A lot of excitement and hype has preceded the launch of every Galaxy S flagship, but with the Galaxy S6, the hype we're seeing in the mobile industry is rather unprecedented (the number of Galaxy S6 articles on our site is a good example of this). So much has leaked about the Galaxy S6 and its curved sibling that at this point, much of it through our own exclusive reports and quite a lot of stuff from various sources. Samsung has been promising quite a lot with #TheNextGALAXY, and with the company's finances plummeting considerably in the last year or so, those promises will need to hold up pretty well.
Let's take a look at what we expect to see on the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge; there's a lot of it, so keep your patience hats on and continue reading below.
Design
The Galaxy Alpha and Galaxy Note 4 brought a much needed change in Samsung's design language for its smartphones, but the Galaxy S6 is the device that will take things to a whole new level. Samsung's teasers have done well to build hype for what is shaping up to a handset that could look quite stunning. A thin all-metal body, a borderless form factor (at least on the Edge variant, which will feature a three-sided display), and a premium look and feel are features that are extremely likely to be a part of the package.
In short, the design will be at the top of the list of things that people are expecting to be awed by on the Galaxy S6. Reports have pegged the Galaxy S6's design as being quite amazing, but if it fails to impress, the rest of the hero features of the device might just fail to hold anyone's attention.
Display
The Galaxy Note Edge had a stunning form factor with a display that curved to the right side, and the Galaxy S6 Edge will take things up a notch with a display that curves to both the left and right of the device. Leaked pictures have hinted that the phone will look absolutely amazing, and it's one feature that we can't wait to get our eyes on when the S6 Edge (and the standard S6) is officially unveiled.
Quad HD (2560×1440) resolution is a no-brainer, and so is Samsung's Super AMOLED technology, which is rather perfect at this point (if you have seen the Galaxy Note 4 in person, you know what we mean.) Gorilla Glass 4 is a given as well, but those curved edges of the Galaxy S6 Edge are what will no doubt steal the show and help Samsung gain a upper hand over the competition. Well, that's if the company can produce enough units to be able to make it widely and easily available.
Processor
Snapdragon is out. Exynos is in. That has pretty much been the plot when it comes to what mobile SoC will power the Galaxy S6. Instead of opting for both a Snapdragon and Exynos chip, Samsung is going all in with its in-house processor, the Exynos 7420, for its upcoming flagship. It's not without reason – thanks to its 14nm manufacturing process, the Exynos 7420 is more powerful and more power-efficient than the Snapdragon 810, which is based on a 20nm process. Also, Samsung also has its own LTE solution in place, further reducing the importance of Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon chip.
The Exynos 7420 is an octa-core chip that supports 64-bit processing, which will come in handy with Android 5.0 Lollipop. The chip has four Cortex-A57 cores for demanding tasks and four Cortex-A53 cores for handling general operations (each core can be individually turned on and off), though the clock speeds are unknown. A Mali-T760 MP8 GPU is on-board as well, and we're expecting the Galaxy S6 to have 3GB of RAM. The Galaxy S6 Edge might feature 4GB of RAM if some rumors are to believed, and it wouldn't be surprising considering Samsung recently started mass producing 4GB DDR4 mobile chips.
Camera
The Galaxy S6 will feature a 16-megapixel Sony IMX240 sensor with optical image stabilization. It's the same setup that was there on the Galaxy Note 4, though as we exclusively reported, Samsung has made improvements to the lens and software. Speaking of software, we also leaked exclusive details on how Samsung is optimizing its camera app – it will be simpler to use, and will offer a Pro mode for advanced users thanks to the APIs built into Lollipop.
Low-light imaging has been a point of contention on every Samsung smartphone till now, at least when we compare it to what OEMs like HTC or Nokia have been offering. This time around, there's no evidence to support the fact that low-light photos will come out better than they do on devices like the Galaxy Note 4, though we are certainly hoping that's the case, possibly because of whatever improvements Samsung has done behind the scenes.
Software
A three-sided display, a blazing fast processor, and a brilliant camera – that surely would be enough for a smartphone to hold its own, right? Well, with the Galaxy S6, the software might just dwarf every other impressive feature of the device. Why? Because Samsung, after years of offering a software experience that is unpolished and unoptimized, has finally taken the necessary steps to change things around.
The Galaxy S6 will bring a refined version of TouchWiz, Samsung's custom overlay, one that our sources have told us will be extremely fast and optimized. Samsung is trimming down much of the bloat – only two Samsung apps will come pre-loaded out of the box, with the rest available from the GALAXY Apps store, which will also be installed. A slew of Microsoft apps and services, like Office Mobile, Skype and OneDrive, will also be present, but overall, it will be a pretty lean affair.
Samsung Pay
Another big feature of the Galaxy S6 is expected to be the debut of Samsung's payment service, possibly dubbed Samsung Pay. Samsung has been making a lot of moves lately that have been big hints at its plans for taking on Apple Pay, such as acquiring the payment startup LoopPay and teaming up with VISA. The S6 will also debut a touch-based fingerprint sensor for a more intuitive experience, both for making payments and for general tasks like unlocking the phone.
Mobile payment systems are set to become all too important in the coming months, and the Galaxy S6 could spearhead the Korean manufacturer's move into the budding market.
Battery
One aspect of the Galaxy S6 that has given us cause for worry is the battery capacity of the phone. The S6 will supposedly feature a 2,600 mAh battery, which is pretty small for a flagship handset. We're clinging on to hope that the power-efficient Exynos 7420 is the reason the battery is so small and not the fact that Samsung preferred a thin profile over long-lasting endurance. Fast charging support and inbuilt wireless charging will be present, but again, these features will only be able to ease the pain of poor battery life to a small extent.
Final Thoughts
The Galaxy S6 will come in four different colors (all of which are suited to a metallic build), a slew of accessories (including exclusive Sennheiser headphones), and will support the Gear VR headset. There's not a lot left that can surprise us at this point, but the way Samsung has been teasing its upcoming flagships, there might just be some things that do sweep us off our feet.
Only four days are left before the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge will be revealed, and we will see if what we've heard and seen so far is the extent of what Samsung will have to offer or if there's more to the whole plot.
Let us know what you think, and don't forget to check out all our exclusives about the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge below.
- • Exclusive: More information about the themes feature on the Galaxy S6
- • Exclusive: Galaxy S6 software will bring some amazing changes
- • Exclusive: Samsung Galaxy S6 camera details
- • Exclusive: Some details you didn’t know about the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge
- • Exclusive: The Samsung Galaxy S6 will be available in these four colours
- • Exclusive: Galaxy S Edge and Galaxy S6 to support the Gear VR
- • Exclusive: Samsung developing a special variant of the Galaxy S6 with a dual-edge display
- • Exclusive: Samsung opts for a touch-based fingerprint sensor for the Galaxy S6
- • Exclusive: Galaxy S6 to come with Sennheiser earbuds
- • Exclusive: Here is a list of confirmed accessories for the Galaxy S6
- • Exclusive: Next Galaxy S flagship to be called Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge variant coming too
- • Exclusive: More details about the Samsung Galaxy S6, aka Project Zero
