The Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge have given Samsung the mobile crown the company is due, but Samsung’s winner-take-all year isn’t quite over just yet. You see, above the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge is one phone that rules them all, one phone that has the kind of functionality that diehard Samsung fans crave. That one phone is the Galaxy Note, and this year, the Galaxy Note 6 is the phone in question that, like the Galaxy S6 edge, is rumored to be next in line for the “Six Appeal” (Sex Appeal) treatment.
The Galaxy S6 edge, announced and released in 2015, provided the Korean giant with an opportunity to give the Galaxy S series a makeover that some believe was long overdue. With the Galaxy S6 edge, Samsung took the edge design from the Galaxy Note edge and made it better in its first Galaxy S edge model with a “Six Appeal” (a play on “sex appeal”) marketing campaign to match. And yet, first-generation Note edge fans are wondering when Samsung will step up its game and bring sexy back to the Note line with a follow-up Note edge successor in what could be called the Galaxy Note 6 edge (a.k.a. Galaxy Note edge 2).
As of now, it’s all up in the air. Samsung could 1) make a normal Galaxy Note 6, 2) make a dual curved Galaxy Note 6 edge, or 3) make a non-edge Note 6 and a curved Galaxy Note 6 edge and sell both side-by-side. While we won’t know officially until Samsung makes its official announcement, we can be confident that the Galaxy Note 6 is next in line to get the Six Appeal edge treatment for three reasons. Let’s dive into them below.
A Galaxy Note 6 edge would showcase Samsung’s hardware and software prowess
While consumers don’t necessarily agree on what the perfect phone is (though some think the Galaxy S7 edge or first-generation Note edge come pretty close), they all agree that the perfect phone includes the perfect integration of hardware and software. The Galaxy Note 6 edge would be as close as Samsung has ever come to achieving this feat for its smartphone series.
The Galaxy Note 6 edge would have the hardware design of the edge, Samsung’s trademark that forces consumers to grow discontented with the usual “box” form factor of high-end smartphones. The edge is there to make your touch experience better, with curves that now help the phone settle in the palm of your hand and provide a comfortable feel when placed against your cheek to make a phone call.
The edge is more than just a pretty aesthetic, though: Samsung has also included functionality that lets you access settings shortcuts to take a selfie, send an email, call a contact, send an email to a specific person (a boss or friend, for example), and so on. Sure, it can be said that the Galaxy S7 edge, as its predecessor, doesn’t have enough functionality, but Samsung’s original Note edge did wonders with functionality. It’d be all too easy for Samsung to pull off the same functionality and more in the Galaxy Note 6 edge.
A non-edge Galaxy Note 6 would be wonderful, but a dual curved Galaxy Note 6 edge would be even better. Throw in the S Pen and its software, and you have the most beautiful and functional smartphone on the market. The Galaxy Note 6 edge, like the Galaxy Note 5, will have no equal.
The Galaxy Note 6 edge would be a gamble; then and again, Samsung has already gambled on the edge and won
Samsung gambled on the edge with the Galaxy S6 edge back in 2015, and the Korean giant found itself with a winner. Consumers were buying up the Galaxy S6 edge left and right, as much as the non-edge Galaxy S6 (which is surprising, when you consider that the edge concept is futuristic). Flash forward to this year and Samsung already has a huge hit on its hands yet again with the Galaxy S7 edge.
When it comes to the Galaxy Note line, Samsung has played it relatively safe with the exception of the single-curved Galaxy Note edge back in 2014, maintaining the box form factor that many have come to love in the phone design. And yet, this is the year of change. It’s time for the Galaxy Note 6 to get the Six Appeal edge makeover.
When Samsung launched the Galaxy S6 edge, the Korean giant could’ve never anticipated the consumer preference. The Galaxy S6 edge “gamble” that proved successful would be even less of a gamble for the Note 6 because the Note line has more modest sales. The Galaxy S line is the most popular smartphone line for Samsung, so a Galaxy Note 6 edge would be even less of a gamble and could prove to garner more sales for the company.
The Galaxy Note 6 edge would resolve the Galaxy Note/Galaxy S6 edge form vs. function dilemma
If you’re the proud owner of a Galaxy S6 edge or a Galaxy S7 edge, you’ve got a phone without form or functional compromise. The same can’t be said for Galaxy Note customers who felt powerless last year when Samsung took away the edge from the Note line and brought it to the Galaxy S6 edge and Galaxy S6 edge+. Customers who wanted the edge of the Galaxy S6 edge+ couldn’t have the Galaxy Note 5; customers who wanted the Galaxy Note 5 couldn’t have the S6 edge+. Yes, Galaxy Note customers had to make a choice in the form/function dilemma. Samsung pushed this dilemma in its marketing campaign, but some customers experienced genuine angst over their buying decision.
With a Galaxy Note 6 edge, the angst of yesteryear would be resolved within one device. Now, Note customers could have the edge and S Pen together, their own version of what can only be called a Galaxy S6 edge+/Galaxy Note 5 hybrid (or, per this year’s phone monikers, a Galaxy S7 edge/Galaxy Note 6 hybrid).
Finally, the dilemma would end in sweet resolution. Oh, the peace that will come in the buying process!
Conclusion
Lil’ Wayne has poured champagne all over the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge, and, after all, I can’t blame him: the best things in life, in this case, Samsung’s two Galaxy S smartphones, deserve the finest champagne to celebrate them. And yet, the Galaxy Note 6 provides a brilliant opportunity for Samsung to add a third smartphone to the party, the one smartphone that tops them all (even without the edge design).
And yet, I can’t help but think that the Galaxy Note 6, as good as it would be in non-curved fashion, could steal the show from the S7 edge if Samsung would “level the hardware field” and give the Note 6 the one feature that has won the S7 edge its current acclaim. The Galaxy Note 6 will be as champagne-resistant as the Galaxy S7 series when it arrives (and as champagne-toasted), but why deprive it of the one hardware feature that everyone wants? Why take the most prestigious software and deprive it of the most prestigious hardware, especially when the Galaxy Note 7 edge will arrive in 2017 along with 4 other Galaxy flagships?
The Galaxy Note 6 will be nothing short of a well-baked, delicious cake. Why not go ahead and give it that Six Appeal and add the “edge” icing on top?
