Today we have one interesting clash between the current flagship devices from Apple, Samsung, and Sony. The Galaxy S7 features an attractive design combined with a high-resolution (1440p) display, The Xperia XZ combines a superior camera resolution along with all-around specs and a 1080p 5.2-inch screen and the iPhone 7 offers monstrous performance along with a huge internal storage and an excellent camera. Let’s see how these three devices compare.
Dimensions, Design
The Xperia XZ comes with a largest (5.2-inch screen) making the device the largest of the bunch. The phone measures 146 x 72 x 8.1 mm and features a modern industrial design characterized by sharp angles and a monolith-looking chassis without any mechanical buttons at the front.
The Galaxy S7 features a nice 5.1 screen, making the phone visibly nimbler than the Xperia XZ (142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9 mm). Although the display isn’t curved, the design is striking, and the flat screen will make using the device easier, since your fingers can’t unintentionally touch the curved parts, accidentally launching a random app, or swiping through home screens.
The iPhone 7 is the smallest and thinnest of the three, measuring 138.3 x 67.1 x 7.1 mm. The level of compactness is achieved by keeping the display under the 5-inch mark. With its 4.7-inches, the iPhone 7’s screen is perfect for using the device with one hand. The design is the same old seen already on the iPhone 6/6s, a bit outdated; on the other hand, the phone can’t be called unattractive; uninteresting is a better way of describing the iPhone 7 looks.
Hardware, Display
The Xperia XZ packs Snapdragon 820 (2×2.15 GHz Kryo & 2×1.6 GHz Kryo along with Adreno 530 GPU), a powerful processing engine that’s more than enough for 1080p resolution of the screen. The phone is equipped with 3 gigs of RAM (less than other flagships are offering but enough for snappy performance), and a choice between 32GB and 64GB of expandable internal storage. All in all, if a 1080p resolution isn’t a problem, the Xperia XZ will offer the enough power for any kind of usage, whether that be video games, full HD movies, or something else.
The Galaxy S7 also packs the Snapdragon 820, with another variant powered by Samsung’s Exynos 8890 Octa SoC (4×2.3 GHz Mongoose & 4×1.6 GHz Cortex-A53 coupled with Mali-T880 MP12 GPU). Since the phone is Samsung’s flagship device for 2016, you can expect top of the line performance, especially since the phone is equipped with 4 GB of RAM and a choice between 32 GB and 64 GB of expandable internal storage.
The iPhone 7 is powered by the latest Apple A10 Fusion chipset (2.23 GHz quad-core CPU), capable of smashing benchmark records and running iOS 10 flawlessly. Since the iOS 10 is highly optimized OS, 2 gigs of RAM are more than enough. And since iPhone never had expandable storage option, having a choice between 32/128/256 GB of internal storage is a move we salute. In today’s world of 4K videos, lossless audio and huge video games, at least 128 GB is a must if wanting to have enough storage for everything.
Sony Xperia XZ comes with 5.2-inch, 1080p IPS LCD display, offering high viewing angles and more natural colors compared to AMOLED screens.
Samsung Galaxy S7 has a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED screen, featuring rich colors and deep blacks. If loving saturated colors, the Galaxy S7 will provide the richer colors than both the Xperia XZ and the iPhone 7.
The iPhone 7 has a 4.7-inch IPS LCD screen with a resolution of 750 x 1334 pixels. Good enough for surfing the web, or watching YouTube videos, and perfect for using the phone with one hand.
Camera
Sony Xperia XZ offers the highest resolution camera sensor. With 23 MP (f/2.0) the phone will take excellent photos, but the aperture size that’s smaller than those found in the Galaxy S7 and the iPhone 7 cameras will give relatively poor results if taking images in dark places. The main camera supports phase detection and laser autofocus, as well as HDR. The videos can be recorded in 2160p resolution (4K) with 30 frames per second. The secondary camera is impressive. It counts 13 MP (f/2.0) and supports HDR. If there was a LED flash, the Xperia XZ would be the ultimate selfie smartphone.
The Galaxy S7 comes with an excellent 12 MP main camera sensor (f/1.7), capable of producing striking images even in low light conditions; the S7/S7 Edge models have the best cameras in the whole smartphone world, and S7 would be a great choice for all photo fans. The camera supports OIS and phase detection autofocus and is capable of recording 20160p@30fps videos. The selfie one counts 5 MP (f/1.7), supports Auto HDR and is great for taking selfies in the dark. It also supports recording of 1080p videos.
The iPhone 7 comes with an improved 12 MP (f/1.8) camera, compared to the iPhone 6s. It is better at taking shots in the dark, and it supports phase detection autofocus, OIS, and HDR. The main camera can produce 2160@30fps, as well as 1080p@30/60/120fps video recordings. The front-facing camera counts 7 MP (f/2.2), a solid choice for selfies, but not as good as selfie snappers found on the Galaxy S7, and the Xperia XZ.
Battery, Software
The Galaxy S7 is equipped with a 3000 mAh battery, and it comes with Android Marshmallow (but the word is that Android Nougat should come to the device before the end of 2016). The Xperia XZ packs a 2900 mAh battery, also runs Android Marshmallow and also should soon be upgraded to Android Nougat. The iPhone 7 has a 1960 mAh battery and it comes with iOS 10. All three models are water resistant, they come equipped with a fingerprint sensor, with the Galaxy S7 and Xperia XZ supporting fast battery charging.
Conclusion
If you want the best of the best, choose the Galaxy S7 (or S7 Edge, depending on your display preference) or the iPhone 7 (if iOS is your favorite). The Xperia XZ is a great choice for users wanting to have a different phone, one that isn’t made by Apple or Samsung, one that sports a monolithic industrial design, and for those that think display resolution race was gone too far.