Samsung is rolling out a new update to its 2018 flagship, the Galaxy Note9. The update brings an updated UI as well as the latest security patch to the device.

The Galaxy Note9 is one of the phones that ran Samsung’s old Experience UI out of the box. However, it got the new One UI interface along with Android 10 a few months ago. This new update brings One UI 2.1, the version that shipped with the Galaxy S20 series, so owners should get some new features.

The update arrives as version N960FXXU5ETF5 with a file size of 1.25GB and has already begun rolling out to users in Germany. It has been reported that this version is for the international version of the phone that has the Exynos 9810 chipset powering it.

The changelog doesn’t say much but the update comes with June 2020’s security patch. The new features One UI 2.1 brings include Quick Share which is Samsung’s answer to Apple’s AirDrop. There is also Music Share which allows a friend’s phone to play audio to a speaker or headphones that is connected to your own phone without the need for the friend to connect directly to the speaker or headphones. Other features worth mentioning are a new UI for the camera app and Live Caption.

Do you own the Exynos 9810 version of the Galaxy Note9? You may want to check for the update over the next couple of days.

UP NEXT: Samsung patents a new clamshell-like dual folding smartphone design

(Source)

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DxOMark is known for its camera comparisons. However, for smartphones it has always been limited to just the rear cameras, leaving users to find out themselves which phone takes better selfies. Now, they have begun rating front-facing cameras and have released a list of the phones with the best selfie cameras.

According to the ranking, if you want to take the absolute best selfies, the Google Pixel 3 is the device you should go for. If you don’t like the Pixel 3, then you should choose the Samsung Galaxy Note9 as it has the same selfie camera score as the Pixel 3.

Xiaomi’s Mi MIX 3 comes in at the third spot with 84 points, a significant distance from the Pixel and Note, but if it is any consolation, it beats the iPhone XS Max and the Galaxy S9 Plus which come after it in that order. The second gen Pixel is sixth and DxOMark says it takes better selfies than Huawei’s 2018 flagships – the Mate 20 Pro and P20 Pro. The Galaxy S8 and the iPhone X also make the list of the top 10 selfie camera phones.

DxOMark says the rating is based on how well the phones perform while taking solo selfies, group selfies,  indoor and outdoor selfies, video recording, under natural light and much more before. So this isn’t just about pictures alone. So for example, the Galaxy Note9 is better at recording videos with the front camera than the Pixel 3.

READ MORE: Huawei Mate 20 Pro is now leading DxOMark along with P20 Pro with 109 score

Thinking out loud, do the Nubia X and Vivo NEX Dual Display get to enter as contenders for the selfie king since their rear cameras are actually also selfie cameras? Let us know what you think about the list in the comment box.

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Samsung has begun rolling out a new update to its latest flagship, the Galaxy Note9. The new update focuses on improving the camera performance of the device.

The update which comes in at about 300MB in size has started to hit devices in Germany and updates the firmware version to N960FXXU2ARI9. It also comes with September’s security patch. Below is the complete changelog for the update:

• Camera Picture quality has been improved.
• Brightness of faces in backlit conditions has been improved.
• Day/Night HDR control accuracy has been improved.
• Low light brightness and SNR (Signal Noise ratio) has been improved.

The Samsung Galaxy Note9 has a 6.4-inch 1440 x 2960 display, a Snapdragon 845 or Exynos 9810 chipset and up to 8GB of RAM. It also has up to 512GB of storage with the option to add more via a MicroSD card slot.

The phone has dual 12MP sensors on its back – one has a wide angle lens and an adjustable aperture (f/1.5 and f/2.4) while the other has a telephoto lens with a f/2.4 aperture. The front camera is an 8MP f/1.7 Autofocus sensor. The camera app has features such as scene optimizer, 960fps slow-motion recording, night HDR, portrait mode, and AR emojis.

READ MORE: Samsung SM-G6200 phone seen on TENAA, sports dual cameras

The Galaxy Note9 has a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and an Iris scanner. It also has a heart rate sensor, a USB Type-C port, audio jack, a 4000mAh battery and a Water Carbon Cooling system.

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Samsung‘s Galaxy Note7 fiasco is something Samsung has tried to put behind it. It has released four flagships after it and there have been no reports about fire issues or so we thought, until today. A report of a Galaxy Note9 catching fire has surfaced online.

The Galaxy Note9 of a New Yorker has been reported to have burst into flames in her purse. The lady who goes by Diane Chung, a Long Island resident and an estate agent, reported that the phone was very hot while she was using it on September 3 in an elevator.

She then decided to put it in her bag only to hear a whistling and screeching sound from her purse with thick smoke pouring out. She tried to empty the purse in the elevator, burning her hand in the process. The smoke from the phone filled the elevator until she was able to get the door open and kick it into the lobby. She said the phone was still burning until a good samaritan picked it up and dropped it into a bucket of water.

Ms. Chung has filed a lawsuit against Samsung and is requesting for an undisclosed amount in damages and a restraining order preventing the Galaxy Note9 from being sold.

READ MORE: Samsung schedules “4x fun” Galaxy event on October 11, could launch a phone with four cameras

This appears to be an isolated incident as Samsung says it has not received any other complaint so far. It has also begun an investigation into the matter according to a company representative.

(Source)

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As is the tradition with benchmark site AnTuTu, a list of the best smartphones in terms of performance has been released. This list is for the month of August and only covers Android devices.

At the top of the list is Xiaomi’s Black Shark gaming smartphone. The Snapdragon 845-powered device has an AnTuTu score of 292,887 points. The Black Shark packs 8GB of RAM but also has a 6GB variant. It uses liquid cooling to prevent the device from heating up when in use.

Next on the list is the Meizu 16th. This is Meizu’s latest flagship released in August and it’s interesting to see it close to the top on its very first appearance. Just like the Black Shark, it has a Snapdragon 845 processor under its hood and also uses liquid cooling tech. The Meizu 16th scored 291025 points – roughly 2000 less than the Black Shark. The bigger version, the Meizu 16th Plus has a higher score but didn’t make it to the list due to insufficient sampling according to AnTuTu.

Grabbing the third spot is Smartisan’s Nut R1 flagship with 289490 points. This is yet another interesting device from China and one that will likely not make it out of the country (officially).

The Vivo NEX with its pop-out front-facing camera is at the 4th position with 286,286 points while Xiaomi’s Mi 8 Explorer Edition follows closely with 286268 points. The OPPO Find X is sixth on the list with 285,344 points.

The OnePlus 6 is at the 7th position but may end up getting pushed down further next month when devices like the Meizu 16th Plus and the soon-to-be-announced Nubia Z18 make the list.

The Snapdragon 845 version of the Samsung Galaxy Note9 is at the 8th spot while the Mi 8 and Mi MIX 2S close the top ten list with 272,527 and 265,256 points respectively.

READ MORE: Vivo X23 appears on AnTuTu to confirm Snapdragon 670 processor, 8GB RAM

As you must have observed, all the devices on the list are powered by the same Qualcomm chipset. This should change by November when the Krin 980-powered Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro make the list.

Is your phone among the most powerful Android phones for August? Let us know in the comment box.

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Luxury phone styler, Cavier, is back with another device. This time it is the newly announced Samsung Galaxy Note9.

Caviar has named its newest creation the  Galaxy Note 9 Fine Gold Edition and it will leave a hole in your pocket. Not only does the phone have 1kg of pure gold instead of glass on its back, it also costs a fortune. Caviar has slapped a price tag of 3.87 million Rubles on this. That is almost $58,000 or €51,000. That price is for the 128GB version. Caviar says a 256GB version is available for 3.89 million Rubles (~$58,155/~€51,100) but the Galaxy Note9 only comes in 128GB and 512GB models, so we believe that is an error on their part.

Apart from the gold on the back, the internals of the phone remains the same as the regular one sold by Samsung. You get a 6.4” Super AMOLED display with a 1440 x 2560 resolution, an Exynos 9810 processor, and 6GB of RAM.

READ MORE: Samsung Galaxy J2 Core’ User Manual appears online

There are dual 12MP cameras on the rear with one having a variable aperture and the other having 2x optical zoom. The front camera is an 8MP sensor and there is Iris Scanning and face recognition. There are stereo speakers, a Bluetooth S-Pen and support for DeX mode via a USB-C to HDMI cable. It also packs a 4000mAh battery and runs Android 8.1 Oreo.

If you are interested in getting your hands on a unit, you can head to Caviar’s page and pre-order one for yourself.

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Is your phone on the list of YouTube Signature Devices? You should read on to find out.

YouTube has released a list of devices that are best for watching videos on its platform. The list is pretty short but includes the popular flagships from this year and the last.

Below is the list of YouTube’s signature devices:

1. Samsung Galaxy Note9
2. Samsung Galaxy S9
3. Samsung Galaxy S9+
4. Samsung Galaxy Note8
5. Samsung Galaxy S8
6. Samsung Galaxy S8+
7. OnePlus 6
8. Xiaomi Mi 8
9. Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
10. Sony Xperia XZ2
11. Sony Xperia XZ2 Premium
12. Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact
13. Huawei Mate 10 Pro
14. Google Pixel 2
15. Google Pixel 2 XL
16. Nokia 8 Sirocco
17. LG V30
18. HTC U12+

The above devices are said to support the following technologies – HDR, 360° video, 4K decoding, high frame rate, digital rights management performance and next-gen codecs like VP9.

READ MORE: Reports about Google’s return to China not true says China Securities Daily

So if your flagship phone isn’t on the list, it probably doesn’t have support for one or more of the above. This explains why there is no iOS device on the list. There also isn’t a tablet on the list.

(Source, Via)

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We are a few weeks away from the launch of the Galaxy Note9, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that there will be new leaks surfacing on the web. However, while some may be genuine, there will also be fake ones. A video has surfaced online and it shows the Galaxy Note9 getting unboxed. However, this unit is likely a fake.

The phone comes in a similar box as other Samsung flagships with the only difference being the specs of the phone and of course, the name of the device. On the rear of the sleeve, the specs are listed out.

It says the Galaxy Note9 has a 6.3” Quad HD+ sAMOLED display and measures 160.5mm (full rectangle). It also has Dual Pixel 12MP OIS + 12MP OIS rear cameras, an 8MP AF selfie camera, IP68 water and dust resistance, and an iris scanner. The variant in the box has 6GB of RAM and 64GB of built-in storage. It also supports wireless charging and comes bundled with AKG earphones.

Plastered on the front of the phone is a sticker that reads “Galaxy Note9”. The device isn’t turned on so we don’t get to see the UI. On the back, we can see the dual rear cameras, a LED flash, and a blood pressure sensor. There is also a fingerprint scanner below the setup. Samsung’s logo is inscribed in the middle, and at the bottom, there is Galaxy Note9, a CE marking, and other info such as where the phone was made. In this case, this unit was manufactured in Vietnam. Other items included in the box are a charger, two USB-C adapters, a pair of earphones, and a USB cable.

So how do we know this is fake? First, the sleeve case says this is a T-Mobile unit judging from the sticker at the bottom of the box’s outer sleeve. That sticker isn’t unusual but for Samsung phones sold by T-mobile, the box usually has T-Mobile written on it not just a sticker. For the Galaxy Note8, T-Mobile’s logo is printed on the back of the sleeve case where the specs are written and also on the sides.

READ MORE: Galaxy Tab S4 ditches fingerprint scanner for Iris Scanner and Intelligent Scan

Another thing is the accessories, actually the charger. The included charger in the box is not the type bundled with phones sold in the US. Other red flags are the sticker on the front of the phone and the markings at the bottom of the phone (usually doesn’t exceed Samsung’s logo and the model).

(Source, Via)

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