Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Review: Premium hardware at a premium price

Samsung’s Galaxy flagships have made a habit of it almost since the debut of the first Galaxy S device at the beginning of this decade. They have been the undisputed leaders of the Android pack, pitching Samsung in an epic battle with Apple for smartphone hegemony. It’s largely been a hardware success story coupled with scorching display specs that have often tested the human eye. If there ever was an Achilles heel, it was design and Samsung’s obsession with plastic. All that has changed in 2015; meet the new Samsung flagship duo – the S6 and the S6 Edge where plastic makes way for glass and metal. The S6 Edge is clearly the bigger brother but is it the Android device of the year? 

It was probably the S2 and S3 (launched in 2011 and 2012 respectively) that put Samsung on the fast track to smartphone glory. Within 12 months Samsung managed to craft not just two good looking devices but also two devices with a distinct form factor. The S4 and S5 managed to build on that momentum but even Sammie die-hards felt there was not enough novelty. Devices across price points looked somewhat similar prompting the ‘Samesung’ moniker. We saw the first glimpse of the imminent change when the Alpha debuted in 2014. It wasn’t heavily ‘specced’ but it proved that Samsung was gearing up for the switch from plastic. The Note Edge didn’t just build on that DNA but also showcased the curved display (albeit only on one side) with a rolling screen. The S6 Galaxy Edge is the grand culmination. It’s a perfect union of metal and glass that feels both solid yet light.

The curved screen is almost like a ‘wraparound’ display that hugs the entire front of the device. The Edge screen can display notifications and also has the People Edge option that allows you to add five contacts as icons to the screen. More than these menus it offers a more seamless experience, adding a cool dimension to viewing image galleries or videos. Add the spectacular resolution of the screen (AMOLED 2560 x 1440 pixels with a whopping 577 PPI) and you have the most immersive display on any smartphone (the iPhone 6 display packs 326 Pixels per inch). The Galaxy S6 Edge display is clearly the device’s biggest trump card and something that even Apple cannot match (especially the viewing angles) currently.

Hardware has always been top priority for Samsung flagships and the S6 Edge does not cut any corners. It’s propelled by an Exymos 7420 chipset (Quad-core 1.5 GHz + Quad-core 2.1 GHz) with 3GB of RAM. It is serious fire power and our AnTuTu benchmark score – one of the highest clocked by any device (69265 with a RAM speed of 4533) confirms this. The corresponding PCMark score is 5022 (work performance). It’s the battery life that does not build on the strength of the Note Edge; the 2600 mAh battery clocks a modest 7 hours 12 minutes on the PCMark benchmark. You might manage a full day at the office with moderate usage but push it a tad and you might need that juice pack. We also experienced occasions when the device would heat up slightly.  

Sammie fan boys have enough to cheer about the premium build but the slight design parallels between the S6 and the iPhone 6 are not difficult to spot. The new form factor also comes with its flip side – there’s no swappable battery and more importantly no expandable memory. There’s a choice of 32GB and 64GB variants while USB-OTG support should provide some succour. The Nano-SIM slot is located on the top left corner while the customary Samsung ‘home’ key also doubles up as a fingerprint reader. The fingerprint reader is quite responsive and is one of the big improvements in the S6 duo.  

The 16MP primary camera equipped with OIS (Optical Image stabilisation) produces very good results and captures incredible detail for a mobile shooter. There’s a 5MP front facing cam and, just like the Note 4 and Note Edge, you can use the ‘Rear-selfie mode’ to snap selfies with the primary shooter. The S6 Edge sports a ‘diet’ version of Samsung’s proprietary TouchWiz UI that complements both Android 5.0 (aka Lollipop) and the design language of the phone. It’s still not the prettiest custom UI but is less cluttered than the S6 Edge’s predecessors.

It might come at a stiff price tag but Samsung seems to have ticked all the right boxes with the S6 Edge. It’s easily the best looking Samsung device we have seen in a long while and comes up tops on most counts, from its elegant wraparound screen to robust hardware. The other Android flagships for 2015 have their task cut out and this is probably going to be a tougher battle than usual.            

      
What we liked: Outstanding display, design and build quality.   
What we didn’t like: Average battery life, No extendable memory     
Price: Rs 58,900 (32GB) / Rs 64,900 (64GB) 
Specifications:
Display:  5.1-inch AMOLED 2560 x 1440 pixels 5.2-inch AMOLED / 577 PPI
Memory: 3GB RAM, Choice of 32GB and 64GB storage variants (No expandable memory)
Processor: Exymos 7420 chipset (Quad-core 1.5 GHz + Quad-core 2.1 GHz)
Camera: 16MP main with LED, 5MP front facing