Wind Mobile slashes $100 off the price of the Galaxy S7

Just sixteen days after the Galaxy S7 launched in Canada, Wind Mobile has slashed $100 off the usual price of the handset, so you can now bag yourself a Galaxy S7 for $199 if you register for a $25 a month contract with WindTab Boost. Alternatively, if you don’t feel like signing up to a lengthy agreement, you could always grab one from the operator off-contract for $799, instead of the regular $899 price tag.

In case you need a refresher on Samsung’s latest and greatest smartphone, the Galaxy S7 packs a gorgeous 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels, a Qualcomm MSM8996 Snapdragon 820/Exynos 8890 Octa CPU, 4GB of RAM, a 12MP Dual Pixel rear-facing camera, a 5-megapixel selfie snapper and a 3,000mAh non-removable Li-Ion battery. It ships running the latest build of Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow that is, of course, skinned with the South Korean company’s TouchWiz UI.

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Optus extends Gear VR promotion for Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge

Optus, one of the largest carriers in Australia, has just revealed that it has extended its Gear VR promotional offer for customers who purchase either the Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge from its website or any of its nationwide bricks-and-mortar stores — so those who buy one of Samsung’s recently-released flagships from the operator will still be able to get their hands on a complimentary Gear VR headset worth $159. However, the deal will only run until the current stock runs out, so if you want to get in on the action, you better act fast.

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Samsung Galaxy S5 gets Marshmallow update outside South Korea

Owners of the Galaxy S5 (SM-G900L) in South Korea were the first ones in the world to taste the sweetness of Android Marshmallow update. Now, it is time for Galaxy S5 (SM-G900M) owners in Trinidad & Tobago to do so. Samsung usually releases a new software update in its home country South Korea, which is followed by an international rollout for other markets. This means that Samsung may soon start releasing Android Marshmallow update for the Galaxy S5 in other parts of the world.

You can either wait for the 1.47GB OTA (over-the-air) update to hit your device, or download it manually from our firmware section. This update (G900MUBU1CPC3) bumps up the Android version on your Galaxy S5 to 6.0.1 (Marshmallow) and brings a multitude of bug fixes as well as performance improvements and security enhancements. Android Marshmallow brings battery-saving Doze mode, Google Now on Tap, 200 new emojis, app permissions, app links, direct sharing options, Chrome custom tabs, and more to the smartphone.

If you’ve downloaded and installed the update already, let us know if you face any bugs or performance issues. You can also let others know about your experience with the new software on your Galaxy S5 through the comments section below.

Firmware Details:

Model	SM-G900M
Model name	GALAXY S5
Country	Trinidad and Tobago
Version	Android 6.0.1
Changelist	110166628
Build date	Sat, 12 Mar 2016 16:17:25 +0000
Product code	TTT
PDA	G900MUBU1CPC3
CSC	G900MUUB1CPC3

 

Thanks for the screenshot, @luisseper (Luis Eduardo Perez)!

 

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Reasons not to upgrade from the Galaxy S6 edge+ to the Galaxy S7 edge

Earlier this week, we jotted down a few reasons Galaxy S6 edge owners have for not upgrading to the Galaxy S7 edge. For Galaxy S6 edge+ owners, the biggest reason is the fact their phone came out barely six to seven months ago, which means it doesn’t make monetary sense to be ditching it for Samsung’s latest and greatest. If you’ve still been getting the itch to make the jump to the S7 edge, check out our reasons below for why you shouldn’t pull the trigger.

Larger screen on the Galaxy S6 edge+

This can come down to exactly how large you like your smartphone displays, but the 5.7-inch screen on the Galaxy S6 edge+ makes more sense than the 5.5-inch display on the S7 edge if you’re used to large devices. Even the 0.2 inches of extra screen estate can make a difference in everyday usage (especially if you’re a heavy user of Samsung’s Multi Window feature). Everything from gaming to watching movies gets a benefit, and the 5.7-inch display gives the Galaxy S6 edge+ a unique identity in terms of the look as well.

Battery life is nearly as good as the Galaxy S7 edge

The Galaxy S7 edge might have a 3,600 mAh battery, but in real-life usage the 3,000 mAh battery on the S6 edge+ can last nearly as long. Samsung did considerable optimization on the S6 edge+ (and the Note 5), and as a result you can get by without putting it on the charger for a major part of the day. In fact, the Galaxy S7 edge hasn’t benefited as much as it could have with a battery that large (even without using the Always On display mode), so this is one area where the S6 edge+ isn’t noticeably worse off. It also charges faster than the Galaxy S7 edge, both on wired and wireless connections.

The Galaxy S6 edge+ is still mightily powerful

So the Galaxy S7 edge comes with the latest mobile SoC available today, but the S6 edge+ isn’t a slouch either. In fact, the Exynos 7420 ticking away inside is a great chip and offers virtually the same performance in regular usage as the Exynos 8890 or the Snapdragon 820. Even when it comes to gaming there isn’t any title out there that your S6 edge+ won’t be able to handle. This might change in a year or so, but for now, the entire library of Android games will be fully playable.

The similar performance is especially true with Marshmallow now available for both devices. Meanwhile, the S6 edge+ goes head to head with the S7 edge in terms of multitasking, as both devices feature 4GB of RAM (though you might the S7 edge a tad more capable of holding down apps in memory).

Galaxy S6 edge+ has all of the Edge screen features

The Galaxy S7 edge comes with a lot of Edge screen functionality out of the box, considerably more than what we saw with the Galaxy S6 edge and S6 edge+. But all the new functionality is available on the S6 edge+ with the Marshmallow update, so you’re not missing out on anything compared to the latest edge flagship from Samsung.

The camera has a higher-resolution sensor

The Galaxy S7 edge blows the Galaxy S6 edge+ out of the water when it comes to taking pictures in dark conditions, but in well-lit environments the latter is still as good as it can get. Low-light imaging might be weaker, but your S6 edge+ can still take amazing shots when the lighting conditions are good. It also takes photos in the more standard 16:9 aspect ratio, and you get better detail for zooming in as the phone has a 16-megapixel sensor instead of a 12-megapixel sensor.

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We’ve said it before, and we will say it again: The Galaxy S7 edge is an amazing smartphone that has every right to be called Samsung’s best yet. But anyone with a Galaxy S6 edge+ can rest assured that the S7 edge isn’t exactly a great upgrade choice unless you really can’t live without the latest and greatest the mobile industry has to offer. The reasons above are what we think make the jump a poor decision for most consumers, and as always we are all ears for opinions from our readers down in the comments section.

Now Read: Top five reasons why you should buy the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge

 

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Leaked press render suggests that the Galaxy J1 (2016) will launch on AT&T

Following the launch of the Galaxy J1 (2016) in Russia two weeks ago, it looks like Samsung’s latest budget-friendly smartphone is now en route to the United States. Renowned tipster Evan Blass has tweeted a render of the handset with AT&T carrier branding. Regrettably, Blass provided no word on pricing or availability of the handset, but if the price point of its predecessor is anything to go by, we expect it to cost somewhere in the region of $120.

Just in case you need a refresher on its specifications, the Galaxy J1 (2016) packs a 4.5-inch Super AMOLED display, a 1.3GHz Exynos 3475 quad-core processor, a Mali-T720 GPU, 1GB of RAM, a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 2-megapixel front-facing shooter, 8GB of expandable memory and a 2,050mAh battery, which should last for 12-hours of regular use and 39-hours of music playback.

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Verizon distributes connectivity maintenance update for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge

Verizon, one of the largest carriers in the United States, is currently in the process of pushing out a maintenance upgrade (G930VVRU2APB5) for its branded variants of the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. Unfortunately, this upgrade doesn’t bring much to the table by way of added functionality, but it does transport a handful of essential bug fixes aimed at improving Wi-Fi connectivity — so users should no longer experience issues when connecting to the internet, encounter frequent data disconnections or run into any problems whilst loading files or web pages.

To see if the upgrade is ready for your device, head into Settings, followed by About Device, locate and select Software Update, then hit the Update Now button. Alternatively, you can wait until you receive a push notification prompting you to download and install the update from Verizon’s servers.

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AT&T now testing rumored Galaxy S6 Active (SM-G891A) upgrade

The day before yesterday, we reported that an unidentified Samsung smartphone carrying the model number SM-G891A was imported into India for testing. Unfortunately, no documentation accompanied the handset from South Korea, but seeing as the Galaxy S6 Active sports the model number SM-G890A, we came to the conclusion that this unnamed device was the Galaxy S6 Active (2016).

Now, today, serial leaker Evan Blass took to Twitter to reveal that the SM-G891A is currently undergoing testing at AT&T’s headquarters in the United States dubbed with the internal codename Samsung Poseidon. This actually adds credibility to our previous claim that the handset is the successor to the Galaxy S6 Active as Poseidon is the Greek god of the sea, which is quite a fitting moniker for a ruggedized, waterproof smartphone.

If you’re wondering why we’re referring to this device as the Galaxy S6 Active (2016) as opposed to the Galaxy S7 Active, it’s because Samsung has only made a minor change to the model number, which is a good indication that it’s bringing an older device in line with one of its most recent releases, and view of the fact that the Galaxy S7 is already water-resistant, it doesn’t make much sense for the South Korean company to release a waterproof model.

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