The Samsung Galaxy Note7 (S820) Review
by Joshua Ho on August 16, 2016 9:00 AM ESTVideo Performance
For this portion of the review we can take a look at video performance, which provides an extra test of encode block performance in addition to ISP, sensor, and optic performance. In the interest of not wasting time on retreading topics that are basically unchanged relative to the Galaxy S7, I would redirect readers interested in an in-depth exploration of this subject and comparisons to other devices to the Galaxy S7 Part 2 review as this part of the review will be almost entirely focused on just comparing the Note7 to the Galaxy S7 to see what’s changed.
| Samsung Galaxy Note7 Video Encode Settings | ||||
| Video | Audio | |||
| 1080p30 | 17 Mbps H.264 High Profile | 256 Kbps, 48 KHz AAC | ||
| 1080p60 | 28 Mbps H.264 High Profile | 256 Kbps, 48 KHz AAC | ||
| 4K30 | 48 Mbps H.264 High Profile | 256 Kbps, 48 KHz AAC | ||
| 720p240 | 76 Mbps H.264 Baseline | 256 Kbps, 48 KHz AAC | ||
Starting with encode settings, we can see that the Note7 retains the same exact encode settings as the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, which probably isn’t a surprise given that we’re probably seeing the limits of what the Snapdragon 820’s encode blocks can handle in cases like slow motion video, although 1080p30 is likely not encode-limited at this point.
Galaxy Note7
Galaxy S7
In 1080p30 video the Galaxy Note7 and Galaxy S7 look basically identical save for some slight differences in color rendition. The Note7 seems to be slightly more accurate here as the sky is closer to the color of blue that it should be but detail and most other colors look fairly comparable and both still have some jerky OIS reset behavior.
Galaxy Note7
Galaxy S7
In slow motion video the Galaxy Note7 again seems to have slightly improved color rendition but detail and pretty much everything else is identical. I don’t think this is a reason to go out and buy the Note7, but hopefully these improvements to color rendition come to future OTAs for the Galaxy S7.
Overall I don’t think video results appreciably change the Galaxy Note7’s results here. The camera is great from a speed perspective and it’s good for video but in a lot of cases HTC really does have them beat with the camera on the HTC 10. I think the major win for the Note7 continues to be speed and consistency as the one major weakness of the HTC 10’s camera relative to the Note7 is somewhat unreliable contrast AF in low light, although in better conditions PDAF has no issues achieving perfect focus.
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erikiksaz - Friday, August 19, 2016 - link
How did you guys manage to monitor for frame drops? Is it a separate app?Belard - Sunday, August 21, 2016 - link
Still rather blah- design. I'm surprised they continue the glass backing from the S6, like as if they have not learned anything from Apple? A family member has the S6 and yes, her back has a spider crack on it with a long one from top to bottom.amdwilliam1985 - Tuesday, August 23, 2016 - link
they need the glass back for the wireless charging.Glass and plastic works with Qi-charging, metal does not(at least for now).
thek - Sunday, August 21, 2016 - link
so no one is going to bring up the facts that this 850$ phone has a smaller battery then the Xiaomi redmi note 3 (a 150$ phone) and it's bootloader is locked in the US which literally makes it just the same as an Iphone. (All of us here came to Android because it was an open garden). Closing android is making Samsung not a legit Apple vendor IMO, and should too for the rest of you.Don't be kids and be fooled by gimmicks and high specs. You can't even get CM13 on this phone.
And a really bad job by the reviewer for not bringing this up. As usual in Anandtech they only cares about numbers and not whats behind them.
thek - Sunday, August 21, 2016 - link
not a legit Android* vendorCSMR - Sunday, August 21, 2016 - link
Great review and phone.I wonder if it would be possible to check the compass in future?
All the phones I have owned have had terrible magnetometers which stop working, require shaking the phone, or are off by a large angle.
Having compass inaccuracies pointed out in reviews would really shake things up.
Pipperox - Sunday, August 21, 2016 - link
So you're slamming an excellent phone (like the S7 as well) because of your non-sensical review of its camera?The most reputable camera review website - Dxomark - puts the S7 at the top for still image quality, on par with the HTC10, and the Samsung is even better in the video score.
What problems do you see with video stabilization?
Dxo Labs talks about "excellent video stabilization", i have an S7 edge and can only confirm what they say.
Diet - Monday, August 22, 2016 - link
This the only review on the internet that addreses the weak points of this overpriced phone.Kudos To Anandtech!
KoolAidMan1 - Monday, August 22, 2016 - link
More performance tests: https://youtu.be/3-61FFoJFy0tldw - The flagship GN7 is slower than a year-old iPhone 6S.
jlabelle2 - Tuesday, August 23, 2016 - link
- The flagship GN7 is slower than a year-old iPhone 6Syes and a Porsche 911 from last year is faster than an Audi RS6. The question is what do you need in your day to day life. Is the speed of the RS6 enough? Do you need space? 5 seats? Comfort? Good equipments?
People have short memory. The iPhone was a success because it was the 1st phone with a big touchscreen, easy to use, with a great experience. Now, people consider that a phone should be choosen only based on the speed difference of launching 30 different applications within 2mn. Even if new phone are twice as quick as the previous one that was twice as quick as the previous previous one that was twice... Well, you see the point. Phones are fast enough.
I do not know anybody that is using an iPhone 6 or Samsung S6 and that is saying: "my phone is too slow and the only thing I would wish is to that a phone twice as quick".
I am certain that if Apple would sell at the same price:
1/ iPhone 7 = CPU of the 6S, AMOLED screen, quick and wireless charging, waterproof, 5,7" screen but 5mm narrower than current 6S+, camera hardware button, pen support.
2/ iPhone 6SS = iPhone 6S with a CPU 50% quicker
you can be absolutely assure that NOBODY would choose an iPhone 6SS versus this hypothetical iPhone 7.
We can be all fair of what Apple is achieving with its iPhone, which is great. But some minimal common sense would be good in this forum.