Samsung consistently pumps out phones with big, beautiful screens, powerful processors, and high-quality cameras. On paper, that seems amazing. These are best-in-class phones. Supercomputers in your pocket.
But for design snoots like me, it’s hard to see past all the plastic. Samsung phones may have those gorgeous displays — the best in the world, according to some experts — but they’re encased in cheap-feeling, creaky plastic. If the iPhone is a well-designed tool, then Samsung phones are plastic playthings.
Samsung’s newest phone, the Galaxy Alpha, is a response to all that design criticism. It’s Samsung’s first Galaxy phone to incorporate metal — an aluminum band with chamfered edges wrapped around the case.