After the whole fiasco with the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and its exploding batteries, Samsung is now moving on and focusing on their new flagship smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S8.
This new model is not really about innovation and novelty, but polish and refinement.
With the current smartphone market being lively yet stale at the same time due to all the high-end phones being seemingly the same at this point, the Samsung Galaxy S8 does have a lot going for it.
Display
The most obvious thing about it is the screen, which occupies a large part of the front. Samsung had been pushing the curved edgeless display in their phones, as seen in the Galaxy S7.
This design makes the Galaxy S8 stand out from the pack as the 5.8-inch screen with almost no bezel, which is certainly flashy and yet elegant at the same time.
Its AMOLED screen also makes colors come out really well, perhaps the best yet in 2017. However, it now also has a rather unusual 18.5:9 aspect ratio that makes the phone look rather tall and narrow.
That does mean more screen real estate to see more things with, and the longer shape also makes the Galaxy S8 look uniquely gorgeous when compared side-by-side with its competitors.
Design
Samsung also got rid of the hardware home button that had been there in the Galaxy lineup since 7 years ago, which had them sued by Apple for seemingly ripping off the home button of the iPhone.
But now with the design of the Galaxy S8, whether they did rip off Apple or not all those years ago, Samsung has totally gone their own way with this design.
Not only is this one of the most ergonomic phones you’ll ever hold in your hand, it’s also one of the most functional yet.
It makes use of the concept of accessing apps by swiping the curved edge of the screen on the right. While some may think of this as contrived and over-complicated, it actually isn’t as users may find it easy to form the habit, especially if they don’t usually have tons of apps on their phone.
Being able to do things like take screenshots by a simple swipe from the right of the screen is also way better than the usual Android way of holding the power and volume down buttons at the same time.
Unlocking is also a breeze even without a home button.
- There’s facial recognition, although that may not be the most secure for obvious reasons.
- There’s also Google smart locking, which makes use of location and censor data to lock and unlock your phone.
- Samsung implemented their own retina sensor, which is pretty neat but still needs work.
- Then there’s the rear fingerprint sensor, which is a lot better now in this phone.
However, the position of the fingerprint sensor being right beside the camera and heart rate sensor may have you feeling your way around awkwardly when trying to access it without looking.
That also means you may gunk up the camera and take blurry shots every now and then, even with the lipophobic coating on it.
Other Buttons
For those who are used to the Android back, home, and multitasking buttons, the good thing with this phone is that due to the Galaxy S8’s longer aspect ratio, there’s more than ample room for them here.
They can also be rearranged in this phone, which is great for those who may want to change them around. You also don’t need to do a tap to access them when they’re hidden; they can still be used with a hard press even when hidden.
Camera
As for performance, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is nothing short of astounding in that department. It certainly helps with the 4K rear camera with a different sensor compared to previous models, making taking pictures incredibly fast.
The front camera is also great with a wide angle lens that captures a lot more than most other selfie cameras out there.
Battery
It also has surprisingly good battery life, considering Android’s infamous power management of background apps. It could’ve been yet another case of a flagship phone not having endurance once again, but this won’t need to be plugged into a power bank or charger that often through the day.
Samsung Galaxy S8 Price
This unit is available at Lazada and the price differs depending on the size that you will get.
- Samsung Galaxy S8+ 6.2″ 64GB (Midnight Black) – ₱ 45,990.00
- Samsung Galaxy S8 5.8″ 64GB (Midnight Black) – ₱ 39,990.00
You can pre-order Samsung Galaxy S8 at Lazada from April 17 to Apr 29, 2017. Shipping starts on May 5, 2017.
The Verdict
Between all these features and many more hidden under this phone’s hood, the Samsung Galaxy S8 is certainly the most customizable and functional user experiences in the smartphone market today.
While it does have certain things that leave much to be desired like bloatware and a few more minor gripes, it’s a gorgeous smartphone that is right for 2017.
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