Samsung overhauled its flagship Galaxy S smartphone series with a premium design in 2015. This came with some tough decisions, however, and microSD card support and water resistance were both dropped. Still, the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 Edge+ were high performers last year.

Excellent grip; Excellent screen quality; Floating Game Tools button; Camera focus speed; Wider f/1.7 aperture (bright pictures; microSD card support; Water resistance

Does not support Adoptable Storage; Fingerprint sensor fails in the rain; Mono speaker

With the Galaxy S7 Edge, Samsung's side screen is finally ready for primetime.

Gorgeous Edge design looks nearly perfect; Top-of-the-line-specs; Water-resistant design; Solid camera takes strong low-light pics; Fast fingerprint sensor

Slippery glass is fragile; collects fingerprints; Overly sensitive nav buttons and touchscreen; No unlocked version; too much bloatware

While the Galaxy S6 Edge was about reinventing and reinvigorating Samsung's design language, the Galaxy S7 Edge's story is far more modest, as Samsung has instead opted to merely refine and evolve what it believes is a winning formula. Mission thoroughly accomplished.

- Premium metal/glass build - Comfortable to hold - Sharp; vibrant screen - microSD returns - Wireless charging - Water/dust resistant - Fantastic camera - Long battery life - Improved edge functionality - Fingerprint sensor

- Weak; tinny speaker - Glass is still a fingerprint magnet - Software has a lot of redundancies

The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge manages to tick all the boxes for an excellent smartphone in 2016, being the handset that the S6 Edge should've been. Fantastic camera Check. Large battery yep. Waterproof design Indeed.

The camera is perhaps the best low-light performer on the market right now; It's waterproof while still managing to exude a premium feel; The phone has some powerful internals; The 5.5-inch display is wonderfully sharp and vibrant

It's far too easy to touch the curved edges when using the camera and playing games; An option to disable touch input would be great for underwater photos; It's expensive; even for a high-end phone

This is a superior smartphone with market-leading performance, stunning display, knock-out design, and a world-class camera that will make iPhone owners envious. The returning microSD card slot and waterproofing add to its utility, and its top-of-the-line spec sheet guarantee a bit of futureproofing...

The most attractive smartphone design; hands down; Best smartphone camera on the market; Stunning display; Market-leading performance

Glass and metal build slippery; Fingerprint sensor finicky; New edge and display features still need work

The Galaxy S7 edge is the better S7, one may think. That's certainly true if looks are a top priority, but also for more practical reasons - the S7 edge has quite a bit longer battery life.

Stunning to look at; exquisite build; Wonderful 5.5-inch dual-curved AMOLED display; Powerful hardware; benchmark topper; Impressive camera output both stills and video; Excellent battery life; fast charging; both wired and wireless

Awkward handling; Glass accumulates fingerprints; fragile; Non-removable battery; no IR blaster

When it comes to technology, especially the fast-paced advancement of mobile technology, design cycles are often based on either innovation or iteration. Sometimes it's a blend of both, but often times, like Intel's tick-tock silicon design process, it makes perfect sense to innovate one design...

Beautiful; premium designs; Great performance; Excellent battery life; Killer camera performance in auto mode; Light; sleek; sexy; pocketable

Non-removable battery; No IR blaster; Pricey; especially off contract

Competition in the realm of larger premium smartphones is intense. The Nexus 6P, the Galaxy Note 5, the LG V10 , and the Motorola Droid Turbo 2 all have unique advantages, and I could easily recommend any of them.

Top-of-the-line in every way; More Edge functionality than in last year's models; Long battery life

Expensive; Not much internal storage

Samsung has developed an outstanding smartphone visually and technically, and it sets standards. The Korean manufacturer could have offered more in connectivity in terms of more modern LTE and also primarily in terms of interfaces. Particularly the lack of USB Type-C has to be criticized here.

superb camera; lightning-fast SoC; expandable storage; dust and water proof (IP68; outstanding screen; great battery life; Quick Charge and wireless charging; voice quality; good headset included; OTG adapter included

no infrared sensor; no radio receiver; Live View in Pro Mode not always reliable; micro-USB 2.0 only; no MHL or SlimPort support

Here's the phone you should buy right now: This one. What catapults the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge to such heights Is it the excellent camera, the beast of a battery, the expandable storage or the seductive design that's worth more than the sum of its parts Yes, and more.

The Galaxy S7 Edge has a gorgeous larger curved screen and larger battery than the otherwise identical standard S7; It really is something special; The extra navigation tools can be useful when used judiciously

When you pile on these extra navigation tools, they slow you down rather than speed you up; It's pricier than other good phones