And finally the blast just took place! Don’t worry, we are not talking about Samsung Galaxy S7.
Now the talk is all about Samsung’s new ‘non-explosive’ flagship smartphone, which the South Korean company released in India on Wednesday.
Samsung Galaxy S8 and Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus have finally been debuted in the Indian market and the electronic jewels have been priced just like some real gems. Apart from the price, the size of the two smartphones have also been the big factor that its users are going keep in mind.
As Samsung still holds the second position in the global smartphone market, it has successfully placed the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus in the elite league of Apple’s iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel.
Colours, price, booking
Samsung Galaxy S8 is priced at Rs. 57,900 and will be available in Midnight Black and Maple Gold colour options, while the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus is going to cost Rs. 64,900 and will be available in the same colour variants. Pre-booking the Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8 Plus will bring along goody of a wireless charging accessory worth Rs. 4,499 free with the handsets. Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus pre-bookings are now open and the smartphones will start shipping from May 5.
The design
Samsung has done away with its typical home button design for the bezel-less design on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus. The company believes that removing the home button will help Galaxy S8 series offer a more immersive viewing experience while will also make multi-tasking more convenient. Additionally, both the devices come with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 on both the front and back offering a premium finish.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 measures 148.9×68.1x8mm and weighs 155 grams which is slightly heavier than its predecessor Galaxy S7 that measured 142.4×69.6×7.9mm and weighed 152 grams. The Galaxy S8 Plus, on the other hand, measures 159.5×73.4×8.1mm and weighs 173 grams thanks to the large screen size. The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge came with 150.9×72.6×7.7mm dimensions, and weighed 157 grams.
The UX factor
Samsung debuts its brand new UX with the launch of Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus. The smartphone giant says that the all-new UX of the Galaxy S8 has been developed to enhance the user interactions. At the global launch event of the smartphones, the company showcased that the Galaxy S8’s app icons and typography incorporate the Galaxy S8’s physical design language.
Samsung has also updated brand sound “Over the Horizon” and ringtones with the all-new UX. The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus will also sport the now-standard Galaxy S-Series features including Always-On display.
Performance
While in the US Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus are powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor (2.35GHz quad-core + 1.7GHz quad-core), the smartphones launch in India are powered by Samsung’s own Exynos 8895 SoC with an octa-core processor (2.35GHz quad-core + 1.9GHz quad-core). Samsung says the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus feature the “industry’s first 10nm processor, enabling heightened speed and efficiency.”
Both new 10nm processors are also claimed to be Gigabit LTE and Gigabit Wi-Fi ready with support for download speeds up to 1Gbps. When available in the US, Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus will be the first smartphones with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 SoC to make their way to the consumers.
Infinity Display
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus sport Infinity Display, and in comparison, the Galaxy S8’s display is 18% larger than the display seen on the Galaxy S7. Samsung says that in landscape mode, Galaxy S8’s 18.5:9 display will be perfect for 21:9 movies, and also claims the Galaxy S8’s display offers 36% more viewing area compared to the Galaxy S7.
Samsung is also promoting the two phones’ High Dynamic Range (HDR) Premium capabilities. The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus will also sport a new Snap Window feature that will enhance productivity by allowing users to pin a specific area from a recent app to the top of the screen, and continue using the area below it. Both the handsets sport a screen resolution of Quad HD+ (1440×2960 pixels).
Dual-pixel technology
The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are equipped with 12-megapixel dual pixel technology with OIS (optical image stabilisation) with f/1.7 aperture while there is an 8-megapixel autofocus sensor at the front with f/1.7 aperture.
The dual-pixel sensor technology with wide aperture and autofocus on the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus is said to perform better in low-light conditions. The camera UX is also claimed to optimise for one-handed operation. The front camera comes with facial recognition technology that can recognise and track faces to provide focused selfies. The camera app also includes wide variety of filters, animated stickers, and stamps.
Bixby, a Siri slayer
Samsung’s Bixby virtual assistant is making its debut on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. The company at the event confessed that the Bixby is still being developed and it was created to enhance the way users can interact with the Galaxy S8. Bixby will offer contextual information based on users’ habits. The Galaxy S8 also comes with a dedicated hardware button for Bixby, though the voice-based features of Bixby will be pushed out to the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus at a later date.
