PC_Advisor_Issue_264_July_2017

Reviews
The Galaxy S8’s
unedited shots look
fantastic
panel by swiping, which is handy
with a tall screen like this.
Since the navigation buttons are
on-screen you can swap back and
recent apps around – handy if you’re
coming from another phone and not
used to Samsung’s layout. You can
even adjust how sensitive they are
to avoid pressing them by mistake.
Snap Window
Moving to a bigger screen, despite
the phone not being much bigger,
presents a problem. A larger
display means it’s harder to reach
it all with one hand. As mentioned
earlier, things such as the camera
app have new controls to help
you out. A new feature for the S8
is called Snap Window and takes
advantage of the tall screen size.
It’s essentially a new part of Multi
Window and allows you to snap a
chosen section of an app to the top
part of the screen. Below it you can
carry on like normal on a still larger
chunk of the real estate.
Bixby
Bixby might sound like a new cuddly
mascot but it’s Samsung’s answer
to the likes of Siri and Google
Assistant. There’s even a Bixby
button on the side, so you can
access the feature quickly, without
unlocking the device. Sadly, you
can’t change what it does. The
idea is you can talk to Bixby and
it will understand the context of
what you’re doing.
There’s also Bixby vision, which
does clever things. If, for example,
you point the phone’s camera at a
local landmark Bixby will provide
information about it, along with
places in the area to eat.
It’s worth noting that much of
the functionality is available via
Google Assistant (which is on the
phone) and Bixby will be limited
to selected Samsung apps to start
with. You also won’t be able to use
the voice element at launch with
UK language support arriving at
an unknown later date.
Until then, you’ll have to make
do with Bixby Home – the interface
loads if you push the physical button
on the side or swipe right from the
home screen. Here you’ll get, in a
very similar way to Google Now, all
kinds of information that should be
useful such as the weather, news,
fitness stats and suggestions.
While this sounds great during
our time with the phone we weren’t
convinced by it, especially with the
lack of voice support at launch.
Google Now is already a much
better alternative and probably
always will be.
DeX
We’re actually more interested
in DeX, a docking station which
lets you use the Galaxy S8 as
a makeshift PC for £129. You
connect the phone via USB-C
and the dock as two USB ports,
Ethernet, HDMI and a cooling fan.
You can also use it with a
wireless keyboard and mouse and
once the phone is docked you’ll get
a custom desktop-style interface
where you can open and resize
apps in separate windows like
you would on a PC or laptop.
Other new accessories include
a new Gear 360 2 camera and
a tweaked Gear VR headset
bundled with a motion controller.
Verdict
Samsung has taken the best phone
around and made it even better with
an impressive screen and design. It
ticks a shed load of boxes you’d want
a flagship to do. It’s the best phone
of 2017 so far but it is expensive
and the biometrics are a let down.
We’re keen to see what the likes of
Apple, HTC and OnePlus can do to
challenge. J Chris Martin
The DeX docking
station lets you
use the S8 as a
makeshift PC
July 2017 www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews 47