with a slightly larger battery and screen. Opinions are divided: I like the Galaxy S8 better, while my colleague Mikk Sid likes the larger version – the Galaxy S8+. But I’m writing this article, so I’ll continue to talk exclusively about the standard version of the Galaxy S8.

Design and ergonomics. Pros, pros, no cons

In short: I don’t want to buy an iPhone after the Galaxy S8.

Other devices seem outdated, the cases are ugly. The impression from the G8 is the same as it once was from the first iPhone. Although in essence it is just a smartphone, nothing surprising.

I've been using iPhone Plus for two years and have gotten used to the two-handed nature of my smartphone. I’ve already forgotten what it’s like: you take it with one hand and you can open applications with one thumb, reach the far corners and respond in the messenger. That's good!

That's exactly what the Galaxy S8 does | The S8+ is unique among Samsung Galaxy smartphones: it's a big smartphone in a small body. With the advantages of “phablets”, but fits in the palm of your hand.

Galaxy S8 | The S8+ actually continues the design of previous generations of the Galaxy S series - with two big BUTs. Firstly, abandoned buttons on the front panel. Secondly, we expanded the display matrix in all directions without changing the dimensions of the smartphone.

The result is a stunning curved screen on both sides with minimal bezels at the top and bottom. Shocks anyone when they first meet them, regardless of their prejudices. This is really cool, and there are no other words for it.

The S8's display is very bright, contrasty, and sharp. Black colors are in fact black, an iPhone can only envy this. Thanks to SuperAMOLED, one of the signature features of the latest Galaxy is implemented: always active screen, even after blocking, where all notifications and time are visible. Until you try it, you won’t understand how convenient it is to be in the know without picking up your phone.

You can fully appreciate the screen in photography mode, when viewing photos taken and, of course, in games and videos. The picture almost floats in the air - it seems as if you are holding one display in your hands. I hope that the photos in the article will convey this awesome effect.

But if not, just go to the nearest large hypermarket and take a look in person, it’s worth it.

Does a large curved screen provide real benefits in life? It’s a question of emotions – but also of utility. Samsung has added a traditional Edge widget with shortcuts to the right side, plus quick access to your favorite contacts.

The enlarged screen itself is, of course, a bomb. More information on a smartphone with the same body size is a net profit for any user. You scroll less, you see more, you can more boldly include larger text sizes.

There is not a single real minus. Therefore, large screens will definitely come to all normal smartphones one day.

Productivity and Android. When it works faster than an iPhone

I looked at various tests here before I picked up my Galaxy S8. Allegedly, the iPhone 7 is still faster than it.

Only in real life I noticed exactly the opposite. I work faster with Galaxy S8. And noticeably faster.

Firstly, all my applications load faster on the Galaxy S8 than on the iPhone 7. Slack, Skype, Facebook Messenger, Chrome, YouTube, banking and taxi applications, maps and navigators are installed - about 20 programs in total. They start earlier and allow you to type and enter commands faster.

Secondly, it turns out to work more cheerfully because of the bells and whistles TouchWiz And Android. You get used to quick access to all programs through the curtain, Edge shortcuts, a normally working and really smart assistant.

And here you can leave windows of different applications running on the same screen and use them simultaneously - convenient for copy-pasting and working with docks.

Third, Android itself allows you to configure the system exactly the way you want. And I’m not talking about visual bells and whistles, such as shells, but about the logic of the system and hardware. You run the Android world, which is refreshing after Apple's closed garden.

Last week I wanted to program two NFC tags. The iPhone can't do this because Apple doesn't give users access to the NFC module. And the Galaxy S8 coped with an application downloaded directly from Google Play in a couple of seconds.

It got me thinking: unlike the iPhone, buying an Android flagship gives us full access to all the hardware in the device, allowing us to manage everything and everyone, getting the most out of the money spent. This, among dozens of other reasons, justifies spending 50 thousand rubles on the Galaxy S8.

With such performance and sophistication, switching to the S8 turned out to be a matter of one day. The programs were downloaded from the store in 10 minutes, the settings were set in another 2 minutes. During the day I got used to the new shortcuts.

I didn’t notice any “Android” horror stories; rather, on the contrary, every year TouchWiz and Android itself move further and further away from iOS, which is drowned in emoticons and Chinese-oriented.

Camera. Without the second one it’s no worse, which is funny

The Galaxy S8 has the same main camera as the Galaxy S7 edge and Note7. 12 megapixels, f/1.7 aperture – purely in terms of parameters, it differs little from the iPhone 7 Plus, except that the aperture is slightly better. The lack of a hardware upgrade is not upsetting here: firstly, the software has been updated; secondly, Samsung even then had a killer camera, and it can’t be changed for another year.

What’s funny is that even with last year’s camera, the Galaxy S8 takes better pictures than the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. Not always, I agree, but often. I noticed that the Samsung takes great photos of nature - lively, bright, and not boring gray-exposed or bluish, as my iPhone likes to draw.

Pleased with the availability PRO mode in the cell. For me this is generally a must have. After all, you can control all shooting parameters: accurately set white balance, set aperture and shutter speed, ISO and focus points.

And you can save as RAW! And then pull these photos into Photoshop, even if they were taken in terrible lighting or with the white balance off. Everything is in a standard camera, unlike the iPhone.

Frontal The camera has been greatly updated. Firstly, it is now 8 megapixels. Secondly, it has autofocus, which is extremely rare for a front camera. And it became better at shooting in the dark thanks to the f/1.7 aperture. We made a separate article about this, as well as about the Samsung Galaxy S8 cameras in general – both about the front and the main ones.

Personally, this is what surprised me. See these 2 photos:

One was made with a smartphone with 2 cameras, the other with one camera, and actually from 2016. Personally, in the end I liked the photo from the Samsung better. In which there is also a real blur.

This is some food for thought for you. There’s so much hype around the second camera of the seventh iPhone, but here it’s a blast – and there’s not much of a difference.

Not everything is good, but nothing is bad

Much has already been said about the fingerprint sensor, which was forced to climb over to the side of the camera. But I've never used it yet.

I've had enough unlock with a glance– this is one of the features of modern Galaxy, and it simply rules. Now the iPhone lacks something like this, you can’t imagine. You take the phone, turn it in your direction, and use it. And no passwords.

The transfer of the central button forced Samsung to make its virtual analogue. It almost always displays and understands when you press hard on it, a la 3D Touch. Along with the navigation bar, this button disappears in full-screen mode.

I'm not a fan of virtual keys, but they are the future. And I never missed the button; it was almost never needed with the abundance of gestures and Android software bells and whistles.