Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is before us! As expected, the flagship phablet was unveiled during the Galaxy Unpacked event held in New York earlier today. The Note 9 was the main attraction of the event which also saw the launch of a new Galaxy home speaker and Galaxy Watch.
Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Design, Specs & Features
The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 bears a strong resemblance with last year’s Note 8 but it comes with a number of useful improvements that makes it worth buying. The rear design of the Note 9 is markedly different from the Note 8. It packs a horizontally aligned dual sensor with a dual-tone LED flash. This time around, the rear fingerprint sensor is placed under the dual cameras. Unfortunately, the device doesn’t feature an on-screen fingerprint sensor but the rear-mounted one is highly sensitive.
One of the upgrades is the bigger 6.4-inch Super AMOLED display with an 18:9 aspect ratio which is slightly bigger than the Note 8’s. The display shares the same 1440 x 2960 pixels resolution with the Note 8. The display is HD10 compliant and comes with support for Always On Display. This is further complemented with a massive 4,000mAh battery which is 20% bigger than the Note 8’s battery. The battery also supports fast charging.
The device is equally equipped with an Exynos 9810 chipset just like the Galaxy S9 and S9+. We also expect Samsung to release a Snapdragon 845-powered variant in some markets. The processor teams up with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage on the base model. The top end model comes with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of internal storage. Both storages can be expanded via the microSD card slot.
On the camera end, the Galaxy Note 9 sports a 12MP dual-aperture f/1.5-2.4 wide and 12MP f/2.4 telephoto cameras. Both sensors have Optical image stabilization (OIS) as well as Samsung’s new Intelligent Camera which enables the phone to detect scenes, optimize colors and contrast as well as detect flaws such as a smudgy lens or subject that has closed his eyes. The front camera is still an 8MP f/1.7 selfie snapper. Other features of the new Note 9 includes an IP68 water-resistant body and stereo speakers.
In addition, the Note 9 packs an improved S Pen which is the first Bluetooth-enabled digital pen. The S Pen can also be used as a remote shutter for the camera with a range of 10 meters and a battery power of about 30 minutes. The battery can also withstand up to 200 clicks and the S Pen now has support for three inputs; short press, long press and double press. It can be recharged in just 40 seconds by simply placing it in its holster cramp on the side of the phone.
Another upgrade on the Galaxy Note 9 is the DeX mode which has been updated. Users will no longer require a DeX Dock and a physical keyboard and mouse to utilise the mode. The Note9 can enter DeX mode through a single USB-C to HDMI cable and while in DeX mode, the phone is fully functional as a keyboard and trackpad.
Pricing and Availability
The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 will be available in four different colour variants; Ocean Blue, Midnight Black, Lavender Purple and a new Metallic Copper. As for the price, the 6GB+128GB Galaxy Note 9 variant costs $999 while the 8GB+512GB model will sell for $1,250. The device has gone on pre-order in the U.S, U.K and Germany. The sales will commence on August 24.
