Samsung Galaxy S8 vs Galaxy S7: Should You Upgrade?

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Samsung Galaxy S8 vs Galaxy S7: Should You Upgrade?

Samsung Galaxy S8

vs Galaxy S7: Samsung has lifted the lid on the long-awaited Galaxy S8 - and we're very impressed. But what separates the Galaxy S8 from the Galaxy S7 in terms of design, features and price? Here's a full guide.

Last years

Samsung Galaxy S7

was a truly wondrous phone that earned a perfect 5/5 score from

Trusted Reviews

.We even awarded it Phone of the Year 2016 and were so amazed by its design, performance and value for money.

But with the flash of the fiery Galaxy Note 7 and stiff competition from the iPhone 7, Samsung had to go back to the drawing board to create something truly special with the Samsung Galaxy S8. We haven't finished our full review of the phone, but so far we are impressed.

If you're thinking about upgrading to Samsung's latest flagship (out April 28), here are the key differences between the Galaxy S8 and S7, and the Galaxy S8+ and S7 Edge.

If you don't bother reading the whole article, we've put together a quick summary of the key information at the bottom of this page.

Samsung Galaxy S8 vs Galaxy S7 Design – What is the Difference?

The Samsung Galaxy S7 got top marks from us last year, and the perfect score was largely due to its sleek and refined design.

Most impressively, with the Galaxy S8, Samsung improved the phone's design. Thanks to the introduction of what the company calls an "infinity display," the screen takes up almost all of the real estate on the front of the phone, resulting in an incredibly thin frame leads.

Of

Moving the fingerprint sensor to the back of the phone

, Samsung was able to accommodate significantly more displays

a body only slightly larger

than the Galaxy S7. For example, the dimensions of the Samsung Galaxy S7 are as follows: 142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9 mm, with a 5.1-inch screen. But the Galaxy S8 with a whopping 5.8- inch display is only slightly larger at 148.9 x 68.1 x 8.0 mm.

Samsung Galaxy S8

The Galaxy S8 is truly beautiful and looks very different from the Samsung Galaxy flagship phones we've seen before. It's a huge step up from the Galaxy S7 - and from the ill-fated Note 7, which we thought was a great phone (until it exploded). That's also worth noting

Both the Galaxy S8 and S8+ feature Samsung's "Edge" style curved display

, which is why there's no separate "Edge"-branded phone.

The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are heavier than their predecessors, at 155g and 175g respectively. This is in contrast to the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, which weighed 152g and 157g respectively. This weight increase is negligible, although anyone who is used to it owning a small, lightweight handset (like the 4-inch iPhone SE) struggles to get a grip on the Galaxy S8+.

The only other point worth mentioning is that the Samsung Galaxy S8 is available in the UK in . is available

Black, blue and silver color options

, although we'd be surprised if more colors weren't added over time.

Here is our Mobile Editor Max Parker's take on the new design:

"While the backs are similar, the front of the S8 changes - and boy is this a beautiful phone. The sloping sides, a screen that extends to almost every corner of the phone, as well as subtle color choices make this phone the am best looking phone I've ever seen. The S7 was basic, but the S8 takes it to a whole other level

Samsung Galaxy S7

Samsung Galaxy S8 vs Galaxy S7 Specs – How Much More Powerful is the Galaxy S8?

While the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ aren't significantly larger than their predecessors, they both feature

a much larger screen

.The Galaxy S8 uses a

5.8 inch Super AMOLED panel

, while the Galaxy S8+ rocks an even larger 6.2-inch screen.

The peculiarity of the displays is that they have a new,

wider 18.5:9 aspect ratio

, meaning they have a slightly odd QHD+ screen resolution of 2960 x 1440 pixels. That's larger than the Galaxy S7's 2560 x 1440 pixel display - but the result of the larger panel is a lower pixel density - see the table below for details .

The good news is that Samsung does too

significantly upgraded the processor of the Galaxy S8

.The Galaxy S7 uses either a Samsung-built Exynos 8990 or a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, depending on the market. These chips were made on a 14nm process, but the processors in Samsung's new phones are based on a much more efficient 10nm process .

Samsung claims that the

new phone is 10% faster

, thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8995 chip inside. There is also 4 GB of RAM (unchanged) and 64 GB of storage (previously 32 GB).

Samsung Galaxy S8

For photography it is

largely the same camera setup

as before. On the back of the phone is a 12-megapixel DualPixel shooter with a large f/1.7 aperture and optical image stabilization (OIS). The front camera offers

Higher resolution selfies than the Galaxy S7

(8 megapixels versus 5 megapixels) as well as f/1.7 aperture and autofocus.

Perhaps the only notable camera change is the introduction of multi-frame image processing. This means the Galaxy S8 will take three pictures whenever you press the shutter button and use the trio of snaps to reduce blur and sharpen your shots.

Elsewhere, you'll still benefit from a waterproof case, wireless charging, and an SD card slot. The micro-USB has been swapped out for the more versatile USB Type-C port, which is a holdover from the Note 7. We also saw an iris scanner, which is another feature from the Note.

Samsung Galaxy S7

As for battery life, it's too early to tell

Galaxy S8 uses the same 3,000 mAh cell as the Galaxy S7

, while the Galaxy S8+'s 3,500mAh battery is slightly smaller than the 3,600mAh cell in the Galaxy S7 Edge. However, since screen resolution hasn't changed much and Samsung has introduced a much more efficient processor, we'd be surprised if the battery life would not be improved.

Samsung's new phones run on Google's latest Android 7.0 Nougat operating system, which is identical to the software we saw on the Galaxy S7. However, there have been a few tweaks, the most notable of which is the addition of Samsung's custom Bixby digital assistant is – think Siri, but from Samsung.

For a full spec comparison, see the table below:

Samsung Galaxy S8

Samsung Galaxy S7

Screen

5.8 inch (Super AMOLED)

5.1 inch (Super AMOLED)

screen resolution