Samsung Galaxy J7 Max First Impressions: Decent addition to mid-range price segment

Samsung today announced the latest iteration of its mid-range Galaxy J series smartphones in the India market. The new devices- Galaxy J7 Max and Galaxy J7 Pro are priced at Rs. 17,900 and Rs. 20,900 respectively and will be available across retail stores starting June 20, 2017 while Galaxy J7 Pro will hit the stores mid-July onwards.

Samsung says that the new devices bring improvements in every aspect as compared to their predecessors. The enhancements come in the form of processing power, camera, display, design and software. Besides, users will also be able to use Samsung's Mobile payment service- Samsung Pay with the new Galaxy J devices.

While the Galaxy J7 Pro will come equipped with the same Samsung Pay service that was previously seen in company's flagship devices Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, the Galaxy J7 Max will feature the trimmed down version of the mobile payment service- Samsung Mobile Pay Mini.

At a price point of Rs. 17,900, the Galaxy J7 Max will have to compete with the Nokia 6, Nubia Z17 Mini, Gionee A1, Honor 8 Lite and selfie-centered Android handsets from OPPO and Vivo. Let's find out more about the Galaxy J7 Max in the first impressions of the handset.

Design and Display: Familiar Samsung design packing a large Full HD screen

The new Galaxy J series handsets are quite sleek and appealing, especially when you take a look at the rear panels of the smartphones. The 13MP camera module is placed in the center along with a LED flash light. The matte finish surface will prevent smudges and offers a good feel in hand.

The Galaxy J7 Max iscrafted with a metal unibody it indeed feel premium. However, the Galaxy J7 Max does not feel as robust and durable as the recently launched Nokia 6 does. Nokia 6 is crafted out of precision-milled aluminum and is by far the most durable and appealing handset in sub Rs. 15K price point.

Galaxy J7 Max sports a large 5.7-inch full HD display making it perfect for video playback and browsing but not for one-hand usage. Thankfully the buttons are placed ergonomically for easy handling.

The display offers 1080p resolution and seems to offer a good level of brightness. We did not get a chance to test the screen performance in outdoor condition which will be evaluated in our comprehensive review of the handset in the coming weeks.

Camera: Good camera hardware with some nifty software tweaks

Samsung is offering a 13MP primary camera with f1.7 aperture and a 13MP front camera with f1.9 on the Galaxy J7 Max. We took some shots with the primary camera and the results were satisfactory. We will test the camera in different light conditions while reviewing the handset to give our final verdict on the camera performance.

In addition to a decent camera hardware, Samsung is also offering some noticeable software enhancements with the new Galaxy J series devices. The cameras on both the smartphones will allow users to instantly edit and share the pictures they capture. You can pin your favorite contacts and social media within the camera and can apply live filters or live stickers before sharing the pictures on social media apps.

Besides, the cameras on new Galaxy J series handsets also come equipped with instant discovery feature, which basically activates the augmented reality mode to allow users to discover their surroundings for popular photography spots, restaurants and shopping areas.

Processor and RAM: Octa-core CPU and ample RAM to multitask

The underlying hardware is pretty much at par with other smartphones selling in the sub Rs. 20K price segment. Galaxy J7 Max is powered by a 1.6 GHz Octa-core MediaTek processor. The smartphone has 4GB of RAM to address multitasking. Running multiple applications on the handset will not be a problem as there's ample amount of RAM.

However we have to evaluate the processing power of MediaTek CPU and its ability to handle multiple apps simultaneously to come out with a final answer on the real-life usage of the handset.

You can also check our first impressions of Nubia Z17 Mini that offers 64 Bit Octa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor and 4GB RAM at Rs. 19,999. The smartphone performed really well in our initial tests and will give a tough fight o Galaxy J7 Max.

Software: Android 7.0 Nougat and Samsung pay Mini

Samsung has become quite focused on the software part lately and is offering Android Nougat out-of-the box with the latest Galaxy J7 handsets. The Galaxy J7 Max runs Android 7.0 and the user interface resembles the look and feel of the recently launched Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+.

The smartphone also offers company's mobile payment service- Samsung Pay Mini, which is designed to cater to the requirements of Indian mid segment consumers by providing a comprehensive platform for UPI and e-wallets. Samsung Pay Mini will be launched first on Galaxy J7 Max and will be made available on select existing J series devices shortly.

Battery, Storage and Connectivity

The Galaxy J7 Max is backed by a 3,300mAH battery unit and has 32GB internal memory which can be expanded by up to 256GB via microSD card. The smartphone supports 4G VoLTE, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and GPS, dual-SIM as connectivity features.

Conclusion

Samsung Galaxy J series has been well received by consumers in the mid-range segment and the new Galaxy J7 Max can be a good option for consumers who are looking for a big-screen device with good camera hardware.

The smartphone has a premium design, decent hardware and offers the latest Android 7.0 Nougat with the useful Samsung Mobile Pay service. We will evaluate its full potential in our comprehensive review of the handset in the coming weeks. Stay tuned on GIZBOT.