There’s probably two main reasons why you’re watching this video: one, you want to see one sexy new flagship Samsung smartphone with a curved display and/or you want to see how much Verizon has vandalized the Galaxy S6 Edge. Well, we’re going to take a look at both of those areas but first we have to unbox this device.
I went with the 32GB Verizon Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, which you will see right here sitting right on top. Before we jump the gun and rip off the plastic, I do want to take a look at what’s included underneath this beautiful device.
First of all, we have a bunch of Verizon information packets. There’s a Get to Know Your Phone packet, a Global Support Information and Toll-Free Numbers packet, a Consumer Information about radio frequency emissions and responsible driving packets, a packet containing Important Consumer Information and then finally, a Product Safety & Warranty Information packet. And that is it. When I first looked through these, I thought it would never end. I thought I was in some sort of parallel universe where I can never stop looking through Verizon pamphlets. But thankfully, it ended.
So underneath the paperwork, we have a teardrop-shaped SIM card ejector tool. There’s a standard microUSB charging cable in white to match my white Galaxy S6 Edge. And there’s a white Samsung fast-charging wall wart that will be used in conjunction with the cable to super charge the Galaxy S6 Edge. The last item on the box is a pair of Samsung earphones, which actually closely resemble the Apple ear pods. I probably won’t ever use these but they don’t really look terrible. I mean, if you’re in need of some basic earphones and you bought a Galaxy S6 or a Galaxy S6 Edge, well Samsung has you covered.
As far as undressing the Galaxy S6 Edge, it’s super easy thanks to a glassy and sleek Gorilla Glass front and back covers. Just like that, we can slide off the plastic and we will be greeted with a very, very nice device. I love the metal frame. The sides are kind of sharp with the slopping curved display so it’s pretty hard to get a good grip on this device. But man, does it feel super solid in the hand.
If we take a closer look around the device, we will find the volume up and down controls located on the left hand side. There’s a power sleep on/off button located on the right hand side. The IR Blaster and SIM card slot is located on top with the 3.5mm headphone jack and microUSB charging port on the bottom. The front of the S6 Edge is home to a 5MP front-facing camera sensor, some ambient light sensors, the curved 5.1-inch Super AMOLED 1440 x 2560 resolution display and then the iconic Home button, multi-tasking, and the back button. That’s about it.
The back of the Galaxy S6 Edge does feature a 16MP camera sensor with Optical Image Stabilization and LED flash, a heart rate monitor, a Verizon 4G LTE logo and a Galaxy S6 Edge branding also plastered on the Gorilla Glass back cover. Two things—the back cover, first of all, is very premium but it does feel a tiny bit slimy. That’s just the nature of skin on glass, it does that. The second thing, is that the Verizon 4G LTE logo is very noticeable. I’m glad it’s not on the front of the device—that would just be absurd. But with the white variant of the Galaxy S6 Edge, there’s just no question it says Verizon on the back. So that might bother you and it might not.
If we take a look at the software after booting it up for the very first time, I was just very impressed with this version of TouchWiz on Android 5.0 Lollipop. There’s definitely some material design elements and some stock Android elements here. It’s very much toned down than previous versions of TouchWiz in terms of Samsung features and annoying animations and so forth. It’s also very smooth and snappy. I never received any sort of stuttering or hiccups of any sort, which as you guys know, we usually see a lot of that thing happen with previous versions of TouchWiz.
The display is absolutely stunning though. The camera just doesn’t do it justice. The Edge creates an almost 3D appearance as if everything is sort of raised up a bit, which is pretty neat. And there are some various Edge features like Edge Lighting, People Edge, Information Stream, and Night Clock—all of which are designed specifically for the Edge to add some extra functionality and will be covered in the official PhoneDog review. I’m just very impressed with the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge based off first impressions. Now that Samsung has substantially improved the software experience and hardware this iteration, you can really see how it’s receiving so much praise. It just appears to be a very promising device. So let me know what your thoughts are of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge and whether or not you prefer the standard Galaxy S6 or the S6 Edge.
