The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge and the Sony Xperia Z3 are almost from two completely different worlds. Despite both of them running Android, the overlay for both devices makes each feel very different from one another. The same can be said for the build quality - the S6 Edge has a smooth, curved design whilst the Z3 has a more in your face stylized appearance. In this review we take a look at everything each smartphone has to offer.

Build Quality

Here’s the thing - it’s quite clear that the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge looks and feels like one of the most premium smartphones you’ll ever lay your hands on. The unibody curved frame for the S6 Edge make it look great and also feel functional too. To unlock your Galaxy S6 Edge just visit here!

The S6 Edge is the only smartphone to have two curved displays on either side and whilst this lends itself as a nice design choice, it gives owners a bit more usability when the smartphone is not in their hands.

The Xperia Z3 on the other hand is completely different. Although it fits comfortably in your hands, in comparison the Z3 almost looks like an unwieldy brick. The Z3’s display is slightly larger than the S6 Edge’s but it’s huge bezels make it much larger than it needs to be.

There is one area where the Xperia Z3 does win though - dust and water protection. The Z3 is one of the few remaining Android flagships that has been designed carefully to withstand water and dust and if you expect to be in a wet or rainy environment, the Z3 may end up being the better choice for you.

Display

At 5.1 inches, the Galaxy S6 Edge display is just 0.1 inches smaller than the Z3’s. In terms of picture quality though the S6 Edge is far ahead of the curve. Before we get into the nitty gritty details, here is a rundown of the display specs.

Xperia Z3: 5.2 inch 1080 x 1920 LCD display
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge: 5.1-inch 1440 x 2560 Super AMOLED dual-curved display

On paper, the S6 sounds like the easy winner here, however the real world results are actually a lot closer than you may think, although they are noticeable. At a distance it would be hard to determine which display has the better quality. As you move closer to each display you will begin to notice just how clean and crisp the S6 Edge looks when compared to the Z3. The Xperia Z3’s display is nice, but it just doesn’t match the amazing color accuracy and brightness of the S6 Edge.

User Interface

Here is another point worth arguing over. Even though the TouchWiz UX has now been toned down a little to feel easier to deal with, it is still incredibly difficult to confidently say the Z3’s Xperia interface is better.

The TouchWiz UX still has way too many features when compared to the Xperia interface, and now that Samsung has completely redesigned it, it even feels surprisingly easier to use than the Xperia Z3. If you need unlocking code for your Xperia Z3 just check it out here!

The Z3 really needs an upgrade in the interface department to ever stand a chance at competing with the S6 Edge. Samsung has basically gone over every complaint with previous iterations of the TouchWiz UX and completely wiped them from the board. The end result is something beautiful.

Performance

In quick summary, the S6 Edge does have more power than the Xperia Z3 by far, but both still deal with every task Android can throw at it quite effortlessly.

Thanks to the powerful octa core Exynos 7420 in the Galaxy S6 Edge, there really isn’t any other smartphone on the market right now that could outperform it. The Xperia Z3 has a 2.5GHz quad core Snapdragon SoC which is incredibly powerful, but obviously not as capable as the S6 Edge.

The S6 Edge clearly wins here but it’s not really that noticeable in real world performance.


Camera

Both smartphones are capable of creating some great photos but it is clear that the Galaxy S6 Edge outperforms the Xperia Z3. It’s interesting because the Z3 has a nice 20.7 megapixel camera with a f/2.0 aperture lens. The Galaxy S6 Edge has a 16 megapixel camera with a f/1.9 aperture lens. This just shows that specs on paper don’t always mean anything.

Summary

The Galaxy S6 Edge blows the Xperia Z3 completely out of the water, which is funny because water is the only place the Xperia Z3 will find itself at an advantage over the S6 Edge. If you’re looking for dust and water protection, the Xperia Z3 could be a good choice, otherwise the S6 Edge wins.

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