Everything about the 5.5-inch S7 Edge excels from the inside out, and Samsung has refined the extra navigation software that dresses up the screen's physical curves. There are of course a few minor drawbacks -- there's no such thing as a perfect device -- but something about it feels more organic than your garden-variety phone, more complete. If you've ever seen one of Samsung's curve-screen phones before, such as the S6 Edge, S6 Edge+ and Note Edge, you know what I'm talking about.
Samsung has put a lot of effort into making the secondary menu bar more useful: icons get bigger and there are more types of information you can show there, like a shortcut to your favorite apps and tasks. There's a speed dial to your favorite contacts, an optional pane for sports scores and news headlines, even a tool to pull up the flashlight and ruler. These are handy, just use them sparingly.
Is the Edge worth the higher price compared to the S7? If you have the cash, then yes. For me, the phone's shape is reason enough, like how a car enthusiast might upgrade to a leather interior. The extra cost spreads out if you pay by installments; even if you pay in full, the difference diminishes when you consider you'll probably own this phone for the next two years.
That said, you wouldn't be making the mistake of your life by going for a more wallet-friendly phone like the Google Nexus 6P or even the S7. But if you want the most stylish, most all-in-one phone that money can buy, you've found it.
The S7 Edge starts at $750, £639 and AU$1,249. Read more about the S7 Edge's top-notch software and hardware in my full Galaxy S7 review, and read on below for more on the Edge's software, battery performance and specs.
Navigating the Edge
I liked being able to jump into the edge display navigation from any screen, without having to go back to the start screen as you would normally have to do. This was an easy way to reach out to a favorite contact and my most-used app.
At first, it's fun to hit the nine-tab ceiling and try them all, but pretty soon I realized that if I didn't know exactly which pane I wanted, I wasted more time looking for it than if I had just gone to find the thing I wanted from the home screen in the first place. Three or four of these add-ons hit the sweet spot.
Also, some panels that I'd want just don't exist yet, because the companies haven't made plugins.
Monster battery life, bigger size
Battery life was killer in our lab tests, which measure video playback time: almost 20 hours on average, compared to the S7's already astounding 16-hour average. Real-life results were also full steam ahead. Expect the battery to last a long day on a single charge, but I'd prepare to top it up each day anyway, especially if you tend to hit streaming and navigation hard.
It's a solid, heavy device, but I never dropped the phone or felt like I was going to. I'd still buy a glass screen protector and case anyway to protect your pricey investment, but the same goes for any phone. For my small hands, its 5.5-inch screen is a little more manageable than other larger-than-average handsets, such as the iPhone 6S Plus, Google Nexus 6P and Samsung Galaxy Note 5.
Minor drawbacks
As the S7 Edge shares the S7's triumphs (clear 12-megapixel camera, smooth-running processor), it also shares the S7's drawbacks: slightly plastic-looking selfies, a bastion of finger grease you'll have to constantly wipe away and a non-removable battery, which was expected, but whose presence would check the final box of most-wanted features.
I liked being able to jump into the edge display navigation from any screen, without having to go back to the start screen as you would normally have to do. This was an easy way to reach out to a favorite contact and my most-used app.
At first, it's fun to hit the nine-tab ceiling and try them all, but pretty soon I realized that if I didn't know exactly which pane I wanted, I wasted more time looking for it than if I had just gone to find the thing I wanted from the home screen in the first place. Three or four of these add-ons hit the sweet spot.
Also, some panels that I'd want just don't exist yet, because the companies haven't made plugins.
Monster battery life, bigger size
Battery life was killer in our lab tests, which measure video playback time: almost 20 hours on average, compared to the S7's already astounding 16-hour average. Real-life results were also full steam ahead. Expect the battery to last a long day on a single charge, but I'd prepare to top it up each day anyway, especially if you tend to hit streaming and navigation hard.
It's a solid, heavy device, but I never dropped the phone or felt like I was going to. I'd still buy a glass screen protector and case anyway to protect your pricey investment, but the same goes for any phone. For my small hands, its 5.5-inch screen is a little more manageable than other larger-than-average handsets, such as the iPhone 6S Plus, Google Nexus 6P and Samsung Galaxy Note 5.
Minor drawbacks
As the S7 Edge shares the S7's triumphs (clear 12-megapixel camera, smooth-running processor), it also shares the S7's drawbacks: slightly plastic-looking selfies, a bastion of finger grease you'll have to constantly wipe away and a non-removable battery, which was expected, but whose presence would check the final box of most-wanted features.
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