Apple iPhone 7 Vs Samsung Galaxy S7 Review

Welcome to 2016’s biggest smartphone fight. In the red corner: the Galaxy S7  Arguably one of the best smartphones Samsung has ever released. In the blue corner: the iPhone 7 Arguably the most Controversial Smartphone Apple has ever released. Both Amaze and Frustrate, but which should you buy?


  


Note: My thanks to # 3 UK and Samsung UK for Long Term Loans for the iPhone 7 and Galaxy S7 used in this review.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
Design - Desirable Durability


Finally. After years of pleading, it seems Apple and Samsung have finally grasped that customers want smartphones that are as practical as they are stylish and both companies have gone big on durability in 2016.                                                                                                                                
 


                                                                                                                                    


Consequently you’ll find the Galaxy S7 and iPhone 7 each sport tough Series 7000 aluminium chassis as well as water and dust resistance - Samsung bringing it back to the range after it bizarrely went missing on the Galaxy S6, Apple adding it for the first time.    


                                          



                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
Differences? Technically Samsung has achieved the slightly higher rating (IP68 vs IP67) which means it can survive submersion for up to 30 minutes in 1.5 metres of water while the iPhone 7 also survives 30 minutes but at a depth of 1 metre. It’s not a game changing difference, but if your phone falls into a swimming pool the Galaxy S7 has a fractionally better chance of survival.                                                                                                                                                                                              


                                                                                                                                   An interesting development is Apple Claimed removing the headphone jack (more later) was necessary to achieve this rating, but clearly Samsung found a way around this.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

                                                                      


Durability aside, the two phones couldn’t be more different. And here I give the edge to Samsung. The iPhone 7’s design may be iconic, but it is looking long in the tooth. Now three generations old, the large top and bottom bezels waste valuable space making the 4.7-inch handset larger than it needs to be compared to the more compact 5.1-inch Galaxy S7:
• iPhone 7 - 138.3 x 67.1 x 7.1 mm (5.44 x 2.64 x 0.28 in) and 138 g (4.87 oz)
• Galaxy S7: 142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9mm (5.61 x 2.74 x 0.31in) and 152g (5.36oz)
The iPhone 7 is also more slippery to hold and though the Galaxy S7 also lacks grip, its tapered back provides better purchase making you less likely to drop it. If you put your phones in a case this won’t matter, but they are tangible pros and cons out the box.                                                                                                                                                              


                                                                                                                                 When it comes to the smaller details, however, Apple fights back. Both phones are beautifully made, but the Galaxy S7’s plastic home button is an oversight - especially compared to the iPhone 7’s new ‘taptic’ sapphire home button (complete with convincing vibration feedback). The iPhone 7 also has better external audio after Apple cleverly amplified the earpiece to create stereo audio. It doesn’t beat dual front firing speakers, but it easily outguns the rather muffled speaker of the Galaxy S7.                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

But of course it’s impossible to evaluate iPhone 7 design without spending some time on its most controversial aspect: the removal of the headphone jack. For some this will be a deal breaker, for others no big deal, but what I will say is Apple’s reasons for excluding it (water resistance, bigger battery, age) are nonsense.



                                                                                                                                            Samsung has outdone Apple on both water resistance and battery capacity (be sure to check out the Battery Life section further down) while age is irrelevant - the headphone jack is universal, reliable and delivers incredible quality. But contrast the Lightning port is proprietary (a licensing cost) and its digital audio requires a DAC integrated into every pair of headphones to convert it into audible analogue sound waves (another cost).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

                                                                                                                               

The move also condemns even the biggest Apple fan to a life of adaptors for as long as the company refuses to update its MacBooks to offer Lightning audio or forces them to buy wireless headphones - another compromise in sound quality and yet another device that requires regular charging.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

                                                                                                             

One final tip: nice as it looks do not buy the 'Jet Black' iPhone 7. It is both a fingerprint magnet and woefully prone to scratches, and if your counterpoint is you’ll put it in a case then you’re not seeing the Jet black finish anyway.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

                                                                                           

Winner: Iphone 7  a closer match than you might expect as stereo speakers and a better home button bolster the iPhone 7’s ageing looks, but Samsung has the more modern, compact, water resistant design all while keeping the headphone jack (For Now).