Samsung has just released two of the most hyped phones of 2017, the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8 Plus. Not only are these the next-generation phones in the Android market, but they’re also an opportunity for Samsung’s biggest rival in the smartphone business, Apple. The iPhone has looked the same for three years in a row, while Samsung has iterated and improved its phones by leaps and bounds each year. So even before the new S8 and S8 Plus phones were released, the iPhone looked a bit dated. It’s not just the design, either. Samsung managed to make the S7 waterproof even with the 3.5mm headphone jack, while Apple’s claim that they had to get rid of the jack to give the iPhone 7 water resistance made it seem like Samsung had them outclassed in engineering. To make matters worse, Samsung’s new Galaxy flagships make even the iPhone’s design look dated. iPhones have never had the best screen-to-body ratios, with their huge chins and fronts on their phones, while Samsung has been working to reduce the bezels on its phones as much as possible for the past few years.

The end result is that the cases of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are barely bigger than the screen. The incredible 18.5:9 ratio display can take a bit of getting used to and apps and the operating system will have to adjust to make the most of all the extra space. Making it even worse, however, is that the latest Galaxy phones make the iPhone 7 look old-fashioned and outdated, a huge insult to a company that not long ago sued Samsung for copying its design language.

Too much screen to use safely?

Which brings us to the original question posed at the beginning of this article. Do the new Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus have too much screen? When we say too much screen, we mean too much to use and carry around in your hand and pocket without the certainty that it will destroy phones if you drop it even once. Also, if you use one of the many designer Galaxy S8 cases or S8 Plus covers that are available online from sellers, are you screwing up the most important feature? There are already literally thousands of designer cases available online for the new phones, even though the phones aren’t yet available worldwide.

Case makers even allow people to create a custom case for the Samsung phone they can’t even buy yet, in most countries. Buyers of Samsung’s latest flagship phones will have to decide for themselves whether they want to live life on the edge or protect their very expensive new phones with a protective case.