On August 9, the announcement of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 smartphone took place. First of all, let's say that there is no black version of the device. This was the second surprise of this announcement. The first surprise was the price. The device costs $ 1000 for the 128 GB version and $ 1250 for the 512 GB version. That's $ 100 more than the most expensive one, which has 256GB of storage. Thus, Android competes with Apple not only in quality but also in cost.
Otherwise, we got about what we expected. The stream of leaks and rumors was endless, it was difficult to surprise with something during the announcement. Everyone knew about the processors, the updated S Pen stylus, increased storage capacity and artificial intelligence inside the cameras. The Galaxy Note 9 is a descendant of the Galaxy Note 8 with the internal specs of the Galaxy S9 + and a more convenient fingerprint scanner placement.
The screen diagonal has grown by 0.1 inches, but you can hardly notice it. Rather, you will notice that the apparatus has become heavier. The Galaxy Note 8 was already one of the heaviest modern smartphones, but now the 200 BC barrier has been taken.
However, Galaxy Note models were never designed to be operated with one hand. There are no truly revolutionary new features or unexpected innovations found in previous generations of the Galaxy Note. Updates are still available here, but whether they are worth the money is another question.
Specifications
Video review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 phablet:
Computing power
Galaxy Note smartphones have always been aimed at advanced users. Galaxy Note 9 is needed for multitasking, when a person is trying to do everything at once. It's not hard to guess what components the flagship smartphone of 2018 contains at a price of $ 1000 or more.
Samsung has increased its base storage capacity from 64GB to 128GB. The most demanding users can opt for the 512 GB version. This is twice the maximum configuration of the iPhone X. In addition, the amount of RAM is 8 GB versus 6 GB in the base model.
The battery capacity is bumped up to 4000mAh, which means a 21% boost over the Galaxy Note 8 with a 3000mAh battery. It was the batteries that brought the Galaxy Note 7 2 years ago, which had to be withdrawn from sale and lost billions of dollars on it. In light of this, there is no doubt that the batteries have gone through the most rigorous testing and should not fail.
Samsung could have put a 3500mAh battery in and calm down on that, but the developers decided to act more boldly.
Autonomy is one of the main parameters of any mobile device. They are certainly more important than the improved AR Emoji that you can do without. The only small drawback can be called the work on Android Oreo, while the release of the final version of Android Pie has already taken place.
Cameras
The camera in this case differs in that there are no hardware changes at all. It is identical to the cameras on the Galaxy S9 + down to the smallest detail. Added only new doses of artificial intelligence in the form of scene optimization mode. Such systems are already common on many smartphones, such as Huawei Mate 10 Pro or. The results there vary, so you will need to check what the Samsung smartphone shows.
Samsung has set 20 different scenes such as food, sunrise, plants, etc. You need to point the camera lens at the object and the software will try to determine what is in the frame. Switching settings is quite fast, colors, contrast and white balance change. It will be necessary to test this possibility more fully, but at first glance there is nothing revolutionary here.
Stylus
Aside from the specs and all sorts of fancy software features, the main reason for buying a Galaxy Note is the S Pen stylus. Smartphones with a stylus can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Over the years, South Korean developers have made notable strides in integrating the stylus to interact with a smartphone. The Air Command menu and the ability to work with the screen off are unlikely to be found in competitors.
The stylus on the Galaxy Note 9 does not look different from what it was a year ago. Except for the new yellow color.
There are some changes. There is now support for the Bluetooth Low Energy communication standard, which makes it possible to use the stylus as a remote control. You can control your smartphone without touching it. It will be possible to start and pause video and audio, flip through photos in the gallery, show presentations, etc. At launch, the functionality is rather limited.
The stylus is charged when inserted into the smartphone, so no additional effort on the part of the user is required. True, the question arises, how many people need a stylus for remote work and how many will even know about this possibility. At least you can use the stylus to press the camera button, which is useful for taking selfies.
For those who like to listen to music, there are speakers with Dolby Atmos support; it will be easy to change tunes while lying on the couch away from the smartphone. Nice bonus, but not revolutionary.
Perhaps, over time, the stylus will learn new tricks. Samsung has released a development kit for third-party app creators. They will be able to implement new functionality into their programs. In just 40 seconds, the stylus is charged for half an hour of operation. The old stylus also works even when not charged.
Is the Galaxy Note 9 worth the price
The main accessory for productive work with the Galaxy Note smartphone is the DeX. The Galaxy Note 9 word can be connected to an external monitor, keyboard and mouse, but the $ 100 DeX accessory itself is no longer needed for this. A simple USB-C> HDMI adapter will do, so the prevalence of this type of work can be increased. Connect the adapter, turn on the keyboard, use your smartphone as a trackpad. Now all this is cheaper and more portable.
More recently, the Galaxy Tab S4 was introduced with the same capability. Obviously Samsung is serious about making sure its mobile device can be used for real work, not just entertainment.
Despite all the possibilities, the most stunning component of the Galaxy Note 9 is the price. Apple was the first to hit $ 1,000 per smartphone last year, but the iPhone X was the biggest iPhone change in years. You can't say that about the Galaxy Note 9. This is a smartphone with minimal changes compared to last year's Galaxy Note 8 and an already outdated operating system. In addition, there is no black color.
