Samsung Galaxy S8+ Review: Infinity Display for Everyone

Samsung Galaxy S8+

RM 3699

8.9

Build Quality

9.5/10

Accessories

9.5/10

Audio

8.0/10

Display

9.5/10

Camera

9.5/10

Software & Features

8.5/10

Performance

9.0/10

Battery Life

8.5/10

Value

8.5/10

Pros

• Excellent build quality
• Excellent accessories package (Micro USB adapter, USB OTG adapter, AKG earphones)
• Excellent 6.2-inch display quality
• Excellent rear camera quality & user experience
• Lightning fast Dual Pixel AF
• Great front camera quality
• Excellent performance
• Great battery life
• Fast charging

Cons

• Awkward fingerprint scanner position
• Half baked Bixby virtual assistant
• Expensive

Buy Samsung Galaxy S8+

Audio & Display

Audio

The bottom firing single speaker while it may seem very small and under power with the tiny 5-hole grill, but volume wise at least it is sufficient for your speakerphone calls and multimedia consumption. Just don’t expect it to sound good as the mono-speaker actually lacks the power and frequency range.

AKG Earphones

Interestingly, Samsung did include a pair of supposedly-costs USD 99 (approx MYR 421) AKG in-ear earphones. Making the Galaxy S8 and S8+ a much more attractive deal compared to other similarly priced flagships. I guess Samsung’s acquisition of HARMAN did have some benefit to the customers after all.

The 99 dollar question here is whether it sounds good enough to justify the claimed price tag? Frankly speaking, when I first put on the earphones, it doesn’t really blow me away. No, I don’t mean it sound bad, just that the sound signature of the earphones is unconventional where some people might not like it.

The earphones actually have very good sound detail in the mids and especially well-controlled trebles. If you ask me, it sounds extremely well with vocals and I like how my music to be bright and detailed. However, because of the fact that general public usually perceives good earphones to have punchy bass, this earphone might not fare well against their perception.

Display

As previously mentioned, the display of 18.5:9 aspect ratio with 2960 x 1440 pixels is phenomenal. Combined with curved edges, it literally makes the phone felt bezel-less, hence the name Infinity Display.

Both Galaxy S8 and S8+ actually shares the same display resolution while having different display sizes:

• Galaxy S8 5.8-inch ~ 571 PPI
• Galaxy S8+ 6.2-inch ~ 529 PPI

But trust me that even if the S8+ might seem inferior on the paper, the display is still unbelievably beautiful and sharp. Thanks to the AMOLED panel, the colours are vivid and the blacks are deep. Viewing angle is impressive too with no discolouration even at extreme angles.

Due to the unique aspect ratio, watching standard 16:9 videos will result in black bars at the both sides. Samsung conveniently includes a special function where it crops a portion from the top and bottom of the video to fit into the whole screen.