Phones Samsung Galaxy S8

[MRU]

GPU looks like it's going to be an absolute beast. Whether Mali have decent drivers for them is another question but I wonder if it will rule this year in terms of raw power.

But really what does it matter ? No one outside of benchmarking is really pushing GPUs as is. Twitter & Tapatalk aren't going to feel snappier. Even the most taxing android games are not really taxing 2015 flagship gpu's let alone 2017 ones. It's a great thing to say 2 X more powerful GPU, but the real impact that has on 99% of end users is mostly negligible if they have a flagship as is.

People want bigger, faster machines but are still fundamentally trundling along at 30kmph ...

 

[noobinator]

I'm on T-Mobile and want to purchase the S8 Plus as soon as it comes out (or as quick as possible). In previous years (S6, S7 Edge) I've purchased day one from T-Mobile and got the Snapdragon variant. This year I want to get the Exynos variant. I'm well aware of the possible shortcomings on T-Mobile using the international version.

My question is, what is the best and quickest way to get the international version when this phone is released? Is there a good website to Pre-Order the international version for someone in the US? Previously I had used Expansys USA to pre-order some international phones but they are no longer in business. And is anyone else planning on the international version?

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

Noticed that too. Should be interesting.

Also, those devices look way bigger/longer than the S7 and edge.

I think that's a business card sitting on top of the devices. They look relatively small to me considering screen sizes. I believe the leaked specs have the S8 at right about the same size as S7.

 

[noobinator]

This is what I found when comparing the dimensions of the S8 Plus and S7 Edge:

S8 Plus 152.4 x 78.5 x 7.9 mm (6.00 x 3.09 x 0.31 in)
S7 Edge 150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm (5.94 x 2.86 x 0.30 in)

So a bit taller, a lot wider, and a bit thicker.

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

The 5.8" S8, though, is only slightly wider, not as tall, and thinner. According to the leaked specs, if they're accurate.

S8 140.14 x 72.20 x 7.30 mm
S7 142.4 X 69.6 X 7.9 mm

 

[Fireblade]

Hmm what dimensions will they finally have?

https://twitter.com/OnLeaks/status/828865886362693633

 

[noobinator]

Hmm what dimensions will they finally have?

https://twitter.com/OnLeaks/status/828865886362693633

Wow much different than what I found. I guess no one really knows for sure yet.

 

[Lloydbm41]

But really what does it matter ? No one outside of benchmarking is really pushing GPUs as is. Twitter & Tapatalk aren't going to feel snappier. Even the most taxing android games are not really taxing 2015 flagship gpu's let alone 2017 ones. It's a great thing to say 2 X more powerful GPU, but the real impact that has on 99% of end users is mostly negligible if they have a flagship as is.

People want bigger, faster machines but are still fundamentally trundling along at 30kmph ...

The CPU and modem matter this year. They will allow for up to 1gb download speeds. We are hitting the 5g capability era (at least in the US, this goes into effect this year.)

 

[Dave245]

I honestly think if Samsung got rid of all the bloat ware, improved in Touchwiz massively and only used their own Os with regular updates, they would be serious competition for Apple. Even as an Apple guy I have to admit that there designs have got a lot better over the last few years.

 

[epicrayban]

This is what I found when comparing the dimensions of the S8 Plus and S7 Edge:

S8 Plus 152.4 x 78.5 x 7.9 mm (6.00 x 3.09 x 0.31 in)
S7 Edge 150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm (5.94 x 2.86 x 0.30 in)

So a bit taller, a lot wider, and a bit thicker.

The 5.8" S8, though, is only slightly wider, not as tall, and thinner. According to the leaked specs, if they're accurate.

S8 140.14 x 72.20 x 7.30 mm
S7 142.4 X 69.6 X 7.9 mm

Height and thickness isn't a big deal, but the wider footprint sort of sucks. I'll definitely be choosing the smaller of the two.

 

[MRU]

The CPU and modem matter this year. They will allow for up to 1gb download speeds. We are hitting the 5g capability era (at least in the US, this goes into effect this year.)

God knows when Ireland will ever have those speeds .... 2020 maybe ....

 

[grkm3]

I honestly think if Samsung got rid of all the bloat ware, improved in Touchwiz massively and only used their own Os with regular updates, they would be serious competition for Apple. Even as an Apple guy I have to admit that there designs have got a lot better over the last few years.

simple answer is they did.the gs7 is as fast or faster then an iPhone 7 plus with latest TouchWiz.

 

[epicrayban]

simple answer is they did.the gs7 is as fast or faster then an iPhone 7 plus with latest TouchWiz.

Honestly, I've been using my newly acquired iPhone 6S and I sincerely do not see what the big fuss is over iOS being "faster" and "smoother." I honestly think my experience with the Pixel was faster and smoother.

The differences are so slight now that it's hardly a factor. Especially more so when you factor in how much slower navigating around the iPhone is generally (lack of consistent back navigation alone is a huge contributing factor to this. Scrolling in Safari is also painful). iOS being more stable is another often brought up point, and that too is not just overblown, but downright wrong in my experience. I can remember apps crashing with my iPhones; I sincerely cannot remember a time when an app crashed on me the entire 10 months or so that I had the S7E.

Anyway, by this stage, people will keep believing whatever they want to believe about TouchWiz based off what they used to know about it. Meanwhile, in reality, Samsung has done nothing but continuously improve, slim down, optimize TouchWiz with each flagship iteration. I suspect it'll be no different with the S8 and TouchWiz (on top of Nougat).

 

[Michael Goff]

The CPU and modem matter this year. They will allow for up to 1gb download speeds. We are hitting the 5g capability era (at least in the US, this goes into effect this year.)

Do you honestly think anyone is going to really get 1gb download speeds in the real world?

 

[The Game 161]

simple answer is they did.the gs7 is as fast or faster then an iPhone 7 plus with latest TouchWiz.

Nah

the S7 edge was certainly slower than my current 7 plus. Performance and lag is the big reason why I stick with the iphone. Wish this wasn't the case as an overall phone it's the best when it comes to the complete package of features and design.

That said Am I tempted by the S8 plus? HELL YES

i love the features, widgets, certain sites apps you can't get on the iphone for example

the rumours of the 5.8 inch screen iphone 8 has put me off due to the rumoured 5.1 inch usable display

 

[grkm3]

Nah

the S7 edge was certainly slower than my current 7 plus. Performance and lag is the big reason why I stick with the iphone. Wish this wasn't the case as an overall phone it's the best when it comes to the complete package of features and design.

That said Am I tempted by the S8 plus? HELL YES

i love the features, widgets, certain sites apps you can't get on the iphone for example

the rumours of the 5.8 inch screen iphone 8 has put me off due to the rumoured 5.1 inch usable display

go try a gs7 on official Android 7.0 and report back.

 

[The Game 161]

go try a gs7 on official Android 7.0 and report back.

I can't see it really being any different. It still has TW.

 

[noobinator]

I can't see it really being any different. It still has TW.

That is a pretty horrible argument.

 

[The Game 161]

That is a pretty horrible argument.

It really isn't, I've had every samsung phone for the past 3 years. The last android software update didn't make any difference. Not sure why this years would.

 

[grkm3]

It really isn't, I've had every samsung phone for the past 3 years. The last android software update didn't make any difference. Not sure why this years would.

the iPhone 7 has dominated the gs6 and s7 before official 7.0 and now the gs7 is FASTER at opening most if not all apps less a few games.

the 7.0 update has almost doubled the speed of the gs7 in running against the iPhone 7.

this time last year the iPhone would pull 10 apps ahead of it in apps tests now we see the gs7 beating it in most tests.

like I said,you need to use the new TouchWiz! it is a huge jump in performance and it's like getting a new next gen soc after updating to 7.0

they even shaved like 15 seconds off boot up time! the tables are turning and we are seeing optimization in TouchWiz to be as fast as single core in opening apps.you have the iPhone 7 scoring 3300 single core in geekbench and have a gs7 that does half that opening up the same if not even in most apps.

it literally blows the iPhone away in instantgram and is like 4 seconds faster in loading it.

you can't criticize Samsung all these years and not give them credit when the man up and make TouchWiz more optimized

 

[The Game 161]

the iPhone 7 has dominated the gs6 and s7 before official 7.0 and now the gs7 is FASTER at opening most if not all apps less a few games.

the 7.0 update has almost doubled the speed of the gs7 in running against the iPhone 7.

this time last year the iPhone would pull 10 apps ahead of it in apps tests now we see the gs7 beating it in most tests.

like I said,you need to use the new TouchWiz! it is a huge jump in performance and it's like getting a new next gen soc after updating to 7.0

they even shaved like 15 seconds off boot up time!

Well I certainly won't be buying the S7 edge again not with S8 so close. Will try that and judge for myself then most likely.

Like I said I like samsung phones so i'm not hating. Just given an honest opinion on past experiences.

 

[epicrayban]

Again, arguing about this is kind of moot. Nearly all flagship devices are nowadays fast and stable enough that these discussions are really just nitpicking. We're talking milliseconds of differences here, folks.

The reality is, both OSes lag to varying degrees. I've seen iOS both lag and crash apps. I've seen S7E lag or have delays in opening apps (cough Hangouts). I've seen home screen refreshes on the famed software of the Pixel. I've seen iOS miss touches (even though icons have clearly grayed out signifying it's been tapped on, but won't launch the app until a second touch). I can't even tell you how many times iOS misses finger taps on my iPad when typing.

It happens.

Given this, the more important and relevant discussion is the actual software consistencies and functions. At this point in time, there is no doubt a clear winner. I could list out many more inconsistent software experiences with iOS. Want another one besides the inconsistent back navigation and password inputs? How about where to find settings. Some apps have it in the app, others have it in the main iOS Settings menu. Ugh.

 

[jamezr]

I can't see it really being any different. It still has TW.

My S7e on Nougat is almost night and day difference since the upgrade. Battery life and overall smoothness is much improved. Nougat has really helped in the overall user experience.

Then my Pixel XL is right there with my 7+ in performance and user experience. My 7+ has waterproofing but the Pixel XL has a better camera but they both share big bezels

 

[epicrayban]

My S7e on Nougat is almost night and day difference since the upgrade. Battery life and overall smoothness is much improved. Nougat has really helped in the overall user experience.

Then my Pixel XL is right there with my 7+ in performance and user experience. My 7+ has waterproofing but the Pixel XL has a better camera but they both share big bezels

I might be the only one that thought the Pixel's camera didn't live up to the hype. When you got a shot right, it was gorgeous, but photos would too often come out a little blurry. It forced me to take multiple shots to ensure I got it right.

The S7E... no fear. Even if I can only get one shot in, I felt confident it would be great. I really couldn't say the same with my Pixel camera experience.

 

[The Game 161]

My S7e on Nougat is almost night and day difference since the upgrade. Battery life and overall smoothness is much improved. Nougat has really helped in the overall user experience.

Then my Pixel XL is right there with my 7+ in performance and user experience. My 7+ has waterproofing but the Pixel XL has a better camera but they both share big bezels

This is the only issue after an update it's fine but months later I find everything tends to slow down and be a tad slow. Hope this isn't the case with 7.0.

Will see I guess. Think I will give the S8 plus a go and if I find nothing has changed then I think either a Pixel or sticking with just iphone is the way forward sadly