This year’s top-of-the-line smartphones has the new Samsung Galaxy Note10+ which is the latest Note as we know. It brings along the new features including the brilliant display with in-screen camera, the new S-Pen Air, as much as 12 GB RAM and quad cameras on board. Here’s the Samsung Galaxy Note10+ review.
Samsung Galaxy Note10+ Specifications
- Display: 6.8 inches AMOLED HDR+ display with 3040 x 1080 pixels screen resolution, 19:9 aspect ratio, 91% STB ratio, and Corning Gorilla Glass protection
- Software: Android 9.0 Pie with Samsung One UI
- Protection: IP68 Certified
- Fingerprint Scanner | Face Unlock: Yes, on the screen | Yes
- CPU: Samsung Exynos 9825 octa-core SoC
- GPU: Mali-G76 MP12
- Memory: 12 GB RAM
- Storage: 256 GB OR 512 GB, microSD card support (SIM2)
- Main Camera: Quad Cameras (12 MP + 12 MP + 16 MP + 3D TOF) 12-megapixel f/2.1 telephoto lens with optical image stabilization (OIS) and a 45-degree field-of-view + 12-megapixel wide-angle sensor with a variable aperture (f/1.4-f/2.4) and a 77-degree field-of-view, OIS + ultra-wide lens with a 123-degree field-of-view paired with a 16-megapixel f/2.2 sensor + ToF 3D Camera
- Selfie Camera: 10-megapixel f/2.2 camera with autofocus and an 80-degree field-of-view
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax (2.4/5GHz), Bluetooth 5.0 LE, GPS with with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, NFC, and USB Type-C port
- Other: Samsung DeX, Wireless PowerShare, AKG-tuned sound, Samsung Pay, Knox security features
- Colors: Aura Glow, Aura White, Aura Black, and Aura Blue
- Battery: 4300 mAh with 45W fast charging and Qi/PMA 20W wireless charging
- Price: ₹79,999 (256 GB), ₹89,999 (512 GB)
- Availability: 23rd August 2019
Design, Display, & Ergonomics
Compared to its predecessor, the Galaxy Note9, the Samsung Galaxy Note10 + is already on the ahead in terms of display, cameras, and a stronger battery.
The front and back are protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6 which looks pretty, but can get quickly greasy and fingerprints smudges. Also comes with the IP68 rating means the Note10+ is completely waterproof.
The Samsung Galaxy Note10+ has a large 6.8-inch dynamic AMOLED HDR10+ display with an in-screen selfie camera right at the top center. The screen, however, uses a QuadHD+ panel with 19:9 aspect ratio and 495ppi, covered by 2.5D curved glass.
The rear side has a quad-camera setup which features an ultra-wide-angle lens, telephoto lens, a 3D TOF camera and a lens for depth measuring capabilities.
You don’t get a 3.5mm jack anywhere on the phone, but who wants if you are already moved to the Type-C earphones or headphones. For those who still want a 3.5 mm jack, you need to get a 3.5mm adapter separately, Samsung fails to provide one in the box.
The top has a dual SIM tray with a microSD card slot on SIM2 for memory expansion. You can see the power button has an odd left placement instead of the right and volume control, the dedicated Bixby key is removed.
The Samsung Galaxy Note10+ offers all modern communication interfaces such as the Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, Ant+, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, and 2 Gbps Cat20 LTE. The Wi-Fi sometimes acts weak and leaves the network, this particularly occurs with every Samsung flagships, as far as I know, at least the OnePlus 7 Pro is far ahead.
Software, UI & Performance
The Galaxy Note10+ comes with the Android 9.0 Pie out-of-the-box with Samsung’s OneUI 1.5 interface. The security patch is dated 1st September 2019 which is the latest.
Aside from the Android features, the OneUI includes the Bixby Assistant, DeX compatibility, some preinstalled apps from Microsoft, Facebook, Netflix, Spotify and a bunch of apps from Samsung itself.
The Note10+ has native support for the S-Pen, the S-Pen has been extended by special gestures with which the Note10+ can be controlled without contact.
The Samsung Galaxy Note10+ is powered by the new Samsung Exynos 9825 with as much as 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB UFS 3.0 of internal storage.
The Exynos 9825 SoC consists of eight cores clocked at 2.73 GHz max, the performance is similar to the Snapdragon 855 SoC and it’s on the same league with the phones having the Snapdragon 855 CPU.
The Note 10+ is a really a powerful phone on paper but is certainly not as snappy or fluid as the OnePlus 7 Pro. However, the performance is really fast, the benchmarks indicate that the Note10+ is on the top all the competition.
For gaming, there’s the Mali-G76 MP12 GPU which is ideal for high-end gaming. PUBG, Asphalt 9: Legends, Injustice 2, throw any games and the Samsung Galaxy Note10+ runs on highest settings.
Cameras
Moving to the cameras which is one of the major highlights of this phablet, you will find quad cameras onboard. The quad cameras include a 12 MP (f/1.4 – f/2.4) main camera with a variable aperture and 77-degree field-of-view, 12 MP f/2.1 telephoto lens with optical image stabilization (OIS), 16 MP f/2.2 with a 123-degree FOV and OIS, and a ToF 3D Camera.
The camera has a new feature called Live Focus video which blurs the background and keeps the person or object in focus. Also, new to the camera is the S-Pen Air gestures which control the camera. Gram the S-Pen like a wand and do the wingardium leviosa to see the magic.
The camera launches by holding the S-Pen button for a long time. Swiping allows you to change the different modes of the cameras, and simply pressing the button clicks the image.
By circular movements, it is possible to zoom in both directions, which may require a little practice to work. A nice idea to add to the S-Pen features, however, if the perk is really practical is rather questionable.
The camera in a well-lit environment shows a good imaging performance with a high amount of sharpness in the image. The color representation is quite pleasing, but slightly far from a natural representation, the colors are displayed a tad bright and saturated.
I did have issues with the camera focusing, expecting it to be resolved in the next software upgrades. The overall performance of the camera is exceptionally strong, this can be a good pick for the camera enthusiasts.
Video capabilities include my favorite super slow motion 960fps, 4K at 60fps, and the wide-angle video with SuperSteady feature which acts as an action camera mode for video shooting.
Samsung Galaxy Note10+ Camera Samples
Battery Life
The Samsung Galaxy Note10+ offers a 4.300 mAh battery which is slightly better than its predecessor (4,000 mAh). This means the battery life will be a tad better than the Galaxy Note9, do note that this is the Plus version of the phone, the Galaxy Note10 offers yet a smaller 3,500 mAh battery which sounds a significant degrade as compared to the Galaxy Note9.
Anyways, as far as the battery life is concerned, it’s a flagship, you can expect it to run 1.5 days on moderate use. Charging is fast, the Note10+ ships with a fast charger rated 9V and 2.25A and charges in about 1 hour fully.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Note10+ offers a highly attractive package, shines out in every department. It leaves nothing to be desired, a lot is going with the Note10+ features, the unbeatable Super AMOLED curved display, top-notch performance with a whopping 12 GB of memory, its excellent quad cameras, and also brings along the new S-Pen Air gesture which is used to control the camera. Potential buyers should go for it if they don’t mind the little flaws such as the absence of 3.5mm port. Nevertheless, the Samsung Galaxy Note10+ is certainly the best note of all time.
Strength
- Eye-Candy Design | Solid Built Quality
- Full Screen Curved Display | Thin-bezels
- Excellent Dynamic AMOLED Display | Very High Brightness
- IP68 Rated – Dust & Water Resistance
- Reverse Wireless Charging
- Great Cameras – Live Focus Video, 960fps slow-motion, AR Emojis, HDR10+ recording
- Handy S-Pen Features
- Top-Notch Performance – Lots Of RAM
- On-screen Ultrasonic Fingerprint Scanner
- USB 3.1 & MicroSD Support
- Stereo Speakers
Weakness
- No 3.5 mm Audio Jack
- Hybrid SIM Tray
- Weak Wi-Fi Coverage
- Back Surface Is Fingerprint Magnet
