Samsung delivered the Galaxy S8 series today, and the phones are everything fans hoped they would be. The gorgeous, curved-glass form factor packs the latest specifications, stunning Infinity Displays and features like iris scanning.
But how do the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ stack up against iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus?
It’s no surprise Samsung went all out to blow away fans with the Galaxy S8. The company desperately needs to restore trust and excitement to the Galaxy brand after the exploding Galaxy Note 7 fiasco last fall. Samsung pushed back the Galaxy S8 launch to spend more time making the device spectacular.
And Samsung succeeded. There’s not a smartphone on sale today that’s prettier or more capable than the South Korean company’s latest flagship. But is it for you? Is it time to switch if you’re an iPhone fan? Is the Galaxy S8 worth its hefty price tag?
Galaxy S8 vs. iPhone 7
Here’s how the Samsung Galaxy S8 compares to the iPhone 7 series under the hood.
Chart: Cult of Mac
Galaxy S8 processor
Early benchmarks suggest that the Galaxy S8, which comes equipped with a Snapdragon 835 processor, can easily outpace the iPhone 7 — and any other smartphone. But we’ll need to wait until the device makes its debut on April 21 to find out just how powerful the final version is.
You can be sure it will be impressive. Samsung used a cutting-edge 10-nanometer manufacturing process for both the Snapdragon 835 and the Exynos 8895 processor (which will power Galaxy S8 devices outside the United States).
That means the tiny transistors within each chip are ever so slightly closer together, making it more powerful and more power-efficient. In comparison, Apple built its A10 Fusion chip using a 14-nanometer process.
The Snapdragon 835 also boasts eight processing cores, up to 25 percent faster Adreno 540 graphics, and features like Gigabit LTE. A10 Fusion packs only four processing cores, two of which are low-power cores that take on certain tasks to save battery life when the device is asleep.
Photo: Samsung
But we shouldn’t read too much into this just yet.
Apple proves time and time again that with the efficiency of iOS, it can maximize processing and graphics power like no other smartphone maker. Its A-series chips regularly outpace the competition, despite fewer cores and slower clock speeds.
Where the difference will be noticeable is in memory. Like the Galaxy S7, the Galaxy S8 comes with 4GB of RAM — twice as much as the iPhone 7 (the iPhone 7 Plus comes with 3GB). That means web browsing, multitasking and other intensive tasks should be noticeably smoother.
Galaxy S8 internal storage
Samsung doubled the Galaxy S7’s 32GB of internal storage to 64GB in the Galaxy S8, and added a microSD card slot so users can add more if they need it. This offers flexibility, and it’s a lot cheaper than buying more internal storage upfront.
Apple, on the other hand, never offered an expandable storage option with iPhone, so you must ensure you’re getting enough when you buy your phone. However, it did add a 256GB option with iPhone 7, and bumped the entry-level model to 32GB from 16GB.
Galaxy S8 camera
Galaxy fans will be disappointed that Samsung is using exactly the same camera in the Galaxy S8 as it did in the Galaxy S7. It’s a 12-megapixel Dual-Pixel sensor with an f/1.7 aperture and optical image stabilization. However, Samsung says it made improvements in software.
In comparison, the iPhone 7 uses a 12-megapixel iSight sensor with an f/1.8 aperture, while the iPhone 7 Plus boasts exactly the same with a secondary telephoto lens that allows for 2x optical zoom — a feature you won’t find on any of Samsung’s latest devices.
Photo: Samsung
If optical zoom and those awesome portrait effects offered by the 7 Plus are important to you, the iPhone wins here. But if you want pure camera performance, the Galaxy S8 takes the crown.
When tested by the experts at DxOMark, the Galaxy S7’s camera rated better than iPhone 7’s, with “excellent and repeatable exposures in all conditions, fast and accurate autofocus, and a very good compromise between noise and detail.”
Galaxy S8 features versus iPhone 7
Samsung no longer throws everything into its Galaxy smartphones to see what works and what doesn’t. For the sake of simplicity, the company became much more careful about which features make the cut. But that doesn’t mean the Galaxy S8 series is lacking.
It boasts a number of useful features you won’t find on iPhone, including wireless charging, iris and facial recognition, true virtual reality with a proper headset, NFC, a heart rate monitor, USB-C connectivity and Bluetooth 5.0. Oh, there’s also a headphone jack.
Photo: Samsung
Galaxy S8 is also Samsung’s first smartphone that’s compatible with the DeX dock, which allows you to connect it to an external monitor, keyboard and mouse and use the device as an Android-powered PC.
The iPhone 7 delivers some unique selling points, too, including Apple Pay, 3D Touch and stereo speakers. It’s also available in red now.
Software: Android vs. iOS
Perhaps the biggest difference between the Galaxy S8 and the iPhone 7 is software. One runs Android, the other iOS — and no matter how good the Galaxy S8 might look, it’s never going to be the right phone for a long-time iOS user with no interest in switching.
This is the first thing you should consider when comparing the latest phones from Apple and Samsung, then. Both platforms offer advantages and disadvantages, and most consumers harbor a preference. Very few like to switch it up every year.
Samsung overhauled its software for the Galaxy S8 to make it cleaner and more user-friendly. It looks incredible, and first impressions tell us it’s a significant improvement over anything Samsung made before.
But iOS came into the world clean and simple, and remains that way. Nothing is more user-friendly.
It’s up to you to decide which one wins here.
Apple still has time to beat Galaxy S8
It’s worth remembering that right now, the Galaxy S8 is competing with last year’s iPhone. When September rolls around, it’s going to be a completely different story. Apple has time to catch up and make the iPhone 8 (or whatever it’s called) even more impressive.
Photo: Concept
Recent rumors promise that at least one version of the iPhone 8 will deliver Apple’s first OLED smartphone display, curved glass, wireless charging and possibly iris scanning. It will also pack Apple’s next-generation A-series processor.
So don’t assume Samsung won the smartphone fight for 2017 just yet. Apple has yet to enter the ring, and with iPhone celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, you can be sure its next refresh will be a special one.
Killian Bell is a freelance writer based in the U.K. He has an interest in all things tech and also covers Android over at CultofAndroid.com. You can follow him on Twitter via @killianbell.
23 responses to “How the Galaxy S8 stacks up against iPhone 7”
Apple really needs a docking device to convert it into a desktop…. iOS certainly has the apps necessary to pull it off ‘the first time’ … and with ease.
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You were doing fine until the Tim Cook remark.
No!
The iPhone 7+ actually has 3gb of RAM, not 2
Thanks for pointing this out. We have corrected the copy and will update the chart ASAP.
Enough with the headphone jack already, it’s getting old.
It’s a joke.
“[…] up to 25 times faster Adreno 540 graphics.”
Oh, so the S8’s GPU is more powerful than a 1080Ti, now? Why does nVidia still bother then?
/s
25 times faster than last year’s Adreno graphics.
I know.
But that’s not possible. *25 times* faster in a year would make it the single biggest leap in processing power ever in the history of mankind.
The Adreno 540 is *25%* faster than last year’s, not 25 times.
You’re right, thanks. We’ve corrected the post.
Ah, maths! A generation lost at sea!
I heard about Math! He seems to be a real d*ck!
Proudly stupid. USA! USA! USA!
Apples selling poInts look miserable compared to s7 and s8 apple pay a feature well samsung has samsung pay that can be used nearly everywhere unlike apple pay. And only 1 very expensive oled iphone will be released, the specIal model one. Why dosent apple put all this In all its iphone 8 lineup like Samsung does, or is it to expensive to build and make eneough profit, i mean a ton of profit
In my long life with technology I have come to loath feature lists. Shonky salesmen add everything and anything to a list to make it sound good when it isn’t.
The lists absolutely do not describe what it is to use.
Remember how Michelangelo sculpted: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”
Genius removes what is not essential. Having given it a red hot go, I see very little genius in Android.
Eventually you have to give some credit to Samsung, for the simple fact that they’re trying very hard and Apple is not. They’re leading the way in hardware, and if they ever get their act together on the software/user experience side there’ll be no reason left to stick with Apple.
Interesting how Samsung fans have given up on their original obsession, that it is somehow “cheaper”.
Please update this great comparison with information on the *actual* screen dimensions and *AREA*!
Merely stating the diagonal spec, e.g., 4.7″ or 5.8″, is insufficient. Here’s why. Picture a long, thin pencil. It could be 5″ long and only 1/4″ wide, yet have a diagonal measurement of almost 5″!
Any iPhone user who has seen Samsung’s phones is immediately struck by how much larger the display appears. Part of that is because their phones are often wider and their bezels much narrower all around.
So, Cult of Mac, are you up to posting the actual dimensions of the displays and the square inches of display area each has (save us from having to to do the multiplication!). Provide it all in inches, too! Right now, you’re mixing units– British and metric — diagonal in inches but phone dimensions in mm.
Hate that y’all compare a device not even out yet to a 6 months that old phone, which will be 7 months old when the S8 releases.
Outside of a manufacturer just sitting on their butts it’s prettt much a no brained that a brand new phone will outpace a 6-7 month old one!
By the time the iPhone 8 comes out it will need to be compared to the latest from Samsung, namely the Note 8, which will come out at the same time and which will absolutely destroy the iPhone 8 in every single way apart from maybe speed.
You stated that one of the options that iPhones have over Samsung’s is Apple Pay..
This is obviously true, BUT Samsung has Samsung Pay, which in my view is better, as you
can use any swipe card with this system, where Apple Pay is limited.
‘Samsung Pay lets you carry your credit, debit, gift and membership cards on your devices. All you have to do is tap to check out’
I am also not sure that I like being locked into Apple’s Ecosystem compared to the
openness of Android ..