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Galaxy S6 Edge Camera Bests iPhone 6 Plus In Respected Benchmark But Suffers From The Same Problem

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Stand aside, Apple : According to DxO Labs' highly-regarded camera tests, Samsung’s Galaxy S6 Edge easily outperforms both the Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

This marks a turnaround for the two heavyweights. Just six months ago, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus scored each scored 86 points out of 100, topping the DxOMark Mobile charts in both photo and video tests despite offering only half the megapixels of the Samsung Galaxy S5 which they narrowly beat.

Where Galaxy S6 Edge Beats iPhone 6

Since then Samsung has fought back valiantly, outperforming both iPhone 6 models first with the Galaxy Note 4 and now with the Galaxy S6 Edge which takes the same sensor found in the Samsung phablet and couples it with a superior f/1.9 lens.

For photos, the S6 Edge (and therefore also the regular S6 which uses the same camera) scored 88 points, compared to 84 for the iPhone 6 Plus and 84 points for video, compared to 79 for the Apple handset.

The S6 is commended for its very fine detail and low noise levels when shooting photos in bright light, along with good exposure, fast autofocus and ‘nice’ white balance in outdoor conditions. However, some noise was noted in low-light shots and mixed light sources sometimes threw the white balance off, as had been noted by early experiences of the phone at launch.

Read more - Apple Details Three-Sensor iPhone Camera

Video performance is also praised for similar reasons, with very good control of image noise and very strong autofocus performance. Some flare is detected in bright light and colour shading in low-light, but the weakest aspect of video performance is shown to be a visible wobble when the phone experiences vibration, such as when shooting while walking.

The optical image stabilisation therefore delivered the lowest score across the board for the S6 and at 56 points measures well below the remaining scores which are almost all above 80 mark. It’s worth noting that the iPhone 6 Plus didn’t score very well at image stabilsation either, but comes in a little higher than the S6 Edge at 59 points.

In overall stills performance it’s the autofocus performance which sets the S6 apart from its predecessor, while its unsurprising ability to capture far greater texture detail which pushes it furthest ahead of the iPhone 6 Plus with it’s lower-resolution sensor.

Page 2: My own experiences

Galaxy S6 Vs iPhone 6: My experiences

Having taken photos with the iPhone 6 Plus and Galaxy S6 myself, I can confirm that these results tally with the palpable boost in picture quality delivered by the Galaxy S6 over the iPhone 6 Plus.

Both phones are very responsive and easy to use, but the Galaxy S6 delivers a very noticeable increase in picture detail and is also much quicker off the mark when it comes to switching to the camera from any other phone app.

Read More - Samsung Galaxy S6 Camera Already Dethroned?

The iPhone 6 Plus performs much, much better than would be expected given it’s low-resolution sensor, but with the Galaxy S6 Edge picture quality has simply leapt too far ahead for the iPhone to keep up.

There are already some challenges to the Galaxy S6 Edge camera in the form of the LG G4, which is due to be announced in a few hours from now, and specialist devices such as the Panasonic DMC-CM1 with its much larger imaging sensor and variable aperture. But, when it comes to point and shoot snapping, the Galaxy S6 is currently the one to beat.

At least for the next few hours

You can read DxO Labs’ full report at DxoMark