GADGET REVIEW - PHONES THAT GO BEYOND FLAGSHIP

GADGET REVIEW - PHONES THAT GO BEYOND FLAGSHIP





With the constant innovation on Android, having a plain old flagship model just isn't enough. Both LG and Samsung, have gone beyond the norm to showcase what we like to call super-flagships

Over time, mobiles have gotten better and better, to the point that their processors are powerful enough to run laptops. But that was just one race. Market leaders are looking beyond just offering a faster product ­ they're looking at innovating in ways that will change the way we use mobiles.

In this particular case, both LG and Samsung have their yearly offering in place with the upcoming G4 for LG, and the S6 for Samsung. But just having one superphone is not enough. Also launched are Samsung's S6 Edge, which adds extra functionality to the S6's edges and LG's G Flex 2, which immerses you in media more than any other mobile. We take a closer look at both these devices that have gone beyond what flagships offer.

LG G FLEX 2

Sequel to the very experimental G Flex, the LG G Flex 2 pretty much does everything that we wanted from the original.

To start with, the 5.5-inch display is now full-HD, with a 403ppi pixel density that's way better than its predecessors, and does suit the size of the phone as well. Sure, the competition is popping up with near-4K displays, but there is a limitation to how far you can push a curved display. And that's the other thing. The curved aspect of the screen does not seem to make much sense at first, as it doesn't add anything to the functionality of the phone. But play a full screen video, a game that uses the screen horizontally or even go through a photo slideshow, and you can feel the immersion it offers. It's more effective than 3D on handheld devices, in our opinion.

Even the 13MP camera is really impressive with a good number of features. We like the fact that LG held back on adding gimmicky camera apps, to just bloat up your phone's storage, and instead focussed on adding functionality that matters ­ like the 4K or slowmotion (120fps in 720p) video modes. The front camera seems a bit compromised with just a 2.1MP resolution, but it's still good for quick selfies, especially with features like gesture support and beauty shot.

LG has added a good number of apps on the G Flex 2 to make it worthwhile, and it also comes with a bundled smart flip cover. But in raw performance ­ the kind you'd expect from a high-end device ­ the G Flex 2 doesn't feel like a powerhouse of a performer. And that's exactly what stops it from being the device we can highly recommend.

SAMSUNG GALAXY S6 EDGE

Not that the Samsung Galaxy S6 is a bad looking phone. But the S6 Edge, is downright gorgeous. With the edges curving around both sides of the device, the screen not only gets a sleeker edgeless look, but it also adds some addi tional functionaly to the device. Besides the edge aspect of it, the screen is definitely one of the best we've seen in Android. With a 1440x2560 pixel resolution fitted into the 5.1-inch screen, even the smallest font sizes are as comfortable to read as premium print in a glossy magazine.

Even the camera stands out as the best we've seen on offer on an Android device. The 16MP primary camera is excellent under all lighting conditions, making even the darkest spaces seem adequately lit. But besides the picture quality, it was the response time of the camera that really impressed us. It starts just about as soon as you touch the icon and it doesn't have any noticeable shutter lag.

The 5MP front cam gives you high-res selfies with the beauty shot feature.

Samsung opted to go with their very own Exynos octa core chipset, instead of the usual Snapdragon.

We have to admit, the results are far better than we expected. It stood out as a trailblaz er in all the benchmarks and tests we threw at it, head ing all the way to the top slot in most of them. The caveat however is that we noticed that the device tends to overheat when subjected to heavy or long term use.Even while charging, the S6 Edge heats up to unusable levels.

The overheating is a concern, but the S6 Edge still stands out as a flagship that delivers on all fronts.

And it looks good while at it.

Gagan Gupta

Mm11jun15