For those waiting for a revolutionary Galaxy device this year might have to hold onto their horses. According to the famous phone leaker Evan Blass in an article over at VentureBeat with new images, indicated that the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge will look like the galaxy s6 and s6 Edge. Not that we are complaining since basic design of the s6 here is worthy of praise. Whether or not you think it looks too much like an iPhone (and yes, it does look a lot like an iPhone), it’s still a well-crafted piece of hardware. This is the first time we’ve seen believable images of the S7 and S7 Edge — even if they are only press renders.
The second reason the similar design is interesting is because current rumors point to Samsung successfully cramming a lot of features that Android fans have been clamoring for: a microSD card slot, water resistance, significantly larger batteries and a pressure-sensing screen to do that 3D touch that the iPhone has.
Internals
Just like it did with the S5, the the Galaxy s7 will be powered by both the new, homegrown Exynos 8 Octa 8890 and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 system-on-a-chip (SoC ). The Exynos is based partially on an ARM reference design, and offering four high-performance 2.3GHz cores along with four power-efficient 1.6GHz cores . The Snapdragon 820 will be used in North American S7 variants, at the very least. All regions, though, should see the same 4GB of RAM utilized, but only two storage options: 32GB or 64GB. (While a 128GB option was not mentioned, it may exist in select channels.)
Display
Resolution will supposedly remain the same across both Super AMOLED screens, at 1440 x 2560 quad HD. One alleged difference this year is the inclusion of always-on display (AOD) functionality, enabling a glanceable screen (with the ability to show downloaded content), which is said to consume about one percent of the battery per hour. Whereas last year’s pair of flagships had the same 5.1-inch display size, this year only the flat S7 variant will retain that screen diagonal. The S7 edge was said to offer a larger, curved display measuring 5.5 inches.
https://t.co/JT6X0g8sBu pic.twitter.com/J78eezrU5o
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) January 29, 2016
Battery boast
Speaking of batteries, the packs are set to address at least one criticism with 2015’s power implementation in the Galaxy s6. While neither handset will bring back the ability for end users to replace batteries, both models are receiving a capacity bump: to 3000mAh and 3600mAh for the S7 and S7 edge, respectively (up from 2550mAh and 2600mAh).
Wireless charging time was revealed to be 2 hours for S7 and 2.2 hours for S7 edge.
Cameras
Finally, in a move that’s bound to cause some marketing headaches, the main camera sensor is supposedly “just” 12 megapixels, down from the 16 megapixels found in the S6 generation. But resolution is not everything, of course, and the module — coupled with an f/1.7 lens aperture (compared to f/1.9 on S6) — was tipped as being especially capable in low light situations.
Another upside, from some points of view, is that the rear camera lens should now be flush with the backside of the device, eliminating the sometimes-maligned “S6 hump.” The front-facing selfie cam was said to remain unchanged, at least concerning its five-megapixel resolution. But we only hope they improve on its picture quality. So till mid- February, we wait to see what more Samsung has in store for us.
