Samsung Galaxy edge+ review

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ review: beauty in curves -- with a cost

SamsungGalaxy S6 Edge+Pros
*.Gorgeous
*.Feels like a premium phone
*.Fast performance*.Great cameraCons
*.Uncomfortable to hold
*.Curved display not very useful

Summary
The Galaxy S6 Edge+ shows some of Samsung's best, and worst, tendencies. It's a gorgeous phone with someof the finest hardware available right now, but its key feature is relatively useless, and still somewhat experimental.

Hardware

Take the Galaxy S6 Edge and make it bigger. That's basically all Samsung did here. The Edge+ still has Gorilla Glass panels on the front and back, along with astrong metal frame, but the size of its curved screen has been bumped up to 5.7 inches from 5.1. Yes, it's gorgeous -- even more so than its smaller sibling since the overall effect of its curves is more pronounced
. It's the most confident design statement we've seen from Samsung yet.Looks aren't everything, though. I was almost ready to give up my iPhone 6 for the GS6 Edge earlier this year --that is, until I actually held it for several minutes.
While the curved screen looks cool, it also works directly against the natural contour of your hand, digging into your flesh rather than resting comfortably.

That same problem rears its head again with the Edge+ -- and it's an even bigger issue since there's so much more phone to hold. It makes the phone awkward to wield with one hand (even with my large paws) and tougher to grasp for extended periods. The curves also make it tougher to use apps that put buttons and options on the edges of the screen, as you'll inevitably hit those by accident when merely holding the phone. Basically, if you're considering the Edge+, be sure to get some real hands-on time with it before you commit.

As for its other design elements, the Edge+ also shares quite a bit with Samsung's other S6 phones. Gone are the days when Samsung phones were made of cheap plastic; everything here feels premium, from the glass back to the metal. But just like with the iPhone 4 and 4s, having a glass rear still feels like a questionable choice, especially if you're prone to dropping your phone. And while the metal components are nice, it's hard not to notice that the S6 Edge+, like Samsung's other recent phones, looks just like the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus from certain angles. The company's inspiration is clear, but at least it's a tasteful remix (and it's not as if Apple didn't take some cues from Samsung's pioneering work with big-screen phones.)The Edge+ also includes the same fingerprint reader onits home button as the other S6 models, and it works surprisingly well. I didn't spend a significant amount of time with those earlier phones, so it was refreshing to see a well-implemented fingerprint reader on an Android phone. Adding your fingerprints simply involves holding down your finger several times, and the authentication process was typically fast and error-free. Of course, the entire process works just like Apple's Touch ID implementation, but at this point, did you really expect anything different?If you're confused why Samsung didn't just call this phone the "Note Edge 2," after last year's foray into acurved-screen phablet, it's because it simply has more in common with the S6 Edge. It also lacks some of the Note Edge's screen widgets (since that phone had a much bigger curve to work with). Really, though, a more appropriate name for the S6 Edge+ might be the"Note 5 Edge." It's surprisingly tough to tell the difference between this phone and theNote 5side by side, as they share many of the same design flourishes. But where the Edge+ has a curved display on the front, the Note 5 has curves on its back, allowingit to rest more comfortably in your hand. Under the hood, the two phones are exactly the same (more on that later). But while the Edge+ is the same size as the Note, there's no S Pen stylus; it's geared more toward consuming content than being productive.

Another year, another slimmed-down software offering from Samsung. The Edge+ ships with a lightly skinned version ofAndroid Lollipop 5.1.1. While Samsung's TouchWiz interface isn't as clean as stock Android, it's nowhere near as intrusive as the company's earlier software attempts. Even the preinstalled apps are pretty useful, includingMicrosoft Word, OneDrive and Skype(which are also more signs of Microsoft'sever-broadening mobile ambitions). Samsung also offers a choice selection of software via "Galaxy Apps,"which is where you can also pick up Samsung-built apps like "S Translator" and its custom chat app"AllTogether." The beauty of this approach is that there'sless crap installed on your phone that you might not need.

For the most part, the Edge+ offers up pretty much everything you'd get on the Galaxy S6 and Note 5 -- save for the small amount of software designed specifically for its curved screen. Swiping on the "Edge handle," an unobtrusive tab that can be configured to appear on either the left or right side of the screen, brings up those apps. The phone ships with "People edge," which is basically a collection of shortcuts to your key contacts, and "Apps edge," a quick way to access your favorite apps. You can also have the device light up one side of its screen when you get a call, show notifications when you swipe the edge of thescreen and display an always-on clock at night.While Samsung is certainly trying its darndest to make this whole curved-screen thing happen, it's still mostly a novel feature, even with apps built specifically for it. Only a few of those Edge applications actually rely on the curved portion of the screen, and since the curve is also pretty thin, there's not a lot of room for them to display much information. Features like People edge and Apps edge could easily be implemented on a standard phone screen without losing much. They rely on the flat portion of the screen to display shortcuts, and they barely use the curved edge.Samsung also has a few "Edge Specials" apps available through Galaxy Apps, including an RSS reader and a simplified version of the public transportation app Transporta. Samsung might be able to get developers to start building more apps for curvedscreens eventually, but I wouldn't bet on that happeningover the next year. Developers won't jump aboard until the Edge phones start selling more widely, although Samsung might be able to tempt devs by partnering with them (and paying handsomely).

Camera Samsung was one of the first Android phone makers toget cameras right, and it's also steadily improved its shooters over the years. It's no surprise, then, that the Edge+ packs one of the best cameras I've seen yet on an Android handset. Its 16-megapixel camera takes sharp, vibrant photos without the need for fiddling with settings, although there's a "Pro Mode" too if you want more control. It also performs wonderfully in low light thanks to its fast f/1.9 aperture and advanced optical image stabilization, both of which allow you to avoid using the phone's flash until absolutely necessary.If you're a fan of beautiful background blur, the Edge+ has got you covered as well. Taking a photo of any subject up close almost always gets you some silky smooth blur, and you can also artificially increase the effect with Samsung's "selective focus" feature.

The Galaxy S6 Edge+ is the closest thing we've got to a"Samsung greatest hits" phone. There's the sleek, curved glass from the S6 Edge coupled with the larger 5.7-inch screen from the Note lineup. Together, they make up one of Samsung's most memorable smartphones yet. But while the Galaxy S6 Edge+ ($300 on-contract; $768 to $815 off) is certainly striking, the Korean electronics giant clearly still has some kinks to work out around curved screens. It's a feature that's slightly more useful here than on the S6 Edge, but fundamentally it's still just about aesthetics, rather than function. That might not be a problem for some, but Samsung still has to prove why curved screens are more than a gimmick.