For the Android vs. iOS/Samsung vs. Apple crowd, the battle has started again (considering this is a yearly exercise) with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. releasing the new Galaxy S6. Actually, make that two new versions of the company’s flagship S6 – the Galaxy S6 that sort of takes over the S5; and the S6 Edge version that (at least look-wise) elevates the Galaxy Note Edge. Think iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, and you get the point.
At the Philippine launch of the S6
Simply: S6 has a flat display, while the S6 Edge has curves at both sides. And yes, both phones are made entirely of metal and glass, so that notion of cheapness that beleaguered the company’s main product for years can now be put to rest. These look… expensive.
When released, the flat S6 will be available in white black, gold, and blue, while the S6 Edge can be hand in white, black, gold, and green (renamed – as expected when they launch these products – as White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum, Blue Topaz and Green Emerald [for the Edge]).
In a statement after the Barcelona launch, JK Shin, CEO and head of IT and mobile communications division at Samsung Electronics, said that the new S6 and S6 Edge were developed after the company listened to its customers, and “learning from both our success and missteps.” It seems with other’s success too – I’m thinking of you, Apple, obviously – with the S6 looking oh-so-similar to iPhone. Though NOT that this is necessarily a bad thing.
Going beyond the looks, the S6 phones are packed with the usual she-bangs.
Thin at 6.8 mm/7.0mm Edge; and light at 138g/132g Edge, S6 S6 Edge boast the world’s first 14nm mobile processor with 64-bit platform, new LPDDR4 memory system, UFS 2.0 flash memory, and the world’s first 1440P/VP9 hardware based codec. Meanwhile, the 5.1-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED screen offers users a pixel density of 577ppi.
Camwhores celebrate. The S6 and S6 Edge are equipped with: F1.9 lenses and high resolution sensors on both front (5MP) and rear (16MP) cameras; Auto Real-time High Dynamic Range (HDR), Smart Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and IR Detect White Balance; and a new “Quick Launch” feature to give users direct access to the camera from any screen in just 0.7 seconds by simply double clicking the home key button.
Sick of the wires? Both S6 and S6 Edge have fully embedded WPC and PMA certified wireless charging technology, sot they work with any wireless pad available in the market that supports WPC and PMA standards. They also charge 1.5 times faster than the S5.
To also target the business users (gobbled by Apple after BlackBerry’s stumble), S6 and S6 Edge are built on the upgraded Samsung KNOX, end-to-end secure mobile platform, offering defense-grade features for real-time protection from potential malicious attacks. There’s also the Find My Mobile feature for lost devices, as well as the touch-type fingerprint scanner (yeah, yeah… I’m hearing the Apple crowd crying foul with “imitations”).
Also worth mentioning is Samsung Pay, a mobile payment service. To be launched mid-2015, it eyes to make cash-less society a reality, with partnerships already formed with the likes of Visa, MasterCard, et cetera. Protected by Samsung KNOX and fingerprint scanning, Samsung Pay works with both Near Field Communication (NFC) and Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) technology.
Now, whether S6 and S6 Edge will be able to give Samsung back its top post will be known starting April 10, when the units will be made available.
SAMSUNG GALAXY S6 & GALAXY S6 EDGE PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS
