Samsung Galaxy S6 edge vs HTC One M9

Design

With every new Galaxy S release, Samsung has historically built upon the base by refining what's already there and adding some extra on top. This time around, however, the company wasn't content with just another evolutionary change – it went ahead with the clear aim of revolutionizing its smartphone design efforts. To that end, instead of the plasticky shell of the Galaxy S5, Samsung has adopted a metal frame that hugs the device and its sloping screen all over and nestles within two sheets of Corning Gorilla Glass 4 – one placed in front of the curvy display, and the other to protect the rear. Samsung didn't stop there, instead opting to carve several 'nano layers' into the shell. The result is a phone that reflects light in different hues depending on your viewing angle. As it comes down to taste, this can be viewed as either ostentatious and tacky, or unique and attractive. Regardless of which group you fall in, it's quite likely that you will not appreciate the ease with which the rear smudges – just a few minutes with the phone leaves the back a complete mess.

However, for all of Samsung's admirable efforts, and despite the undeniably sexier-than-ever-before appearances of the Galaxy S6 edge, the One M9 still remains the more stylish pick of the two in our eyes. What could spell trouble for HTC's new flagship in the eyes of others, however, is the lack of visible changes. Indeed, despite its enjoyable looks, the One M9 remains a very similar device to its predecessor, the One M8, which, in turn, felt a lot like the One M7 before it. We certainly understand that the One line's design can be seen as timeless, but we nevertheless can't shake the feeling that we're looking at only a slightly redesigned device compared to last year's offering.

Display

The Galaxy S6 edge and One M9 both stick to the same display sizes introduced by their predecessors, but the two still differ vastly. With its new flagship, HTC is again making use of an S-LCD3 panel with a 5-inch diagonal and 1080 x 1920 resolution – good for 441 pixels per inch. In Samsung's camp, we're looking at a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display that slopes to the sides, but unlike the one embedded within its predecessor, we now have the whopping 1440 x 2560 pixels, or an even greater pitch of 577 ppi. Regardless, do keep in mind that due to the small physical size of these screens, that supposed advantage in pixel density is almost entirely limited to bragging rights on paper.

Interface and functionality

While Samsung's Galaxy S devices have always shipped with nothing less than the best available at the time in terms of hardware, we've often found ourselves wishing it did more on the software side. Its proprietary TouchWiz layout has often proved sluggish and less responsive than what some competitors had to offer – a sight that the Samsung faithful only tolerated because of the smorgasbord of extra features the platform gave them access to. With the Galaxy S6 edge, however, the company has finally seen sense, and has carried out a number of software optimizations that make the Galaxy S6 edge's software both easier to understand and faster than ever before.

Indeed, this is the first time that we can call the Android Lollipop-based TouchWiz experience truly smooth and hassle-free. But even though the company has cut down on the weight of its interface, the HTC One M9's refreshed Sense 7.0 UI is just as fast. What's more, and while we can't argue with people's differing tastes, we still find the brushwork of Sense 7.0 more appealing from where we're standing. The One M9, however, simply can't compete in the features department.

Quite right, the One M9's software reminds us a lot of stock Android, as HTC continues sticking to the basics and adds little on top. The interface looks differently, sure, but at its base is Android the way Google intended it. And while the updated, Lollipop-based Sense 7.0 layout brings goodies such as dynamic app folders that automatically switch their contents depending on whether you're working or at home, and can now be thoroughly skinned via the new Themes app (think icons, wallpapers, styling and ornamentation), it still doesn't compare to what Samsung offers.

With the new TouchWiz, Samsung is keeping a lot (but not all!) of the perks that made it unique, and refreshing or even completely re-designing areas that it wasn't completely satisfied with. For example, the S Health app has gone through a revamp and is now minimalist- and modern-looking while retaining the same wide array of functions. Like HTC, Samsung has also added support for third-party themes, and its own Themes app already offers a number of solutions, though none of them really caught our eye – for that, we'll have to wait and hope third-party devs feel incentivized enough to create something beautiful. 

The Galaxy S6's stack of features is hardly exhausted yet, for we also have a new, improved fingerprint scanner (still embedded in the physical Home button) that is now of the touch, not swipe, type, finally allowing for a hassle-free unlock. Unlike the One M9, the S6 also offers software features like MultiWindow (run two apps simultaneously), Private and Car modes (hide sensitive content / dashboard with bigger icons and essential apps only). Finally, you were probably wondering if the display edges can be used for anything, and the answer is yes – they can show your notifications, and will also glow in a pre-specified color when your device is face-down and you get a call.

Processor and memory

For the longest time, Samsung and Qualcomm worked together on the former's flagship lines, though the chip maker didn't always get all the orders – the rest went to Samsung's then fledgling semiconductor division making the Exynos chipsets. With the Galaxy S6 edge, however, Samsung was ready for a monumental shift, and Qualcomm is no longer part of the game. Instead, the S6 edge relies on a home-grown Exynos 7420.

The 7420 is an octa-core processor, built on a 14nm node, with two clusters made up by four cores arranged in a big.LITTLE configuration and Mali-T760 graphics. We have one group of power-efficient ARM Cortex-A53 CPUs, and another with powerful Cortex-A57 ones. The idea behind the arrangement is simple to understand – the efficient team of cores takes care of most trivial tasks, while the speedy A57 cores kick in when power is required. If maximum performance is what you need, the Exynos 7420 can switch all eight cores on and work them simultaneously.

Turning to the HTC One M9, we're seeing the chipset that Samsung deemed inferior to its own – the 20nm, octa-core Snapdragon 810. Qualcomm's latest available creation is quite similar to Samsung's, for it, too, offers the same four-by-four ARM Cortex-A53/A57 cores under a big.LITTLE config, the difference being the Adreno 430 GPU.

According to benchmarks, the Galaxy S6 edge has an edge in terms of processing power and memory, but falls behind the One M9 when graphics tests get involved. Indeed, the One M9's Adreno 430 GPU handles heavy loads in those scenarios better, achieving average frame rate values that are significantly higher than those of the Mali-T760. In general, however, using either of the two devices proves buttery smooth.

Internet and connectivity

Smooth browsing is what we've been getting with each and every flagship for the past few years, and Samsung's and HTC's new offerings don't fail to deliver just that. Courtesy of their powerful internals, both devices handle even asset-heavy pages with ease and don't struggle when navigating through them. That said, whereas both devices rely on Chrome for your browsing needs, Samsung's Galaxy S6 edge comes with its own default solution that is an equally great performer.

On the connectivity front, you'll hardly find much to complain about, regardless of whether you go for the Galaxy S6 edge or the One M9. Both devices offer support for a wide array of LTE bands, 5GHz Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, DLNA, MHL 3.0 for streaming up to 4K resolution content to a secondary screen, an infrared blaster for control over home electronics, and even Miracast in the case of the S6 edge.

Where the Galaxy S6 edge pulls ahead is Samsung Pay – the company's new mobile payments solution that works hand-in-hand with the handset's NFC chip. The idea behind it is much alike to that of Apple Pay – the company gets retailers and banks involved (but free of charge), and you reap the benefit of never having to pull out your credit card out of your wallet again (much less physically sign any receipts).

Camera

Samsung's Galaxy S line has always been synonymous with great camera quality, and the company wasn't about to drop the ball with the Galaxy S6 edge. Instead of focusing on the software side of performance, Samsung has taken a two-pronged approach by making sure to deliver some exciting hardware updates, too. To that end, the Galaxy S6 edge's 1/2.6”, 16-megapixel rear camera comes with a wider-than-before f/1.9 aperture lens and an optical stabilization gizmo attached to it. The selfie snapper, too, has received a commendable update, and now offers 5-megapixels of resolution and equally wide, f/1.9 aperture lens.

We have reasons for excitement when it comes to the HTC One M9, too, for the company has finally made the decision to ditch the 4-megapixel UltraPixel camera of old, which is now relegated to selfie service. At the back, we're now looking at a 1/2.4”, 20-megapixel sensor with relatively narrower f/2.2 lens and a dual LED flash.

Multimedia

On the multimedia front, we have a few interesting developments. For starters, much like with the rest of the interface, Samsung has toned down the over-the-top rhetoric, and is now treating us to far cleaner visuals when it comes to essentials such as the Music player and the Gallery. In comparison, HTC's solution feels markedly premium, and we have to admit that we tend to like the brushwork better. Interestingly enough, this is another area in which Samsung's implementation proves slightly less feature-rich than HTC's – something we wouldn't dream of just two years ago.

Going back to music, if you happen to enjoy using your device as a portable speaker, then you'll enjoy what the One M9 has to offer more. Sure, we measured a slightly higher volume coming out of the S6's loudspeaker (75.4 dB vs 72.8 dB), but the difference is small enough to be nigh impossible for us to really tell. More importantly, the stereo front-facing blasters of the One M9 produce richer and more immersive tones, whereas the bottom-placed grill of the S6 lets out more subdued and thin sounds

If you, instead, mostly use your smartphone with a pair headphones (as most people do), then it's even more clear-cut for you – the One M9 offers the astounding 1.022 Volts of power, while the Galaxy S6 proves a distant second, with just 0.53 Volts going through its 3.5mm jack.

Call quality

One area in which HTC's flagship clearly surpasses the performance of Samsung's is call quality. The One M9's earpiece produces loud, clear tones, and the other side reported just as great results. With the Galaxy S6 we're looking at a more average showing, with audible, but hissy voices coming through the tiny speaker on top, and equally powerful, but thin voices heard on the other side.

The same can be said for the performance of the two loudspeakers – you can hold call with both, but while the Galaxy S6 mostly banks on being loud enough so that a call can be comfortably held, the One M9 tops that with both volume and better sound clarity.

n reality, these capacities translate into battery endurance in a way you wouldn't expect, especially since the M9 has a bigger battery and a far less pixel-dense display. Indeed, while the Galaxy S6 manages the very decent 8 hours and 11 minutes on our custom battery life test, the One M9 is average at best, with a score of just 6 hours and 25 minutes. Still, do keep in mind that all devices that go through our battery life test are set to 200 nits of brightness, which was impossible with the Galaxy S6 edge – manually, the most you can set it to is 180 nits. In other words, the S6 edge went through our test with a slightly dimmer display than the rest.