Samsung has finally launched its flagship Android device for 2016, the Galaxy S7. A few months ago, it took the wraps off its premium phablet, the Galaxy Note 5, so with that in mind, we put the two powerhouses head to head to figure out which one is the best pick for you.
Also read: Galaxy S7 released in MWC 2016: Price, Specs and Availability details
Design
The S7 has not brought about much of a change as far as design is concerned from its predecessor, the Galaxy S6. Dimensions wise, the S7 measures 143.4 x 70.8 x 6.9 mm (5.65 x 2.79 x 0.27 in) and weighs 152 g.
On the other hand, the Note 5 features more glass and has a very premium feel to it. Dimensions-wise, it measures 153.2 x 76.1 x 7.6 mm (6.03 x 3.00 x 0.30 in) and weighs 171 g (6.03 oz).
Even if the Note 5 is thicker, the thickness is justified by the addition of the S pen.
Display
The Samsung Galaxy S7 sports a 5.1 inches wide Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, with a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels (~576 ppi pixel density) and 16M colors.
The Note 5 sports a 5.7 inches wide Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, with a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels (~518 ppi pixel density) and 16M colors.
The S7 has a better pixel density but given the screen size of the Note 5, the displays are quite comparable.
Specs
Underneath the hood, the S7 is powered by a Qualcomm MSM8996 Snapdragon 820/ Exynos 8890 Octa processor, coupled with 4GB of RAM at and 32GB of internal storage and Adreno 530/ Mali-T880 MP12 GPU. The internal memory is expandable via an external microSD card slot.
Underneath the hood, the Note 5 is powered by an Exynos 7420 Octa processor, coupled with 4GB of RAM and 32/64/128 GB of internal storage and Mali-T760MP8 GPU. Built-in storage is non-expandable.
The S7 does win here due to the better processor and expandable internal memory.
Camera
Camera wise, the S7’s primary shooter, located on the rear, shoots at 12MP and has an aperture of f/1.7. As for the front camera, the device comes with a 5MP shooter.
Talking about the camera, the Note 5’s primary shooters, located on the rear, shoots at 16MP and packs f/1.9 aperture, 28mm focal length, OIS, autofocus and LED flash along with 1/2.6″ sensor size, 1.12 µm pixel size, geo-tagging, touch focus, face/smile detection, panorama and HDR. The secondary ‘selfies’ camera, embed on the front, comes with a 5MP sensor.
The S7 wins this comparison as with lower aperture and Dual Pixel sensors, we can expect better low light and general photography.
Battery
To accommodate the HD 5.1-inch screen, Samsung has backed the device up with a humongous non-removable 3,000mAh battery. The device will be featuring quick charging along with wireless charging.
To accommodate the HD 5.7-inch screen on the Note 5, Samsung has backed the device up with a humongous non-removable 3,000mAh battery.
Well, the advantage still lies with the S7 as the two devices have the same battery capacity but S7 has a smaller screen size.
The Verdict
This comparison is a highly subjective one. For those of you who are looking to buy a Note device with all the benefits of the S Pen along with the bigger screen, the Note 5 is not a bad device, far from it actually. But in general, the S7 is the latest flagship and does feature some improvements that you should consider. Things like a better camera module, better battery and presence of internal memory expansions work in the favor of the S7.
Photo credit: TheVerge, Gizmodo
