When comparing Google Pixel vs Samsung Galaxy S7, the Slant community recommends Samsung Galaxy S7 for most people. In the question“What are the best phones released in 2016?” Samsung Galaxy S7 is ranked 1st while Google Pixel is ranked 2nd. The most important reason people chose Samsung Galaxy S7 is:
the 3000mAh battery combined with the efficient SoC (system on a chip - CPU and GPU on the same chip) and Amoled display offer great battery life. Users on Reddit have been reporting 5+ hours of screen on time
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Software remains up to date
Given it's a Google phone, new updates will roll out rather frequently and for a long time on this phone. So you'll get the latest Android.
Pro Likely the best smartphone camera from 2016
Compared to other smartphones, the Pixel camera currently (October 2016) holds the highest score from DXO mark (in terms of color depth, saturation, etc). Many reviews also praise it as the smartphone camera which takes the best pictures out there. Also the camera really launches fast, allowing you to capture sudden moments. Although there is no hardware OIS (optical image stabilization), the software stabilization does a great job.
You can see a comparison video here of the Pixel against the iPhone 7, Galaxy S7, HTC 10, Sony Xperia XZ and LG G5.
Pro Unlimited original size Google Photos backup
With this phone (only at the moment), you can back up on Google Photos the original version of your photos (full resolution) at no cost. Other phones can upload unlimited photos to Google Photos as well, although they will be compressed image files.
Pro One of the fastest CPUs (in 2016)
The Google Pixel is using the new Snapdragon 821 processor. Other phones from earlier in the year have used the Snapdragon 820. The 821 only has minor differences to the 820.
Pro Integrated Google Assistant
Google Assistant is a more refined Google Now. It's more conversational, and can do different things instead of being limited to a single app. Google Assistant can bring up relevant information in more places than Google Now could, such as conversations within the Duo app.
Pro Fingerprint sensor can be used to trigger other actions
You can double tap the power button to start the camera, swipe the fingerprint sensor in various directions to trigger predefined actions like showing/hiding the notifications, which is pretty handy given it's on the back on the phone.
Pro USB-C charger
USB Type-C port, the future of USB (much more resistant than micro-USB and allows charging either way...). If you have other modern devices you're likely having one of those already, and if not you have a standard short USB-A cord in the package (also micro-USB to USB-C adapter for charging are very cheap).
Pro Daydream VR ready
The Pixel supports Google's VR standard (Daydream) with very rapid refresh rate, and all the required highly sensitive sensors.
Pro Exists in small and larger form factor
The spec are the same for both sizes, except the battery (2700mAh on the 5" Pixel, and 3450mAh on the Pixel XL) and screen resolution (1080p on the 5" Pixel, 1440p on the Pixel XL).
Pro Best Android based UI
Google Assistant, Pixel Launcher, Google Camera, and other google services are available only for pixel devices.
Pro Icons provides shortcuts to functions of that app without opening that app
For example, if you want to send a message, a long press on Messenger opens up options to start a new conversation or continue a recent conversation.
Pro Unofficially waterproof
Officially it's not waterproof (spill and splashes proof). However one guy already tried to immerse the phone in water for an hour and found it had no effect on the phone except distorting the speakers sound (while still wet, similar to officially waterproof phones).
Of course it is not recommended that anyone try this as it will most likely void the warranty and could potentially damage the phone.
Pro Long battery life
the 3000mAh battery combined with the efficient SoC (system on a chip - CPU and GPU on the same chip) and Amoled display offer great battery life. Users on Reddit have been reporting 5+ hours of screen on time
Pro Industry leading camera
The camera may only be rated at 12MP, but it uses 'dual-pixel' technology which means there are actually two sub-pixels for each pixel. These dual-pixels will be able to capture much more detail than a regular 12MP camera. Each pixel has also been enlarged, allowing more light to enter. This means that lowlight photography will be drastically improved.
Pro Waterproof
The Galaxy S7 is rated IP68 for water and dust resistance. This means that it can be totally submerged in 1.5m (nearly 5 ft) of fresh water for 30 minutes. There are no flaps - just don't use the charging port until it has had enough time to dry out.
Pro Fantastic display
The 5.1" 1440p Amoled display is the best display ever put on a phone. The Amoled display technology allows individual pixels to turn off (IPS LCDs have the whole backlight either fully on or fully off which is why they still produce light on a totally black image), meaning that black colors truly are black. Colors appear to pop out of the display as well.
Older generation Amoled panels used to suffer from screen burn-in, however this issue was addressed last year and should no longer cause any issues.
Pro Fast performance
In America the S7 uses the Snapdragon 820 processor, the worldwide edition uses the Exynos 8890. Both of these processors are brand new as of 2016, and will offer great performance for years to come.
The Exynos version is about 10% faster when it comes to loading apps, and performs 44% better when loading recent apps
Pro Expandable storage
The Galaxy S7 has brought back the SD card slot (the Galaxy S6 didn't have the slot), which allows for 2TB of theoretical storage. The only problem is the largest micro SD card on the market currently is 200GB, but that's still a lot of storage. Because there is a SD card slot, you can add more storage after buying the phone - something not all phones offer.
Pro VR available
The Galaxy S7 is compatible with Samsung Gear VR. It costs $99, but sometimes can be bundled with the phone for less. It is a great affordable introduction to virtual reality, although it isn't the best solution available.
The phone clips into the headset, and connects via the USB port to act as the brains and display for the unit.
Pro Great design
Cons
Con Not worth the price
The cost is bit higher than the related specs.
Con Camera may have lens flare issues
Some consumers have reported issue with lens flare in their pictures. It is not widely reported, but does seem to cause some people problems.
There is also a similar issue on the HTC 10, which is a close hardware design to the Pixel.
Con Not officially rated as waterproof
The Pixel (and Pixel XL) is not officially rated as waterproof, at all. It's only IP53 certified (5 for dust, 3 for water), which means it's pretty dust resistant, but would only survive a light rain or splashes, as opposed to the Galaxy S7 which is IP68 and iPhone 7 which is IP67.
Con Poor speaker placement
The single speaker is on the bottom of the phone, which is easy to block just by holding it. Because it's facing downwards, you'll want to cup your hand around it or put it in a cup to direct the sound better.
Con Most of the reviews of this on the Internet are sponsored
Samsung pays a lot for 'loving' his phone
Con Rather expensive
Con TouchWiz software
TouchWiz isn't as bad on the S7 as it has been in the past, however it's still one of the most bloat-ware (apps that come pre-installed that don't really serve a purpose) filled UI skins out there. In this iteration at least TouchWiz doesn't make the phone lag
Con Battery life is not that great
Although it's not a small battery, and it charges really fast with a fast charge, you get the feeling it won't last a full day. Having to disable a lot of stuff to get through the day, especially if you are going out at night can be a compromise many do not want to make.
Con No USB-C port
For a cutting edge phone this is an oddity. It may because the old style non-reversible USB port is needed to use it with the Gear VR but wouldn't it have made more sense to update the Gear VR to the new standard?