iPhone 6S Plus

In 2014 Apple finally gave us an iPhone which offered a display to rival its Android flagship counterparts, while enabling you to really take advantage of the apps, games, movies and TV shows in its expansive libraries.
The iPhone 6 Plus was expensive, but there's no denying it was well received. Android fans will continue to berate Apple for its seemingly copy-cat 'innovation', but the plain fact is that the 6 Plus was a great handset, with all the power of the iPhone and a much longer battery life.
It's no surprise then, that Apple has returned in 2015 with the refreshed iPhone 6S Plus.
The iPhone 6S Plus inherits the price tag of its predecessor, which means you're looking at some lofty SIM-free figures. The 16GB model comes in at $749, £619, AU$1,129, but you'll probably want a bit more storage than that.
In which case the 64GB iPhone 6S Plus will set you back $849, £699, AU$1,379, while the 128GB model – which we tried out for this review – is $949, £789, AU$1,529.
Unsurprisingly that puts the 6S Plus up against the top phones on the market, rubbing shoulders with the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+, Galaxy Note 5 and Sony Xperia Z5 Premium in terms of price.
It's also gunning for the LG G4, Moto X Style, OnePlus 2 and Huawei Mate S with its 5.5-inch full HD display.
As you've probably guessed from the 'S' handle in its name, the 6S Plus is more of an incremental upgrade over the 6 Plus rather than a reimagining of Apple's smartphone range.
It might be a stretch for current 6 Plus incumbents to justify upgrading to the new iPhone 6S Plus, but it's got a few fancy features you won't find on older iPhones.

Design

There's no mistaking the incremental credentials of the iPhone 6S Plus when it comes to design. It looks identical to the iPhone 6 Plus, and I mean identical. Remember the iPhone 4 and 4S? It's like that.
In fact, the only obvious marking that differentiates the 6S Plus is the small 'S' logo on the rear below the word 'iPhone' – although it will be covered by your hand 90% of the time (or 100% of the time by a case).
The sleek, rounded metal body continues to look and feel premium, with the build quality you'd expect from Apple. After last year's unfortunate 'bendgate' fiasco, Apple has looked to reassure people that its latest smartphone duo are tough. This isn't strictly necessary, given that we'd have expected last year's models to be strong enough to get through a couple of years of use, but some clarification was needed.
Both the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus sport what Apple is calling '7000 series aluminum', which it claims is a lot stronger. Who wants to volunteer up their new iPhone 6S Plus for a bend test?
The 6S Plus is still a beast in the hand, with Apple's insistence on the sizeable bezels above and below the display ensuring its supersized dimensions.
The 6S Plus is ever so slightly thicker than its predecessor, gaining an additional 0.2mm in girth. You won't notice the addition, and I suspect Apple needed a little extra space to squeeze in its 3D Touch technology.
It's also piled on the pounds, gaining 20g on the 6 Plus, which sees the iPhone 6S Plus tip the scales at a hefty 192g.
It's fair to say, then, that you'll notice the 6S Plus in your hand and pocket, and it can get a little tiring on the wrist to hold it for extended periods one-handed. Most of the time I found I had to employ both mitts to keep it steady and reach all areas of the screen.
The flat rear and rounded metal edges offer little in the way of grip, which makes the iPhone 6S Plus a bit of a slippery eel. A tight grasp is required to ensure it doesn't make a dash for the floor, although Apple's silicon case provides both protection and in-hand security for $39 / £29 / AU$59.
Apple's stuck with the same button placements too, with power/lock on the right and the volume keys on the left, just below the mute switch. During one-handed use I found I needed to stretch a little to reach them, and those with smaller palms will struggle more.
There is a silver (actually, pink) lining though: the iPhone 6S Plus has a new color! In addition to gold, silver and space grey you can now pick up Apple's latest supersized smartphone in a fetching shade of 'Rose Gold'... also known as pink.
The familiar design of the iPhone 6S Plus will be comforting to the Apple faithful, while outsiders may look on with raised eyebrows, mumbling something about a lack of progression from the Cupertino firm. And they may have a point.

Display

On first viewing the screen on the iPhone 6S Plus is the same as its predecessor, with the 5.5-inch panel sporting a full HD resolution and 401ppi pixel density.
That makes it sharper than the smaller iPhone 6S, which only musters a 1334 x 750 resolution, resulting in 326ppi.
Text and images are crisp and clear, colors are vibrant and images pop, especially if you whack the screen brightness up (just keep an eye on the battery life if you do).
The IPS screen is covered in toughened glass with fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating, and it does a better job than most at keeping the display relatively print-free.
It's not perfect, and there were still times I had to give it a quick wipe, but compared to many of its Android rivals the iPhone 6S Plus is less of a smudge magnet.
As I've mentioned, hold the iPhone 6S Plus side by side to the iPhone 6 Plus and there are no visible differences between the two, but the 6S Plus has a hidden bonus feature: 3D Touch.

iPhone SE

There's a part of me that doesn't understand why Apple gets the amount of interest it does with something like the iPhone SE. It's a phone that's in an identical chassis to the one released three years ago, and beyond a new color it's impossible to know which model is which. It's the iPhone 'Special Edition'.Then I look around the train carriage on the way to work and count the amount of iPhone 5S and 5 devices that are being prodded quietly all around. The number is staggering, and it easily dwarfs the amount of iPhone 6 or iPhone 6S handsets on show.
Has Apple been smart here? Looked at the way people are using phones and realised there's a massive market for a certain form factor - one that's not only not being serviced in the iWorld, but in the smartphone arena in general?
The iPhone SE is a phone that many might not have expected - in truth, we thought the iPhone 5C would get a reboot, with the plastic chassis coming in a more rounded, 6S-a-like shape and allowing Apple to offer a lower-cost phone that could be pushed to other territories where flagship phones don't sell as well.
But instead we got a hark back to a long-forgotten era in smartphones, like Apple slit time in two and pulled a phone back through, and charged US$399 (£359, AU$679) for the 16GB model, and US$499 (£439, $AU829) for the 64GB option for the privilege.
The question of price is more important here than ever before. By launching a 4-inch phone, no matter how fancy the internals are, consumers will expect it to be a little cheaper - and thankfully that's what Apple has done.
It's actually rather impressive - in the UK at least, the price of the contract for this phone is cheaper than many flagships from 2015, and considering the high-end internals used here, it's pretty good. The SIM-free price isn't cheap, but it's more affordable than a 'new' iPhone has ever been.
But enough about the price - usually, people that are embedded into the iOS ecosystem struggle to leave it, and are willing to pay whatever's necessary to get a decent new phone.
So what about this decision to re-re-release the iPhone 5? Has Apple zigged when the rest of the world has zagged, and come up with the direction everyone has been clamoring for, making a powerful-yet-palmable phone?
Or is this a company arrogantly believing it can churn out the same phone design for the third time and hope the world will consider it different enough to be worth the upgrade?

Key new features

Besides price (the iPhone SE is the cheapest Apple handset on the market, after all) the key selling point with this new phone is the design. The chassis, as I've mentioned above, is precisely the same as on the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S, and beyond coming in rose gold, doesn't offer anything new at all.
That said, so many people are looking at the iPhone's evolution to the 4.7-inch display of the 6 and 6S and scrunched their noses up a bit, not wanting to make the leap to the larger size of screen (and that's before we even get into the iPhone 6S Plus' mega size).
The new phone is designed to be easily operated with one hand, the 4-inch screen sitting just at the edge of a thumb stretch, and Apple is banking on this fact keeping the handset current.
However, internally things are genuinely supercharged, a world away from the innards stuffed into the handset from a few years back. The camera has had one of the biggest overhauls, now coming with the 12MP iSight sensor found in the current flagship phones, and offering the same array of tricks.

That means Focus Pixels to offer clearer and faster autofocus, the improved two-tone flash and Live Photos, where a small amount of video is captured with every photo taken. 4K video recording and ultra-slo-mo movie modes really help sweeten the deal too.
The power of the iPhone SE is something to behold as well - it's as powerful as the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus thanks to having the new A9 chip, the M9 co-processor and 2GB of RAM.
Compare that to the A7 chip with a measly 1GB of RAM from the iPhone 5S and side by side they're absolutely night and day in terms of speed and battery life management.
The M9 co-processor is an important element too, telling the phone when it should be heading into a dormant mode thanks to being sat quietly on a desk or in a pocket, which prevents the battery-hungry pings that lead to the red line of doom and you needing to reach for the charger at 6PM.
Battery life is impressive on the phone, especially when you consider there are only a few mAh added in here, from 1560mAh to 1624mAh, and with no increase to the size of the chassis at all, this is a really impressive feat and addresses one of the key concerns I had with the iPhone 5S.

iPad Pro 9.7

The iPad Pro is ambitiously touted as Apple's new tablet that has the guts to replace your laptop, and it now comes in an ideal size that perfectly demonstrates bigger isn't always better for everyone.
Even though I was thoroughly impressed with the grunt behind the powerful iPad Pro 12.9, I longed for that standard 9.7-inch display and form factor with the same pro-level features.
It's taken Apple a year and a half to launch a proper iPad Air 2 successor and, in that time, it fit almost everything from the giant iPad into a smaller frame. It's way more than an iPad Air 3 upgrade.

It's way more than an iPad Air 3 upgrade.

I can now listen to amped up music through its four loud stereo speakers, doodle away with the Apple Pencil and seamlessly attach a keyboard without fumbling with Bluetooth. Its Smart Connector port may be my favorite new feature inherited from the 12.9-inch iPad Pro.
It's not all hand-me-downs. The iPad Pro 9.7 actually strikes out on its own with a few advancements. Its True Tone display technology adapts to my environment by subtly adjusting the white balance, and there's a much wider color gamut behind its anti-reflective coated glass.
Its camera is 12MP and shoots 4K video, taking cues from the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus camera specs. That's incredibly rare for a tablet of any size. So is the rose gold color option and debut of a 256GB configuration.

It's a tablet juggernaut - not in size, but the asking price.

What we have ended up with is a tablet juggernaut - but without looking like a juggernaut. On the other hand it also has a serious asking price to match its power, and several easy-to-spot software limitations.
The iPad Air 9.7 costs $599 (£499, AU$899), higher than the iPad Air 2 launch price of $499, (£399, $699) and even higher than the current iPad Air 2 price of $399 (£349, AU$599).
Is there enough here for Apple to retain its best tablet status? Let's explore the current iPad that wants to be your laptop-replacement of the future.
Be sure to watch our video review of the iPad Pro 9.7

Design

From across the room, I couldn't tell the difference between this iPad Pro 9.7 and my iPad Air 2 when I was charging both during my battery life tests. They're nearly identical on the outside, and that's a good thing.

The new "Pro" label doesn't mean bigger, it just means bolder.

The new iPad Pro has the same sub-pencil-thin dimensions of 240 x 168 x 6.1mm, making it a natural fit for two hands and easy to stow in a backpack. Surprisingly, its weight matches, too, despite the specs upgrade: 437g for Wi-Fi and 444g for Wi-Fi + Cellular again. The new "Pro" label doesn't mean bigger, it just means bolder.
You get the same polished aluminum frame, fast Touch ID fingerprint scanning home button and a 9.7-inch Retina display. The lightning port hasn't moved from the bottom, the headphone jack and sleep/wake button are still on the top, and the volume rocker remains on the right side.
In fact, the only surefire way to tell the difference from afar is to opt for the new finish. There are now four colors instead of three: Silver, Gold, Space Gray and the iPad 9.7-exclusive Rose Gold. This isn't the only way the tablet matches the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, though.
There's a slight camera bump on the back that no one likes, but it's a fair trade off. It makes way for a 12MP rear-facing iSight camera, just like its smartphone counterpart, and now there's a True Tone LED flash. Yes, that's right, your tablet camera is as every bit as good as your phone camera. Still, please don't awkwardly take photos with it in public.

Yes, that's right. Your tablet camera is now every bit as good as your phone camera. But please don't take photos with it in public.

Of course, upon even closer inspection, you'll see two more changes from the iPad Air 2 by way of new speakers at the top and bottom and a Smart Connector port on the left side. They're flush with the aluminum frame and almost hidden, but make no mistake, they've have acted as game changers for the iPad Pro series design.
Four speakers, two at the top and two at the bottom, give the new iPad Pro 9.7 a proper stereo setup, and they're loud enough to drown out the bottom-firing, twin-speakers of the iPad Air 2 at full volume. Best of all, they're not blasting music and Netflix movie dialogue out just one side.
I no longer felt the need to cup my hand around the speaker to get a decent volume for myself without bothering other people around me by cranking it up all of the way. Turning the tablet in landscape mode to watch a movie, I found everything sounded natural. Part of that balance is due to the fact that the upper top speakers always handle mid and high frequencies and they'll change depending on how you hold the iPad Pro, rotating the sound as the screen orientation does.
Apple smartly refined the iPad Pro 9.7 design, and that's not the only clever way it changed up its traditional tablet look and feel in its push to the professional leagues.

Samsung Galaxy Note 4

At over £600, $800 (around AU$960) SIM free the Galaxy Note 4 was heart stoppingly expensive at launch. Several months have now passed since then and with the arrival of the new Samsung Galaxy Note 5 the price of the Note 4 has dropped.
You can now pick it up for under £420, $540 (around AU$750) if you don't want to be tied down to a contract. That makes it decidedly cheaper than the Note 5, S6 and S6 Edge - while offering a similar level of power and performance
On contract in the UK a free handset will now see you pay £31 per month for two years, which isn't too bad all things considered.
It's  no longer the newest flagship in Samsung's fleet either, with the introduction of the Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy S6 Edge providing the most cutting edge tech and an improved design.
Unlike the previous three iterations Samsung hasn't deemed it necessary to increase the screen size of the Note 4, so it sticks with the same 5.7-inch dimensions of the Galaxy Note 3. It's not the same screen though, as Samsung has given the Galaxy Note 4 a hefty resolution boost - but more on that on the next page.
When it comes to design Samsung has definitely listened about its latest line-up feeling plasticky in the hand and has decided to give the Note 4 more of a premium finish.

The metal frame runs round the outside

There's a metal rim surrounding the handset, shielding the rest of the chassis like a velvet rope protecting celebs from real people in a club.
It sports exactly the same shape, style and rounded corners as the Galaxy Alpha, only on a bigger scale and thanks to the increased size the plastic rear is more noticeable here than it is on the Alpha.
Samsung has tried to make the removable plastic cover feel more premium by giving it a leather effect finish, but there's still no fooling your hand with that unmistakable texture.
It's not on the same level of design as the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge which ditch plastic altogether, so if you really don't like this cheaper material then consider these two instead. The new Note 5 has taken the design a step further by mirroring the all metal and glass stylings of the Galaxy S6. If you're looking for the most premium phablet then head over to the newer Note in the series.

Still all plastic on the back.

A plus side to this though is the plastic rear does provide good grip - vital when you've got such a large handset in your hand and even though the Galaxy Note 4 is a touch wider than the all metal iPhone 6 Plus, I found the Samsung is easier to hold.
Even though the 6 Plus has a smaller, 5.5-inch display, it's actually taller than the Note 4 - something else the Samsung has over its Apple rival as it makes the phone more balanced in the hand.
Add to that the placement of the power/lock key on the right of the Galaxy Note 4 and you find that even for a big phone the key buttons are still easy enough to reach (if your palms are on the larger side).

It does have a lovely screen.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 measures 153.5 x 78.6 x 8.5mm, almost the same as its predecessor and smaller in width and depth than the Galaxy Note 2 which is impressive considering this is the first of the Note series to sport a metal frame.
I've also been using the 5.5-inch OnePlus One recently and there's really not a lot to choose between the two in terms of size.
It's safe to say then, if you're already accustomed to the larger league of smartphones then the Galaxy Note 4 will feel right at home in your palm.

There's a fingerprint scanner hidden here

I really like the way the Galaxy Note 4 feels in the hand and having used the Note 3 on a number of occasions, it definitely feels different and refined enough - plus it's light too, just a touch over the weight of the Note 3 at 176g.
Samsung's tried and tested physical home key still resides at the bottom of the screen, providing a location for the Korean firm to stuff in its fingerprint scanner, and that's flanked by two touch keys.
To the left of the home button is the Multi-tasking key, while on the right you get Back. Both Back and Multi-tasking are completely hidden when not illuminated by the backlights, providing a clean finish to the front of the Galaxy Note 4.

The Note 4 can be tricky to use one-handed

Some shuffling of the Note 4 in the hand is required to get your fingers in the right position to reach these during one handed use, and you'll need to be careful not to drop it.
Round the back you'll find a 16MP camera, LED flash and the heart rate monitor which also features on the Galaxy S5, S5 Mini and Galaxy Alpha.
In the bottom corner you'll also notice the end of the S Pen stylus hiding inside the body of the Galaxy Note 4, while behind the removable rear cover there's a microSIM port, microSD slot and a sizable 3220mAh battery.

You'll find a 16MP camera on the back

This, then, was the Note handset with the most premium and accomplished look and feel to date. Samsung is finally providing the build quality its top-end devices have been yearning for and it's since gone even further towards premium perfection with the Galaxy Note 5.
Samsung has managed to keep the dimensions manageable - it's certainly a lot easier to hold than the 6-inch Lumia 1520 and Ascend Mate 7 - and while the iPhone 6 Plus may look sleeker, the Galaxy Note 4 boasts a bigger, better screen and very similar dimensions.

Samsung Galaxy S7

Introduction

The Galaxy S6 was Samsung's plunge into premium materials for its flagship line, which had long since suffered ridicule for its extensive use of plastic. The Galaxy S7 is the evolutionary upgrade that follows, building upon the S6's foundations.

Key specifications

• 
  5.1"1440x2560 pixels
• 
  12MP 2160p
• 
  2.3GHz Exynos 8890 Octa
• 
  4GB RAM 32/64GB memory
• 
  3000mAhLi-Po

Design has been refined, with clues taken from the Note5 which split in half the year between the two S-models' releases. Under the hood, the latest silicon churns higher numbers, but the headlines are in other areas - a brand new dual-pixel 12MP camera, the return of environmental sealing and microSD expansion, plus an extra-large battery. In other words - the Galaxy S6, only better.

Design and build quality

Galaxies were all made of plastic, Samsung S-series flagships, that is. Then came the Galaxy S6, Samsung's response to plastic-hating users and reviewers, and it brought materials, look and feel up to the standard required in the segment. Samsung committed to the dual-glass design and on the S7 we see it taken a step up.

Weight: 152g

Thickness 7.9mm

The Galaxy Note5 has generously loaned its curved back to the S7, alongside with its outer aluminum frame. This has made the S7 feel quite a lot slimmer than it actually is - measuring 142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9mm, the new model is 1.1mm thicker than the outgoing S6.
The "huge" difference, however, brings more good than it does harm. An extra millimeter means extra juice (3,000mAh battery vs. the S6's 2,550mAh), and it also helps make the camera hump less of an eye-sore - it only sticks out by 0.46mm now. There's no hiding the added heft - at 152g the S7 is precisely 10% heaver than the S6, and it shows in side-by-side comparisons. Not really an issue in daily use, though.
There's also no escaping the fact that glass collects fingerprints, and the S7 is a pain to keep clean. That's less of an issue with white paint jobs, but in all other cases, it's likely to be covered in smudges most of the time.

Samsung Galaxy S7

While the rear comes from the Note5, the front is entirely S7's. The side edges of the glass fade out nicely towards the frame at a more gradual angle than the top and bottom - a different take on the 2.5D glass concept, and one that detail freaks will rave about. It's not the S7 edge's curves, no, but the S7's face does indeed have a character of its own.
Those minute differences aside, the Galaxy S7 shares a lot of the hallmark properties of the range. Controls are where they're supposed to be, there's a fingerprint sensor inside the Home button, which requires a press to wake up, ports are where they were last time.
Well, the IR blaster is nowhere to be found, but then the card tray will now accept a microSD card beside the nanoSIM - yes, Samsung reintroduces expandable storage, which it mercilessly took away last generation.
Oh, and in case the rain drops on the photos weren't enough of a hint - the Galaxy S7 is IP68 certified for water resistance up to 1.5m deep for up to half an hour, and it's also dust tight.

Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016)

The phone comes with a 5.20-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 720 pixels by 1280 pixels

The Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016) is powered by 1.2GHz quad-core and it comes with 2GB of RAM. The phone packs 16GB of internal storage that can be expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card. As far as the cameras are concerned, the Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016) packs a 13-megapixel primary camera on the rear and a 5-megapixel front shooter for selfies.

The Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016) runs Android 6.0.1 and is powered by a 3100mAh removable battery. It measures 145.80 x 72.30 x 8.10 (height x width x thickness) and weighs 159.00 grams.

The Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016) is a dual SIM (GSM and GSM) smartphone that accepts Regular and Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, 3G, 4G (with support for Band 40 used by some LTE networks in India). Sensors on the phone include Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor, Accelerometer.

About Samsung

Founded back in 1969 as Samsung Electric Industries, Suwon, South Korea-headquartered Samsung Electronics today makes everything from televisions to semiconductors. It released its first Android smartphone in 2009, and can be credited with the launch of the first Android tablet back in 2010. The company is among the biggest players in the smartphone market in the world. It has recently developed smartphones running Tizen OS, as an alternative to its Android-based smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro

The phone comes with a 6.00-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 1080 pixels by 1920 pixels

The Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro is powered by 1.8GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snpadragon 652 processor and it comes with 4GB of RAM. The phone packs 32GB of internal storage that can be expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card. As far as the cameras are concerned, the Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro packs a 16-megapixel primary camera on the rear and a 8-megapixel front shooter for selfies.

The Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro runs Android 5.1.1 and is powered by a 5000mAh non removable battery.

The Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro is a dual SIM (GSM and GSM) smartphone that accepts two Regular SIMs. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, NFC, FM, 3G, 4G. Sensors on the phone include Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor, Accelerometer, and Gyroscope.

About Samsung

Founded back in 1969 as Samsung Electric Industries, Suwon, South Korea-headquartered Samsung Electronics today makes everything from televisions to semiconductors. It released its first Android smartphone in 2009, and can be credited with the launch of the first Android tablet back in 2010. The company is among the biggest players in the smartphone market in the world. It has recently developed smartphones running Tizen OS, as an alternative to its Android-based smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy C5

The phone comes with a 5.20-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 1080 pixels by 1920 pixels

The Samsung Galaxy C5 is powered by 1.2GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor and it comes with 4GB of RAM. The phone packs 32GB of internal storage that can be expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card. As far as the cameras are concerned, the Samsung Galaxy C5 packs a 16-megapixel primary camera on the rear and a 8-megapixel front shooter for selfies.

The Samsung Galaxy C5 runs Android 6.0.1 and is powered by a 2600mAh non removable battery. It measures 145.90 x 72.00 x 6.70 (height x width x thickness) and weighs 143.00 grams.

The Samsung Galaxy C5 is a dual SIM (GSM and GSM) smartphone Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, 4G (with support for Band 40 used by some LTE networks in India). Sensors on the phone include Proximity sensor, Ambient light sensor, Accelerometer, and Gyroscope.

About Samsung

Founded back in 1969 as Samsung Electric Industries, Suwon, South Korea-headquartered Samsung Electronics today makes everything from televisions to semiconductors. It released its first Android smartphone in 2009, and can be credited with the launch of the first Android tablet back in 2010. The company is among the biggest players in the smartphone market in the world. It has recently developed smartphones running Tizen OS, as an alternative to its Android-based smartphones.

Samsung Galaxy C7

Just hours after receiving its TENAA certification in China, Samsung officially introduced the Samsung Galaxy C7 in the country. Earlier today, the manufacturer took the wraps off of the Samsung Galaxy C5. The Galaxy C7 features a 5.7-inch Super AMOLED display, with a 1080 x 1920 FHD resolution. The Snapdragon 625 SoC that drives the unit comes with an octa-core 2GHz CPU, and the Adreno 506 GPU. 4GB of RAM is inside along with 32GB or 64GB of expandable storage. Those seeking additional memory can turn to the 128GB capacity microSD slot. A fingerprint scanner is embedded in the home button.

A 16MP camera with an f/1.9 aperture is found on the back of the phone, with an 8MP selfie snapper in front. The latter also sports an f/1.9 aperture which should allow users to take quality selfies under low-light conditions. Keeping the lights on is the job of the 3300mAh battery, which charges up quickly thanks to QuickCharge 3.0. Android 6.0.1 is pre-installed.

Like the Galaxy C5, the Galaxy C7 is metal-clad and thin (6.7mm); the device tips the scales at 165 grams. It will be available in gold, pink gold, silver and grey. While availability remains unknown, the 32GB model is expected to be priced at the equivalent of $396 USD, while the 64GB version should cost the equivalent of $427 USD.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge

The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is a phone I'd hate to have had to make. Its predecessor was a multi-award-winning phone, simply because it packed all the power of the 'normal' Galaxy S6 and yet... that curved edge. I wasn't alone in loving it, whipping it out proudly whenever possible.
But that was last year, and the world is bored of the curved design. We've seen it. It's been done. So what can Samsung do to make the new phone a real step forward?

Well, unlike what it's done on the Galaxy S7, which looks (initially) like last year's model, the changes on the S7 Edge are brilliant, adding a zest to a design that could have quickly become tired.
The screen is larger, yet somehow the phone doesn't feel too much bigger in the hand. The rear of the phone is now curved too, making it sit nicely in the hand. It's waterproof. There's a microSD card slot. There's so much power in there I'm pretty sure I could strap it on the back of a speedboat and make my way across the Atlantic.

And that's even more possible because the battery – such a disappointment on last year's S6 phones – is boosted massively too, giving us a handset that's able to last over 24 hours between charges.
All this comes at a cost obviously, and a pretty hefty one. In the UK that cost is £640, while in the US you're looking at a huge $299 on contract. In Australia, the Galaxy S7 Edge attracts the highest price for a Galaxy yet: AU$1,249 for the 32GB version.

• Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge price: how much will it cost me?

That's quite a jump from last year's AU$1,149 starting price, showing this is one of the most expensive phones around.
But, in my view, it's worth every penny.

Design

The Galaxy S7 Edge is a phone that lives and dies by its looks. If you're only interested in the power then just go for the standard Galaxy S7. The smaller, 'normal', model has got all the same smarts, but a slightly sharper screen thanks to packing the same amount of pixels into a smaller area.
What it misses is the clever elements that Samsung's used on the Edge. The display curves further away into the sides of the phone than ever before, which means that even though you've got a phablet-sized display, the phone is as compact as possible.
Place it side by side with the iPhone 6s Plus and you'll see what I mean. The amount of bezel used above and below the display on Apple's phone is almost laughable, especially when you compare it to how tightly packed everything is on the S7 Edge – and the Samsung has a much, much larger battery.
The S7 Edge is shorter and narrower (150.9 x 72.6mm) than the 6S Plus (158.2 x 77.9mm), even though both devices have the same 5.5-inch screen size. The iPhone is however, a hair thinner at 7.3mm versus the Samsung's 7.7mm girth.
It's also very similar in size to the LG G5 (149.4 x 73.9 x 7.7 mm), which again sports a 5.5-inch display - with the Android manufacturers really sticking it to Apple.

One of my favorite parts of the design upgrade on the S7 Edge comes on the rear. A process called 3D Thermo Forming – which sounds like it's been named by a sentient marketing machine – enables the brand to curve the rear of the phone into a single metal rim that runs all around the edge.
It's a feature that was used last year on the Note 5 (and is also used by brands like Xiaomi) to really help the phone slip into your palm and remove any sharp metallic edges.
Combine that with the same curve on the front of the device and you can see why it feels so smooth in the hand, almost pebble-esque in the way you can roll it around in your palm.
Intriguingly, this has left some people with the impression that it's not quite got the same premium feel as previous Samsung phones. By having less metal to grasp on to you're touching the Gorilla Glass 4 covering, which can feel a little like plastic due to its lightweight (but still very strong) construction

Tap the back of the phone and it lacks the sheen of metal, but in fairness that lack of metal allows for the wireless charging that's a key feature of the S7 Edge.
That back does have one issue though: it's a fingerprint fairground, a veritable carnival for any crime scene investigators looking to nab you for some dirty villainy.
So many phones have that criticism thrown at them, but it's particularly true for Samsung's new curved phone. It's easy enough to wipe the sticky offenders off, but it's annoying to have to do it time and again.
The camera protrusion on the rear has been reduced to just 0.42mm, which means it's barely noticeable when you're placing the phone down, while still being strong enough to help protect the lens.
And then you remember something else: this phone, with its elegant rim and clean lines, and complete with exposed ports, is waterproof.
No, sorry, water-RESISTANT, as it's IP68 rated. That means it's still able to work after being dunked in fresh water for 30 minutes up to a depth of 1.5 metres, so you'll be able to use it happily in the bath, or beside the shallow end of the swimming pool, and not worry about dropping it.
It's less of a 'let's take our phone scuba diving to get some amazing pictures' feature, and more of a safety feature – and the phone will even refuse to charge if the port is too wet, such is its ability to manage moisture.
Sadly, you're still left with a single speaker firing out the bottom of the Galaxy S7 Edge, which doesn't really have the most premium of sound; however, it's serviceable, and noticeably louder than other mono speakers I've used.
Overall, I can't speak highly enough of the S7 Edge's design. It feels amazing in the hand, and Samsung has managed to bring enough upgrades to make this look and feel like a completely different phone; and most people trying it for the first time will – even if they're not a fan – be able to appreciate something different in a world filled with black, rectangular slabs.

Screen

The display, while technically part of the Galaxy S7 Edge's design, is worthy of chatting about in its own right – simply because it looks so great.
It's the defining feature when you pull this phone out among friends, and while it doesn't elicit the same response that the S6 Edge's display did last year (like I said, curved displays are nothing new these days), it still gets a lot of approving looks, especially as it's combined with the rounded back.
The QHD resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 still looks as good as anything I've seen on a smartphone. Despite being stretched a little from last year, the 5.5-inch size still looks absolutely pin-sharp, and it's very hard to see any artefacts lying around on the screen.

It's amazing to think that, two years after LG brought out the first mainstream QHD phone, we still don't have any dedicated content that can be viewed at this resolution. Despite that, however, I don't feel like the Galaxy S7 Edge really suffers, as that display makes viewing web pages and photos a really great experience.
The S7 Edge uses Super AMOLED technology, which Samsung's been chucking out for close to a decade now, and it really works well to make the phone look premium and the colors really pop.
The contrast ratio – the difference between the whitest whites and the blackest blacks – is still pretty sensational, which is because when they're not in use, the pixels are turned off; with something like the iPhone 6s or the LG G5 you've got a display that just blocks out the backlight when the pixel is showing a black image, so there can be a small amount of light bleed-through.
The Galaxy S7 Edge screen also has the added benefit of the side display, which is accessed by swiping your thumb along from the right- or left-hand side of the phone's screen (you can specify which in the settings).

Where this was a nonsense, useless feature in years gone by, the side display has a much more defined role on the Galaxy S7 Edge. You can easily get access to news, regular contacts, tools (the ruler, for digi-measuring is back – GET IN) and other elements that are currently in development.
Check out the Specs and Performance section of this review to hear a little bit more about this feature – or skip it entirely if you're bored of hearing me witter on about a piece of the display you can swipe.