Gadget Junction

Google with its driverless cars wants to become an Uber

2015-12-17T02:30:00.001+08:00

Google is making an entire, standalone business for its self-driving cars, and the purpose of this unit is to offer Uber-like rides. According to Bloomberg, Google's ride-for-hire business will launch under its parent company, Alphabet Inc, sometime next...

Android Wear review: The smartwatch platform?

2015-12-17T01:12:00.001+08:00

Android Wear is the platform for wearables designed to put the power of Google on your wrist. It keeps you always connected by delivering tailored alerts from your smartphone, but also acts as a point of input for interaction with your apps. It's designed...

Streamz smart headphones run Android to play high def audio wirelessly, no phone needed

2015-12-17T00:12:00.001+08:00

Streamz are headphones like no other, they're smart in and of themselves thanks to built-in Android. The Streamz over-ear headphones want to make listening to music wirelessly a direct-to-internet experience, ditching the phone. The headphones have up...

Is this the new Motorola Moto X for 2016?

2015-12-16T20:13:00.001+08:00

Motorola may have had its next Moto X leaked ahead of its expected appearance in 2016. The claimed next-gen Moto X has appeared on Chinese website Wapvnet after being sent in by an anonymous source. Since Motorola has previously released its other Moto...

Canary: What is it, what does it do and how does it work?

2015-12-16T19:11:00.001+08:00

Thermostats are old news. The really hot smarthome battleground of the moment is smart security systems and Canary is a name to note. A young company focused on a single, carefully-designed piece of kit; the core of its credo was to create something simple...

Netflix upgraded: How does new encoding tech affect you?

2015-12-16T18:41:00.001+08:00

Netflix has done it again, helping to change the internet with its algorithm writing smarts. This time it's changed the way videos stream, to cut down on file size and therefore required bandwidth, while improving quality. The new Netflix algorithms...

Should you stick to age ratings and scores when choosing games for the family? The answer is surprising

2015-12-16T18:11:00.001+08:00

The Christmas holidays provide prime opportunity to sit down with your children to play videogames. You might also be inclined to pop on a game for them to play on their own, under supervision. But which games are most suitable? Sure, you can check the...

Review: UPDATED: Netflix

2015-12-16T12:38:00.001+08:00

Introduction and User Experience

UPDATE: The compatible devices section of our Netflix Australia review has been updated – details below!

While Stan, Presto and Quickflix have done a good job of giving Australians a Netflix-like experience of late, we've all been waiting for the big one to arrive.

Now that Netflix Australia is here, there's one question on everyone's lips: how does it stack up to the US version of the service?

Cheapest stream around

Netflix Australia starts from $8.99 per month for the entry-level, single-stream standard definition package, all the way up to $14.99 for the deluxe, 4K quality, four-stream package.

While not everyone is going to be able to take advantage of 4K streaming quality, either due to the resolution capabilities of their TV set, or the bandwidth quality that's available to them, the package is unquestionably great value.

If you're worried about the kind of stream quality you're going to get from the service, never fear: you can try Netflix out with an obligation-free 30 day trial period.

While we can't really recommend the standard definition package to anyone who can help it, it is a nice option for those with poor-quality internet connections.

Most people will want to opt for the middle range package, giving customers access to two simultaneous streams of 1080p content for $11.99 a month.

We have to applaud Netflix for keeping its pricing in line with its other territories, however, the implementation of a 'Netflix Tax' by the Federal Government will see those prices rise in the near future, as Netflix will have to charge a 10 per cent Goods and Services Tax.

Please note, If you plan to stream Netflix on an Xbox 360 or Xbox One, you'll need to have an Xbox Live account. That isn't a Netflix thing; it's a Microsoft thing, and it applies to Netflix's rivals, too.

There's also an added bonus for Optus and iiNet customers – Netflix usage is completely unmetered for those internet service providers.

Compatible devices

Though its competitors are slowly improving in terms of device compatibility, Netflix remains king, playable on just about everything.

Like Stan and Presto, Netflix can be viewed with the use of a Google Chromecast, Apple TV, iOS device, Android device, PC, Sony' PS4 and PS3 consoles, and a range of Smart TVs. Unlike those services, you can also watch Netflix on Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Xbox One, Nintendo's Wii U. It can also be watched on a range of set-top boxes and media players like Roku player, Fetch TV and WD TV Live.

Speaking of Roku, Netflix is now also available on the Roku 2-powered Telstra TV streaming box, which happens to be the only device that currently streams all three of Australia's major SVOD services.

Setting up Netflix

Getting Netflix up and running is remarkably straightforward, and should be easy enough for even your tech-illiterate mum and dad to set up without any problems – simply create an account and use your login details to sign in to any of the devices listed above.

The signup process involves the usual entering of your details, moving on to choosing one of the three packages Netflix offers.

Because Netflix prides itself on its recommendation algorithm, you will be asked to pick three shows or films that you'd like to watch or know that you enjoy from a range of options.

Choose carefully, because these choices will form the foundation of your Netflix recommendations experiences for the foreseeable future.

While Netflix will continually tailor its recommendations for you based on what you actually watch, your initial choices will still be used to recommend you stuff years later.

Once you've created a profile, you can start adding shows and films to your Netflix 'My List'.

You can make multiple profiles, of course, so everyone in your household can get a personalised set of recommendations and keep their own queue of shows.

There's even a ready-made profile exclusively for kids, with all the inappropriate stuff filtered out.

The Netflix user experience

Those who've used an overseas Netflix service before can rest assured that Netflix Australia's interface is completely identical (aside from its content selection).

Those who are using Netflix for the first time shouldn't have any trouble navigating its user-friendly interface, which separates Netflix's content into a number of different genres and categories that you can swipe through to see what's on offer.

The shows and movies you've watched most recently are at the top of your Netflix screen, allowing you to jump right back in and continue watching, and following right after is the 'My List' category, giving you easy access to all of the shows you've queued up for later perusal.

From here, you'll get categories that show you what's currently popular on Netflix, the service's 'Top Picks' for you, and a stack of other genres that become more specific to your interests as you continue to watch different kinds of programmes and movies.

It should be noted that Netflix on Apple TV has its own method of presenting its content library that's more in line with the device's overall UI, with genres clearly listed on the right and movie poster art that you can scroll through on the left.

Admittedly, it can be annoying to have to scroll through several layers of categories to get to the sections you actually want to browse.

We also wish we could just see everything that Netflix has to offer in each genre, though that's not how Netflix works – the service would rather maintain a level or mystery surrounding the size of its library, opting instead to give you a taste of what it has, and then keep springing new suggestions on you based on what you watch.

The constantly shifting nature of Netflix's suggestions gives the service the illusion of having more content than it actually does – it's like this in every territory.

Hop into a programme and either choose a specific episode from a specific season or continue from where you were last at – Netflix will always remember your spot.

Unlike Stan, Netflix gives you subtitle options on pretty much every single show in its range, as well as different language tracks where available – this is a huge win for the hearing impaired and those with a language barrier.

When it comes to actually watching content however, Netflix completely outclasses its competitors.

Even on a moderate broadband connection, our streams began almost immediately after hitting the play button – we only ever experienced two or three seconds of loading before the start of a show, and within ten seconds of it starting, Netflix's variable bit rate had already cleared the image up into a pristine, high-definition presentation.

That variable bit rate is the truly what makes Netflix so special, allowing the quality of your stream to seamlessly go up and down depending on your connection, rather than stopping your show dead in its tracks in order to buffer.

While watching Netflix through a VPN and Smart DNS has always been a fast and smooth experience, local Netflix feels even faster and smoother.

Content and Verdict

Are you content with its content?

By now you've heard all about how Netflix's content library doesn't quite have the breadth of its US counterpart.

It's true that as of launch, our Netflix has roughly an eighth of the content of the US service. This will surely bother people who've been experiencing US Netflix through a VPN or Smart DNS service, but for those jumping on board now, Netflix Australia still has a better variety of content than its local competitors.

Browsing its content offerings, it becomes evident that Netflix is running fairly light on content, especially as you scroll through each category and notice that each one ends prematurely. However, this is offset by the fact that the quality of stuff on offer is genuinely high.

In terms of local content, Stan definitely has Netflix beat, with a hefty range of Australian shows and movies on offer due to the service's Channel Nine, ABC and SBS content deals, which provides Stan's customers Aussie classics like Underbelly and Rake.

However, there's still a nice selection of Aussie shows and films to choose from, as well as a range of stand up comedy specials from local comedians like Kitty Flanagan, Jimeoin and the Umbilical Brothers.

Documentaries are plentiful though, and there's a good range of overseas TV shows to choose from – we've even put together a list of the 25 best Netflix shows streaming right now in Australia.

While there's still room to grow in terms of Netflix movie selection, that's not to say that it's lacking – you will find that many of the biggest blockbusters of the last few years are ready to stream, including a large range of Disney films and superhero movies.

There's also a nice selection of back catalogue films available – while the U.S. version of Netflix has more films on offer, the quality of the movies available on the Australian version is generally higher, with familiar studio movies taking up more of Netflix's virtual shelf space.

Still, there's no denying that Netflix Australia's content offering is small compared to what's available on the US version, though you can rest assured that its content library will continue to grow in the coming weeks – our Netflix content line-up feature is regularly updated with announced additions to the service's catalogue, so make sure to keep an eye on it.

Regardless, Netflix's subscription price is worth it for its original content alone – instant access to entire seasons of brilliant Netflix Originals like House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, Marco Polo, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, BoJack Horseman, Marvel's Daredevil, Bloodline, Between, Narcos and many others make joining the service a no-brainer.

Verdict

After anticipating the arrival of Netflix to our shores for what feels like an eternity, the service has managed to deliver the flawless streaming experience we've all heard about for so long.

Where it falls down in terms of its content selection, it makes up for in terms of speed and the quality of its streaming.

While other streaming services are still trying to find their footing, Netflix Australia delivers a perfected streaming experience right out of the gate – we've not encountered a single error or buffering problem in any of our tests, and streams always began immediately and cleared up into full HD in a matter of seconds.

We liked
Netflix Australia's user experience is identical to that of its overseas counterparts, so if you've already been experiencing the service through a VPN or Smart DNS service, you'll feel right at home.

While we've never had a problem watching an overseas version of Netflix, the local version of the service is even faster and smoother, delivering high definition quality in a matter of seconds.

Our time with the local version Netflix has been completely free of bugs or buffering problems, as the service has had plenty of time to mature and iron out any problems before reaching our shores.

This might be a matter of taste, but the service's range of Netflix Originals are fantastic, even rivalling the best shows that HBO has to offer in terms of quality, and in a delivery format that is unmatched in the television industry.

Best of all, we love that we can watch Netflix on a large variety of devices, without having to be tied down limited number of devices.

We disliked
There's no denying that Netflix Australia's content line-up is well behind the US version in terms of sheer quantity, so we hope that its library continues to grow with time.

We also wish we could see everything Netflix has to offer in each of its genres, without having to take wild guesses in its search bar to see if the service has a particular show or movie.

Final Verdict
When we first published our Stan review, we claimed that it was the best streaming service that Australians had to date.

Well, consider that statement redacted – Netflix has taken Stan's crown as the best streaming service in Australia.

Featuring flawless, fast streams in high quality and without any buffering problems or errors to speak of, Netflix delivers the gold standard when it comes to its streaming experience.

While its content library is undeniably lacking compared to its US version, the Australian version is still in line with what its local competitors are offering.

We believe that Netflix Australia's content selection will only continue to grow in time, and even with its current content line-up, its range of excellent Netflix Originals shows makes signing up an absolute no-brainer.

These are the best deals of 2015

2015-12-16T09:36:00.001+08:00

The year’s end is a time of holiday cheer and reflection, of celebrating the great things we’ve encountered throughout the year. Pocket-lint is feeling the giving spirit, with our Top Deals of 2015 on the Pocket-lint Deals store. Check them out below...

Pebble made a Health app for its Time series of smartwatches

2015-12-16T09:21:00.001+08:00

Select Pebble watches just got a lot, um, healthier? Just one week after Pebble pushed out new firmware and a fancy timeline feature to older smartwatches in its lineup, the company has announced something called Pebble Health. It is, as you might've...

The Great Christmas Giveaway Day 13: Win an Smarter Coffee Machine 2.0

2015-12-16T08:07:00.001+08:00

Welcome to The Great Christmas Giveaway 2015, giving you the chance to win some great prizes in the run up to Christmas right here on Pocket-lint. We'll be giving away a great piece of kit every single day, with something for everyone, from smartphones...

Fight stormtroopers in this Google game by turning your phone into a lightsaber

2015-12-16T07:34:00.001+08:00

Okay, this is probably the coolest Chrome browser game yet. Google does this thing every now and then where it releases new "experiments" that can only be accessed, viewed, or played with using the Google Chrome web browser on Mac and PCs. Well, it just...

CES 2016: The best TVs, tablets, smartphones and tech to expect at the world’s largest trade show

2015-12-16T07:06:00.001+08:00

It's coming up to the end of 2015 and soon we'll close the book on the year and start to look forward to what fantastic innovations and products we can look forward to in the next 12 months. Certainly, there's no better place to start the search for the...

Review: Updated: Roku 3

2015-12-16T04:29:00.001+08:00

Review: Updated: Amazon Fire TV

2015-12-16T03:44:00.001+08:00

Introduction and features

Update: The Amazon Fire TV is taking a page from the home shopping channel. Starting on October 29, Amazon will enable Fire TV users to buy products from the store via ads on the home page of the Fire TV.

Original review below...

Much of the noise about the new Fire TV relates to its 4K Ultra HD playback capabilities, especially considering that the new Apple TV is set to hit the shelves (well, MDF tables) of your nearest Apple store very soon without any 4K support at all.

It's not the only media streamer boasting 4K chops though, and it definitely isn't the first either. The Nvidia SHIELD console took that honour, with its Tegra X1 processor making it the most powerful streamer around.

But the new Amazon Fire TV is far less expensive – so can this Ultra HD box deliver where the Android TV-hobbled SHIELD falls down?

Hardware

The new Amazon Fire TV may look identical to the original Fire TV box, but that's no bad thing.

The sleek, shiny exterior is understated enough to fit into even the most minimalist of modern living rooms, and with the remote control featuring Wi-Fi connectivity you can happily hide the box behind your TV if you're not into the mini-monolith aesthetic, as there's no need for a direct line of sight.

Inside, however, things have changed considerably, with a nominally quad-core MediaTek processor sitting at the heart of the new Fire TV. It's really a pair of dual-core chips (one running at 2GHz and the other at 1.6GHz) strapped together, but that doesn't stop it from offering around 75% faster performance compared with the old model's silicon.

There's also a dedicated PowerVR GX6250 GPU inside to give the new Fire TV that gaming edge, and 2GB of system memory to keep things flowing seamlessly.

The Fire TV comes with a decent 8GB of internal capacity, with the option to expand via the microSD slot on the rear of the box, which facilitates up to 128GB of storage.

In terms of networking there's a Gigabit ethernet port for wiring in – probably your best bet for a consistent 4K UHD stream – or the dual-band, dual-antenna 802.11ac Wi-Fi connection.

To nail that Ultra HD playback the MediaTek chipset supports the H.265 (HEVC) codec, as well as the legacy H.264 for 1080p content. It should be noted though that it's only capable of rocking a 4K UHD stream at a maximum of 30 frames per second, while it stretches to 60fps for 720p and 1080p outputs.

To enable UHD playback you'll need a compatible display, and that doesn't just mean the obvious 3840 x 2160 panel resolution – it will also need the same HDMI 2.0 (HDCP 2.2) connection as on the rear of the Fire TV.

Without that you're not going to get the copy-protected 4K awesome of either Amazon Prime or Netflix; you can still watch 4K YouTube though if that's of any interest...

The Fire TV remote hasn't really changed, aside from using Wi-Fi over Bluetooth. It's still rocking the same voice search functionality which made the first Fire TV a bit of a hit, and it's also nicely responsive and feels solid in the hand despite its diminutive size.

Software

The new Amazon Fire TV is running on a forked version of the Android operating system, and we don't mean in the colloquial use of the term; FireOS isn't totally forked, it's actually pretty responsive.

Its development was taken down a different path to the final Android OS, making FireOS a distinct operating system in its own right. That's why you won't be getting the full Play Store range of apps, and one of the reasons Amazon has its own app store ruling the roost.

FireOS is focused almost entirely upon helping you access content quickly and easily, with a very obvious bias towards the Amazon ecosystem.

This corporate bias is understandable – it's similar to the way Android TV's recommendations are only based on Google services and NOW TV is focused on Sky content – but it would make you feel utterly excluded if you weren't an Amazon Prime member.

The voice search software is an integral part of the Amazon setup, and it's quick, responsive and impressively accurate, no matter which bastardised version of a regional accent I tried to confuse it with.

Again though, it's utterly tied into the Amazon ecosystem. No matter if you can access Breaking Bad in 4K via your Netflix account, the search will only lead you to a place where you can pay Amazon again for the privilege; it won't even acknowledge the existence of any other content, however you vocalise it.

The touted universal search feature of the new Apple TV makes its voice search seem far more relevant than Amazon's.

Performance

The new Amazon Fire TV is an impressive little media box, and it backs up the sleek aesthetic with a slick user experience, whether you're a first-time user or an experienced techie.

The opening cartoon tutorial is smart, accessible and well-judged. It's about the right length and gives you a jargon-free rundown of the Fire TV's key features, and it's a very welcome sight the first time you boot it up.

It's something we'd like to see on more consumer devices – a box like the powerful SHIELD should really offer something more than simply dumping the first-time user into the Android TV screen without a word of advice.

The FireOS home screen is clean, simple and easily viewed from the distance of sofa-to-screen, with large images and a black background.

It's also impressively responsive with that Wi-Fi remote, although if you're flicking through your options quickly the 30Hz limit really does come into play on a 4K connection. It's not that movement becomes jerky, but it is noticeably non-smooth.

Media playback

Where that 30Hz speed limit isn't a huge issue, though, is in actual 4K Ultra HD playback. The new Amazon Fire TV has full access to the UHD content from both Amazon Prime and Netflix, as well as enabling you to rent or buy extra Amazon 4K content that isn't available on its Instant Video service.

Netflix was typically smooth and quick to get going on my (admittedly speedy) home connection. In general the same was true of the Amazon Prime video experience too, with the likes of Orphan Black showing ne'er a stutter.

I did have a slight issue with UHD Red Oaks though, where playback again felt 'non-smooth'. It wasn't jerky, or stuttering, but in motion shots especially it didn't feel particularly smooth in terms of frame rate.

I also experienced some audio de-sync issues thanks to my TV's audio running through a separate amplifier – curse those slim bezels and their rubbish speakers. On the SHIELD I was able to fix this in the system settings, but I couldn't find an equivalent setting within FireOS.

The Fire TV's high-efficiency video codec (HEVC) isn't just there to make with the 4K loveliness; it also has an impact on your 1080p playback. If the video is compatible then it halves the amount of data it needs to transmit over your network connection – if you're still on a limited connection that will be a god-send.

It also means Full HD content will start quicker, and run smoother, on slower network connections.

I did, however, experience a few codec fails when trying to play back some of the 4K demo media we use to test out Ultra HD TVs and accessories. Even with usually reliable VLC installed from the app store I struggled with some video content.

The most oft-used codecs are available, but you could find that some of your existing media library won't play back through either the Plex or VLC apps.

Gaming

Another string to the new Amazon Fire TV's bow is its gaming performance.

For an additional £35 you can buy a dedicated Fire Controller that will give you an Xbox-a-like pad with which to play the suite of games on offer to the Fire TV, although many of the titles on offer will still work with the standard remote's buttons.

Given the mostly casual nature of the Fire TV's game catalogue that's probably going to be enough, but there are some more serious games on offer, such as Telltale's Walking Dead and Game of Thrones.

It's never going to replace your PC, PS4 or Xbox One, but the level of 3D gaming performance the new Amazon Fire TV is able to offer is rather impressive.

Verdict

The Amazon Fire TV is arguably the best-value 4K Ultra HD media streamer available on the market right now. I say 'arguably' only because of the utter bias towards Amazon content in the Fire TV's OS.

With the box itself costing £80 you really need to add on the £80 a year cost of an Amazon Prime subscription, as without it the device really does feel rather hobbled.

Granted, Amazon Prime is a pretty good-value bundle, and not just for the video content; you also get a load of freely-accessible music and plenty of picture storage, as well as a host of Amazon shopping goodness. But you have little option other than to sign up if you want to get the most out of the Fire TV.

We liked

The performance of the speedy new box is seriously impressive. For the most part 4K playback is smooth and reliable, with only rare instances of it being less than lovely in its super-resolution.

The interface is very responsive too, with voice search being almost instantly accessible.

The fact that both Amazon Video and Netflix are on offer also means it's got the greatest scope for 4K content on the market; Android TV has to side-load Amazon if it wants to play ball with Prime.

We disliked

The total dominance of Amazon services makes an Amazon Prime account a virtual necessity if you want to get the most out of the Fire TV.

You could say the same about Android TV, with its recommendations carousel only dealing in Google services, but with the Fire TV Amazon it's not just a bias – it feels like the be-all and end-all of searched-for content.

You do have access to Netflix and iPlayer, and a host of other service providers, but their icon-only existence on the home screen makes them feel as much of an afterthought as the other video services on the NOW TV box.

I'm also not 100% sold on the 30Hz limitations of the Fire TV's Ultra HD connection. Right now it's not a huge issue, with most video running at 24fps, but there are times, when running on a 4K TV, when it feels like it's running the hardware at the ragged edge.

Verdict

The new Amazon Fire TV is a pretty impressive little device. For your money you get an Ultra HD media player which also makes a decent fist of some light gaming.

4K playback is generally smooth, and the Amazon connection gives you access to the motherlode of paid-for UHD movie content.

If you've picked up a cheap, dumb 4K TV (although one that has the necessary HDCP 2.2 compatibility for DRM'd content) then the new Fire TV is a decent choice for getting some UHD Netflix or Amazon Prime viewing on your screen.

However, if you're already sitting on some Ultra HD smarts within your 4K TV, the Fire TV isn't really going to add anything else to the picture.

And where the Nvidia SHIELD has the potential to grow and change, with the power to cope with future advances, the Fire TV feels like it's already running at the limits of its hardware. That 30Hz limit isn't an issue right now, but you'll be looking for an upgrade not far down the line.

Essentially, then, the new Amazon Fire TV is fine, and for the Amazon faithful it offers easier access than the abortive web interface – but if you're just after a media streamer it's only okay.

If that's damning with faint praise, so be it.

Android Pay now does in-app purchases: Here's what you need to know

2015-12-16T01:12:00.001+08:00

You can now use Android Pay to pay for your Lyft ride. You can also use it to pay for your grocery delivery from Instacart or clothes at JackThreads. That's because the new mobile wallet has just added support for in-app purchases. We've explained all...

Review: Updated: Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge

2015-12-16T00:28:00.001+08:00

Introduction and design

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is a striking handset, taking the title as the world's first dual curved displays smartphone.

It attracts the eye, puts butterflies in my stomach and makes me weak at the knees. Samsung has, at last, made a handset which not only packs a powerful punch, but looks fantastic too.

Following on from the Galaxy Note Edge which boasted a single curved screen, the Galaxy S6 Edge was rumored for some time so its arrival wasn't a surprise - it's the natural progression for Samsung's curved display technology.

It's certainly not cheap though, with the entry level 32GB model rocking a wallet trembling SIM-free price tag of around £700 (around $1030, AU$1320).

If you fancy 64GB or even 128GB of internal storage you're looking at approximately £749 (around $1120, AU$1430) and £829 (around $1180, AU$1500) respectively.

Shop around though and you'll be able to find it a little cheaper than Samsung's official site with the 64GB model available for around £635, $915 (about AU$1290) off contract.

That makes the Galaxy S6 Edge more expensive than the iPhone 6 Plus, a handset that already has my bank manager sweating.

Samsung has announced some bad sales figures for the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge with news of both phones getting a "price adjustment." We take that to mean the handsets are going to be dropped in price a little but there's no news on when it'll actually happen.

Samsung also hasn't confirmed how much will be knocked off the price or whether the discount will come to all markets though.

The Galaxy S6 Edge arrives alongside the Samsung Galaxy S6, and the two handsets share pretty much identical specs. The S6 Edge is slightly thicker (7mm vs 6.8mm), slightly lighter (132g vs 138g) and packs an ever so slightly bigger battery (2600mAh vs 2550mAh), but that's it.

In short then, there's very little between the two, aside from the obvious inclusion of the two curved display edges on this device. It makes the £100 difference in price hard to swallow and me question why Samsung bothered making both handsets in the first place.

For those looking to upgrade from the Galaxy S4, or even the Galaxy S5, there are a few compromises for you to consider.

In an effort to get a slender handset with a metal unibody Samsung has removed the microSD slot, blocked access to the battery and shied away from dust and waterproofing.

Many potential customers won't be too bothered about these omissions, but for power users who have stood by Samsung for its continued inclusion of expandable memory and removable battery this news will be difficult to hear.

That said, whip the Galaxy S6 Edge out when you're with your mates and they'll all be clambering over you to get a peek of your new SpacePhone.

It's also worth mentioning the Galaxy S6 Edge ran away with the Best Phone award at the TechRadar Phone Awards 2015. The ceremony took place in July this year and our judges seemed to love the innovative curved display as well as Samsung's fully thought out redesign.

We are also expecting Samsung to introduce an Galaxy S6 Edge+ handset quite soon with rumors heating up in recent weeks. There's a Samsung Unpacked event scheduled for August 13, maybe we'll see it there.

Design

I've already expressed my love for the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge's design, but in truth this is a Jekyll and Hyde device.

Place the S6 Edge face up on a desk and you can't help but be impressed with the sweeping sides, rounded metal frame and overall premium appeal of the handset.

These are compliments usually reserved for the iPhone range and HTC's One series, but Samsung has managed to haul its design department into the 21st century banishing plastic to the lesser mobiles in its line up.

There's no question there are some similarities to Apple's design here. The placement of the headphone jack, microUSB port and machine drilled speaker holes on the base mimic the iPhone 6, while the change from a volume rocker to separate metal keys on the left also suggests a Cupertino influence.

With the edges of the handset tapering to a very slender profile thanks to those dual curved displays there's no space for a SIM tray - plus that glass rear isn't coming off.

This has forced Samsung to the top of the handset where it lines up alongside an Infra Red blaster, handy for controlling your home entertainment systems.

Everyone I showed the Galaxy S6 Edge was impressed by the handset's premium appeal and lush curves - that was until they actually picked it up.

While the front of the S6 Edge is beautifully curved, the rear is as flat as a pancake, instantly making the handset feel a lot wider than it is.

Coming from the HTC One M9 which sports a lovely arching metal behind which nestles wonderfully into the palm, the S6 Edge never felt at home in my hand.

Things are made a little more unbearable thanks to the metal frame which runs round the circumference of the device.

On the front it doesn't sit flush with the curved Gorilla Glass 4, creating a rather annoying lip which you don't get on the Galaxy S6, while on the back the edges of the frame are sharp and dig into your hand.

The glossy glass rear offers little in the way of grip, which made me tighten my grasp on the handset, resulting in the frame digging into my palm more.

It's never going to draw blood, and I wasn't exactly in pain, but the S6 Edge is uncomfortable to hold for extended periods.

Had Samsung repeated the curved design of the front on the rear the Galaxy S6 Edge would sit a lot better in the hand. It may make it slightly thicker, but that would mean a bigger battery and no camera protrusion - which in my book would be good things.

Sticking with the back and I have to say I'm a little disappointed. For all the good things I can say about how the Galaxy S6 Edge looks front-on, it all seems to be undone by a sloppily implemented rear.

True, you don't spend much time looking at the back of your smartphone, but the rear of the Galaxy S6 Edge looks like it was a bit of an afterthought.

I'm all for minimalism, but the flat, blank rear does nothing to ignite the senses and the bulky camera lens rearing its ugly head from the S6 Edge is a rather unattractive sight.

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is available in white, black, gold and green - and the latter three reveal just how much of a fingerprint magnet it is.

There is some evidence of this on the white model when you turn the screen off, but the other colors reveal the full effect of the finger smudges - front and back.

In short, you'll find yourself cleaning your Galaxy S6 Edge regularly if you don't want your greasy paw prints on show.

Samsung's iconic home button is retained on both the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, but it's been updated with a vastly improved fingerprint scanner (more on that later) and a sturdier construction.

This makes it feel more premium and resilient, while the touch sensitive 'back' and 'multi-tasking' keys flank it, illuminating only when required.

The design of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is very good and a huge leap forward from the Galaxy S5 and even the Galaxy Note Edge.

The futuristic premium look and feel helps to justify its lofty price tag a little more, but a number of niggles detract from the overall experience.

Display, Edge screen and People Edge

You're not going to find a display like the one on the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge on any other smartphone. It's a unique piece of engineering and it certainly looks impressive.

The main display measures 5.1-inches and boasts a QHD, 1440 x 2560 resolution providing pin sharp clarity and Samsung's Super AMOLED technology ensures everything is bright and vibrant.

That gives you a pixel density of 577ppi, which bests the Galaxy Note 4 with the same resolution stretched over its larger 5.7-inch screen resulting in 515ppi.

While the Galaxy S6 is the natural successor to the Galaxy S5, the S6 Edge pretty much replaces the Galaxy Note Edge which rocked up in 2014 with a 5.6-inch, 524ppi screen, but just one side of its display was curved.

And it's the dual curving sides on the Galaxy S6 Edge which are the key talking point for the handset. There's no doubt they produce a highly attractive handset, and the Gorilla Glass 4 covering should keep it well protected.

On paper then, the Galaxy S6 Edge sports a superb screen, and while I can't fault it in terms of resolution and clarity, the bump from full HD to QHD doesn't actually add a whole lot more to the experience.

Samsung's Super AMOLED technology makes it stand out when compared to the 1080p Sony Xperia Z3 and HTC One M9, but there's not a lot to pick between the S6 Edge and the corking display found on the Galaxy S5.

Don't get me wrong though, the display on the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is lovely and the way it gently curves away on each side will make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Just don't expect a marked step up from 2014's fleet.

It's not just for show however, and Samsung is convinced its innovative side screens can provide some genuinely useful functions. I, on the other hand, am not so sure.

First up you can only have the edge screen on the left or right of the screen - there's no option to have details displayed on both sides simultaneously - which seems a little counter intuitive.

On the Galaxy Note Edge you can call up the edge screen at any point, but on the Galaxy S6 Edge it's only available when the screen is off.

There is additional functionality relating to the edge when the screen is on, but again it's relatively limited - more on this on the next page.

The column of apps you got on the Galaxy Note which included shortcuts to key applications and tools such as a ruler has been completely left out on the Galaxy S6 Edge.

I am close to the edge

The main functionality for the edge screen is actually only available when the main screen is off on the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.

You have to slide your a finger one way then the other along the side of the handset to wake the edge screen, but it's highly temperamental and I regularly found the Galaxy S6 Edge failing to recognize my swipe first time.

The idea here is you can get a quick overview of any important notifications, news headlines, sports scores or just an update on the time, date and weather without having to power up the battery hungry main display.

Thing is, the information is limited and if you've had to swipe several times to get the edge screen to show you'll give up and just hit the home key to wake the full screen for all your notification and time needs.

A text message will scroll along the edge screen in its entirety so you can read it, but you can't interact with the message from here - you'll need to unlock and navigate to the app yourself.

There is some control over what gets displayed on the edge screen, but again it's limited and not overly easy to find in the 'Edge screen' section of the settings menu.

The news feed comes via Yahoo News and cannot be tailored to any particular topics, the sports scores are again provided by Yahoo and there are only a handful of leagues and teams to choose from.

You can choose multiple teams, but the results tick through so slowly I found myself losing patience with it.

There's no option to change the provider of the information and while the inclusion of a Twitter bar sounds like a good idea, all it does is show you what's currently trending. It's hardly inspiring.

I'd like to have seen perhaps the latest tweets from a handful of people I select, or some in-depth stats on my retweets, favorites and new followers.

Stocks (from Yahoo, again) is another feed you can slap on the edge screen, but that's all you get pre-installed. News, sports, stocks, notifications and Twitter trends.

So the slightly slow interface paired with a drab line up of feeds left me feeling a little hard done by, but then I noticed an option to download additional feeds. Sadly though, only one was available and it was RSS.

Not a totally useless offering I admit, but it's hardly game changing. Hopefully more feeds will appear over the next few months bringing greater functionality to the edge screen, but for now in its current lock screen state it's rather lackluster.

People on the edge

Turn the screen on and you won't be able to bring up the information bar anymore, but you'll notice a slender transparent tab at the top of the display.

Depending which side you've selected to have the Edge screen displayed will dictate whether this tab appears on the left or right.

Drag the tab into the screen and you'll pull open what Samsung is calling the People Edge on the Galaxy S6 Edge.

Five colored circles will appear and you can assign five contacts (known as 'My People') to these slots for easy access when it comes to calling, texting or emailing them.

The People Edge is accessible from the lockscreen and homescreen, but no where else. That's a little annoying as you're forced to exit any app you're in before getting to this 'quick setting' panel.

Another frustrating thing about the People Edge is the fact it's there to alert you to key messages and missed calls, but it only covers calls, texts and emails.

There's no support for the likes of WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger or other messaging services, which means you could still miss an important message.

I send the majority of my messages via these web based applications, so I found the People Edge limited in its usefulness. If you're a fan of these services then you've been warned - the People Edge is not your friend.

A useful function Samsung has built in to the People Edge comes when you pick the phone up off a surface. The Galaxy S6 Edge will detect it's been picked up and notify you on screen (in a low powered black and white display) whether you have any missed calls, texts or emails from your key contacts.

Again I'd like to see integration with other messaging apps here, and hopefully Samsung will be able to provide this in a future software update.

Face down, message up

The final feature of the Galaxy S6 Edge's unique side displays comes into play when the handset is placed face down.

It provides a discreet light up notification to alert you that you've received a call, text or email from a key contact.

You can even dismiss the call and send a pre-written text message to that person by placing a finger on the heart rate monitor for two seconds.

As long as you can remember which color is which contrat then Edge Lighting can be a handy feature for those regularly in meetings.

For general day to day usage though you're unlikely to really use it, so while it's available you might just want to switch it off in the settings.

Fingerprints, heart rate and smart locking

Supreme finger scanning

It's no secret that Samsung's first attempts at fingerprint scanners on smartphones were woeful.

The Galaxy S5 and S5 Mini paled in comparison to the slick interface of Touch ID from Apple, but thankfully things have vastly improved on the Galaxy S6 Edge - and the Galaxy S6.

Samsung upgraded its scanner for the Galaxy Note 4, but it was still off the mark. This time around it's completely rebuilt the system to possibly the best offering on the market.

You no longer have to swipe your fingerprint across the home button, instead you just place it over it much like you do on the iPhone.

What really impresses on the Galaxy S6 Edge though is the speed of recognition. While on the iPhone there's a short pause while it works out your print, the S6 Edge almost instantly registers and unlocks.

It's a supremely slick setup and makes using fingerprint recognition an enjoyable and worthwhile experience.

You can also use your fingerprint to validate PayPal payments, verify your Samsung account and sign in to websites which support the tech.

I'm still waiting for the integration with Google Play so I can pay for apps with my fingerprint, but that functionality surely isn't too far off.

Smarter than your average lock

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is also smart lock enabled, meaning that you won't need to offer up a fingerprint, pin or password to unlock the handset if a trusted Bluetooth device is near by.

It's easy to set up trusted devices, just pair them to the S6 Edge over Bluetooth and then add them to the trusted list in the 'Privacy and safety' section of the settings menu.

You can also set up trusted places, such as your home or office, but the app warns you that locations have a radius of 80 meters, making it less secure.

I had my LG G Watch R and wireless Sony headphones on my trusted list, so whenever either was within range of the Galaxy S6 Edge I didn't need to offer up a fingerprint.

Hand the phone over to a mate though and they can't get past the lock screen. Mwahahaha.

Don't just feel the beat, see the beat

Samsung's S Health app and heart rate monitor are nothing new in the smartphone world, but both have been upgraded for the Galaxy S6 Edge and Galaxy S6.

The S Health app sports a cleaner look with a handy dashboard main screen providing a snapshot of your fitness and quick links to things such as heart rate, work outs and stress monitoring.

If you're having a particularly lazy day it will also tell you to be more active. It told me that quite a lot but hey, you're not the boss of me S6 Edge!

I've always questioned Samsung's decision to stick a heart rate monitor on a smartphone, as they make far more sense on a wearable such as a smartwatch, but the Korean firm is sticking to its guns with its latest flagships duo.

To be fair to Samsung the monitoring appears to be more accurate and you now get a cool ECG visual in the S Health app as well - making you feel like you're actually doing something vaguely medical. I'm just waiting for the beeps to be implemented.

There's a built in pedometer, and although it's a little bit hit and miss in its calculations it's never hugely out. The only thing is you may not have your phone on you every time you're up and walking about - meaning you miss out on vital steps.

Interface and performance

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge rocked up with Android 5.0 Lollipop, now upgradeable to Android 5.1.1, but like any handset from the Korean firm it's not the pure version of the software.

You'll find the latest incarnation of Samsung's TouchWiz overlay in play here, and it's the best version yet with a cleaner style and fewer distractions.

The look is still distinctly Samsung, and if you're looking to transition from on older handset from the firm you'll still feel right at home on the Galaxy S6 Edge.

On the lock screen you'll find quick links to the camera and dialer apps and a swipe of a finger across the screen will see a brief bubble animation as the handset unlocks (provided you've not set up any level of security).

You'll also notice the translucent tab towards the top of the display, which as I've explained in a previous section provides access to the People Edge if you want to contact one of your five favorite chums.

Onto the home screen and in a similar way to Sense on HTC's handsets a swipe from left to right will take you to a news feed. On the Galaxy S6 Edge it's Flipboard's technology in action.

If this revolving news list isn't your cup of tea you can disable it, allowing you to experience a more natural Android home screen setup.

There's also an option to adjust the spacing between the applications on your home screens, allowing you to cram more onto the screen.

The default setting is a 4x4 grid, but this can be changed to 4x5 or 5x5 if you really need to have a huge number of apps (and/or widgets) front and centre.

A double click of the dedicated home button below the display will see the camera app launched instantly, with a very impressive load time.

Hit the multi-tasking button to the left of the home key and a vertical list of tiles will appear showing you the apps currently running in the background.

You can easily close individual apps by swiping across them, but also all of them at once by hitting the button at the base of the display.

The first time you load up the multi-tasking pane there is a very slight pause while the Galaxy S6 Edge sorts itself out, but from then on it opens up instantly.

Contacts, calling, messaging and email are all handled by stock applications on the S6 Edge, but Google's Gmail and Hangouts apps also come preinstalled if you fancy a change.

Samsung's keyboard is serviceable, but it's not as accurate or fluid as some third party alternatives and I found myself pining for Swiftkey.

The slope of the screen on either side of the S6 Edge means you'll need to slightly adjust your typing style as letters on the end of rows (mainly Q and P) lie on the bend of the display and can be a little tricky to tap.

It didn't take me too long to get used to the new orientation, but it will slow you down for the first few days.

Sure, the TouchWiz interface won't be to everyone's taste, but it is a decent improvement on the previous generation and I couldn't find any major issues with it during my time with the S6 Edge.

Previous Samsung handsets have come packed with pre-installed applications - some good, a lot not so good - but the fat has been trimmed on the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.

You'll find fewer bloatware apps on the S6 Edge, and while there are still a few knocking about Samsung now lets you disable the ones you'll never use, hiding them from view.

Sadly you can't go as far as to uninstall them, but out of sight, out of mind is almost as good.

Interestingly Samsung lets you disable all the pre-installed Google applications from Gmail and Drive to Maps and the Play store. I wouldn't recommend disabling any of these as they're all pretty useful, but it's nice to have that option.

S Health, S Voice and stock apps such as the calculator and memo pad can also be disabled, although the Galaxy Apps icon can't be removed.

Keep an eye out for Android Marshmallow soon. The impending update won't likely change TouchWiz much, but it will bring a bunch of Google improvements, from new Google Now features, to full app permission controls and even battery life boosting tools.

There's no Qualcomm chip here like in the HTC One M9, instead you'll find Samsung's own-brand Exynos octa-core chip running the show which is backed up by 3GB of RAM.

The processor is made up of two quad-core chips, one clocked at 2.1GHz for the heavy lifting tasks such as gaming and movie streaming, while the 1.5GHz chip takes over when you're doing more mundane things such as text messaging or surfing the web.

All this power means everything feels slick under the finger, and I was able to whizz around Android without any sign of slow down.

The speed at which the camera app loads is testament to the processor's prowess, and demanding games such as Family Guy: Quest for Stuff and Real Racing 3 were handled with ease by the Galaxy S6 Edge.

Running the Galaxy S6 Edge through Geekbench 3 a number of times saw it come out with an average multi-core score of 4774 - a cracking result when compared to the Galaxy S5's average of 2905.

That also means the S6 Edge wipes the floor with the One M9 (3595), LG G Flex 2 (3427), iPhone 6 (2902) and Sony Xperia Z3 (2737).

In short then, there's very little the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge does wrong when it comes to interface and performance. This is a handset you can throw anything at and it'll gobble it down like a greedy child and come back asking for more. Nice.

Battery life

When the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge was announced at MWC 2015 concerns were raised over the battery life of the handset.

Could the 2600mAh battery - a full 200mAh smaller than the power pack found in last year's Galaxy S5 - really provide a decent performance? Sadly, the answer is no.

With a higher resolution display and more powerful processor to contend with the battery inside the Galaxy S6 Edge struggles to see out a full day on a single charge.

If you think that's bad spare a thought for the Galaxy S6 which sports the same high-res screen and power, but has to make do with a smaller 2550mAh power pack.

Something else which may be a dagger through the heart of any loyal Samsung owner is the fact the battery can't be removed - and thus swapped out for a full charged pack.

It's a compromise Samsung has made for an improved design - and the S6 Edge does look great - but also because it believes it can now deliver a strong battery performance. Hmm.

During moderate use throughout the day which started at 7am and included an hour or two of Spotify, an hour of gaming, various messages over a variety of apps, some web browsing and emails, a few camera shots and the odd phone call, I found the S6 Edge was limping towards the charger around 10pm.

Considering we were seeing around a day and a half of battery life from 2014's flagships with similar usage, this drop in endurance is a real shame.

The effect the screen has on battery life is clear - I easily chewed through the first 20% of battery within the first couple of hours of the day during my morning commute by continuously gaming and streaming music to my Bluetooth headphones.

A small saving grace is the Galaxy S6 Edge loses very little power in standby mode. If your phone spends most of the day sitting on your desk, in your bag or hidden in a pocket you should have a decent slug of life left when it comes to the evening.

Samsung's answer to this rather questionable battery life is its fast charging technology. The Galaxy S6 Edge charges 1.5 time faster than previous Galaxy S models, and it can regain four hours of usage from just 10 minutes of charging.

Now that is impressive, and it is achievable, but only with the bundled charging block that comes in the box.

If you leave this charger at home and borrow someone's when you're out and about then you won't benefit from this super speedy power up.

The Galaxy S6 Edge is also wireless charging enabled, and it's compatible with most wireless charging pads and mats currently on the market, which makes it easier to refuel - although again you won't get the fast charging functionality here.

Rather surprisingly when I put the S6 Edge through the TechRadar video test which sees a full HD, 90 minute video played at full brightness, with accounts syncing in the background over Wi-Fi, it lost just 15%.

That's not as good as the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 or the LG G Flex 2, but it does beat the HTC One M9, iPhone 6 Plus and Sony Xperia Z3. It's not all bad news then.

If you're really struggling for battery then you can always turn to Samsung's power saving modes.

The standard power saving mode limits performance, reduces screen brightness, frame rate and timeout and a few other bits and pieces to try and eke more time from the power pack.

If that's not enough you can take extreme measures and turn on Ultra Power Saving Mode. This locks down the entire Android interface to leave you with a limited black and white panel with access to just six core apps.

I switched on Ultra Power Saving Mode with just 4% of battery left and it managed to keep the Galaxy S6 Edge going for another two hours - which is pretty impressive.

Camera

The rear facing camera on the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is excellent. It's one of the best cameras I've had the pleasure of using on a smartphone.

You'll find the same cameras here that you get on the Galaxy S6, with a 16MP rear facing snapper and a 5MP option up front.

That's not much of an upgrade on paper over the 16MP/2MP offering on the Galaxy S5, and the HTC One M9 and Sony Xperia Z3 can boast more megapixels with 20.7MP shooters.

Don't let that put you off though, as coupled with that QHD display and some seriously speedy processing the camera on the Galaxy S6 Edge is a joy to use.

The image quality specialists over at DXO Mark agree, giving it a score of 86, which was enough for it to top the charts. It's since been beaten by the Sony Xperia Z5 with a score of 87, but it's still sitting at the number 2 spot.

Being able to launch the camera from anywhere on the handset by just double clicking the home button is a useful feature, and the fact it loads the camera almost instantly means you're much less likely to miss a shot.

It's noticeably quicker to start up than the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, and you get crisper, more detailed images too versus Apple's 8MP sensors.

Samsung has worked on its camera app, making it less cluttered and easier to use - and it's a welcome change as previous iterations just threw in features left, right and center and they got in the way of actually taking a picture.

The app now has a handful of modes including auto, pro, selective focus, panorama, virtual shot, slow motion and fast motion.

Most of the time I stuck with auto, as the Galaxy S6 Edge does an excellent job at recognizing your surroundings and adapting the settings to get you the best image.

Pro mode opens up various options such as white balance, exposure and contrast if you want to fine tune your shot, while panorama supports both vertical and horizontal sweeps giving you more freedom.

Selective focus allows you to choose the point of focus of an image after you've snapped it. You only get a choice of three; near, far or all, but it's a clever effect and worth playing around with when you get a chance.

Virtual shot is more of a gimmicky feature, but also kind of cool. Select an object you want a 3D view of, and then move the S6 Edge around it. The phone will capture a series of images and stitch them together into a GIF.

You can then look round the object by tilting your phone left and right. It's fun to show off, but the quality is pretty low and it can be a hassle capturing the shot in the first place.

The S6 Edge can record 4K video using its rear camera, and 2K video on the front, but if you select to record slow or fast motion you'll only be able to capture footage in 1280 x 720.

Back to snapping photos and as well as loading up impressively quickly the Galaxy S6 Edge also has a slick shutter speed.

The camera lens is in a good location on the rear of the handset and I rarely found my fingers wandering into shot - something that happens a lot with iPhones.

If you're having trouble reaching the onscreen shutter key you can use the volume buttons on the side to snap a picture - something which comes in especially handy when using the front facing snapper for a cheeky selfie. There's even a beauty mode to make your skin look perfect/fake.

The S6 Edge performs best outside in daylight, with a high level of detail captured and even the 4x digital zoom doesn't degrade quality as much as I was expecting.

Indoors the S6 Edge is a strong performer and while low light is still a work in progress for all smartphone cameras, there is an noticeable improvement in this area over the 2014 line up.

There is a LED flash on the rear, but as with many smartphones it tends to dominate the shot and over exposure your subject so try and avoid using it.

You can check out some of the lovely pictures I was able to take with the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge on the next page.

Camera samples

Click here to see the full res image

Competition

Samsung Galaxy S6

The Samsung Galaxy S6 is almost identical to the S6 Edge. The main difference is the screen, as the S6 has a standard 5.1-inch QHD panel, but it also has a slightly smaller 2550mAh battery and a lower price tag.

You don't get the edge screen features from the S6 Edge here, because there's no screen for them to be on, but that's not exactly much of a loss.

The Galaxy S6 has a great screen, the same excellent camera and matching powerful innards for a well rounded smartphone experience.

Like the S6 Edge though battery life is a let down and there's no microSD slot or removable battery.

Read our in-depth Samsung Galaxy S6 review

iPhone 6S Plus

Apple has just released its second ever phablet, and it's much the same as the first. This is just slightly larger in terms of dimensions than the Galaxy S6 Edge, but the two handsets both have lofty price tags in common.

On paper the Galaxy S6 Edge has the 6S Plus beat with a better, higher resolution display, more powerful rear camera and a whole load of power under the hood.

Where the iPhone comes into its own though is the iOS interface, which is simple and straightforward - it's certainly less confusing than TouchWiz. Samsung isn't the only one with an innovative screen tech either - the iPhone 6S Plus comes with a new technology called 3D Touch that means you get different functionality depending on how hard you press the screen.

Both handsets offer beautiful design and while the S6 Edge has a few gimmicks thrown in for good measure, the iPhone 6S Plus keeps things on the straight and narrow giving you the features you need and making them work seamlessly.

Read our in-depth iPhone 6S Plus review

LG G Flex 2

Samsung isn't the only company experimenting with curved smartphone displays, and the LG G Flex 2 is the second generation handset from its Korean rival.

The G Flex 2 is big and brash, and it curves in the opposite direction to the S6 Edge giving it more of a banana phone look.

A flexible full HD 5.5-inch display dominates the front of the Flex 2, while a self healing rear gives it some impressive Wolverine style appeal.

The Galaxy S6 Edge hasn't been made to bend and flex like the LG, so in that regard the two handsets are quite different - but one thing is for sure, curved screens are here to stay.

Read our LG G Flex 2 review

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+

Samsung has now released an even bigger version of the Galaxy S6 Edge – the Galaxy S6 Edge+.

There's not much of a change here though – it's essentially a bigger version of the same phone in this review. This time there's a 5.7-inch display with curved edges on both sides of the phone again.

It looks great but it may be a bit of an issue if you're got smaller hands. Under the hood it's the same set up as we've seen on the Galaxy S6 Edge, apart from a new 3,000mAh battery.

You'll want one of these if you're a bit disappointed in the screen size of the Galaxy S6 Edge but it's going to cost you a little bit more than the normal version.

Read our Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ review

Moto X Style

Motorola's latest flagship price comes at a much lower price than the Galaxy S6 Edge. Prices start at US$399.99 or £360 (around AU$545) for the lowest storage versions. It's a fully customizable handset that looks quite like the Nexus 6, but this includes a 5.5-inch 2K display and a super-fast charging battery.

It has a curved back much like the Nexus 6, but you can choose what colour of material you'd like it to be in. The Moto Maker tool on the Motorola website allows you to change the look including the colour of your phones rear as well. You don't get that with the Galaxy S6 Edge.

The front display is beautiful to look at and while it's not curved like the Galaxy S6 Edge, it is quite a bit bigger with a fantastic screen to body ratio.

Read our review of the Motorola Moto X Style

Sony Xperia Z5

Sony's latest phone is a big step in the right direction for the company, but it isn't anywhere near as exciting as what Samsung did with the Galaxy S6 Edge.

The Xperia Z5 comes with a 5.2-inch Full HD display, but there's no curved edges here. If you want exciting screen tech you'll want the Xperia Z5 Premium instead.

But this is a premium smartphone that looks great to hold and has a surprisingly good fingerprint sensor sitting flush with the side of the phone. It also has a stronger battery life than the Galaxy S6 Edge does so if you're after long lasting power this might be a good choice for you.

The Xperia Z5 is going to cost you a similar amount of money to the Galaxy S6 Edge so it's certainly worth considering. If you're looking for a truly exciting phone though, go for the Galaxy S6 Edge.

Be sure to read our review of the Sony Xperia Z5

LG G4

LG has just announced its successor to the popular G3 in the form of, you guessed it, the G4 - and it puts up a good fight against the Galaxy S6 Edge.

LG has followed Samsung's suit and focused its efforts on the design of the G4 but opted for something a little different with a leather back on certain handsets.

The front features a cracking 5.5-inch display with a pixel resolution of 1440 x 2560 equalling 538 pixels-per-inch. The LG G4 has an impressive camera set up too with a 16MP sensor and more camera modes than you could shake a selfie stick at.

Under the hood sits a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor with 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage and microSD support up to 128GB. Plus despite earlier reports it wouldn't, the G4 even comes with QuickCharge technology for its 3000mAh battery.

Be sure to read our review of the LG G4

Hands on gallery

Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy S6 is a fantastic looking handset which is guaranteed to turn heads, and with a heap of power under the hood it can handle pretty much anything you throw at it.

Power and looks will only get you so far though, and the S6 Edge falls down in a few areas which prevent it from hitting top marks. If you're able to splash the cash you won't be disappointed, but you can get an almost identical experience with the Galaxy S6 for less money.

We liked

Front on at least, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is one of the best looking smartphones on the market and many will say it's the best.

The QHD display complements the sweeping, curving design by giving you something visually stunning to look at. It's not a huge step forward from the full HD panel on the Galaxy S5, but it looks great.

I am also impressed with the performance of the Galaxy S6 Edge with the Android interface effortlessly slick under finger and while the improved TouchWiz interface may not be to everyone's taste, it's certainly better than previous iterations.

The camera on the rear of the Galaxy S6 Edge is also worth writing home about, as it's capable of taking some stunning shots without any effort on your behalf.

We disliked

All the good points about the S6 Edge can be applied to its brother, the Galaxy S6, as apart from screen design the two handsets are identical. And as the S6 is a good deal cheaper than the Edge, it's difficult to really make a case for the added cost.

Sure the design is lovely, but in the hand the S6 Edge can get uncomfortable and the lack of a microSD slot and removable battery will be an instant turn off for some of the Samsung faithful.

The lack of expandable storage isn't a huge issue as the S6 Edge comes in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB flavors with the added bonus of 100GB of free OneDrive cloud storage - but battery life isn't up to standard.

You'll struggle to see out a whole day with moderate usage, and that's a real shame. If you're a heavy user you'll be dashing for a charger mid-afternoon.

For all the fanfare of the edge screens, the functionality Samsung has provided to show off its latest innovation is disappointingly limited.

A few feeds on the lock screen and the People Edge quick links on the home screen hardly cry out as must-have features. There's scope for more to be added in the future, but at the moment they're not overly useful.

Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is one of those phones that sets a line in the sand for smartphones. It makes curved edges viable, offering them in a phone that doesn't look bonkers just for the sake of it.

It won't sell anywhere near as well as the standard S6, simply because it's very expensive and users are always reticent to try something new when there's no proven need for it, and rightly so.

The battery life is not good enough for a 2015 flagship smartphone, the price is difficult to justify and the loss of some Samsung staples in the microSD slot and removable battery will turn some off.

But this is the phone we all hanker after secretly, something that looks premium yet futuristic.

I love the design and I want all phones to follow in its curved screen footsteps. The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge lays solid foundations, but this handset is still a work in progress.

First reviewed: March 2015

Review: Microsoft Lumia 950 XL

2015-12-16T00:27:00.003+08:00

Introduction, design and display

Lumia flagships are a rare breed these days, not just in terms of new models, but on the street as well. Over three years have passed since the line began, and a lot has happened in that time – not least the evaporation of Windows Phone's already paltry market share.

The Nokia Lumia 930, nominally the last flagship-class device in the series, was released in the UK on July 17 2014. Back at a time when Windows Phone was beginning to lag badly in the spec wars, it showed formidable potential, with a full HD screen and a Snapdragon 800 processor.

The world has moved on, however. Now, a QHD screen and a powerful 64-bit processor is the bare minimum that an elite-tier handset needs in order to compete. And with quality imaging also becoming the norm rather than the exception, there's little room for compromise at the top.

Against this, everything that once made the Lumia brand special no longer has such lustre. Optical imaging stabilisation is one such example – the thing that Nokia once did best is now becoming commonplace.

The stakes are high, and in this changed environment Microsoft's new CEO, Satya Nadella, has chosen a more cautious path. Dreams of making smartphones for everyone and seeing Windows Mobile conquer the world with coloured tiles have been replaced with a more modest ambition: making devices to reward fans who stuck with the OS through the lean times.

Enter the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL, alongside the Lumia 950.

The XL is, as the name suggests, the larger device of the two, and it boasts some hefty specifications too, meaning that on paper it looks to be a smartphone geek's dream.

But with the Android and iOS competition now so incredibly strong, are the new Lumias really enough to restore consumer confidence in Microsoft's mobile vision?

Design

Over its years as a smartphone maker Nokia built up a considerable design pedigree, and the Lumia line was no exception. With the handsets defined by the use of colourful matte polycarbonate, even a punter on the street could recognise the likes of a Lumia 920 at a distance.

Things have changed under the bean counters at Microsoft, and at first glance the Lumia 950 XL is almost totally unremarkable, at least from the front. The 5.7-inch AMOLED display, covered with a sheet of Gorilla Glass 4, takes up most of the faceplate, with only a small, minimalist 'Microsoft' logo adorning the top.

The rear of the handset also tends towards a corporate look and feel. A vast expanse of featureless black matte polycarbonate houses just two notable landmarks – a large, silver-ringed camera 'oreo', and a small Windows logo.

The power button and volume keys are on the right side, as you'd expect, but their layout is odd and confusing. Whereas the power button normally stands alone, on the Lumia 950 XL it's flanked by separate volume up and volume down keys.

This may sound like a minor detail, but as someone who's used Lumias on a daily basis for years I found the new button layout jarring throughout my review period. Moreover the buttons themselves, while nicely clicky, are quite sharp, making them feel unfinished.

On the same side can also be found the two-stage camera shutter button, always a nice inclusion.

Thankfully, one trend that began a while back – the abandoning of removable backs – has been reversed here. The rear of the Lumia 950 XL is user-removable and replaceable, giving access to the microSD card slot and to the removable battery.

As the 950 XL is a phablet, using it in one hand was always going to be something of a challenge, but thanks to the weighting of the device it's not as bad as I feared it might be. Even at 8.1mm thick and 165g, and with my spindly little mitts, using the handset was never uncomfortable.

Overall, the design of the Lumia 950 XL is unremarkable. In a budget smartphone, I'd list that as a positive, especially given some of the weird-looking units that are occasionally trundled out; but in a 2015 flagship device that costs the best part of an iPhone, it's a different story.

When you're spending the sort of money on a handset that could buy you a week's holiday for two, the experience has to reflect that, and that experience starts when you first pick up the device.

Buy an iPhone 6S and the jewel-like feel is an instant reward, and the same goes for the Samsung Galaxy S6 or even the Google Nexus 6P. These devices are distinguishable and special, whereas the Lumia 950 XL is unfortunately reminiscent of its less-upmarket brother, the 640 Xl.

Earlier Lumia devices gave the user a sense of identity in the hand, something unique, and that has been lost. Whether the diehard Windows faithful will care has yet to be seen, but other potential purchasers are unlikely to be blown away.

The genesis of a new operating system that prioritises a unique and cohesive design should be honoured in the hardware carrying it, such as with the Dell XPS 13, and in this respect Microsoft has failed with the Lumia 950 XL.

Display

The screen is another story altogether, and clear signs of Nokia's display heritage can be found in the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL. Outdoor visibility is pretty good, although it would be nice if the screen could become just a tad brighter. The 2K resolution of the 5.7-inch panel equates to a 518ppi, making text lovely and crisp, and enabling the Windows Live Tiles to really stand out.

As might be expected with an AMOLED screen, contrast is excellent. Colours have a very nice 'pop' to them, while blacks are pleasingly deep. Viewing angles are great, with no drop-off in either brightness or colour from any angle.

Somewhat unusually for an AMOLED display, the colour accuracy is also very good. Microsoft claims to have calibrated the panel exactly, and to my eyes I could find nothing wrong, although you have the option to change the white balance in the settings menu.

The device also supports a popular and somewhat mislaid feature in 'Glance', which enables the display of information when the phone is asleep. Double-tap to wake has been discarded, however.

Key features

A lot has been said about Microsoft's mobile journey. The firm arrived on the scene in 2000 with Windows Mobile, and rebooted with Windows 7 in 2010 and later again with Windows 8; each attempt failed to capture the attention of mainstream users. Windows 10 is something different altogether though.

The real story behind Windows 10 is the change in focus, a recalibration of Redmond's mobile strategy. In the past we saw the typical Microsoft bravado, bolstered by years at the top of the heap, culminating in rather brash efforts that failed to make a lasting impression.

Windows 10 Mobile is an acceptance of the current reality of the wider smartphone landscape, and of Microsoft's place in it. Microsoft has reinvented its software once more to meet the needs of a different user base, one that values customisation over almost all else and that doesn't care a great deal about looks.

As such, there is plenty of wholesome geekery on offer. Perhaps the best example of this is Windows 'Hello', the iris-recognition technology built into the device.

Theoretically this enables the user to unlock the phone with their eye, but in practice I found that it failed more often than not, no doubt because I wear glasses.

Microsoft has been careful to label the feature as a beta, with shortcomings to be addressed via software updates, and I found that when someone who doesn't wear glasses used the feature the accuracy was much improved.

While iris scanning isn't perhaps as immediately convenient as a fingerprint scanner, it's nonetheless an imaginative inclusion.

As for the wider feel of Windows 10 Mobile, imaginative isn't the first word that springs to mind. When I first used Windows Phone it was on version 7.5, and compared to Android and iOS I generally felt that it had a bold style and cohesion, even in the third-party applications the other systems often lacked.

Windows 8 cemented this, and to this point I don't believe any operating system looks better on an AMOLED screen. With Windows 10 Mobile, however, Microsoft has abandoned this sense of style in favour of feature creep.

This makes for some odd choices. The circles in the revamped People hub are a little grating, while the renamed 'Microsoft Edge' (replacing the inbuilt Internet Explorer) takes a little getting used to. Removing the native Music app for 'Groove Music' is also a little confusing, especially for those unacquainted with Microsoft's new streaming service.

For every downside there is an upside however. Double-tapping the softkey bar causes the display to sleep, while the phone app has a built-in option for voice recording, a godsend for those doing interviews.

There's even a slider for adjusting the transparency of the Live Tiles, which is a nice touch. In short, even more than Cyanogen OS, Windows 10 Mobile has the potential to be something of a tinkerer's paradise.

The story as a whole is of a shift from design over usability to function over form. The experience is still somewhat suspect, though. I suffered regular stutters when using the Start button, frozen screens at random intervals, apps randomly crashing and occasional issues with voice calls, among other things.

Given that Windows Phone as it currently stands is completely rock-solid, the fact that Windows 10 Mobile is such a mish-mash is a little surprising.

Microsoft will in no doubt improve the experience over the next few months, and those with prior experience of using a device with beta software will understand the risks involved; for the average punter, however, it could well be a no-no, at least for the moment.

USB-C

In the last few years microUSB as a standard has become pretty much ubiquitous on smartphones, with almost every device (so long as it doesn't bear the Apple logo) using such a port for charging and data transfer. The times, however, are a-changing.

USB-C offers a couple of advantages over microUSB, enabling faster charging and, by incorporating a reversible connector design, eliminating the problem of trying to plug the cable in the wrong way up.

This is all well and good, but there's just one problem: good luck trying to find someone who has a spare USB-C cable handy.

With only a few flagship phones currently using the standard, we're not throwing away our microUSB cables just yet. I've been through around four phones in the last five years or so, and I've accumulated roughly enough microUSB cables to circle the Earth twice.

This means that charging most devices isn't an issue, and neither are lost or damaged cables. Working with USB-C is another matter altogether.

Moreover, with the Lumia line, the 'wrong way up' problem was solved with the addition of a textured pattern on the charging cables supplied by Nokia – that one small indent made a big difference.

On the Lumia 950 XL I found the USB-C port more of an irritant than anything else, and if the point of the change from microUSB is convenience, then I'm missing something. I had to remember to take a USB-C cable with me for data transfer and charging in different rooms, something which was a definite nuisance.

This could prove to be a real pain when travelling as well – you can pick up a generic microUSB charger simply and cheaply just about anywhere, and that's far from the case with USB-C at the moment.

Although devices such as the OnePlus 2, Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P have adopted the standard, whether it USB-C see a wider take-up beyond the ranks of the flagships is yet to be seen.

One Great Continuum

Despite the ever increasing power of smartphones giving developers more and more options for expansion and improvement, not much has actually changed in the last few years. Case in point with the iPhone, which despite various iterations since its original release is still functionally the same device.

With the Windows 10 unified code base and variable design language, Microsoft is hoping to position Continuum as a halfway point between the mobile phone and the desktop, as a device that can revolutionise computing as a whole.

At the moment however, Continuum is limited to dedicated Windows apps, of which there are only a few, meaning the feature is effectively a mirror of Windows RT, enabling a little extra functionality when plugged into a bigger screen.

If the story of Windows 10 is one of potential however, then Continuum is easily the feature that has the greatest chance to become something great; however only time will tell what will become of Microsoft's admirable effort.

Specs and performance

If there was one advantage in waiting so long before bringing out the next elite Lumias, it was that Microsoft had the chance to thoroughly analyse hardware trends before jumping in. As such, the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL comes well equipped, both by the standards set for 2015 and for the future.

Powering the device is the controversial Qualcomm Snapdragon 810, an octa-core 64-bit chip clocked at 2.0GHz, and backed up with 3GB of RAM. Much has been written about the Snapdragon 810, and the various '-gates' it's caused, in the past year.

Microsoft has worked hard to counter reported overheating and other issues. The chip is a newer version from Qualcomm, lacking some of the problems of its predecessor, but perhaps more importantly, the Lumia 950 XL has liquid cooling. That's right: liquid cooling.

The geek cred of such a feature notwithstanding, in general use I still found that the device could become quite warm, especially when attempting to do several things at once, or when experiencing one of Windows 10 Mobile's frequent bug episodes.

This also raises concerns regarding the longevity of the device. There's no doubt that Microsoft will continue to optimise both the OS and the chip so they can run with some increased degree of harmony, but whether the phone might melt internally beforehand is another question altogether.

Despite this, whether gaming or running multiple apps at once, I experienced no slowdowns. Really, there's nothing in the Windows Phone app ecosystem that can really challenge the likes of the 810, especially given that the previous most powerful chip in widespread use was 2013's Snapdragon 800, in the likes of the Lumia 1520 and 930.

The app problem on Windows 10 Mobile is the same as it was on Windows Phone – that's to say, pretty bad. Geekbench 3 was not available for use, and so Basemark OS 2 was used. For comparison, I also ran the benchmark app on both the Nokia Lumia 930 and the Microsoft Lumia 950.

All results ought to be taken with a pinch of salt. Windows Phone has many great third-party solutions to many aspects of the app gap, but a proper, current benchmarking app has yet to arise.

Overall the results were a little odd, with the Lumia 930 achieving an overall score of 1001, the 950 managing 1295 and the XL managing only a paltry 890. This doesn't show the whole story however, with the graphics section being quite telling.

Here the 930 managed 1212, the 950 came to 1436 and the XL bounding ahead to 2014. In the System and Web sections, the XL achieved a considerable lead also. However, this was only due to a odd problem with the memory segment, seemingly due to the device attempting to write to microSD rather than the faster flash system memory.

With regards to memory management, Windows 10 Mobile takes a cue from iOS. Instead of truly running in the background, apps are paused, with only certain trusted sources able to break this lock.

This means that multi-taskers might be slightly frustrated, but it makes for swift transitions between apps, as well as meaning that wayward processes have less of a chance to malfunction and consume battery. The device can handle around eight open apps at once before beginning to close processes.

In everyday use I found the Lumia 950 XL to be a strong performer. When swiping through the OS, and opening and closing apps, everything worked as it should. However, as is something of a trademark with Windows Phone, there wasn't much separating it from my Lumia 930 in terms of performance.

The spec sheet of the XL may be an indication of where things are heading, but for the moment it might be slight overkill.

But with the in-built 32GB of storage, along with the potential to at least triple that via a microSD card, even the most demanding of power users ought to be satisfied.

Camera

2015 is arguably the best year ever for smartphone shooters, at least for Android. The likes of the Samsung Galaxy S6, LG G4 and the Nexus 6P have stretched what the public now expects from their mobile shoots.

And with both Nokia and Microsoft having thrown millions in marketing dollars at the general public to promote the benefits of Windows Phone, one thing has stuck: a reputation for excellent mobile imaging.

Especially given Nokia's PureView branding, and the likes of the crazy Pureview 808 and Lumia 1020, the perception of the Finnish firm's competence in this field has been sown in the public consciousness. As such, the Lumia 950 XL carries the burden of expectation.

With a 20MP BSI sensor, Carl Zeiss optics, optical image stabilisation and a triple-LED RGB flash, along with 'Rich Capture' technology, the potential is certainly there for excellence.

And sure enough the Lumia 950 XL proves to have one of the strongest mobile camera sensors of the year. In good lighting, detail is crisp, the white balance is almost always on point and colours are appealingly warm without appearing too saturated.

Even in very dimly lit situations the camera was able to pull in a fair amount of light without ruining the white balance, which is no mean feat.

The real star of the show here is the Rich Capture mode, which acts as a sort of smart editing assistant. When you view an image in the gallery, the unaltered image is displayed and then an edited version; depending on the image an extra image may be overlaid for more detail, or an HDR effect may be implemented, among other things.

You can then choose to alter the strength of this effect, for example by controlling the amount of flash present by balancing a flash-lit shot with unlit shot (a really neat party trick for nights out).

Generally the image processing is quite mature, leaving images with a very natural look. That is to say the software doesn't fiddle around with shots too much, an acknowledgement that giving the user more control isn't always such a bad idea.

The extra processing power of the 950 XL over the Lumia 950 also helps in this regard – processing images on the larger phone is a speedy and efficient affair.

This ethos of allowing more user control can also be seen in the camera app, once titled Lumia Camera and now the stock Windows 10 Mobile camera application. It's a masterpiece of design.

Launching in roughly a second when triggered via the two-stage shutter button, you're initially presented with a very simple view. On the right side are the shutter and video buttons, and in the top-right corner sits the shortcut to the settings menu.

The top of the interface houses the camera switch, the flash toggle and the Rich Capture toggle, and in the left corner sits the gallery shortcut. It's a clean interface that doesn't overwhelm.

By 'pulling' the shutter button from the side however, or by pressing the arrow on the top bar, it becomes possible to alter the white balance, ISO, shutter speed and exposure compensation, and switch to manual focusing. It's a photographer's dream, and a pleasure to use.

The Lumia 950 XL is also capable of shooting 4K footage, which I found to be crisp and well presented, and with excellent audio capture due to the four-way mic system.

As for the 5MP selfie camera, as such things go it's a competent performer. It's by no means the best in its class, but it is leagues ahead of the likes of the unit on the Lumia 930.

In all, the Lumia tradition of great imaging performance is alive and well in the 950 XL, Microsoft has succeeded once again in crafting a fantastic package.

Camera samples

Click here for the full-resolution image

Music, movies and gaming

Music

The Microsoft Lumia 950 XL doesn't fare well in the speaker department. Although the driver is able to reach an acceptable volume it can become quite tinny at higher volumes, and it lacks the bass levels of the likes of the HTC One M9.

Despite this, the device is a decent music player. The Groove Music application is well laid out, and organises locally stored tracks in a logical and well-presented manner.

If you have a OneDrive account you can also store tracks online to be streamed later, which is always a nice option, especially for playback across multiple devices.

With an inbuilt equaliser and virtual surround sound, the Lumia 950 XL is also a decent option for audio-hounds, offering fine control over high and low notes alike, and offering presets for various genres.

Movies

With its 2K AMOLED 5.7-inch screen the Lumia 950 XL is made for consuming video content, and it proved to be a treat in this regard. The bright, punchy and accurate colours meant that I enjoyed my Netflix binges with a lot more 'pop' than might normally be the case.

With Windows 10 Mobile, video content is no longer organised into the video Hub that was present on Windows Phone, and is instead accessed through the Films and TV app.

This provides access to the Microsoft store, where various titles can be rented or bought. Locally stored files can also be found here.

In general use, I found only one consistent flaw in the video experience. Typically, when using .MP4 files, the audio would not work in the native app, due to a lack of codec support.

Downloading VLC from the app store solved this problem, but it's a significant problem given the wide popularity of the video format.

Gaming

More than almost anything else, a great deal has been made about the lack of quality games in the Windows Phone Store. While this isn't strictly true, there is a definite paucity of offerings.

When it comes to running the games that are available, the Lumia 950 XL is a strong performer, although as mentioned it did tend to get warm during extended periods of use.

Titles such as Halo: Spartan Strike, Mirror's Edge, Sparkle 2 and Asphalt 8 ran without a hitch and looked beautiful while doing so, even if occasionally lacking a few of the bells and whistles of their Android variations.

Battery life

Typically phablets enjoy battery life than their smaller cousins, thanks to the bigger power packs manufacturers are able to squeeze in their larger bodies.

Unfortunately, that trend is not evident in the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL, which I generally found to be quite unpredictable in terms of battery life.

Throughout an average day of use – starting at around 8am, listening to some music, browsing the internet for around an hour or so, watching a show on BBC iPlayer and streaming via Spotify for a while – I generally found that I had around 30% of the battery left by the end of the day.

Typically this would change if I encountered a bug that required a hard reset, or when the device would occasionally randomly heat up before cooling down. Though the 3340mAh battery is substantial, it nonetheless isn't quite enough to keep the Lumia 950 XL going from one day into the next.

One other issue I encountered was standby time. To put this in context, upon receiving this unit for review I retired my 930 for a while, leaving it on a table with 70% charge. Four days of pulling notifications later, it was still going, with around 20% of battery left.

Over one night, by contrast, I found the Lumia 950 XL had lost around 30% of its battery. This is due to the difference in efficiency between Windows Phone and Windows 10 Mobile, and is something that will no doubt be addressed in the coming months, but it's still something of a disappointment.

A battery saving mode is available, which is configurable by the user and which can help to eke out a little extra juice when required. And at least there's the option to hot-swap in a fully charged battery, which is especially useful if you're travelling.

The competition

Google Nexus 6P

Google took the world aback earlier this year by partnering with lesser-known Chinese manufacturer Huawei to deliver the latest iteration of the larger device in its Nexus lineup.

Mountain View's confidence in its new partner proved to be well-founded, with the resulting effort now making many 'smartphone of the year' lists.

Compared to the Lumia 950 XL, the Nexus 6P has a better battery life, more apps and a nicer design. The XL sports a better camera, better options for productivity and, crucially for some, expandable storage where the 6P has none.

In the toss-up between the two, the 6P is the better option for most prospective purchasers, especially given the fact that it comes in cheaper.

Samsung Galaxy Note 5

The Note line is typically Samsung's most feature-packed, and 2015 is no exception. With the release of the Note 5, the Korean firm has sought to prove that it can compete in any form factor and still take the top spot.

Between the Note 5 and the 950 XL, the former certainly has the brighter screen, as well as better overall build quality. The more powerful processor in the Note 5 also makes for snappier performance, while the famous S Pen will be a significant draw for some.

Yet, offering only average battery life and a famously unremarkable interface in TouchWiz, the Note 5 isn't quite perfect. The Lumia 950 XL has just as good a camera, offers expandable storage and a removable battery, and is cheaper.

iPhone 6S Plus

The largest iPhone form factor appeared last year, and has claimed a high-profile position in Apple's release schedule. Essentially just a bigger version of the 'normal' iPhone, it has nonetheless carved out an identity of its own.

Compared to the 950 XL, the iPhone has a much better ecosystem of apps, better build quality and a faster processor. It also benefits from the inclusion of 3D Touch – essentially a right-click option for smartphones that enables a greater degree of interactivity.

However, with a high price and no options for expandable storage, the story isn't entirely positive, and there are also currently few apps that really take advantage of the extra screen space offered by the form factor. This makes the Lumia 950 XL arguably the better choice for the productivity-focused, and the iPhone better for, well, most other people.

Verdict

The Lumia 950 XL is certainly a strong effort on Microsoft's part, but does it really do enough to compete with the rest of the 2015 flagship lineup?

We liked

Firstly, it has to be said that the Lumia 950 XL has a great camera. In almost every situation it coped admirably, nearly always turning in great shots, and a few particularly stunning examples.

In terms of general performance, the XL is also a champ. No matter what I threw at the device, it was able to handle every app and game with aplomb. With an lovely 2K screen, watching videos and reading for extensive periods was a treat, and the ClearBlack coating really works well to improve visibility in bright sunlight.

As ever, the Live Tiles of the Windows 10 Mobile operating system are a real draw, presenting glanceable information in an attractive way, and offering something different in what is increasingly becoming a sea of copycat and me-too devices.

With expandable storage I was never in danger of running out of space, even when I exceeded the 32GB built-in limit.

We disliked

As has been the case for years, recommending Microsoft's mobile OS to anyone comes with a massive caveat: the app gap. Though some strides have been made, many top apps have yet to make their way to Windows 10 Mobile.

What's more, the apps that are currently available tend to be rather poor, and are only infrequently updated; Instagram is a prime example, being still in beta after several years.

Battery life is also something of a let-down. Given the size of the unit, and the general efficiency of Windows Phone in this area, I had great hopes for the endurance of the 950 XL. Unfortunately battery performance was only ever middling at best.

To top things off, the very, very plain design is a let-down set alongside the design pedigree of the line as a whole. Past Lumias defined what was capable with polycarbonate, with interesting, insistent lines and an almost iconic look. By comparison the 950 XL is drab, and more likely to be seen in the pocket of a used-car salesman than a trend-setter.

Final verdict

It's fair to say that I'm something of an apologist for Windows Phone, having flown the flag for the operating system even when things hit rock bottom. And yet, for all the waiting, the Microsoft Lumia 950 XL doesn't feel like it's making the most of the potential offered by Windows 10 Mobile.

The hardware definitely has its highs and lows. Build quality isn't the best around, but handling is great. All of the lovely pixels on the AMOLED screen, along with the exceptional colour accuracy, make it one of the best around, but the speakers are a bit of a let-down.

Only the camera proves to be a real stand-out feature – alhough many of the former staff of the PureView team went over to Apple, clearly enough stayed around to make a difference. As someone who values the camera over almost everything else on a smartphone, for me the 950 XL was a real gem of a performer.

And yet, that app gap will likely be a problem for many users, while the buggy nature of Windows 10 Mobile is likely to test the patience of even the most dedicated Windows fans.

The real question is: after at least 18 months out of the game, has Microsoft done enough to earn a place at the top division once more? And the answer is yes, but with an enormous proviso.

As a device, the Lumia 950 XL, along with its slighter sibling, has been carved out as a tool for the purist. And to that end Microsoft has delivered, and has shown a promise that will likely be glorious when fully delivered on.

For those not sold on the Lumia dream, however, it's a much harder sell. The stark truth is that, for most people, there are better phones out there, especially the likes of the Nexus 6P.

For the faithful, this will likely be enough to keep them going while rumours of the 'Surface Phone' fly around, and perhaps of a replacement for the Lumia 1020.

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