Samsung Galaxy S8 review: Essence distilled

21 April 2017
When 5 inches is the de-facto standard for a compact Android handset, yet you want to prove that more is always better, what do you do? If you're Samsung, you make a 5.8-inch phone that's as compact as a 5-incher.

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Robbie, 22 Apr 2017Should be able to. May need a rinse afterDon't tell Samsung this. LG officially says G6 is ok with salt water. No Galaxy S claims salt water trust me.

    AlienNextDoor, 23 Apr 2017Yes you can use the S7 and S8 in salt water. I wouldn't rec... moreI was ready to buy S8 before the official release where realised it's S7 camera. Also I can't find it under 720$. I'm sorry but I prefer slower starting camera but better. Worse battery life and 821 for 150$ less. Also don't care it's gorilla glass 3 because I always put tempered glass anyways. Fixable. Fixable is not the word for S8's main camera you can't just change it with P10 Plus's or G6's better sensors and fix it.

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      • AnonD-521587
      • kcM
      • 23 Apr 2017

      funny how samsung s8 now comes with 1080p enabled where are all the samsung fanboys complaining about 1080p on other phones.

      the battery life on the s8 is only good for this reason but if samsung actually delivered the quad HD the battery life and performance would be sad.

      also no real change from the s7. Im unimpressed samsung.

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        • Anonymous
        • U}}
        • 23 Apr 2017

        XtremE16, 22 Apr 2017Lol...Guys Check out this video.... Samsung Galaxy S8+ v... moreWhat will you do with world fastest phone?

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          • Anonymous
          • 6jq
          • 23 Apr 2017

          AlienNextDoor, 22 Apr 2017Also taller, wider, heavier, not water resistant, ips inste... moreHaha so many lies:

          First of it's shorter.
          Secondly it's almost the same width (the device) despite having a wider screen (easier to type in)
          MIUI has as many spyware as run of the mill android. This is an unbased libel (3rd lie)
          Bigger battery (3350 vs 3000 mah). 4th lie

          And now to the inaccuracies.

          1080p RGB has almost the same amount of subpixels as QHD pentile. Also performs better in games despite being (in practice) equally sharp.

          It uses a dual camera support. Xiaomi flagships actually have great cameras (Mi 4 had better than S5) and first reviews show a better camera quality specially given than Samsung galaxy is losing the camera race.

          What's technically true but irrelevant:

          Waterproof. Xiaomi flagships are splash proof for ages. Meaning that you can still talk under the rain, no you cannot take it with you when scuba diving, but Samsung recommends you not to do so with S8 either.

          MicroSD: 128gb nand beats that option, also is faster. 97% of the population don't need more than 128gb to a phone, if you belong to the 3% that does need more buy an S8.

          Xiaomi gives usb-c to 3.5mm headphone jack adapter. The headphone jack is redundant and is time t die. Another great innovation from Xiaomi.

          SoC is basically the same no matter whether you buy the snapdragon or the exynos version of S8. The two have almost identical performance in practice, this year 'round. Samsung slacked off and produced an exynos very similar to last year's that's why. Don't expect miracles. Barring games SoC plays very little role at this point anyway.

          Only things that are true *and* relevant.

          Amoled *crashes* IPS in colour accuracy and quality.
          But equally true is that S8's fingertip sensor is practically useless (where it's at), Mi6's isn't.

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            • Anonymous
            • 6jq
            • 23 Apr 2017

            Nick.B, 22 Apr 2017I use it mainly for taking pictures 821 soc is good enough... moreG5 has faaar better battery (can carry spare)
            Almost equally good camera, basically.
            SD820 and 4GB of RAM, which is pretty much the G6 internals (2% difference in performance or sth).

            Comes with marshmallow which allows xposed support (for those into it)
            If something bad happens to the battery you don't break the bank to fix it.
            Instant recharge (pop a spare)
            IR
            Wider screen in portrait mode, easier to type in.

            What you lose:
            Waterproofing, that's it (I would had added "looks" but a good looking case fixes that for G5)

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              • AnonD-585282
              • GXp
              • 23 Apr 2017

              AlienNextDoor, 22 Apr 2017Bootlooping. Last year's soc. Bad battery life. No more ... moreHope you won't mind if I call S8 as an explosive device. Because you seem to know of a bootlooping G6.
              It's already too late to get smart since you were dumb enough to call all LG phones as bootlooping. So don't worry, since we no longer need proofs for those, I guess I'll choose bootlooping phone over the most beautiful B O M B in the world as a phone... Buahahahaha.

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                • AlienNextDoor
                • JK1
                • 23 Apr 2017

                Nick.B, 22 Apr 2017can you take your s8 to salted water ? (read sea water). be... moreYes you can use the S7 and S8 in salt water. I wouldn't recommend using any phone in water though. Phones are water resistant, not water proof.

                Exynos 8890 from S7 is better than even SD 835, so why use SD 821? Because you like old Gorilla Glass 3? Because you like weird aspect ratios? Because you like a worse camera? Yes it's worse, it's 1/3, that's much smaller than S7's 1/2.5. It also fires up really slow, check out pocketnow's coverage on that. Or maybe you like worse battery performance?

                No wait. I know. You like bootlooping!!!

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                  • Droid
                  • CAj
                  • 22 Apr 2017

                  Lg sony htc oneplus huawei and iphone fans please if you think yours brands are better than samsung it your choices so leave samsung topics and please ruin samsung reputation on theirs topics. YOu forgot something. people buying samsung products (+100M mobiles sold) don't care you opinions and comments. So keep cool haters!!

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                    • Robbie
                    • n5u
                    • 22 Apr 2017

                    Nick.B, 22 Apr 2017can you take your s8 to salted water ? (read sea water). be... moreShould be able to. May need a rinse after

                      Would mind posting Web browsing battery life? It seems that the SoC has excellent efficiency according to a reputable website

                        Nick.B, 22 Apr 2017can you take your s8 to salted water ? (read sea water). be... moreNo i won't take a $900 phone into sea or any other water body no matter what kind of IP certification it has. Waterproofing is there to avoid accidents and not to adventure. Even the manufacturers advice you to not to do so.

                          AlienNextDoor, 22 Apr 20171. Yes you can go back. I had the Note 4. Loved everything ... moreYes i went back to iPhone 5s after using Note 2 for two years and after few months with iPhone 5s, i missed the big screen experience(watching videos and typing on that cramped keyboard of 5s for example made me miss the extra real estate the note 2's 5.5" screen provided) i got from my Note 2 and finally i started using phones with 5"+ screens. Now i am happy with my S6E and i am planning to buy the next Note. 5.5"-5.7" screens are okay if bezels are less but i too accept that more than that(5.7") will be too much. Edge's glare never troubled me really. Other than the lack of screen guards for edge version i didn't face any kind of issues you mentioned.

                            AlienNextDoor, 22 Apr 2017Bootlooping. Last year's soc. Bad battery life. No more ... morecan you take your s8 to salted water ? (read sea water). because g6 is salted water trouble free. official.
                            camera is better than s8 and p10 yet g6 is cheaper than both. p10 even no waterproof
                            win for me. don't need 835 soc I prefer best camera + 821 for 150$ less than 835 + 1.5 year old camera for 150$ more

                              AlienNextDoor, 22 Apr 2017Bootlooping. Last year's soc. Bad battery life. No more ... moreI use it mainly for taking pictures
                              821 soc is good enough. 835 first benchmarks only prooves it's not big improvement as they claimed
                              battery life is not so bad
                              don't forget samsung pay a lot of reviewers. not from yesterday. just saying.

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                                • AlienNextDoor
                                • JK1
                                • 22 Apr 2017

                                Nick.B, 22 Apr 2017g6 and s8 new, bought for re-sale re-sale prices usa 470$ ... moreBootlooping. Last year's soc. Bad battery life.

                                No more words to add.

                                  Someone Else, 22 Apr 2017...If I understand you correctly, you're telling us that ... moreyes I can give a link
                                  I guess lg g6 on contract is 100-170$ cheaper than s8 on same contract both in usa
                                  that's why re-sale price of brand new g6 is around 150$ less
                                  whatever
                                  All my friends from all the functions of their smartphones they use on 1st place the camera, and now samsung say "s7 camera is good enough"
                                  samsung forgot we are in 2017 year not 2016 and s7 camera is not good enough especially for MSRP 900$ on contract 700$ phone

                                    Nick.B, 22 Apr 20172nd hand lg g6 means brand new lg g6 bought only for re-sal... more...If I understand you correctly, you're telling us that

                                    1. The price of a USED $750 LG G6 is $470
                                    **but**
                                    2. The price of a USED $750 Galaxy S8.... is $720....

                                    Nice story bro. Keep it up!

                                      Someone Else, 22 Apr 2017Did... did you just compared the price of a USED phone to a... more2nd hand lg g6 means brand new lg g6 bought only for re-sale. Never used. Still with plastics.
                                      470$
                                      720$ is galaxy s8 in the same situation - bought for re-sale
                                      that's re-sale prices for both brand new devices full box accesories everything
                                      please samsung go shoot yourself with such prices for february 2016 camera in S8
                                      Even P9 has better camera in some shooting situations. 200$ phone. New much less than MSRP 900$ S8

                                        AlienNextDoor, 22 Apr 2017Comparing a second hand phone to a new one? What??? Also... moreg6 and s8 new, bought for re-sale
                                        re-sale prices usa 470$ brand new lg g6, 720$ s8
                                        no more words to add

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