Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge: shortages expected as demand surges

Samsung has admitted that it won't be able to keep up with the unexpectedly high demand for its difficult-to-manufacture curved screen smartphone, the Galaxy S6 Edge.

The new phone has received almost unanimously positive reviews from the tech press. In its comprehensive test of the S6 Edge, Pocket Lint declared it to be "as fine a phone as we’ve ever seen".

While on one analysis, news that Samsung is struggling to meet demand could indicate that the phone is set to be a runaway hit, the shortages also present a danger for the South Korean company, Forbes says. "With relatively low quantities of S6 Edge handsets available, the message being picked up by the public is less 'everyone wants this handset' more 'Samsung didn't plan this very well,'" the publication says.

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JK Shin, Samsung's mobile chief, confirmed that the primary problem causing the delays is that S6 Edge's curved screens are difficult to make.

"We're working hard to resolve the difficulty in supply," he said at an event in Seoul ahead of the flagship phone's global launch today, adding that the problems with supply could persist "for a while".

"The stakes are high for Samsung," the Wall Street Journal says. The firm's previous phone, the S5 "fell flat with consumers" and Samsung now finds itself squeezed at the top end of the market by Apple and at the bottom end by Chinese and Indian competitors.

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge review: the best Android ever?

30 March

The Galaxy S6 Edge, which was announced alongside the Galaxy S6 in Barcelona last month, is not your average Android smartphone. The device represents a complete overhaul of Samsung's flagship and offers a better screen, a smarter chassis, improved cameras, wireless super-fast charging and a fingerprint scanner and heart rate monitor.

The curved glass display and metallic design are the standout features but there's no micro SD slot or waterproof protection, while the embedded 2600mAh battery is not removable. And it's expensive. At £760 for the 64GB version, can it justify the price?

Design

The S6 Edge's metal design marks it out, not only from Samsung's current models but also from other market competitors.

"With a matte aluminium alloy frame and Gorilla Glass 4 on the front and back, the S6 and S6 Edge live worlds apart from the plastic construction of five generations of Galaxy flagship," says CNET in a joint product review. "It's obvious that this is a different beast, and one that fans have been crying out for, for years."

PC Pro is equally smitten. "No two ways about it, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is a stunner," it says. "The twin curves give it a unique appearance, and it goes together with a Gorilla Glass 4 coated and coloured metal rear panel to produce a handset that truly stands out from the crowd."Other reviewers noted that the device is not as ergonomic as it could be with some criticising it for being less comfortable to hold than the Galaxy S6.

Display

"Its dual-sided curved display is breathtaking to behold," says Know Your Mobile. "The way the glass wraps on either side just gives it a stunning look simply not encountered elsewhere, and one that makes you feel like the display itself melds seamlessly into the metal frame."

However, Stuff magazine is sceptical about the edge display, which offers notifications on time and messages.

"All very neat, if you're the type of business person who can't be seen to be fielding calls during meetings. For the rest of us – surely the majority – it'll be a first-week toy to be subsequently forgotten about."

Camera

The S6 Edge's set of cameras, along with its optical image stabilisation and ability to shoot up to 4K video, win a lot of praise from tech reviewers.

"For years, Samsung has been playing catch-up with Apple when it comes to its smartphone cameras," says Yahoo Tech. "With the new 16-megapixel cameras on the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, though, Samsung has taken the lead.

"The S6 and S6 Edge have the same camera; we used the S6 to take our test photos. In side-by-side shots, the S6 repeatedly outperformed the iPhone 6. What's most impressive is that the S6 actually took better images than the iPhone in low-light situations, something that Samsung has struggled with for years."

Performance

The new smartphone wins widespread praise for Android 5.0 Lollipop, an improved TouchWiz interface and fewer "bloatware" apps. The use of Samsung's own Exynos processor also appears to have upped its performance.

"General navigation is very positive. There's no sign of lag, which is helped by the more streamlined TouchWiz UI and gaming holds up as well," says Trusted Reviews.

"The much-maligned TouchWiz interface has been spruced up for the Edge, and it comes with far fewer annoying preloaded apps than ever before," adds The Telegraph. "There's less initial 'noise' on your homescreen than previous iterations following a stripping back on the number of dialogue boxes and menus, but it's still a bit bloated for my tastes."

Beginner Tech adds that menus have been made 'cleaner' and navigation has been 'improved'.

Conclusion

Reviewers are universal in their admiration for the Galaxy S6 Edge as a premium smartphone, although doubts remain about its usefulness.

"Samsung's Galaxy S6 is its most desirable phone since the Galaxy SII, sporting an all-new look and feel, and a ton of beautifully implemented features," says Recombu. "If you want entertainment, the crisp and colourful screen is one of the best around." The digital news website praises the "awesome camera tech" as well as the "tight security features" and "much-improved" fingerprint scanner. It concludes: "It's almost the very definition of an all-round masterpiece."