7 Alternatives to the Samsung Galaxy Note7

Samsung is in deep trouble right now with the Galaxy Note7. Not only it has become a safety hazard, but the company is also stopping its sales globally. This is sad news for consumers who have bought the Note7 or those who are looking forward to upgrade. That said, our best option for now is to go for alternatives. Here are our top picks.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge

If you’re not willing to part with Samsung, the Galaxy S7 Edge is the next best option. It has a slightly smaller display at 5.5-inches, but with same QHD resolution so you have a higher PPI count. Camera specs are the same as well, 12MP with 1/2.5″ sensor size, OIS, and Dual Pixel Phase-Detect AF. The S7 Edge also has a slightly higher battery capacity at 3,600mAh.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge specs:
5.5-inch Super AMOLED Quad-HD display
2560 x 1440 resolution, 534ppi
Corning Gorilla Glass 4
Samsung Exynos 8890 64-bit octa-core CPU 2.6GHz
Mali T-880 GPU
4GB RAM
32GB, 64GB internal storage
up to 200GB via microSD (uses SIM 2 slot)
12MP Dual Pixel rear camera dual-tone, dual LED flash, f/1.7 aperture
5 megapixel front-facing camera with f/1.7 aperture
Dual SIM (hybrid), dual LTE
WiFi 802.11ac
Bluetooth 4.1
NFC
Fast Wireless Charging,
Fingerprint Scanner,
Heart-Rate Sensor
IP68 rating
Android 6.0 Marshmallow with TouchWiz
3,600mAh Li-Ion non-removable battery
150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm
157 g
Black and Gold

Huawei P9 Plus

Huawei’s P9 Plus is also an attractive offering considering that it also has the same storage and RAM – 64GB ROM, 4GB RAM. They also have the same camera resolution at 12MP but Huawei gets an extra point by having two Leica co-engineered rear cameras. So if you’re looking for something more camera- centric, this is one of the best options.

Huawei P9 Plus specs:
5.5-inch Full HD Super AMOLED display, 401ppi
HiSilicon Kirin 955 octa-core processor
4 x 2.5GHz Cortex-A72 + 4 x 1.8GHz Cortex-A53
Mali-T880 MP4 GPU
4GB RAM
64GB internal storage
up to 128GB via microSD, (uses SIM 2)
Dual SIM
4G, LTE
WiFi 802.11 ac, dual-band
Bluetooth 4.1
Dual 12-megapixel hybrid autofocus rear camera w/ dual-tone LED flash, Leica optics
8-megapixel autofocus f/1.9 front-facing camera
GPS w/ A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS
NFC
IR Blaster
USB Type-C
Fingerprint scanner
3,400mAh Li-Ion battery
Android 6.0 Marshmallow w/ Emotion UI 4.1
152.3 x 75.3 x 6.98 mm
162 grams

ASUS Zenfone 3 Deluxe

ASUS has a strong offering as well in the form of the Zenfone 3 Deluxe. They have the same screen-size as the Note7 at 5.7-inches but with Full HD resolution. It’s better than the Note7 in some aspects though like the 6GB RAM and higher camera resolution at 23MP with Laser and Phase-Detect AF with OIS. You can also opt for the Special Edition if you prefer a more powerful Snapdragon 821 CPU and 256GB of storage.

ASUS Zenfone 3 Deluxe (ZS570KL) specs:
5.7-inch Full HD Super AMOLED display, 386ppi
Corning Gorilla Glass 4
2.15GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 quad-core CPU
Adreno 530GPU
6GB RAM
64GB/128GB/256GB internal storage
up to 128GB via microSD (SIM 2 slot)
23MP rear camera w/ Laser & PDAF AF, 4-axis OIS, dual-LED flash
8MP front camera
4G LTE Cat.13
Dual-SIM
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth 4.2, A2DP
GPS, A-GPS
NFC
FM Radio
USB 3.0 Type-C
Fingerprint scanner
3,000mAh battery w/ Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0
Android 6.0 Marshmallow w/ ZenUI 3.0
156.4 x 77.4 x 7.5 mm
170 g
Glacier Silver, Titanium Gray, Shimmer Gold

LG V20

LG’s newest offering is the V20 and can match the Note7 in multiple aspects. That includes the 5.7-inch QHD display, 4GB RAM, and a 16MP rear camera with Hybrid AF. Other features include a secondary display, Snapdragon 820 CPU, 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC, and Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box. It is yet to arrive in the country so you might have to wait.

LG V20 specs:
5.7-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) IPS display, 513ppi
2.1-inch (160 x 1040) secondary display
Gorilla Glass 4
2.15GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 quad-core CPU
Adreno 530 GPU
4GB LPDDR4 RAM
64GB UFS ROM
up to 2TB via microSD
16MP (f/1.8 aperture, 75-degree lens) w/ OIS + 8MP (f/2.4 aperture, 135-degree lens) rear cameras, Hybrid AF (Laser Detection AF, Phase Detection AF, Contrast AF)
5MP front camera w/ f/1.9 Aperture (120-degree lens)
LTE-A 3 Band CA
X12 LTE (up to 600 Mbps LTE Category 12 with 3x Carrier Aggregation)
WiFi 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
NFC
Bluetooth 4.2 BLE
USB Type-C
Fingerprint scanner
High AOP Mic
32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC
B&O Collaboration for audio
Android 7.0 Nougat w/ LG UX 5.0+
3,200mAh removable battery w/ Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0
159.7 x 78.1 x 7.6mm
174g
Titan / Silver / Pink

Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus

One of Xiaomi’s latest smartphones is the Mi 5s Plus. This phablet packs a 5.7-inch Full HD display, dual 13MP rear cameras, and a 3,800mAh battery. It also comes in multiple configurations with varying RAM and storage – 4GB or 6GB RAM, and 64GB or 128GB ROM. It’s not officially available in the country but local online gadget stores like Widget City will offer this.

Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus specs:
5.7-inch Full HD IPS display, 386ppi
2.35GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 quad-core CPU
Adreno 530 GPU
4GB or 6GB RAM
64GB or 128GB internal storage
Dual 13 MP Sony rear camera w/ dual-tone LED flash
4MP front-facing camera
4G+
Wi-Fi 802.11ac
Bluetooth 4.1
GPS w/ A-GPS
NFC
USB Type-C
Fingerprint scanner
3,800mAh battery w/ Quick Charge 3.0
MIUI
154.6 x 77.7 x 8 mm
168 g

Google Pixel XL

If you can wait for it to be offered by online stores, Google’s flagship smartphone, the Pixel XL is a good choice. It has a 5.5-inch QHD display, Snapdragon 821 CPU, 4GB RAM, 32GB or 128GB of ROM, and a 12.3MP rear camera with Laser and Phase-Detect AF. It also has the latest Android 7.1 Nougat on board.

Google Pixel XL specs:
5.5-inch Quad HD AMOLED display, 534ppi
2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass 4
Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor
4GB LPDDR4 RAM
32GB/128GB
12.3MP rear camera (IMX179), 1.55?m, PDAF + LDAF, F2.0 aperture
8MP front camera, 1.4µm, F2.4 aperture, fixed focus
Single SIM
4G LTE
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2×2 MIMO
Bluetooth 4.2
NFC
Fingerprint sensor
USB Type-C
GPS, A-GPS
Splash and dust-resistant
3,450mAh battery with fast charging
Android 7.1 Nougat
154.7 x 75.7 x 8.5 mm
168 g

iPhone 7 Plus

Just in case you want to try a different ecosystem, you might want to start with Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus. It sports a 5.5-inch Full HD display, Apple 10 Fusion chip, 3GB RAM, dual 12MP rear camera, and a dust and water-resistant body.

Apple iPhone 7 Plus specs:
5.5-inch Retina HD display @ 1920×1080 pixels, 401ppi
Force Touch
Apple A10 Fusion chip 2.3GHz quad-core
3GB RAM
32GB, 128GB, 256GB internal storage
4G, LTE-A up to 450Mbps
Single-SIM (Nano)
WiFi 802.11ac with MIMO
Bluetooth 4.2
GPS with aGPS, GLONASS
NFC (Apple Pay)
Dual 12MP f/1.8 rear camera with OIS, six-element lens, flicker sensor, quad-LED TrueTone Flash
7MP Facetime Camera
Stereo Speakers
Fingerprint sensor
IP67 Water and Dust Resistance
Apple iOS 10
2,900mAh Li-Ion battery
158.2 x 77.9 x 7.3mm
188 grams

And that sums it up. If you have something to add to the list, feel free to comment below.