The Samsung Galaxy S8 Active is Samsung’s latest in its Active lineup of rugged, high
powered smart phones.
It features a beautiful 5.8” super amoled display, a monstrous 4000mAh battery, and
a high end 12 megapixel camera.
What makes this phone different than the Samsung Galaxy S8?
Is it worth an upgrade from the S7 Active?
All that and more is coming right up.
Physically, the Samsung Galaxy S8 Active is a nice change of pace from the all glass phones
we see today.
It has a true industrial feel to it with the rubberized corners around the edges that are
sure to bear the brunt of a drop.
While most rugged phones will be overly hefty, thick, and aesthetically unpleasing, I’m
actually enjoying the heavier phone.
At 7.34 oz or 208 grams, the Galaxy S8 Active feels tough, and uncompromising in its form.
There’s a reason why we haven’t seen any bend test videos done on the S8 Active, and
that’s because it’s a solid and sturdy phone.
The Active comes in two different colors, this one of course is the titanium gold model
and it can also be picked up in meteor grey.
The S8 Active is an AT&T exclusive so I’ll have a link in the description to AT&T.
Just like the Galaxy S8 and S8+ the Active is IP68 certified which means it can withstand
up to five feet and 30 minutes of immersion in water.
Now I decided to put the Galaxy S8 Active up to the test against my water faucet and
as you can see here it fairs perfectly fine after getting doused in water.
I didn’t even have to dry the screen off to begin using the phone again so that was
a real surprise.
With the IP68 certification does come lackluster speaker quality, so while you’re getting
a huge lifesaver in water resistance, you’ll have to weigh that pro with the subpar speaker
quality
On the back of the Active you’ll see the camera and fingerprint sensor.
The fingerprint sensor works fine for me, but I never actually used it because it’s
in such an awkward position.
On the left of the S8 Active is the volume rockers and bixby button which are both very
clicky and solid.
Bixby is Samsung’s new virtual assistant which can open apps, check the weather, and
even open the last picture you took.
Immediately after the water test I began asking Bixby what the weather was like, to open the
calculator app, and it worked perfectly.
In addition to bixsby Samsung has an iris scanner which you can use to unlock your device
instead of using facial recognition, the fingersprint scanner, or a pattern.
Although other S8 users have expressed their dissatisfaction, I’ve actually found it
very useful.
Over on the right side of the Active is the power button and up top is the sim and memory
card slot.
On the bottom of the device you’ll find the headphone jack, usb c fast charging port,
and the speakers.
The Galaxy S8 Active has a gorilla glass display, and over it is a built in plastic screen protector
that should help protect from scratches, dings, and dents.
The S8 has the same beautiful, hifh resolution display as the Samsung Galaxy S8, so you can
rest easy knowing that you’re getting probably the best screen on the market.
The Active lineup targets a more specific niche of people in the smart phone market
and one thing these fans are disappointed about is the lack of physical buttons, and
I can completely understand where these folks are coming from.
If you have dusty or grimy hands, it’s much more reliable to have physical buttons than
on screen touch buttons.
However, one benefit to the lack of physical buttons is that there’s much more on screen
real estate when viewing the phone in landscape and playing games.
With its octa-core snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of RAM, Adreno 540 GPU the Galaxy S8 Active
is a high-performance phone.
Sure, a lot of these specs today might be overkill, but the Active is snappy and quick.
Playing games like modern combat 5 results in zero lag whatsoever, which is very impressive.
This year Samsung has outfitted the S8 Active with 64GB of storage, which is a big upgrade
from the 32GBs on its previous iteration.
For those who need even more storage though, the Active has a microSD card slot which has
expendable storage up to 256GBs.
If you’re interested in any microsd cards ranging from a couple giga bytes to 256GBs,
I’ll have some links in the description.
The Galaxy S8 Active rocks a 12 mega pixel camera which is the same as those on the S8
and S8 plus.
Needless to say, it’s probably the best on the market today.
Samsung has a plethora of modes to choose from like pro which is manual, selective focus,
panaroma, slow mototion, and even food, which is new from last year.
Up to this point, the only difference between the S8 Active and the S8 have been in the
protective screen layer and the build quality.
Where the Active shines is in its battery life.
The S8 Active has a monstrous 4,000mAh battery.
To put that into perspective, the normal S8 only has a 3000mAh battery.
So for those of you adventurers going camping, hiking, or even for folks who are heavy power
users, the S8 Active is a great option.
As always though, Samsung has it’s fast charging which is always a life saver for
when you forget to charge your phone.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 Active shines with its beautiful amoled display, stellar battery
life, and high end camera quality.
Now, should you buy it?
If you’re looking for high end phone with a rugged build, or just don’t want to a
phone you’ll need to wrap in bubble wrap, I think you found your choice.
To pick up a new Samsung Galaxy S8 Active, be sure to check out the link in the description
below to AT&T, and thanks for watching.