Alaxy J7 is one of the better phablets of the bunch. Think of it as a bigger, more powerful version of the entry-levelGalaxy J3, boasting the latest Android software, agood processor, and an attractive display. It also comes with some relatively rare features for a midrange phone, like dual-band Wi-Fi and NFC for mobile payments. It’s a solid option for if you’re looking for a capable phablet that won’t break the bank.Design, Features, and DisplayMeasuring in at 6.0 by 3.1 by 0.3 inches ( HWD) and 6.0 ounces, the J7is basically a bigger version of the J3( 5.6 by 2.8 by 0.3 inches, 4.9 ounces) , which in turn resembles theGalaxy S4. The phone has Samsung’s standard design language, including two capacitive controls and a physical home button on the front, a band of faux-chrome plastic along the sides, and a back made of sturdy white polycarbonate. The J7 is about the same size as the stylus-equippedLG Stylo 2( 6.1 by 3.1 by 0.3 inches, 5.1 ounces) , though nearly an ounce heavier. It’s a bit of a stretch to use one-handed, but the relatively slim build make it easy to grasp and slip in your pocket.View All8Photos in GalleryOn the rightsideyou’ll find a power button, and there’s a volume rocker on the left. A 3.5mm audio jack andmicro USBport sit on the bottom. The back is removable; peeling it off gives you access to the replaceable battery anda SIMcard slot. There’s also a microSD card slot, which worked with a200GB SanDiskcard. Samsung disables moving apps to internalstorage for Marshmallow devices, but you can store music, images, and videos on a card.Samsung has long excelled at making quality display panels, and the J7 is no exception. It has a bright 5.5-inch, 1, 280-by-720-pixel Super AMOLED screen. That 720p resolution is lower than I normally prefer on a phone this size, but its pixel density is still fairly strong—267 pixels per inch ( ppi) , crisper than the 5.7-inch Stylo 2( 258ppi) . Icons and graphics look sharp, viewing angles are great, and the screen iseasily usable outside, thanks to Outdoors mode, which kicks upmaximumbrightness.Network Performance and ConnectivityBoost Mobile is one of Sprint’s low-cost arms, so you’ll find network performance is identical on both carriers. The J7 supports LTE bands 2/4/5/12/25/26/41. Sprint hasn’t had the best data speeds, butour latestFastest Mobile Networkstests show the provider is making a major comeback, with faster download and upload speeds than ever. Unfortunately, I didn’t experience these improved speeds while testing in midtown Manhattan. For the most part, downloads and uploads remained in the single digits, but that’s in line with other Sprint phones we’ve tested in the same area.Voice calls areclear, but have a harsh robotic edge, which makes conversations a bit unpleasant. On the plus side, earpiece volume is loud and noise cancellation is good at blotting out background sound.Rare for a midrange phone, the J7 has dual-band Wi-Fi and NFC. The former makes for improved Wi-Fi performance, while the latter allows you to use Android Pay and other payment services.See How We Test Cell PhonesProcessor, Battery, and CameraThe J7 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor clocked at 1.4GHz. It scored a solid 33, 107 on the AnTuTu benchmark, which tests overall system performance. That’s a lot better than the Snapdragon 410-powered Stylo 2 ( 26, 822) and the Exynos 3475-powered Galaxy J3 ( 17, 284) . Performance is smooth when it comes to launching apps and multitasking. I didn’t notice any slowdown even with several apps running in the background; with 2GB of RAM, you’re not likely to hit the RAM usage limit.High-end games like Asphalt 8 and GTA San Andreas play smoothly, with minimal control latency.Battery life is also good. The J7 clocked 6 hours and 21 minutes in our rundown test, in which we set screen brightness to maximum and stream full-screen video over LTE. That’s about the same as you’ll get with the Stylo 2 ( 6 hours, 6 minutes) , though the smaller Galaxy J3 outstrips both with an impressive 9 hours and 27 minutes. In any case, all day usage isn’t a problem, and you can always swap out theremovable battery. Camera performance isn’t as strong. The 13-megapixel rear sensor is capable of taking clear shots, especially outdoors, butit often loses fine details like individual branches and tree leaves. Taking a pictureof several intricate objects, like a row of bushes, resulted in the closest bush appearing finely detailed, but those in the middle of the shot or off to the side lookednoisy. Color reproduction also tends to vary dramatically. Outside, colors like reds and greens tend to take over, while indoors colors are more accurately represented. On the plus side, 1080p videorecords at a steady 30fps. And the 5-megapixel front-facing camera takes good, crisp shots in all but low-light settings.Software and AppsThe J7 joins the growing rank of new phones shipping with the latest Android 6.0.1Marshmallowsoftware. You’ll find Samsung’s TouchWiz UI extensions running on top, which brings a number of visual changes including custom app icons, an altered notification shade, and a different settings menu.There’s also some custom features like the aforementioned Outdoors mode, a Theme Selector ( which is self-explanatory) , and a Smart Manager, which cleans up used space and background processes. Two particularly useful features include Power Saving mode, which reduces performance and turns off network connectivity to sip battery, and Ultra Power Saving mode, which sets the phone to black and white.