There is no doubt that Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is a superb-looking phone. The phone came to life last week following months of speculations and leaks.
But one question that now begs answers among enthusiastic buyers is where the differences between the Galaxy Note 7 and the previously released Galaxy S7 are. As for now, the Galaxy S7 is proving to be a popular phone in 2016, yet it is now five months since it was first released. But will it stand against the new Galaxy Note 7? Let’s find out.
Design and display
Without knowing their names, you will quickly be able to tell that the Galaxy Note 7 and Galaxy S7 are made by one manufacturer. This is true thanks to the glass and metal design used on both handsets, materials that give the phones premium finishes and a unique design language. However, you should be able to see the difference in size.
The Galaxy Note 7 has a height of 153.5mm and is 7.9mm thick. On the contrary, the Galaxy S7 is 142.4mm tall and 7.9mm thick. These two handsets also share the same IP68 certification and microSD card storage features, but the Note 7 gets a new Gorilla Glass 5 protection as well as USB Type-C port as opposed to the Gorilla Glass 4 and microUSB port used on the Galaxy S7.
As for the display panels, the same Super AMOLED QHD resolution screens are used across the two handsets. But the size varies from 5.7 inches for the Galaxy Note 7 to 5.1 inches for the Galaxy S7. Furthermore, the former gets a curved dual-edge screen, which resembles the Galaxy S7 Edge, while the latter gas a flat screen. Like the back panel of the Note 7, you get Gorilla Glass 5 on the display panel of the same phone while the S7 has Gorilla Glass 4. Both phones have an Always On display feature, but the Note 7 gets an upper hand with its built-in ability to support handwritten notes when in this mode.
Hardware and software specs
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and Galaxy S7 have the same hardware specs, including camera details. You get a Snapdragon 820 SoC or Exynos 8890 depending on where you are and a RAM of 4GB. However, there is 64GB of expandable onboard storage on the former as compared to 32GB found on the latter. Some might be disappointed in the fact that Samsung did not go for the newer Snapdragon 821 SoC, which should start featuring in phones before the end of this year.
Despite the similarities, Galaxy Note 7 users will get one added advantage. There is an iris scanner on the phablet in addition to the usual fingerprint scanner, but the Galaxy S7 only comes with the latter feature. Apparently, the new iris scanner is 100 times more secure than using a fingerprint sensor, but this remains to be seen since the phone has not yet gone into practical use.
Similar to the hardware specs, you also get just about the same software specs on the two phones. There is the latest Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow on board alongside Samsung’s TouchWiz. However, the Galaxy Note 7 adds some tweaks that are aimed at the Edge screen as well as the S Pen stylus. The latter has seen some huge improvements come its way, including translation and zooming features. Like the phone itself, the new stylus can also be used when underwater.
Camera specs and battery life
As pointed out earlier, the Galaxy Note 7 carried over the camera specs of the Galaxy S7. The same 12MP DualPixel Sony IMX260 sensor has been used on the back. It has features such as f/1.7 aperture, LED flash, OIS, and 4K video recording. The front part has a 5MP sensor that keeps the same aperture, but only manages 1080p video recording.
Moving on to the battery life, expect more of the same to come from the two different capacities. The Galaxy Note 7 has a larger 3500mAh unit while the Galaxy S7 has a capable 3000mAh package. Both support fast wired and wireless charging, but as noted earlier, you get this done via a USB Type-C on the Note 7 and microUSB cable on the S7.
Price and release date
The Galaxy Note series has always held the upper hand when it comes to prices. The same is also happening this year with the Galaxy Note 7 priced at $850 as compared to the $650 price tag of the Galaxy S7. The Galaxy S7 Edge comes between the two with a price tag of $750.
Samsung Galaxy S7 was announced in February and released in March. As for the Galaxy Note 7, it was announced last week and apparently, shipping should start next week.