Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge Smartphones Launched at MWC 2015

The Samsung Galaxy S6 and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge will be available globally starting April 10 and will be available in 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB storage variants. The company announced that the new Galaxy smartphones will come in White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum, Blue Topaz (Galaxy S6) and Green Emerald (Galaxy S6 edge only). The South Korean giant touts that the Galaxy S6 Edge has the "world's first curved display on both sides."

Samsung at the launch touted that both the handsets have been "beautifully crafted from metal and glass."

(Also see: Samsung Galaxy S6 vs. Samsung Galaxy S5)

Both the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge feature 5.1-inch Quad HD (1440x2560 pixels) Super Amoled display with a pixel density of 577ppi. The only difference being the latter sports a dual-edge display.

The new Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge run Android 5.0 Lollipop and feature a 14nm octa-core mobile processor with 64-bit capability. The company writes, "The world's first 14nm mobile processor with 64-bit platform, new LPDDR4 memory system and UFS 2.0 flash memory provides higher performance and enhanced memory speed with lower power consumption."

Both the handsets are powered by octa-core (quad-core 2.1GHz+ quad-core 1.5GHz) processor (chipset not specified, possibly Exynos) coupled with 3GB of RAM (LPDDR4).

(Also see: Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge vs. Samsung Galaxy Note Edge)

There is a 16-megapixel rear camera with OIS (optical image stabilisation) and LED flash while there is a 5-megapixel front camera on board. Both the handsets come with a slew of camera features such as quick launch, tracking AF, auto real-time HDR, f/1.9, IR detect white balance, low light video, high clear zoom, virtual shot, slow motion, fast motion, pro mode, and selective focus.

The South Korean giant to rival Apple's payment system finally introduced the Samsung Pay, which it claimed will be "compatible with more locations than any competing offering in a single application."

(Also see:  Samsung Galaxy S6 vs. HTC One M9)

Samsung Pay will debut on the flagship Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 Edge in the US during second half of 2015. Samsung notes, "Samsung Pay works with both Near Field Communication (NFC) and Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) technology to make it device, merchant and card issuer agnostic." With MST support for magstripe readers, it is claimed to work with 90 percent of US retailers, making it more 'universal' than Apple Pay according to Samsung. To make it work in store, users have to activate the card, authenticate it with their fingerprint, and then hold up the smartphone to the magstripe reader.

Much like the Samsung Galaxy S5, the new premium Galaxy handsets also pack fingerprint scanning with an enhanced touch-type fingerprint scanner on the home button. Additionally, both the handsets will come pre-installed with upgraded Samsung Knox. As rumoured previously, Samsung's premium handsets come preloaded with Microsoft apps such as OneDrive offering 115GB for 2 years, and OneNote. The Galaxy S6 is backed by a 2550mAh battery while the Galaxy S6 Edge comes with 2600mAh battery. For connectivity, both the handset support LTE Cat. 6 that supports up to 300Mbps of download speed. Both phones support wireless charging built-in, with support for WPC and PMA standards. The fast charging batteries charge (only when wired) 1.5 times faster than that on the Galaxy S5, and provide "about 4 hours of usage after only 10 minutes of charging."

Commenting on the launch, JK Shin, CEO and head of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung said, "With the all new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge, Samsung is offering what's next in mobility, along with a new standard to drive the global mobile agenda. By listening to our customers, and learning from both our success and missteps, we continuously push forward new technologies and ideas. With a reimagined design, robust partner network and novel services, the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge offer users the ultimate experience in smartphone options."