Samsung releases flagship smartphone battery test video

Samsung has released a video of a battery test comparing all major flagship smartphones and you’ll never guess who the winner is. Not surprisingly, Samsung’s Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge beat out all other devices in the test, including the LG G5 which is actually the first phone to die. If all this sounds a little too convenient for you, then you’re not alone.

Now, every smartphone manufacturer does a ton of internal testing. And every smartphone manufacturer buys phones from competitors for comparisons so they can make those bold claims you always see at press conferences. But you’d have to be a little naive to believe the claims being made are 100% accurate. There are a lot of ways to manipulate data or otherwise rig the system to come out on top and Samsung’s battery test video is no different.

• Samsung video on how the battery test was conducted.

Which is not to say that the S7 and S7 Edge batteries aren’t good – quite the contrary. They are among the best smartphone batteries around. But the battery duration figures Samsung comes up with are not what you should (or likely even could) count on personally. In the video, Samsung’s S7 lasts for 10 hours and 59 minutes and the S7 Edge for 10.5 hours. I don’t know anyone that has come even close to this figure in normal usage. The G5 dies after just 6.5 hours. But when it’s Samsung conducting the battery test you can’t exactly expect anything else.

In Phone Arena‘s battery tests, for example, the S7 lasted for 6 hours and 37 minutes. The LG G5 made 5 hours and 51 minutes. That’s a much closer result (and one much closer to realistic usage). Phone Arena also notes certain issues with the video, including the screen brightness measurements being taken in a lit room and the slow dimming of the displays during the battery test, which obviously affects the result. So while there’s no denying that the batteries in the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge are really good, don’t be surprised if your mileage varies.

Do you ever believe the claims made by manufacturers? Which phone do you think has the best battery right now?