Samsung Galaxy S8+ Review

[Julio Franco]

Samsung knows how to make a premium Android smartphone. For the past few years, the Galaxy S series has nailed it, shooting Samsung to the top of the popularity charts. Now with the Galaxy S8's improvements to design, hardware and even software atop Android 7.0, make this the best phone on the market today.

Read the full article here.

https://www.techspot.com/review/1412-samsung-galaxy-s8/

 

[VitalyT]

Why more than half of tests do not include iPhone 7? It is not about the tests availability, and looks just random, which begs the question.

I will add from myself that S8+ is one of the least reliable phones when it comes to the drop tests. Even the slightest fall shutters the screen. Horrible.

In the hand it feels perhaps too light, and flimsy, it feels fragile, because it really is.

 

[Steve]

Why more than half of tests do not include iPhone 7? It is not about the tests availability, and looks just random, which begs the question.

I will add from myself that S8+ is one of the least reliable phones when it comes to the drop tests. Even the slightest fall shutters the screen. Horrible.

In the hand it feels perhaps too light, and flimsy, it feels fragile, because it really is.

I don't know the answer, Tim will probably chime in. That said at a guess I would say those benchmarks aren't supported on iOS.

 

[Mister_K]

Thought the 8+ is all black around the edges, is the US version different?

 

[Squid Surprise]

Why more than half of tests do not include iPhone 7? It is not about the tests availability, and looks just random, which begs the question.

I will add from myself that S8+ is one of the least reliable phones when it comes to the drop tests. Even the slightest fall shutters the screen. Horrible.

In the hand it feels perhaps too light, and flimsy, it feels fragile, because it really is.

I don't know the answer, Tim will probably chime in. That said at a guess I would say those benchmarks aren't supported on iOS.

Not so sure about that.... the anti-Apple bias was pretty apparent from the "The S8+ also includes a 3.5mm headphone jack, because Samsung isn’t a dumb and user-hostile company." line in the first page....

And even the battery-life benchmarks didn't include the iPhone, which would be pretty easy to do...

The benchmarks that DID include the iPhone don't paint as rosy a picture for "the best smartphone ever", as it seems to either lose, tie or only slightly eke out the iPhone.... and considering a new iPhone is only a few months away doesn't say much for the long-term viability of this phone.

Also, the article states how the build-quality of this phone is miles ahead of all other phones, including the iPhone 7.... yet admits that it is the most fragile smartphone on the market today.... can someone please tell this author what one of the definitions of "build-quality" is?

 

[Steve]

Not so sure about that.... the anti-Apple bias was pretty apparent from the "The S8+ also includes a 3.5mm headphone jack, because Samsung isn’t a dumb and user-hostile company." line in the first page....

And even the battery-life benchmarks didn't include the iPhone, which would be pretty easy to do...

The benchmarks that DID include the iPhone don't paint as rosy a picture for "the best smartphone ever", as it seems to either lose, tie or only slightly eke out the iPhone.... and considering a new iPhone is only a few months away doesn't say much for the long-term viability of this phone.

Also, the article states how the build-quality of this phone is miles ahead of all other phones, including the iPhone 7.... yet admits that it is the most fragile smartphone on the market today.... can someone please tell this author what one of the definitions of "build-quality" is?

Way to take things out of context. I think Tim was very clear on the points made. I'm also pretty sure every iPhone ever made also self destructs just at the thought of being dropped and they still get praised for excellent build quality. Build quality and durability don't necessarily go hand in hand for high tech gadgets.

I also don't think this is an overwhelmingly positive review for Samsung, I think Tim was quite critical of the phone weaknesses and pointed them out where as many other S8 reviews didn't.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Way to take things out of context. I think Tim was very clear on the points made. I'm also pretty sure every iPhone ever made also self destructs just at the thought of being dropped and they still get praised for excellent build quality. Build quality and durability don't necessarily go hand in hand for high tech gadgets.

I also don't think this is an overwhelmingly positive review for Samsung, I think Tim was quite critical of the phone weaknesses and pointed them out where as many other S8 reviews didn't.

That one line alone says lots... I understand many people disagree with the exclusion of the 3.5mm port on the iPhone, but that opinion is irrelevant to a review on this phone and should have been omitted...and yes, I did notice his review was actually critical of the S8.... which made me wonder why he STILL dubbed it the best smartphone ever....

And while I agree that pretty much ANY smartphone has issues when dropped, he admitted in the review that the S8 was the most fragile smartphone around.... and while there is MORE to build quality than durability, it's still an integral part...

 

[Steve]

That one line alone says lots... I understand many people disagree with the exclusion of the 3.5mm port on the iPhone, but that opinion is irrelevant to a review on this phone and should have been omitted...and yes, I did notice his review was actually critical of the S8.... which made me wonder why he STILL dubbed it the best smartphone ever....

And while I agree that pretty much ANY smartphone has issues when dropped, he admitted in the review that the S8 was the most fragile smartphone around.... and while there is MORE to build quality than durability, it's still an integral part...

Phones that omit the 3.5mm audio jack are flipping stupid, are we really arguing that? I mean seriously are we? That statement isn't aimed squarely at the iPhone either, there are 'stupid' Android handsets that are trying to be cool as well by removing a feature that makes no sense to remove (other than to screw the user over and force them to buy your Bluetooth earbuds).

 

[Squid Surprise]

Phones that omit the 3.5mm audio jack are flipping stupid, are we really arguing that? I mean seriously are we? That statement isn't aimed squarely at the iPhone either, there are 'stupid' Android handsets that are trying to be cool as well by removing a feature that makes no sense to remove (other than to screw the user over and force them to buy your Bluetooth earbuds).

I'm not going to argue it... and while I feel it's a fairly useless feature for the majority of phone users (and Apple and other companies obviously agree), I just don't see the relevancy of bringing that argument to this review...

 

[Steve]

I'm not going to argue it... and while I feel it's a fairly useless feature for the majority of phone users (and Apple and other companies obviously agree), I just don't see the relevancy of bringing that argument to this review...

I don't think you can argue it. Likewise I don't think you can really nitpick and incredible 6000 word review because you disagree with one or two subjective points. I would just appreciate the work that's been delivered to me for free, but hey that's just me

 

[Uncle Al]

Simply too pricy for my blood .....

 

[p51d007]

I bought a Mate8 in November for a tad over $400 (and I complained about that).
It has a 6" screen, 4,000mAH battery, will pretty much do EVERYTHING these overpriced
toys will do. And, if I drop it and it shatters, I won't be out EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS.
(side note, I've never used a screen protector and never have damaged a phone).
Hey, it's your money, but I just don't get it, because it's price will drop to between 1/3 to
1/2 of it's list price, in 9 months.

 

[OcelotRex]

That one line alone says lots... I understand many people disagree with the exclusion of the 3.5mm port on the iPhone, but that opinion is irrelevant to a review on this phone and should have been omitted...and yes, I did notice his review was actually critical of the S8.... which made me wonder why he STILL dubbed it the best smartphone ever....

And while I agree that pretty much ANY smartphone has issues when dropped, he admitted in the review that the S8 was the most fragile smartphone around.... and while there is MORE to build quality than durability, it's still an integral part...

Phones that omit the 3.5mm audio jack are flipping stupid, are we really arguing that? I mean seriously are we? That statement isn't aimed squarely at the iPhone either, there are 'stupid' Android handsets that are trying to be cool as well by removing a feature that makes no sense to remove (other than to screw the user over and force them to buy your Bluetooth earbuds).

Not just their wireless headphones but also lots of Apple adapters when the provided one is lost. The margins on first party accessories are even better than the margins on the iPhone itself.

That being said I side with the author and Steve on this issue: removing the 3.5mm port without significant benefit (Samsung and others achieved water-"proofing" and retained it) was a dumb move. Calling it out as non-user friendly is apt.

 

[Scorpus]

Why more than half of tests do not include iPhone 7? It is not about the tests availability, and looks just random, which begs the question.

I don't have an iPhone 7. Shawn ran a subset of the tests for his iPhone 7 Plus review. Can't run tests on a phone I don't have

 

[Steve]

I don't have an iPhone 7. Shawn ran a subset of the tests for his iPhone 7 Plus review. Can't run tests on a phone I don't have

Well there you go That makes even more sense.

 

[Squid Surprise]

I don't have an iPhone 7. Shawn ran a subset of the tests for his iPhone 7 Plus review. Can't run tests on a phone I don't have

I would appreciate the article a lot more if you could get access to one.... you seem to have access to a LOT of other phones.... and the iPhone 7 WAS included in SOME of your benchmarks...

 

[Steve]

I would appreciate the article a lot more if you could get access to one.... you seem to have access to a LOT of other phones.... and the iPhone 7 WAS included in SOME of your benchmarks...

Make yourself useful and send him one These things don't grow on trees! If Apple won't send Tim one you can't expect him to buy one. I also believe Tim explained in English why the iPhone 7 was included in some tests.

 

[Scorpus]

I would appreciate the article a lot more if you could get access to one.... you seem to have access to a LOT of other phones.... and the iPhone 7 WAS included in SOME of your benchmarks...

Some companies are cooperative. Others are not. I have no interest in reviewing phones companies aren't willing to provide for testing. You can clearly see the phones companies are willing to have tested in the charts.

As for some iPhone 7 tests being included, that's true, because I can get people who own one to perform a couple of 1-2 minute tests. I'm not going to ask someone, for example, to sit and run 100 hours of battery testing on their personal iPhone 7.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Make yourself useful and send him one These things don't grow on trees! If Apple won't send Tim one you can't expect him to buy one. I also believe Tim explained in English why the iPhone 7 was included in some tests.

Very drole... this is a tech site... and this is a review for the top-of-the-line smartphone of this year... and its chief rival will clearly be the iPhone 7 (and later on, the 8, 7S, or whatever Apple calls their Fall iPhone)...

While I DO appreciate this article - it was very well written and contained a lot of pertinent information - I see the failure of a direct comparison to its biggest rival a glaring omission.

I understand that iPhones don't grow on trees.... but what type of a tech site can't get an almost year old phone available to its writer when he is writing such an important article?

 

[Scorpus]

Very drole... this is a tech site... and this is a review for the top-of-the-line smartphone of this year... and its chief rival will clearly be the iPhone 7 (and later on, the 8, 7S, or whatever Apple calls their Fall iPhone)...

While I DO appreciate this article - it was very well written and contained a lot of pertinent information - I see the failure of a direct comparison to its biggest rival a glaring omission.

I understand that iPhones don't grow on trees.... but what type of a tech site can't get an almost year old phone available to its writer when he is writing such an important article?

Here's my recommendation for you.

Do you like iOS more than Android?
Yes - Buy an iPhone
No - Buy the best Android phone

Whether the iPhone is better than the Galaxy S8 makes no difference to everyday users that ask themselves that question.

It's interesting to see whether an Android phone is as good from a hardware perspective as the latest iPhone, but ultimately people don't make the decision between those two categories of devices based on hardware.

And if Apple wanted me to review their phones, I'd gladly do so

 

[Raoul Duke]

@Squid Surprise
actually build quality is how well it is put together, fit and finish if you will. Durability of the phone is an entirely different thing.
".... and considering a new iPhone is only a few months away doesn't say much for the long-term viability of this phone."
Arguably the nicest, most advanced phone currently available, the flagship and yet somehow is has no long-term viability.? If this phone doesn't, what phone does?
"I understand many people disagree with the exclusion of the 3.5mm port on the iPhone, but that opinion is irrelevant to a review on this phone and should have been omitted..."
given the hoopla over the omission of a 3.5 mm jack on the last iPhone I would think that this phone has one (and supports up to 382kHz/32-bit audio) is extremely important, yet you think it should have been left out?
Plus I read many criticisms of the phone in the article so it seems clear both the positives and negatives are being covered. If Apple doesn't want to provide a phone to the media for direct comparison to the Galaxy 8+ maybe that says something there.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Here's my recommendation for you.

Do you like iOS more than Android?
Yes - Buy an iPhone
No - Buy the best Android phone

Whether the iPhone is better than the Galaxy S8 makes no difference to everyday users that ask themselves that question.

It's interesting to see whether an Android phone is as good from a hardware perspective as the latest iPhone, but ultimately people don't make the decision between those two categories of devices based on hardware.

And if Apple wanted me to review their phones, I'd gladly do so

I'm not asking for a review of the iPhone.... this site has already given one... as have others...
I'm also not even requesting a spec-by-spec comparison to the iPhone 7 (although a separate article on that would almost certainly get a lot of readers)...

I just think it would be fairly useful information to know certain things you left out... like "is battery life better on iphone 7 or S8?"... I don't think I'm being very unreasonable here...

@Squid Surprise
actually build quality is how well it is put together, fit and finish if you will. Durability of the phone is an entirely different thing.
".... and considering a new iPhone is only a few months away doesn't say much for the long-term viability of this phone."
Arguably the nicest, most advanced phone currently available, the flagship and yet somehow is has no long-term viability.? If this phone doesn't, what phone does?
"I understand many people disagree with the exclusion of the 3.5mm port on the iPhone, but that opinion is irrelevant to a review on this phone and should have been omitted..."
given the hoopla over the omission of a 3.5 mm jack on the last iPhone I would think that this phone has one (and supports up to 382kHz/32-bit audio) is extremely important, yet you think it should have been left out?
Plus I read many criticisms of the phone in the article so it seems clear both the positives and negatives are being covered. If Apple doesn't want to provide a phone to the media for direct comparison to the Galaxy 8+ maybe that says something there.

You can quibble about the exact meaning of "build quality" all you like... but I still think it's disingenuous to declare something has the best build quality while also stating in the same article that it's the most fragile.

And I didn't mean to leave out the inclusion of a 3.5mm port... I meant to leave out the claim that any company that omits this feature is stupid... While many disagree with it's exclusion, it's become a fact of life for most that the future of headphones is wireless.... I miss the port too, but I suspect in a few years, I won't care, nor will 99% of users...

Leaving a line that basically claims "Apple is stupid" in an article about a Samsung S8, and also not including Apple's iPhone in your benchmarks makes it APPEAR biased... you claim this isn't the case and I believe you....

Just saying what it appears....

 

[MoeJoe]

Way to go becoming unhinged ... Staff.

You just don't see this self-deprecating, troll behavior by the "staff" on sites that post serious reviews. The 'big boys' do their thing a let the plebs argue the finer points.

Android Authority
Android Central
etc ...

 

[amstech]

Yay fun time!
I needed a laugh, lets stir the pot just to get things going shall we?

Leaving a line that basically claims "Apple is stupid" in an article about a Samsung S8, and also not including Apple's iPhone in your benchmarks makes it APPEAR biased... you claim this isn't the case and I believe you....
Just saying what it appears....

You appear to be biased towards iPhones.
Well, they suck. Their overpriced pieces of junk and up until recently (present series or before) their performance was terrible. The screens are small, the features (VR, Wireless charging) non existent, the OS has no freedom and who gives a crap about a 3.5MM headphone jack with todays bluetooth headphones.

If I had an iPhone you know what I would do? (well, I would never have such a dumb limited phone because I'm a level 3 badass IT specialist working for the state and I require more then a Lemming phone, but just for argument), here's what I would do:
Use it as a line anchor for my ugly stick with a fresh ground pike and let the sucker sink right to the bottom.

Way to go becoming unhinged ... Staff.

Who said you could leave timeout? Get back in the corner and face the wall.
No treats today either, and your eating your broccoli.

 

[Julio Franco]

I've seen valid arguments go back and forth, so let me clarify some things...

* Yes, the iPhone 7/Plus is missing from many of the tests. Ideally the iPhone 7 would be included in most of those. However Tim is in Australia, where he tests the dozens of phones you see on the charts. Apple provides no review samples, so our iPhone review was written by Shawn who is primarily an iPhone guy and he's been writing our iOS reviews for the past few generations.

* That is no excuse for not having a direct battery (or other) comparison, unfortunately we have no answer for you, and ultimately we don't think this detracts from this being a very thorough review on a flagship Android device. We try to make the best possible reviews on smartphones, graphics cards, CPUs, etc. We simply can't test everything all the time.

* iOS vs. Android is subjective. I use both, neither is truly superior, though I've personally gone from iPhone to Android and stayed on Android for my daily driver for two generations now, I acknowledge this is personal preference and I'd dare to say neither platform is superior though they are clearly differentiated (integration vs. openness, memory expansion, price points and availability).

* Strictly talking about devices... Galaxy S8 vs iPhone 7 (Plus models included). In my opinion those are not direct competitors, Samsung and Apple are on two different product cycles and the S8 is possibly the competitor to this year's iPhone 8/X.

* Reviews are biased by nature. As editor, I read Tim's comment on the headphone jack. It's a controversial topic. But I decided I wouldn't soften his words, you may agree or disagree, but there's no ulterior motive. That's what he thinks and usually that's appreciated in a review.