The Galaxy S6 Edge+ Is Samsung’s Answer To The iPhone 6 Plus

Today at a big press conference, Samsung announced two new flagship phones, the Samsung Galaxy Note 5, and its new sibling, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+. While a Note update was highly anticipated, the S6 Edge+ is a new beast. And the best way to describe it is that it’s a direct iPhone 6 Plus competitor.

While the S6 Edge+ has the same 5.7-inch display as the Note 5, it is slimmer, lighter and much better suited for real world usage. It doesn’t have a stylus and all the power features that Galaxy Note users love. But it has a bigger screen than your average smartphone letting you do more.

Like the S6 Edge, Samsung’s new phone is made of glass and aluminium. Gone is the cheap plastic casing, the removable battery and the microSD slot. In exchange, the device only weighs 153g, which is lighter than the iPhone 6 Plus and the Galaxy Note 5. Even though the iPhone 6 Plus has a slightly smaller 5.5-inch display, it weighs 172g.

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We got the chance to play with the device at Samsung’s event in London. The company has made a lot of progress when it comes to sturdiness. It looks and feels good in hand. The screen is gorgeous even though a bit too saturated.

But the best part is that the S6 Edge+ feels incredibly light. It doesn’t feel like a phablet at all. When you turn the device on, you are immersed in the display. Because of the curved display, it feels like you are just holding a big screen in your hand. You can pin apps to the screen edges, making these edges at least a little useful.

I compared the device with its smaller version, the Galaxy S6 Edge. It looks very similar and it’s hard to notice differences. The top and bottom bezels are similar, the thickness is the same, you don’t get any new button on the S6 Edge+. While this isn’t a cheap Android phone, if you’re really invested into the Android ecosystem and like big displays, this might be the device to get.

The only thing is that, arguably, the best feature of the iPhone is iOS and its strong ecosystem. People are willing to pay a premium to access this ecosystem. While Samsung didn’t say a word on pricing, if the S6 Edge+ is like the S6 Edge, you can expect to pay as much as you would to get an iPhone 6 (Plus).

The device charges in only 90 minutes, has the same camera as the S6 Edge and packs a large battery. We will see how it fares in real world usage in our upcoming review. The device will launch later this month.

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