jnadke

This looks interesting. Looks like a smarter version of Doze. It automatically disables background apps from doing stuff if you haven't used them for 3/5/7 days (selectable). I haven't heard of this on the Galaxy S6. New feature? http://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/product/SM-G930TZDATMB#!topic/battery_power/set_up_app_power_saving

The $75 is certainly still valid. It's mainly for things where the phone broke but there's no accidental damage (i.e. you didn't drop it). http://phonereplacementtracking.sprint.com/SprintMaintenance/Documents/faqs/customerfaq.htm

My google mastery is unparalleled. http://support-us.samsung.com/nas/fastlink/201009142148057%5Efastlink_attachment%5ESPR_Phone_Replacement_Program.pdf Interestingly, I didn't even know about this.

I don't think you need to be worried about the phone burning your hands. It won't be any worse than before (only before there were "hot spots"). The net amount of heat will be the same (in theory, unless the processor has become less efficient which is unlikely), only now it will be spread out. But yes, I guess to a certain extent you are the heatsink. On a side note, early reports indicate the new Exynos 8890 gets much warmer than the Snapdragon 820.

It's not liquid cooled in the way you think (no pumps and crap). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_pipe They are pinch-welded copper tubes (they will never leak unless you puncture it / puncture your phone... then you have bigger problems). There is only a small amount of liquid in them that is suspended in a vacuum (take all the air out). The liquid is usually water/glycol mixed with an anti-corrosion additive. The vacuum is to make the liquid more easily turn to steam and then back to liquid. It's the same thing that's used in Laptops and aftermarket Desktop CPU coolers. I've been building computers for 20+ years with these things and never have had one leak. The benefits of these far outweigh the risks. Heat destroys cell phone batteries (shorter lifespan). Getting the heat out of the cell phone is huge. The heatpipe connects the processor to the Galaxy S7's magnesium metal frame, which dissipates the heat out the sides of the device (the metal band around the side of the phone). If you manage to puncture it you have bigger problems (as I said before):

Interesting information: tl;dr: USA is getting a unified model. The device will "lock" to whatever SIM is inserted on first boot and then install Carrier-specific stuff. But per the Sprint DSU unlock you'll be able to unlock it after: (1) 50 days on the Sprint network AND (2) Your lease / 2 year contract (if applicable) is paid off In theory, then you can bring it to any carrier aftward (curious if VZW would allow the MEID for CDMA). I wonder what this will mean for updates. I assume it means unified updates. http://www.sammobile.com/2016/02/25/the-galaxy-s7-and-galaxy-s7-edge-will-carrier-lock-to-the-first-inserted-sim/

The buy-out doesn't kick you off the plan, it just lets you renew. If you're nervous, have them do it all in one transaction. However, it's $100 if your previous device was a Smartphone.

You should call sprint. IIRC the old contracts allowed you to upgrade early either 2 months or 4 months depending when the last time you renewed. Worst-case there's the buy-out: http://support.sprint.com/support/article/Learn_about_early_termination_fee/case-sp061027-20110823-171256 Edit: It looks like they axed the 2/4-month early thing last year. The only option is the buy-out. https://www.reddit.com/r/Sprint/comments/2xkpin/sprint_upgrade_policy_change/

A couple cool [important!] features Samsung didn't talk about, strangely: http://displaymate.com/Galaxy_S7_ShootOut_1.htm AMOLED Photo Screen Mode with a Very Accurate Adobe RGB Color Gamut Most high-end digital cameras have an option to use the Adobe RGB Color Gamut, which is 17 percent larger than the Standard sRGB / Rec.709 Color Gamut used in consumer cameras. The AMOLED Photo screen mode on the Galaxy S7 provides a very accurate calibration to the Adobe RGB standard, which is rarely available in consumers displays, and is very useful for high-end digital photography and other advanced imaging applications. The measured Absolute Color Accuracy of the AMOLED Photo screen mode for the Galaxy S7 is 1.6 JNCD, which is very high color accuracy. Interactive Personalized Automatic Brightness that Works Well The Galaxy S7 has a new interactive Personalized Automatic Brightness Control that learns and stores the display brightness settings that you make for varying ambient light levels, so from then on you get your own customized personal visual brightness preferences instead of some pre-programmed manufacturer settings found in other smartphones, tablets, and TVs. It is the first smartphone, tablet, or TV to do Automatic Brightness correctly. When Automatic Brightness is turned On (under Display Settings), if you adjust the Brightness Slider, the Galaxy S7 will remember your setting along with the current ambient light level that is measured by its Ambient Light Sensor (ALS), which is located next to the front facing camera just above the top of the display. tl;dr: 1) A wide-gamut photo-accurate Adobe RGB display mode 2) It remembers your manually-adjusted brightness settings.

Did you buy out your contract? Sprint online has a habit of telling you you're eligible when in reality they're referring to a 2-year lease. All that matters is when you click on Contract Details it says you're done (or within 4 months).

Looks like the multi-tasking is much better vs the Galaxy S6 and Note 5. The first real nitty gritty honest hands-on I've seen that doesn't rehash everything Samsung said on stage. tl;dr: It seems favorable, and reaffirms what I said that the S7 Edge is very comfortable to hold and probably the better device.

Every Best Buy should have them on display to play with starting tomorrow. But yeah, the Gold is very much a gold color, but it's reflective and gives off a rainbow effect easily under light. Best Buy also had no problems processing my "Alternate Upgrade" stealing the 2-year upgrade from another line. She knew exactly what I meant when I mentioned Alternate Upgrade.

Unfortunately, it didn't occur to me to check if it was a Snapdragon device (I assume it was), or throw GeekBench/Antutu on their really quick.

I've got my Onyx Black S7 Edge pre-ordered! I also got to play with the device! The lady at Best Buy was setting up their display for tomorrow. She asked if I wanted to play with it. Of course I said yes! (she hadn't even started the stupid promo animation yet) 1) The Edge is a lot more comfortable than with the GS6. I feel like the screen "Edge" of the front display has a sharper transition, you can use more of the screen. It also had visibly less glare than the S6 at the edges (I couldn't notice any at all). 2) The device is VERY FAST! No lag, no stutter. Buttery smooth. 3) The screen is very bright. And very nice. I saw a report today saying its Samsung's brightest-capable (and most accurate color) screen yet, and I believe it. Something like 850 nits of brightness at its max. Overall, unlike the S6 Edge, it fits a lot better in the hand and I have no problem gripping the device without interfering with the screen. Also, my fears were confirmed. The device she had was Gold and it was very bling and distracting, almost to the point of being gaudy. Fortunately the screen was bright enough to outshine it!

Sam's Club has the S7Edge in Silver and the S7 in Black/Gold + $100 Gift Card (Not sure if the silver is right since supposedly US was only getting Black/Gold) http://www.samsclub.com/sams/pagedetails/content.jsp?pageName=samsung-gs7-preorder

Best Buy is better if you have one. Free 64gb Evo+ 90mb/sec SD Card. Also, if you buy it through Sprint you need to submit for the Gear VR through the Samsung Website. With Best Buy it should come when the device is delivered.

There's a video of the colors here: http://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-galaxy-s7-color-comparison-675857/ Gold makes me nervous. It looks highly reflective and might be distracting, especially inside the Galaxy Gear VR if screen light bounces around (I've never used one before).

Yeah, in my experience Target is a lot more hit and miss in terms of phone inventory. They tend to stock stuff minimally. Hopefully you are first in line for your store and don't have to wait for a 2nd shipment. Granted it's more of a niche, it took forever of waiting for a 64gb gold iPhone 6 for my wife... even then we had to use brickseek to find one at a different store 80 miles away (but it came with a $100 gift card).

Hrrm, it seems online they only have the S7 Edge in Gold and not black. Otherwise Target would be ideal for borrowing an upgrade from another line (and 5% back with Target REDCard).

I have the Galaxy S5, so really the S7E is the equal to it in terms of width. http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=7821&idPhone2=7945&idPhone3=6033 I'm not sure if I'll like the curved display, but I would like a larger display. It looks like they've brought the curve out further with the S7E vs the S6E, as the videos I've seen make it appear to have less edge glare. My main concern is edge glare, and whether there's any distortion when used in VR. I'll probably go pre-order the Galaxy S7 Edge tonight, and then play with the phones and decide if I want to change it later.

It locks it down to only 1 home screen with popular apps/icons (configurabe), and still the app drawer. I'd say it's pretty easy.

You don't get it with the phone. The FREE Gear VR is via a send-in rebate on a promo page. You have to submit your receipt buying it between 2/24 and 3/11 by 3/31. http://promo.samsungpromotions.com/ Edit: I stand corrected per this website each phone will come with a Galaxy VR when bought at a retail store. Through Sprint you have to submit for the rebate. https://promos.samsungpromotions.com/GearVR

To be fair, I see the bigger battery as mainly a wash. The bigger screen size uses more power and the flexible Plastic-OLED technology I believe isn't as efficient as the tradition OLED screens. The S7 Edge might get slightly more battery life in benchmarks, but I expect it to be very similar.

I would too. Fortunately my father barely understands how to access the internet on his phone, so he doesn't really care. Benefits of a 6-line ED1500.

Target always allows this. I've done 2 upgrades this way through Target with 0 hassle whatsoever. I forget what they call it in their terminology (Piggy Back Upgrade?). I've read Best Buy does it too "Alternate Upgrade". But I've never done it. Target does not make you sign any TOS, so ultimately with Target you can upgrade the other person and then remove the phone right away (if you don't have them process it with the Piggy Back Upgrade). Best Buy makes you sign a TOS that says if you don't keep the phone on the line that was upgraded for 6 months you owe them $200 (commissions). So make sure they process it with the Alternate Upgrade path. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/searchpage.jsp?cp=1&searchType=search&%20=&id=pcat17071&type=page&ks=960&st=categoryid%24pcmcat209400050001&sc=Global&sp=-displaydate%20skuidsaas&qp=devicemanufacturer_facet%3DSAAS~Device%20Brand~Samsung%5Emodelfamily_facet%3DModel%20Family~Samsung%20Galaxy%20S7%5Emodelfamily_facet%3DModel%20Family~Samsung%20Galaxy%20S7%20edge%5Ecarrier_facet%3DCarrier~Sprint&list=y&usc=All%20Categories&nrp=15&fs=saas&iht=n&seeAll=&browsedCategory=pcmcat209400050001 At Target last year I actually used MY upgrade to get my wife a new iPhone 6 and she is on a completely different account! (Framily) I'll be using my parent's upgrade to get the Galaxy S7 Edge (they'll be inheriting my Galaxy S5). My dad is too cheap to actually buy nice phones, so it works well.