There are two reasons why you should buy the Samsung Galaxy S8+ over the Galaxy S8: more pixels and better battery life. The hardware is nearly identical between the two models with the exception of battery capacity and adjustments necessary for a larger display. The S8+ features a 6.2-inch Super AMOLED display with a QHD resolution and 18:9 aspect ratio. Because of this larger display, the S8+ will be larger in the hand than the S8. It’s about as small as a phone with this screen size can get. And while it’s not ginormous, it’s considerably larger than the S8 and will need two hands to use.
With that said, it feels incredible in the hands. This is the nicest phone ever mass produced. The curved edges and combination of materials like metal and glass obliterate the competition in the design department. Even Apple’s iPhone can’t quite match Samsung’s build quality.
The display is incredible and the more it gets, the better the experience will be. If you’re a fan of large smartphone displays, you cannot beat this one. The contrast and brightness are spot on. While it may not be noticeably better than the display found on Samsung’s Galaxy S7 flagship, it still produces a better experience than the LCD panels found on the iPhone or even the LG G6.
Now we can spend a whole separate video looking at the features available in TouchWiz but the ones I want to focus on in this video include the one-handed feature and the features associated with the launcher. Samsung has a neat one-handed mode that will shrink the display down a bit with a triple tap of the home button or a diagonal swipe up from the bottom of the screen. Once again, because the display is so large and so unusually tall, you might want to consider enabling this feature.
You can also make changes to the home screen by putting your apps towards the bottom half of the screen and/or use edge screen to view a couple rows of apps from a swipe in from the edge of the screen. I’ve been using this setup pretty much ever since I first started using the S8+ and I’ve been using it almost a month now.
Performance is not going to differ much as the processor, graphics, and memory are the same on both models. It might take more processing power to push the additional pixels but you’re not really going to notice the difference and it’s worth noting that by default both the S8 and S8+ are set at an HD resolution and actually need to be adjusted to QHD in the settings. That is if you want a QHD resolution. Regardless, the option to tweak the resolution is nice.
In my opinion, Samsung missed an opportunity to include two rear-facing camera sensors inside the S8+. It’s bigger and it’s more expensive than the S8 so it would have been nice to see either a wide angle sensor or a telephoto sensor included alongside the main 12-megapixel shooter. The S8+ takes excellent photos in well-lit scenarios even in poorly-lit scenarios. This camera excels. It rivals the top of the pack in this department but falls short of the features available with the iPhone 7 Plus and even some other budget devices like the Honor 6X and ZTE Axon 7. When you consider these budget smartphones that cost half the price of the S8 have dual rear-facing cameras, you kind of scratch your head and wonder why Samsung didn’t do that in their flagships.
But the number one reason why you should buy the S8+ is for the improved battery life. It features a 3,500 mAh battery that should last you a full day of moderate to heavy usage. Unless you’re frequently using Google Maps or playing games, it should last you a full day of use with no real sweat. I was able to get between 5-6 hours of screen on-time, which is good for an Android smartphone though I wasn’t wowed. Keep in mind, this is without using the battery saving mode or tweaking any of the features that would have a big impact on battery life. The only changes I made were to the wallpaper. I installed the most simple black wallpaper to save some power each time I turned on the lock screen or viewed the home screen. It has helped to conserve some battery life and I imagine you can get better screen on-time by tweaking some more settings. But straight out of the box, the S8+’s battery life didn’t absolutely wow me.
So we discussed the two biggest differences between the S8 and S8+: the display and the battery life. The other difference is the price. Unless you plan on consuming a ton of media and you absolutely need the extra battery life, I wouldn’t recommend spending an extra $100 for the S8+ over the S8. I mean the S8 and its 5.8-inch display is still on the large side and it has all the core components that make it one of the best, if not the very best, Android smartphone on the market. Plus if you really need some extra juice, you can use the savings and buy a battery pack or a battery case. I’ve been using this Shieldon Leather Wallet Case for the Galaxy S8+. It works well and is a great option for those of you, like me, who don’t want to carry around a big phone and a big wallet. You can combine the two and add protection to your new smartphone. (Use coupon code IFVLN5HZ for 20% off Shieldon products.)
With that said, I want to hear your thoughts on the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+.