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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  • AnonD-270570
  • rKw
  • 27 Apr 2017

Anonymous, 26 Apr 2017Displaymate has me covered. S8 in colours, Mi Mix in aspect... moreRead gsmarena display reviews for both phones, display is the weak point of mi mix while S8 has the best display ever in a smartphone.

    • D
    • AnonD-270570
    • rKw
    • 27 Apr 2017

    Anonymous, 26 Apr 2017Do you even read at this point? Retina is any screen with c... moreApple, Steve Jobs, Tim Cook are no one to define a display technology, Retina display is a marketing term and just because Steve Jobs said so, it won't become a technological term. Retina is the lens of eye. AMOLED means Active Matrix Light emitting diode display. LCD is liquid crystal display which was popular in TVs before LEDs, Retina display is a marketing term used by Apple for its IPS LCD outdated display. If someone tried to fool people that our sharper displays have Retina display then they won't become any better, they'll stay what they are.

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      • AnonD-611493
      • 4Df
      • 26 Apr 2017

      I'm so loving this... but sad to see all you kids throwing your good money to $ammy, again. All for another trashy so called Smartphone.
      Ok, so we're up to want 7 or 8 reasons to NOT BUY A S8 or S8+ ....Glass, don't drop so very good, Red hues in the screens, Bixby took an extended vacation....
      Dumb Clueless Cluckers !!
      Oh well, after all it's only Money !!

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        • Anonymous
        • 8AT
        • 26 Apr 2017

        Is the blue coral option available?

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          • Anonymous
          • 6jq
          • 26 Apr 2017

          AnonD-270570, 26 Apr 2017So which display is better MI mix or S8? Displaymate has me covered. S8 in colours, Mi Mix in aspect ratio (least black bars) and resolution (much better game performance at native resolution).

          S8 is a little sharper btw (not by much since its subpixel arrangement allows for fewer subpixels) when running at its native resolution. But few keep their phone closer than 8 inches (where you actually appreciate the difference)

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            • Anonymous
            • 6jq
            • 26 Apr 2017

            AnonD-270570, 26 Apr 2017Retina amoled? K go home.. LolDo you even read at this point? Retina is any screen with certain characteristics.

            Any screen can be retina, if you actually bothered to watch 2010's Apple conference (you didn't ) you would see that the term was meant for any screen that could be as sharp as iphone 4's. Apple though they would have "retina monopoly" for years ... they were wrong, by late next year we got the first 720P phones which brought the retina quality to androids.

            So yes! Retina amoled, which as opposed to retina IPS needs to be 1080p not 720P due to the lower subpixel count.

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              • AnonD-270570
              • U@b
              • 26 Apr 2017

              Anonymous, 26 Apr 2017As for the two screens in question. They're very much alik... moreSo which display is better MI mix or S8?

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                • AnonD-270570
                • U@b
                • 26 Apr 2017

                Anonymous, 26 Apr 2017Yes! That's exactly what I was writing if you had bothered ... moreRetina amoled? K go home.. Lol

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                  • Anonymous
                  • 6jq
                  • 26 Apr 2017

                  AnonD-270570, 26 Apr 2017So samsung, LG and Sony phones also have retina display acc... moreAs for the two screens in question. They're very much alike for a 20/20 person "detail wise". Color wise the Samsung is better. So already S4's resolution was more than good enough, where it needed a boost was the colors and (in fact) brightness, which is why the S8 is the best screen.

                  Also S8's screen is nowhere near, it's almost 3k in fact (QHD+). 2k means that your "big" resolution is in the ballpark of 2000, so not 2100, nor 1900. The film standard define 2048x1080 as "2k" (and 4096x2016 as "4k"). The widescreen (16:9) equivalent to 2k is 1080p (same amount of vertical pixels). So the S4/S5 screens are the closest Samsung ever did to having 2k phones. In fact the only phone to actually have a 2k screen is the Xiaomi Mi Mix as its 2080x1080 panel is pretty much equivalent to the specification.

                  Pretty much why Samsung should have gone for 17:9 too for their bezeless design, it would allow them to use film standard resolutions (2k, 4k) which would be useful for the movie apps as well as VR (if they were to use 4k).

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                    • Anonymous
                    • 6jq
                    • 26 Apr 2017

                    AnonD-270570, 26 Apr 2017So samsung, LG and Sony phones also have retina display acc... moreYes! That's exactly what I was writing if you had bothered to read my post (S4 was the first retina amoled), you only got triggered because you fail(ed) to read the context of my post, in that sense we're both paying your sin.

                    Also it's not just me, it's the general view that any screen can be retina, there are even websites dedicated in that: http://isthisretina.com/

                    The word is merely a handle to refer to an important phone concept! Again, where you living under a rock?

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                      • AnonD-270570
                      • U@b
                      • 26 Apr 2017

                      Anonymous, 25 Apr 2017Jobs' literal quote: "It turns out there’s a magic numbe... moreSo samsung, LG and Sony phones also have retina display according to your theory? And what's a better display the super amoled 570ppi 2k HDR10 display on Galaxy S8 or the 326ppi partial HD display on iPhone 7?

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                        • Anonymous
                        • XNk
                        • 26 Apr 2017

                        battery life not as i expected

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                          • Anonymous
                          • Py%
                          • 25 Apr 2017

                          Aspros, 25 Apr 2017I am not sure if you are a hater or jusy clueless, but why ... moreLet me check. One plus/iPhone performance. Pixel camera. Bigger Pixels​ display(same as s7) and no background reloading​. Also no worries of back glass cracking in op3. Also op3 was not on invite and have you already seen op5 to comment on it

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                            • Anonymous
                            • 6jq
                            • 25 Apr 2017

                            AnonD-270570, 25 Apr 2017Are you defining your own meaning of Retina display? Jobs' literal quote:

                            "It turns out there’s a magic number right around 300 pixels per inch, that when you hold something around to 10 to 12 inches away from your eyes, is the limit of the human retina to differentiate the pixels."

                            It was later clarified further that Jobs meant 20/20 vision because the limit of 40/20 vision is about 2 times that at that distance.

                            You must be living under a rock to not know *any* of this and only know the source of the term (without actually knowing what it is defined to mean).

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                              • AnonD-270570
                              • U@b
                              • 25 Apr 2017

                              Anonymous, 24 Apr 2017No it means exactly what it was defined to mean "the type o... moreAre you defining your own meaning of Retina display?

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                                • Anonymous
                                • p%t
                                • 25 Apr 2017

                                Moi, 22 Apr 2017And again, as in the s8+ review, it looks you deliberately... moreYes, still only 240fps

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                                  • Anonymous
                                  • pBC
                                  • 25 Apr 2017

                                  Anonymous, 25 Apr 2017i'm wating for the drop test. at least give us some informa... moreYou've got plenty of them on YouTube.
                                  Unsurprisingly, this phone needs a case or very good care.

                                    Anonymous, 25 Apr 2017i'm wating for the drop test. at least give us some informa... moreFYI GsmArena doesn't do drop tests.

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                                      • Anonymous
                                      • 9xx
                                      • 25 Apr 2017

                                      i'm wating for the drop test. at least give us some information about how fragile is this phone.
                                      meh. i'm sure you won't do it, dear gsmarena.

                                        • M
                                        • Mumbai-Indians
                                        • fCR
                                        • 25 Apr 2017

                                        Gsmarena - Awaiting for battery endurance test.

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