Samsung Galaxy S7 edge vs Galaxy Note 5 vs iPhone 6s Plus specs comparison: a Mexican standoff

9comments

Apart from the Galaxy S7, Samsung today unveiled its larger and "edgier" counterpart - the intriguing Galaxy S7 edge, a device that shines on all fronts. It's indeed another noteworthy big-screen phone from Samsung, which joins the ranks of the Note 5 and S6 edge+. Still, the S7 edge has the potential to be better on all fronts.

The Note 5, in particular, is considered one of the best devices right now - S-Pen, hardware specs, and design that truly set it apart. Of course, the S7 edge does not dwell on the same plane of functionality, but this does not mean that the two are not comparable. On the contrary, we just decided to pit them against one another and devise a brief specs comparison. 

Oh, and don't frown at the sight of the iPhone 6s Plus - it's another fine device that not only deserves a mention, but also deserves to get featured alongside the two Samsung warriors.

Samsung Galaxy S7 edge Samsung Galaxy Note5 Apple iPhone 6s Plus

Design

Dimensions
5.94 x 2.86 x 0.30 inches
150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm
6.03 x 3.00 x 0.30 inches
153.2 x 76.1 x 7.6 mm
6.23 x 3.07 x 0.29 inches
158.2 x 77.9 x 7.3 mm
Weight
5.54 oz (157.0 g) 6.03 oz (171.0 g) 6.77 oz (192.0 g)
Materials
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 4)
Frame: Aluminum
Back: Glass
Frame: Metal
Back: Aluminum
Resistance
Water, Dust; IP68
Biometrics
Fingerprint (touch) Fingerprint (touch) Fingerprint (touch)
Features
Touch sensitive control keys Stylus, Touch sensitive control keys Notification light
Keys
Left: Volume control; Right: Lock/Unlock key Left: Volume control; Right: Lock/Unlock key Left: Volume control; Right: Lock/Unlock key
Colors
Black, Gold, Silver, White, Pink gold, Black pearl, Coral blue Black sapphire, Gold platinum, Silver titan, White pearl Gold, Silver, Rose gold, Space gray

Display

Size
5.5-inch 5.7-inch 5.5-inch
Resolution
2560x1440px, 534 PPI 2560x1440px, 518 PPI 1920x1080px, 401 PPI
Technology
Super AMOLED Super AMOLED IPS LCD
Screen-to-body
76.09 % 76.62 % 67.91 %
Peak brightness
500 cd/m2 (nit)
Features
Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 4), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 4), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor Pressure-sensitive, Oleophobic coating, Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor

Hardware

System chip
Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 MSM8996 (14 nm) Samsung Exynos 7 Octa 7420 (14 nm) Apple A9 APL1022
Processor
Quad-core
2200 MHz
Kryo
Octa-core
2100 MHz
ARM Cortex-A57 and ARM Cortex-A53
Dual-core
1840 MHz
Twiste
GPU
Adreno 530 Mali-T760 MP8 PowerVR GT7600
RAM
4GB (LPDDR4) 4GB (LPDDR4) 2GB (LPDDR4)
Internal storage
32GB, available to use: 24.4 GB 64GB, available to use: 54.1 GB 128GB
Storage expansion
microSDXC up to 200 GB not expandable not expandable
OS
Android (8.0 Oreo, 7.0 Nougat, 6.0 Marshmallow), Samsung TouchWiz UI Android (7.0 Nougat, 6.0 Marshmallow, 5.1 Lollipop), Samsung TouchWiz UI iOS (15.x, 14.x, 13.x, 12.x, 11.x, 10.x, 9.x)

Battery

Capacity
3600 mAh 3000 mAh 2750 mAh
Type
Li - Ion Li - Ion Li - Ion
Charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Qi and Powermat wireless charging Qi and Powermat wireless charging

Camera

Rear
Single camera Single camera Single camera
Main camera
12 MP (OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.7
Focal length: 26 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.5"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
16 MP (OIS, PDAF, CMOS image sensor, BSI sensor)
Aperture size: F1.9
Focal length: 28 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.6"
Pixel size: 1.12 μm
12 MP (Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, PDAF, BSI sensor)
Aperture size: F2.2
Focal length: 29 mm
Sensor size: 1/3"
Pixel size: 1.22 μm
Flash
LED LED Dual LED
Video recording
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (60 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (240 fps)
HDR, Picture-taking during video recording, Video calling, Video sharing
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 2560x1440 (QHD), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (60 fps), 1280x720 (HD), 640x480 (VGA)
OIS, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, EIS, Video calling
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (120 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (240 fps)
OIS, Time-lapse video, Continuous autofocus, Video calling, Video sharing
Front
5 MP (HDR) 5 MP 5 MP (HDR)

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
4.2 4.2 4.2
WLAN
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band,e
Multiple antennas, MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Hotspot
USB
microUSB, USB 2.0 microUSB, USB 2.0 Lightning
Hearing aid compatible
M4/T3 M3/T4
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, BeiDou GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Gesture, Barometer Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer
Other
NFC, ANT+, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync NFC, ANT+, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync NFC, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync, AirDrop

Multimedia

Headphones
3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack
Speakers
Earpiece, Loudspeaker Earpiece, Loudspeaker Earpiece, Loudspeaker
Features
Album art cover, Background playback Album art cover, Background playback Album art cover, Background playback
Screen mirroring
Wireless screen share Wireless screen share
Additional microphone(s)
Noise cancellation Noise cancellation, Video recording

Cellular

4G (FDD)
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS) Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 26(850+), 28(700 APT) Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d)
4G (TDD)
Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+) Bands 40(2300) Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+)
3G
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 4(1700/2100), 5(850) Bands 5(850), 8(900), 2(1900), 1(2100) Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 8(900)
Data Speed
LTE-A Cat 9 (450/50 Mbit/s), HSPA LTE-A Cat 9 (450/50 Mbit/s), HSPA, HSUPA, UMTS LTE-A Cat 6 (300/50 Mbit/s), HSPA, HSUPA
SIM type
Nano SIM Nano SIM Nano SIM
HD Voice
Yes Yes
VoLTE
Yes Yes

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Feb 12, 2016
FCC ID value: A3LSMG935F
Date approved: Jul 15, 2015
FCC ID value: A3LSMN920A
Date approved: Sep 09, 2015
FCC ID value: BCG-E2944A
Measured SAR
Head: 0.27 W/kg
Body: 0.66 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 0.96 W/kg
Head: 0.22 W/kg
Body: 0.76 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.27 W/kg
Wireless Router: 0.98 W/kg
Head: 0.91 W/kg
Body: 1.14 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.56 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.14 W/kg

Buyers information

MSRP
$ 799 $ 949

Availability

Officially announced
Feb 21, 2016 Aug 13, 2015 Sep 09, 2015


Get a Motorola Razr 2025 for just $199.99!

Switch to a 2-month Total 5G or 5G+ plan with Total Wireless and score this foldable deal.


We may earn a commission if you make a purchase

Check Out The Offer
Loading Comments...

Latest Discussions

by Doug Fresh 123 • 5

Recommended Stories

FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless