The Samsung Galaxy Note7 (S820) Review
by Joshua Ho on August 16, 2016 9:00 AM ESTCamera Architecture
In general, camera has become probably the single biggest point of differentiation between smartphones at this point. As smartphones are often the only camera that most people carry on a day to day basis, the rear camera on a smartphone really cannot be a disappointment relative to the competition. While we can talk about how much a front-facing camera matters in terms of quality, it’s pretty safe to say that for photos and videos that are worth saving will be taken with the rear-facing camera.
While post-processing and a number of other factors are going to have a huge impact on the overall camera experience, the foundation that makes it possible to deliver a great camera is always going to start at the hardware.
| Samsung Galaxy Note Cameras | ||||
| Galaxy S6 Galaxy Note5 |
Galaxy S7 Galaxy Note7 |
|||
| Front Camera | 5.0MP | 5.0MP | ||
| Front Camera - Sensor | Samsung S5K4E6 (1.34 µm, 1/4") |
Samsung S5K4E6 (1.34 µm, 1/4") |
||
| Front Camera - Focal Length | 2.2mm (22mm eff) | 2.1mm (21mm eff) | ||
| Front Camera - Max Aperture | F/1.9 | F/1.7 | ||
| Rear Camera | 16MP | 12MP | ||
| Rear Camera - Sensor | Sony IMX240 Samsung S5K2P2 (1.12 µm, 1/2.6") |
Sony IMX260 Samsung S5K2L1 (1.4 µm, 1/2.6") |
||
| Rear Camera - Focal Length | 4.3mm (28mm eff) | 4.2mm (26mm eff) | ||
| Rear Camera - Max Aperture | F/1.9 | F/1.7 | ||
It’s probably not any surprise that the Galaxy Note7 has the same exact camera setup as the Galaxy S7, but in case it was ever in doubt it shouldn’t be now. Given the similar camera setup I don’t think that there’s a ton of difference to be expected between the two phones but things like software algorithms can and do change with time so it’s important to not just immediately write off the Galaxy Note7 or assume it’s immediately going to be award-winning. It’s worth reiterating here that the dual pixel system likely incurs a sensitivity penalty as in order to implement the dual pixel system each pixel must have a physical light barrier as you need a microlens and a barrier to make light from the same object converge on two separate photodiodes so the amount of light collected is inherently going to be less than no barrier and a single photodiode per pixel. I’m also curious to know whether any quantum effects appreciably change sensitivity here as if a single pixel is a 1.4 micron square then each photodiode has area similar to a 1-micron pixel. With that said we can move on to the one major change highlighted by Samsung, namely the user experience.
Camera UX
One of the major points highlighted in the launch event was that the camera application was completely redesigned. In addition to a fairly subdued icon that better fits the color palette for Android in general, the UI itself is a bit cleaner out of the box.
Right away when you open the camera app the most apparent thing is that the number of icons has been reduced. Instead of a dedicated mode button it’s now a swipe, and the same is true of the effects button. There’s also no more timer or resolution button on the screen by default, and the button to hide the various settings buttons has been eliminated entirely. It’s also worth mentioning that the button to change between cameras has been moved and a gesture to do the same thing has been added so you can simply swipe up or down to switch between cameras. Samsung also continues to shut off the camera after a few minutes automatically which is good if you’re a normal user but annoying if you’re trying to set up a shot of an ISO chart with a tripod.
Other than these changes almost nothing else really changes. There are some extra toggles like shape correction in the settings overflow and RAW output is now hidden under Picture Size for the rear camera but nothing else is really notable. I don’t really have anything else to say here that’s new, and I would refer to the Galaxy S7 Part 2 review if you are otherwise unfamiliar with Samsung’s camera application. As both perform identically as far as focus and capture speed goes subjectively we’ll temporarily forgo these results in favor of timeliness for this review.
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HideOut - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
"You also get an extra 32 GB of storage which does justify the extra 100 USD that bumps the Note7 up to 850 USD."You must work for apple if you somehow think that 32Gb of on board storage is worth $100. FFS its about 1/5 that to buy in any other format.
bJammin - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
Sorry for a nitpick, but this isn't the first phone with an iris scanner, though probably the first with wide availability. Fujitsu's is only available in Japan right now, but I have one as my company phone. The phone and scanner are actually pretty slick too despite being based on older tech, though Fujitsu's interface is pretty awful.http://www.gsmarena.com/fujitsus_latest_phone_is_w...
Vagabondjonez - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
Still no htc 10 review or a Twitter response....Lau_Tech - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
Well done on the improvements in timeliness and tone, Josh. I certainly agree with other reader opinions that the S-Pen deserved a full page of its own, given that it continues to be a distinguishing factor from all other phones. I understand that it may feel unnecessary if its the same as last years models, but it is still worth a re-look and run through. After all, Samsung's screens have not changed much either, and you still ran them through a gamut of tests.I must say that your continued placement of Samsung's AMOLED's as being "one of the best" or equal to Iphones to be have long since been untenable. Samsung's AMOLED beats or equals the Iphones in every one of your metrics. Colour-shifting remains the sole issue, but is not on its own sufficient to deny Samsung's phones the title of "best display, period".
Lau_Tech - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
I should also point out that your (justified) decision to be nit-picky about design must be applied fairly to your upcoming iphone 7 review as well.If you intend to highlight design issues that do not affect the user experience (as has been done in this review), I would expect that you find fault with the Iphone 7s IF the Iphone 7s maintain the unwieldy bezel sizes of the 6 plus, and the added inconvenience of the USB-only audio jack. These should count as negatives against the Iphone 7s.
Your criteria for commenting on design must be seen as fair.
JoshHo - Wednesday, August 17, 2016 - link
If there's a real demand for this sort of ID analysis I'll keep going with it.To outline some of my personal thoughts for design:
1. I don't see a ton of value to extremely thin bezels. Excessive bezel like the M8/M9 is one thing but the 6s Plus had no issues with ergonomics in use. I view phablets as phones that need two hands to be used but still fit in one pocket so I don't pay that much attention to bezel unless it's really egregious like the M8/M9.
2. The S-Pen would have received further analysis but battery life testing alone took up a full 3 days. It's been made clear to me that timeliness is critical so I would rather cut out discussion on things that are fairly well understood and revisit it in future short-form than cut out data that answers essential questions.
3. To me AMOLED's color shifting issues are fairly significant and power efficiency in high APL scenarios is still lagging slightly behind LCD. If power efficiency rises above LCD then I would say shipping LCD would automatically count as a negative against an OEM, but until that comes to pass I think it's important to weigh these things on a case by case basis.
4. If the iPhone 7 loses the 3.5mm jack it would require close examination and weighing of the advantages and disadvantages. I would trend towards likely being a bad idea but we'll have to see how it plays out. There are a lot of ways this could be executed and some are good but others are awful.
Lau_Tech - Wednesday, August 17, 2016 - link
Thanks for the detailed reply Josh, I appreciate the time taken.Im definitely with you with regards to points 2 and 4. I think with regards to points 1 and 3 we will have to agree to disagree.
I look forward to the HTC 10 review, of which I am already an owner. I'm sure you'll be able to point out interesting things about this device (some nuggets already present in this review)
jlabelle2 - Friday, August 19, 2016 - link
I am also quite shocked about the change on editorial note (because it seems really to be that) since Anand departure. Even with Anand working for Apple, reviews were still much more factual.I have an iPhone 6S but honestly, there is not denying that the S7 Edge and Note 7 are just a marvel of design.
Also, saying that bezels do not matter is NOT a matter of opinion. We are speaking of phablet here and the very reason why not everyone have 6" phones is the size of those phones. So when the Note 7 include a 5,7" screen in a form factor which is 5mm shorter and 4mm narrower than a 5,5" iPhone 6+, this is huge achievement and has a significant competitive advantage compare to the iPhone or other bulkier large phone.
At last, how can anyone still defend LCD against Samsung OLED screen implementation? The argument that there would be color shifting when looking the phone from the side (which obviously no one is doing) shows the extent of bad faith.
Again, as an iPhone (and Windows phone user), and having no Android, I am puzzled by such review and what kind of goal is tried to be achieved...
NitT - Tuesday, August 16, 2016 - link
I feel like I am a minority here as I am OK with Touchwiz. I do not feel any lagging. On the other hand, when I use other Android phones such as HTC or Vivo, I feel that I miss so many settings. My latest HTC phone was HTC M7/M8. It is quite sad as I could not find newer HTC flagship models in my country.WoodyPWX - Wednesday, August 17, 2016 - link
Finally someone who isn't afraid to say something bad about Note 7. Every other reviews are practically without any real criticism. Thanks for a honest review!