Samsung Notes, what is this program and is it needed on the phone? Meet the huge Samsung Galaxy Note9. The most autonomous smartphone of all Samsung Galaxy Note9 Specifications

Today we'll look at the new Korean Samsung phablet Galaxy Note 9: what is it good for, what interesting things does it offer and who might need it? And most importantly, is the price of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 adequate for all its capabilities?

Let's talk about prices right away.

I have a 6/128 GB version for review, which costs 69,990 rubles. There is also an older model, with 8/512 GB of memory - it will cost 89,990 rubles. Otherwise, the models are identical, so let's move on to the review.

Equipment

In appearance, an ordinary small box contains a bunch of additional gadgets that will really be useful to the user. Let's start with the standard set: power supply, cable USB Type-C and a key for the SIM / SD card tray.

Next come the headphones with an additional set of pads and a holder. What was included with them was not a case and film, but an OTG adapter and an additional adapter from Micro USB to USB Type-C. In general, as is the case with .

For the set - a solid five.

Design

I received a device with a blue body. Galaxy Note 9 looks strict and intelligent, like a business-class device, which is what it was intended to be. At the back you can find many differences from the same. Everything here is very symmetrical: a rectangular camera window, under it is an almost rectangular fingerprint scanner, below is a logo, and all this is aligned in the center - it looks neat, beautiful, and pleasant to look at.

The front panel is no less pleasing to the eye. First of all, the complete absence of side frames and the display creeping onto the edges of the case. Actually, as in original Galaxy S9. I have only one complaint - about the chin. I understand that it is not that wide, but still 70,000 rubles...

Along the edges of the case, the same arrangement of elements as in : on top is the tray, on the right is the power button, on the left is the Bixby button and volume rocker, on the bottom is the headphone jack, the USB Type-C port and... that’s the only difference. Special compartment for the S Pen stylus. We will talk about this magic pen below.

A little about the additional Bixby button, which launches the intelligent assistant. At first, there is a risk of confusing it with the power button, because it is usually located under the volume control. But the confusion for me personally did not last long; already on the second day I got used to the arrangement. Probably because the power button is on the right side, and it’s very convenient to press it with your right thumb. Personally, I did not make a mistake and did not press Bixby by accident, but this option is possible, we mean it.

By the way, it doesn’t hurt to protect your smartphone with a case or film. The device came into my hands with a couple of scratches on the front and back; I left a couple more on the screen, although I used it as carefully as possible. So it’s scary to even think about falling. Traces will certainly remain, and perhaps not weak ones.

True, dropping the Note 9 on the floor is surprisingly not so easy. Surprisingly, despite its considerable dimensions, the smartphone has good ergonomics. It is comfortable to hold and does not slip out of your hands. Yes, it’s difficult to reach the top of the screen with one hand, but the screen is large and very cool.

Display

I remember recently in some foreign news source I saw material that the Galaxy Note 9 - best screen for now. Of course, I haven’t held every smartphone in the world in my hands and I can’t personally compare it, but I still agree with this judgment without hesitation.

The smartphone has an incredibly clear and colorful display.

It’s a pleasure to look at such a huge screen. The colors are very saturated, but they are not dazzling and do not irritate the eyes. The picture is smooth, playful, just a sight for sore eyes. Temperature and contrast, of course, can be adjusted in the settings.

You can also choose one of the proposed display options: for example, with one click you can configure the display for games or videos.

It is also possible to change the screen resolution, and there are three resolutions to choose from: HD+ (1480 x 720), FHD+ (2220 x 1080, default) and WQHD+ (2960 x 1440).

Display settings

Setting the resolution

Always-On-Display

What about auto brightness? Everything is fine with it, auto-adjustment works quickly and does not slow down when the lighting changes. The maximum brightness level in the sun is quite enough. And the minimum one drops low enough to make it comfortable to look at the phone in complete darkness. The viewing angles are also excellent.

In general, from Samsung display Galaxy Note 9 does not want to be put down. It’s a pleasure to watch movies, play games, and even read books.

S Pen stylus

Perhaps this is the most controversial aspect of the Galaxy Note 9. If only because the stylus has long become an atavism and an extremely specialized tool: it is probably most needed by designers and artists. But Samsung decided to improve and thereby popularize the wand. I think they succeeded.

Now the S Pen is as close as possible to a real pen, only smaller in size. In my case it is yellow.

A quick technical note: the S Pen charges directly in the smartphone body in 40 seconds, and then works continuously for about half an hour.

There is one single button on the body that performs a bunch of functions. For example, using the stylus you can fully control the camera, flip through photos, control music and the browser. Moreover, the button is customizable, that is, the functionality can be completely changed to suit your needs.

Later, more and more applications will begin to support the functionality of the stylus - developers will receive the corresponding API.

The S Pen is also good for entertainment. For example, Samsung’s proprietary PENUP coloring game is very addictive, where you just need to use the stylus (third screenshot). The only question is whether this fun is worth as much as 70 thousand, at best.

So, thanks to the S Pen, the smartphone offers very interesting functionality - but not useful or necessary for everyone. And all these features add a considerable share to the price of the device. So before buying, you should think about whether you need all this?

Specifications Samsung Galaxy Note 9

Now let’s take a closer look at what the smartphone has under the body. By the way, if you want to compare the new product with last year’s Samsung Galaxy Note 8 in all respects, then. Here we will focus on the hero of our review.

• Samsung processor Exynos 9810 (10 nm, 4 Custom CPU cores at 2.9 GHz and 4 Cortex-A55 cores at 1.9 GHz) / Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 (SDM845, 8 Kryo 385 cores at 2.8 GHz)
• graphics Mali-G72 MP18 / Adreno 630
• RAM 6/8 GB LPDDR4
• physical memory 128 / 512 GB
• support Micro SD up to 512 GB
• 6.4-inch display with a resolution of 2960 x 1440 pixels (WQHD+, Super AMOLED, 516 ppi)
• dual main camera:
• 12 MP (main, f/2.4, optical stabilization, optical zoom x2 + digital zoom x10)
• 12 MP (wide angle, Super Speed Dual Pixel, automatic aperture f/2.4 / f/1.5, optical stabilization, optical zoom x2 + digital zoom x10)
• front camera 8 MP (f/1.7)
• battery 4000 mAh (wireless + fast charging QC 2.0)
• Android system 8.1 Oreo + Samsung Experience proprietary shell
• sensors: accelerometer, barometer, gyroscope, compass, Hall sensor, heart rate monitor and pressure sensor, proximity sensor, RGB sensor, iris and fingerprint scanner
• Connectors: USB Type C (with OTG support), 3.5 mm audio output
• Dimensions: 161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8 mm, weight 201 g
• S Pen dimensions: 5.7 x 4.35 x 106.37 mm, weight 3.1 g
• IP68 protection

Wireless interfaces:

• 4G LTE Cat. 18 (lanes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41)
• two Nano SIM cards
• Wi-Fi (802.11 a / b / g / n / ac), Bluetooth 5.0, MU-MIMO, NFC, GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou

We are offered three types of unlocking at once: by finger, by face and even by iris. They all work quickly and accurately. There was never a failure, not even once. The only drawback: the fingerprint scanner itself is a little small and awkwardly shaped, so sometimes your finger just doesn’t fit.

It's good to see that the 3.5mm audio output is still there. Although this was expected, because it was also present in S9 and S9+. But I still note that I personally am always pleased to see the headphone jack in place.

The tray, unfortunately, is combined, so we choose: either two SIM cards, or a SIM card and a memory card. True, if there is 512 GB in the older version, you can sacrifice additional storage. But it depends on who.

Performance

The speed and smoothness of the interface is excellent. No glitches, no freezes, nothing negative. You don’t even need to mention this, because what problems could there be for that kind of money? True, sometimes flagship devices suddenly begin to behave incorrectly in places, but the Galaxy Note 9 copes with a bang.

In synthetic tests, the device lags not only behind a dozen devices, but even behind the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+. True, it lags behind quite a bit, because the hardware of all three brothers is almost identical (if we take Exynos devices, which we sell).

But let's move on to games, this will be more revealing. Here the smartphone is expectedly good.

PUBG Mobile works exclusively on maximum settings. Nothing freezes or slows down, only a couple of times the game jerked slightly, barely noticeable. After 35 minutes of playing, the device warmed up noticeably - up to 37.4 degrees (according to CPU-Z). Statistics say that 4% of the charge was consumed in half an hour, but in reality 11% was consumed.

And after an hour of playing World Of Tanks, the device lost only 10% of energy and heated up to the same temperature as in the case of PUBG. The toy also runs at the highest settings, without a single lag at 60 FPS.

Camera

Filming at the highest level.

The automatic mode produces stunning images, adequate in color and saturation, detailed and clear. The dual 12-megapixel module with an optical stub does its job perfectly. Below is a gallery of photographs taken indoors and outdoors:

By the way, it will be very useful to study all the photos on your computer in the original resolution. Here is a link to the archive.

The HDR mode most often does not play any role; the automatic camera copes perfectly with the light and shadows in the picture without it. HDR can be useful, for example, when there is a heavily illuminated area (the wall of a building):

It can also be a good idea to turn on HDR in rooms with low light. But, again, the difference is minimal:

So you can safely set the Auto HDR mode so that the smartphone decides when to use it. Yes, and manually switching it is inconvenient, because there is no button placed on the main screen of the camera; for it you have to go into the settings.

To enlarge the image there is a double optical zoom. There is already a convenient button for it in the lower right corner of the screen, so the increase can be done very quickly. And the quality of such a photo is almost as good as a regular photograph without zoom:

As for night photography, there are no night modes here. There is only a variable aperture, which selects light sensitivity independently depending on the lighting. You can learn more about this feature.

In the meantime, let's look at examples of pictures at night:

I also tried to use the mentioned zoom at night, the result was excellent:

The front camera is 8 megapixel. It allows you to blur the background, take panoramic selfies, and also create your own masks and Animoji or use ready-made ones. At night, the front sensor also takes good pictures using the on-screen flash: the person in the frame turns out to be clear, but the surroundings are a little blurred.

I took a lot of photos, and the result was the same everywhere. So this point was underdeveloped, and it unpleasantly spoils the generally cool front camera.

Video

The smartphone can record video in 4K format (60 frames per second). The quality is incredibly cool, but stabilization does not work here, so the picture shakes slightly. But not critical. But there is simply a 4K Ultra HD format, without 60 FPS, and there the stabilization already works as it should, leveling the picture. The quality is great both there and there. Let's watch both videos and compare.

There is also a slow motion option. The manufacturer indicates that recording occurs at a speed of 960 frames per second. And the smartphone says that only with 480 fps. Moreover, there are two modes: “auto”, where the camera itself detects a moving object, and “manual” mode, where everything falls on the user’s shoulders. So, for “manual” the speed is 480 fps, but for “auto” nothing is indicated at all. So it’s unclear exactly what parameters the smartphone uses to record slow-motion video.

Sound

In the original headphones included in the kit, as well as in good third-party “ears”, the sound quality is excellent. The lows and highs are in place, there are no wheezing or noises. The software does not provide a native player, so I tested everything in AIMP. And listening to music on headphones definitely made me happy.

But the external speaker seemed hoarse to me. Although the smartphone has two stereo speakers, top and bottom, and this stereo really makes the sound spacious and cool. But the speaker itself wheezes and spoils the impression. This is heard most clearly at maximum music volume.

For the external speaker - put a minus.

But watching movies or videos in stereo is a pleasure, where sound problems are invisible and seem to be absent altogether.

Autonomy

The smartphone gave a decent result battery life with your own screen and hardware.

In total, taking into account the full load (games, music, camera, GPS, contactless payment, e-reader, calls, Internet, social networks), the device worked from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

For the first half of the day, I almost didn’t let go of the phone, and even if I put it aside, it still had music playing. As a result, by 15:00 half the battery remained, the screen worked for almost 4 hours. Later, towards evening, the mode was more gentle, the display lit up less often. By 21:00 there is 15% charge left. After a couple of hours, the smartphone almost died.

The total screen operation was 7 hours for the whole day.

With such a large screen with a very high resolution, with a ton of active functionality and really powerful hardware, I think this is a good indicator. It’s definitely enough for an active work day or a long walk while photographing the area.

But charging raises questions.

More precisely, charging technology. Samsung, why Quick Charge version 2.0? Why is it when all new devices over the past couple of years have already installed QC 3.0 and even QC 4.0? And for some reason the premium Korean flagship, for a lot of money, makes do with the old version, which is inferior both in speed to the new ones and in terms of safety for the battery itself (in case of overheating, for example).

Of course, this affects charging time. To fully replenish the battery capacity from the original unit (5V / 2A), the smartphone needs two hours. Yes, the battery is rather large, 4000 mAh, but the normal indicator in this case is an hour and a half. The difference is small, but it is there, and this is thanks to the outdated QC 2.0.

Bottom line

After using the device for a long time, I realized that it would be impossible to say anything definitive about the Samsung Galaxy Note 9.

Firstly, because you can’t call it an absolutely perfect smartphone: there are problems with the speaker, a front camera bug (background blur), strange technical aspects"fast charging" type. Of course, against the background of other advantages, these are trifles, but I would like to see a device in this price segment impeccable.

Secondly, I personally have a serious question regarding who can I recommend a smartphone to? On the one hand, business and creative people who are often forced to use it for work purposes. On the other hand, the device is also suitable for the average user, because the Koreans have made the same stylus a universal tool that can now help in everyday life (let’s take remote control of a camera or music, for example).

Yes, our hero has a stylus and a cool variable aperture. But the S Pen for the average user is more like just a toy, and such an aperture is also available in , which costs a little, but is still cheaper. At the same time, it offers almost everything the same, and according to statistics it turns out to be even more productive.

As for professional purposes such as drawing or working with documentation, the Galaxy Note 9 seems more suitable option. First of all, as a compact device that offers little more than a regular smartphone. The problem is that all this is very subjective: it will suit some people, it will be inconvenient for others, it’s a matter of taste and preference. So it’s also impossible to count on a specific audience.

This is how controversial the new Korean flagship of the Note line turned out to be. What do you think about him?

The flagship Galaxy Note line has always been something unique and aimed primarily at creative people, which are assisted in their work by a stylus and powerful phone hardware. Formally, it was this line that set the trend for the use large screens in phones, which in practice turned out to be very convenient, especially now when frames around the entire perimeter are reduced to a minimum. Thanks to this, the largest display can be built into a compact body that will be convenient to use.

Detailed Samsung review Galaxy Note 9 revealed that new smartphone comes with an improved S Pen stylus that enhances its use. Many manufacturers have tried to copy the stylus and remake it in their own way, but no one has yet managed to create something even remotely close in its capabilities. In this regard, Note series phones have always been in demand among creative people, artists and those who are used to taking text notes or handwritten sketches.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 has become larger in size and received updated hardware, which gives it a performance boost compared to. Another important advantage is 512 GB of internal memory, which is enough to store any user information, be it high-quality movies or games. The camera has also improved, but where would we be without this, because this is one of the main factors when choosing a flagship in 2018.

There is a dual 12 megapixel module installed at the back, which, as in the case with, allows you to change the aperture depending on lighting conditions. At the same time, Note 9 has learned to record slow-motion videos at 960 frames per second, which allows you to capture the brightest moments of your life. Everything is good with technical characteristics, although the version with the Exynos processor is still supplied to Europe and Russia, which, although it produces good results in synthetic tests, in real use behaves much worse than the Snapdragon 845. I was also pleased with the battery capacity - 4000 mAh, which is what it should be enough for even the most demanding users, but let's review the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and see if this is so.

Specifications:

• Body: metal and glass
• SIM card: 2 SIM cards/Nano-SIM
• operating system: Android 8.1
• Screen: 6.4 inches / Quad HD+ 2960 x 1440 pixels / aspect ratio 18.5:9 / 514 pixels per inch display
• S Pen: yes
• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 or Samsung Exynos 9810 depends on region
• GPU: yes
• Main camera: dual 12 MP + 12 MP/ f/1.5 and f/2.4 aperture/ autofocus/ flash/ optical stabilization
• Front camera: 8 MP
• Video camera: recording video in 4K format with a resolution of 3840 x 2160 pixels
• Memory: 128 GB/ 512 GB
• RAM: 6 GB/ 8 GB
• Memory card: MicroSD up to 512 GB
• Battery: 4000 mAh / non-removable / Qualcomm Quick Charge 4 / wireless charging support
• Talk time: up to 22 hours
• Wi-Fi: yes
• Wi-Fi Direct: yes
• Wi-Fi access point: yes
• Bluetooth: 5.0
• NFC: supports/contactless payments from phone
• 3G support: yes
• Support 4G LTE: Cat.16
• Audio jack 3.5 mm: yes
• USB: USB Type-C
• Water and dust protection: IP68 standard
• Synchronization with PC: yes
• Navigation: GPS/ A-GPS/ GLONASS/ BeiDou
• Fingerprint scanner: yes
• Iris scanner: yes
• Face recognition unlocking: yes
• Sensors: proximity/light/gyroscope/compass/hall/barometer
• Color: black/ indigo/ copper
• Phone dimensions: (H.W.T) 162.5 x 74.8 x 8.6 mm
• Phone weight: 195 grams

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 equipment

The smartphone comes in a premium cardboard packaging, the design of which encourages you to get to know it better. This year the delivery package turned out to be quite rich and includes the following:

• S-Pen stylus;
• Excellent wired headphones from AKG;
• Charger with fast charging technology;
• USB Type-C cable;
• Clip for removing the SIM card tray;
• Adapter for microUSB.

Galaxy Note 9 design

Samsung does not want to change the design of its devices every year, and to be honest there is no need for this, because the Galaxy Note 9 looks great and will most likely become a source of inspiration for small Chinese companies that so love to borrow successful solutions from famous brands. If you compare the appearance and the Note 9, you can’t tell them apart from the front at all. This will only be possible for a professional who can see such little things as the angle of curvature of the screens. And in general, now almost all smartphones look the same, which became one of the main problems in 2018.

But the design of the flagship smartphone Samsung Galaxy Note 9 has its advantages - unlike most competitors, it did not copy Apple’s “unibrow”, but left the usual indentation at the top and in fairness it is small. This is an advantageous feature that distinguishes Samsung phones in recent years. The main difference in comparison with is the shape of the body, which has become more angular. At the same time, the dimensions remained approximately at the same level - 161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8 mm, which is why the case puts unpleasant pressure on the palm with sharp corners. This is of course not critical, but at first it causes discomfort and evokes associations with Note 5, which had a body with similar ergonomics. True, in his case it was not so noticeable, due to its lower weight and size.

But it was not without reason that the manufacturer changed the ergonomics of the case - yes, now it does not fit so well in the hand, but due to this it was possible to ensure the maximum degree of protection for the display from falls. Although there were no problems with this before - in most cases, Note series smartphones successfully survived falls, but now they decided to focus on this. This is primarily due to the fact that the case has become heavier, and replacing the screen is very expensive, so it would be better if the ergonomics were not ideal, but the most expensive part would not be damaged in the event of a fall.

A review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 in Russian showed that there is nothing critical about it. Yes, holding a smartphone in your hands is not as convenient as it is, but it won’t cause you much discomfort, and soon you will get used to it and completely stop paying attention to this feature. Traditionally, the flagship has received protection from water and dust according to the IP68 standard, which allows it to withstand immersion in a pool or sea to a shallow depth.

The layout of the elements on the body remains unchanged. The left side is occupied by a volume rocker, under which there is a button to call the Bixby virtual assistant. If you are not going to use its capabilities, then you can assign it another action at your discretion.

The right side is occupied by the power button.

A hybrid tray is placed on top, so installing two SIM cards and MicroSD at the same time will not work. But not to say that this is bad, because there is big choice memory modifications - up to 512Gb, so it is unlikely that you will need even more space. Be careful, because in the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 2018 the tray was updated and this did not do any good. It doesn't always fit into the grooves the first time, so it's easy to break if you're not careful and use too much force. It's good that we don't have to use it every day. I can’t even believe that the manufacturer could ruin such a small thing.

The 3.5 mm audio jack has been retained at the bottom, the presence of which is becoming extremely rare in a flagship device. This is a positive thing, because shortly before the announcement there were many leaks on the Internet regarding the fact that it would not happen and how good it was that all this turned out to be far from the truth. The main microphone and USB Type-C port were also placed here. There are a total of three noise-cancelling microphones throughout the body, ensuring clear and high quality sound during a call and when recording video.

A review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 smartphone showed that it retains an important feature - the stereo sound effect. For this purpose, one speaker was installed below and it plays in tandem with the speaker, thanks to which we get not only a good volume reserve, but also truly surround sound. Due to this, you get more emotions from watching a movie or while playing games.

The slot for storing the S Pen stylus is also located at the bottom. The pen is inserted into it with only one side in the same way as it was done in. I’ll say right away that the stylus does not cause any discomfort and does not accidentally fall out when the smartphone is in a jeans pocket.

The front side will be black in any case, but the color of the rest of the body may differ. There are three color options for the Galaxy Note 9 - black, blue and copper. The first option looks boring and ordinary, but the rest will help you stand out in the crowd. The color of the S Pen stylus differs from the color of the body. In black it is black, in copper it is bronze, and in blue it is yellow.

A full review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 showed that the manufacturer listened to feedback from users of last year's flagships and moved the fingerprint scanner under the camera unit to avoid accidentally jamming it. The finger clearly hits it, so now there will be no problems.

But in my opinion, it is more convenient to use face unlocking, which is implemented using IR illumination. It illuminates you, assessing not only your face, but your iris, which provides a higher level of security compared to competitors. The more often you use this unlocking option, the faster it will work, which is due to the presence of self-learning intelligence.

The speed of face unlocking is on par with the iPhone X, where the performance of this function is considered a reference. Everything is good and safe - the sensor cannot be fooled by a photograph or a printed picture. Recognition occurs without errors even if you are wearing glasses and a hat, so everything is fine. Recognition occurs correctly even at night with a minimum amount of light around you, although in this case it takes a little longer.

Of course, the build quality of the case is at the highest level - nothing wobbles or plays, but what else can you expect from Samsung’s main flagship?

S Pen stylus and its capabilities

The S Pen stylus is equipped with Bluetooth, which allows you to use it for remote control phone functions. This makes life more fulfilling and convenient. For example, you can mount a smartphone on a tripod and use a stylus to take a photo. Moreover, photos can be taken at a distance of up to 10 meters. Long pressing the S Pen key launches the camera app. In addition, the central button can be used to switch between the main and selfie cameras of the Galaxy Note 9. This is much more convenient than running up to the phone every time and setting a timer.

But camera control isn't all the S Pen can do. Using the stylus, you can stop and start playing music, switch photos in the gallery or slides in PowerPoint presentations. Over time, the capabilities of the stylus will only expand. The manufacturer left source open, which allows third-party developers to improve its capabilities and offer something new, making its use more and more convenient.

You can use the S Pen continuously for 30 minutes or 200 key clicks. This is quite a bit, but you shouldn’t worry, because once you recharge it for 40 seconds, the cycle can be repeated. You can find out how much charge the stylus has left in the notification shade, so you don’t have to guess how long it will last. As soon as you put the S Pen in the phone, it charges, so low battery life is not an issue at all.

Using the stylus, you can draw, create personal notes, add comments to images, and even translate texts, which is very convenient. Another area of ​​its application is replying to messages in handwritten font. By the way, all these actions can be done regardless of whether the S Pen stylus is charged or not.

Display of the smartphone Samsung Galaxy Note 9 512gb

The new Samsung Galaxy Note 9 smartphone has an excellent 6.4-inch screen, which was made using AMOLED technology with all its advantages. But if you were waiting for changes, then in vain. The screen is already considered a reference, so it was left as is. This is, without exaggeration, the best screen that can be found in modern phone, so there is simply no need to improve it every year. The screen is huge, 0.1 inches larger than the . But in actual use you don’t notice the difference, it’s not so significant as to be noticeable, but it’s undoubtedly a plus, because the dimensions of the case have remained unchanged.

The screen is 27% brighter and 32% more contrasty than the . The good news is that it uses an 18:9 ratio without a notch on top, which makes watching movies and playing games much more enjoyable. Another feature is the curved edges, which are used exclusively in Samsung smartphones. Compared to new flagship became a little wider, but at the same time shorter. It fits well in a jeans pocket and does not cause discomfort due to the fact that the body is thin.

The undoubted advantage of the Galaxy Note 9 display is its QuadHD+ resolution, at which the picture looks great without a hint of pixelation. The pixel density is 521 ppi. No less convenient is that you can change the resolution in the settings. This way, you yourself determine the optimal balance between picture quality and battery life, because the lower the resolution, the longer the battery will last on a single charge.

In the settings, you can set the color temperature and manually adjust the colors using a special slider. Excellent readability is maintained in the sun thanks to a good reserve of brightness and the features of AMOLED technology, which makes the image brighter when it is really needed. The brightness reserve is simply huge - up to 1200 nits. The HDR10 format is supported and to be honest, such videos are still very rare, but if desired, they can be found on YouTube. They look great because they improve shadow detail that might not be noticeable on a regular screen.

Of course, the flagship could not do without the Always On Display function, in which black and white notifications are displayed on the locked screen. In the same way, the time and some other functions that can be set in the settings can be constantly displayed. For two days of use, the Always On Display consumes about 400-500 mAh. The function is disabled when the phone is in your pocket, which saves battery power. Technology is distinctive feature AMOLED screens and simplifies working with the device, because you can view the latest notifications without unlocking the display. You can also quickly jump to the selected application from this screen.

The curved display can perform a wide variety of functions. Thus, the panel can be used to quickly launch selected applications or perform certain functions. This is very convenient in everyday life, because with one touch you can perform the necessary action, rather than searching for an application in the general list, which saves a lot of time. Big screen It is especially convenient to use in multi-window mode by opening two windows at the top and bottom different programs. For example, you can open a browser at the top, and chat in the bottom. social network or watch YouTube videos.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 performance

Technical Samsung specifications The Galaxy Note 9 hasn't changed much over time, but users will notice the difference. As before, there are two modifications - Exynos 9810 for the European and our markets and Snapdragon 845 for the USA, as well as China. If possible, it is better to order the Snapdragon 845 version abroad, which works noticeably faster and provides better gaming performance. There are several memory options: 6 or 8 GB of RAM, as well as 64Gb, 128Gb or 512Gb of internal memory, which is enough for any purpose and with a large margin. In addition, the memory is fast, so photos in the gallery are displayed quickly and you don’t have to wait for files to be copied from your computer.

The Exynos 9810 processor operates at up to 2.35 GHz, but only four high-performance cores can achieve this speed. In addition, they come with the same number, but energy efficient ones - with a frequency of up to 1.9 GHz. There are no tasks yet that the flagship cannot handle - you can open dozens of applications and easily switch between them. The interface pleases with the speed of its operation, and all games run at maximum graphics with high fps even in moments of dynamic scenes. It seems to me that it’s not worth overpaying for the older modification, 128 GB built-in and 6 GB random access memory there will be plenty, so it's better to save money.

Phone interface Samsung Galaxy Note 9

Review of Samsung Galaxy Note 9 moves to the interface - the proprietary Samsung Experience 9.5 shell, based on Android 8.1. The shell needs no introduction - it is functional and easy to use. One of the features is Samsung app Pay, which is used for contactless payments. It is convenient to use to pay for purchases in stores via NFC, which is now supported almost everywhere. Eat virtual assistant Bixby and Google, but as the review showed, the latter understands commands much better.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 battery life

The review of the Galaxy Note 9 in Russian turns to its autonomy, for which a 4000 mAh battery is responsible. This is 1000 mAh more than the , so the battery life should be much better. There is support for both fast and wireless charging, which few flagships can boast of now. This best smartphone Samsung, if we talk about autonomy. At the same time, the body remains thin and, most importantly, there are no such problems as with Note 7, when rechargeable batteries exploded, which provoked a world-class scandal and forced the manufacturer to discontinue the model.

From that moment on, the manufacturer did not strive to increase the battery capacity, so as not to repeat the mistake and not put the health of its customers at risk. During production, the smartphone undergoes an eight-stage quality check, so the fate of the Note 7 certainly does not await the hero of our review. When active using Samsung The Galaxy Note 9 2018 will need to be charged by the end of the day, but if you're not too active user, then the autonomy will easily last for 2 days. This is good news, because the Note 8, even with moderate use, had difficulty surviving an evening charge.

90 minutes of HD video playback dropped the battery from 100 to 88%, which is 1% better than in testing. But you need to remember that the Note 9 has a 500 mAh larger battery, so 88% will be more significant.

No matter how convenient wireless charging technology may be, it has a significant drawback - low speed, which is why it is much better to charge your smartphone using the included unit and USB cable Type-C. Time Samsung chargers Galaxy Note 9 512gb turns out as follows:

• 15 minutes: 17%
• 30 minutes: 37%
• 45 minutes: 52%
• 60 minutes: 70%
• 75 minutes: 83%
• 90 minutes: 90%
• 105 minutes: 98%
• 109 min: 100%

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 camera review

Starting our review of the camera of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 smartphone, let’s briefly go over its characteristics. A dual camera is used, including a wide-angle telephoto lens, and artificial intelligence has been introduced to improve photo quality. The camera has an adjustable aperture from f/1.5 to f/2.4. This feature has migrated to the Galaxy Note 9, so photos turn out good not only during the day, but also in pitch darkness. This is one of best cameras, which can be found in a modern phone, especially when it comes to the aspect of night photography. A good f/1.5 aperture helps a lot here, which is not available anywhere else. True, for the additional sensor it is fixed and is f/2.4. But both modules have optical image stabilization.

In the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 black 2018, the resolution of both modules is 12 megapixels. When taking photos with the Bokeh effect, the benefits of implementing it are clearly visible. artificial intelligence- the boundaries of the object are determined correctly and everything that is behind it is carefully blurred. Using a dual camera opens up the possibility of double optical zoom without loss of quality. When testing the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 camera, we took several pictures with a 2x zoom so that you can compare the results.

The review found that Galaxy camera Note 9 recognizes and adapts to the object that is in front of the lens, resulting in improved image quality. There are scenarios such as food, text, dog, person, flowers and so on. The Note 9's camera captures more detail than the , but the difference isn't big enough to make you switch to the new flagship just because of that. The camera understands what is in front of the lens and uses this to smooth out imperfections.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 allows you to take great photos under any conditions. They are distinguished by good detail, natural color reproduction, optimal contrast and white balance. During the day there is no noise at all, and at night its amount is reduced to a minimum.

The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels and for the first time in the Note line received autofocus. There are a huge number of settings designed to enhance the face, AR effects, a special mode for group photos and much more. The photo quality is one of the best in 2018.

Everything is good regarding video shooting. A test of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 camera showed that it can record slow-motion videos in 720p quality at 960 frames per second. Apart from Samsung, only Sony smartphones can boast of this, in which this function first appeared. This is a good opportunity to capture the bright moments of your life, filled with extreme sports, which you will be happy to review dozens of times.

The only thing I can blame the camera for is new Samsung Galaxy Note 9 512 gb - inability to record video in HDR 4K format. The technology is supported by the Snapdragon 845 processor, but the Exynos 9810 is not. Such videos turn out to be more interesting, because they show more details and better color rendition. You can see how this technology works in our review. Otherwise, the video quality is excellent - rich colors and superb detail. The picture turns out smooth thanks to high-quality optical stabilization, and 3 noise-canceling microphones allow you to record clear sound in any environment.

Samsung, according to the established schedule, also updated its line of Galaxy Note tablets this year - already the ninth model. The Galaxy Note 9 has not received as significant updates as is usually the case, but still, the new product, as always, turned out to be very outstanding, and today we will talk about it in detail in our review.

Main characteristics of Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (SM-N960F)

• SoC Samsung Exynos 9810, 8 cores (4×Exynos M3 @2.7 GHz + 4×Cortex-A55 @1.8 GHz)
• GPU Mali-G72 MP18 (572 MHz)
• Operating system Android 8.1
• Touch display Super AMOLED 6.4″, 2960×1440 (18.5:9), 516 ppi
• Random access memory (RAM) 6/8 GB, inner memory 128/512 GB
• Nano-SIM support (2 pcs.)
• microSD support up to 512 GB
• GSM/WCDMA networks (2G, 3G)
• LTE networks(4G) Cat.18 FDD B1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/17/18/19/20/25/26/28/32/66, TD B38—41
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 + 5 GHz), VHT80 MU-MIMO, 1024-QAM
• Bluetooth 5.0 (LE up to 2 Mbit/s)
• Dual GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Beidou, Galileo
• USB Type-C, USB OTG
• Main camera 12 MP, F1.5/F2.4 (dual aperture) + 12 MP, F2.4; 4K video
• Front camera 8 MP, F1.7, autofocus
• Proximity and lighting sensors, magnetic field, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, sensor heart rate, iris scanner
• 3.5mm audio output
• S Pen support
• IP68 protection
• Fingerprint's scanner
• Battery 4000 mAh
• Dimensions 162×76×8.8 mm
• Weight 201 g

Appearance and ease of use

With the positioning of the Galaxy Note line, everything is very clear: this family has always stood apart, not only arousing genuine interest among people of creative professions due to the presence of an electronic pen, but also, in principle, with its appearance, giving rise to the general transition to a “shovel-shaped” format with dimensions that were previously simply unthinkable for pocket mobile devices.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9, like all devices of the latest generations of Galaxy S and Note, has a specific, well-recognized design, and this time the Koreans did not make any significant changes to it.

Here everything is familiar to us: the gracefully curving metal side frame, tapering at the sides, and almost flat glass panels with cool functional curves on the sides. The new smartphone differs from the Galaxy Note 8 and S8, in fact, only in the corner parts that are more pointed in plan, which give the body a very rectangular brick-like appearance. The Koreans may have gone too far with the sharp corners; they literally dig into the palm of your hand; holding a smartphone is not always comfortable.

There are no complaints about the assembly. The body is solid and strong, there are no creaks when compressed. All surfaces are slippery, the smartphone is very heavy, smooth, and can jump out of your hands at any moment; you probably can’t do without a case.

On the back side there are two eyes of the dual camera, located horizontally. A powerful and very bright led flash. The camera hardly protrudes beyond the surface; the smartphone lies stable on the table.

The eyes of the cameras themselves are not centered relative to the holes in the body, literally everyone noticed this. It looks sloppy, and for some reason Samsung constantly has such confusion with symmetry. The fingerprint scanner area is slightly recessed, it is easy to touch, but it is located quite close to the camera unit, so your finger sometimes gets on the glass covering the lenses, and then you have to wipe off fingerprints from it.

On the front panel above the screen there is a place for an LED event indicator. They did not provide their own flash for the front camera, but the front camera is equipped with autofocus. Samsung did not use the notorious “bangs” in this model, for which honor and praise should be given to it.

There are no elements below the screen, including touch buttons, but this part of the frame is narrow and takes up virtually no extra space on the front panel. The corners of the display are strongly rounded.

The mechanical keys are located on different sides, so that when you press the power button with your thumb, your index finger rests on Bixby button, this is a hindrance, and in general it has long been clear that the abundance of keys on the case is unnecessary for most users.

The keys themselves are very thin; previously in Samsung devices they were the largest and most comfortable, but now you can’t say the same.

A connector for two Nano-SIM cards and a memory card was installed on the top end and made hybrid (a microSD card can only be installed instead of one of the SIM cards). Hot swapping of cards is supported.

When you open the connector cover, a warning appears on the smartphone screen about the need to close it tightly; in this case, the smartphone can be used even in water, since it is protected according to the IP68 standard.

Here, on the top end, you can find a small hole for an auxiliary microphone; there are three of them in the smartphone.

The main speaker is located at the bottom end, where the USB Type-C connector is also located. The speaking microphone hole is located near the speaker grille. Both speakers - conversational and main - work in a stereo pair for dubbing games, movies, etc.

Separately, it is worth mentioning a unique tool, which also traditionally has its own slot at the bottom: the S Pen. The pen is easily removed and has foolproof protection: it is no longer possible to insert it the other way, as before.

The end tip of the pen protrudes slightly beyond the body; it may well be pressed by some object in the bag.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is available in three colors: black, blue and copper. All of them have a black front panel.

Screen

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is equipped with a Super AMOLED display covered with 2.5D glass with sloping edges Gorilla Glass. The physical dimensions of the screen are 71x146 mm, diagonal - 6.4 inches, while the screen resolution is 2960x1440 with an aspect ratio of 18.5:9 and a pixel density of about 516 ppi. The frame around the screen is approximately 2 mm thick on the sides and 8 mm thick on the top and bottom.

It is possible to use automatic brightness adjustment based on the operation of the ambient light sensor. With default settings, multi-touch tests diagnose support for 10 simultaneous touches. There is an Always On Display function.

A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the “Monitors” and “Projectors and TV” sections Alexey Kudryavtsev. Here is his expert opinion on the screen of the sample under study.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface that is scratch-resistant. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are better than those of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) screen (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected when the screens are turned off (on the left is Nexus 7, on the right is Samsung Galaxy Note 9, then they can be distinguished by size):

The screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is noticeably darker (brightness according to photographs is 109 versus 118 for the Nexus 7) and does not have a pronounced tint. The ghosting of reflected objects on the screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen. Due to the smaller number of boundaries (glass/air type) with very different refractive indices, screens without an air gap look better in conditions of intense external illumination, but their repair in the case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be replaced. On the outer surface of the screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (very effective, better than that of the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much easier and appear at a lower speed than in the case of regular glass.

When displaying the white field in full screen and manually controlling the brightness, its maximum value was 320 cd/m² in normal conditions, and in very bright light it rises to 540 cd/m². You also need to take into account the fact that in this case, the smaller the white area on the screen, the brighter it is, that is, the actual maximum brightness of the white areas will almost always be higher than the specified value. As a result, screen readability during the day in the sun should be at a good level. The minimum value is 1.7 cd/m², that is, the reduced brightness level allows you to use the device even in complete darkness without any problems. Works automatic adjustment brightness using the light sensor (it is located to the left of the front speaker slot and shows light values ​​close to reality). The operation of this function depends on the position of the brightness adjustment slider; the user can use it to try to set the desired brightness level in the current conditions. If you leave everything at default, then in complete darkness the auto-brightness function reduces the brightness to 7 cd/m² (dark), in an artificially lit office (approximately 550 lux) it sets it to 100 cd/m² (normal), in a very bright environment (corresponding to lighting on a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or a little more) increases to 440 cd/m² (enough), and conditionally under direct sunlight - up to 580 cd/m². We were not entirely satisfied with the result, so in complete darkness we slightly increased the brightness, ultimately obtaining the following values ​​for the four conditions indicated above: 12, 150, 485 and 605 cd/m² (ideal combination). It turns out that the auto-brightness function works adequately and allows you to customize your work to individual requirements. At any brightness level there is significant modulation with a frequency of 60 or 240 Hz. The figure below shows brightness (vertical axis) versus time (horizontal axis) for several brightness settings:

It can be seen that at maximum (as “100++” we designated the mode with additional illumination of the light sensor with bright light) and close to it, the modulation amplitude is not very large, as a result there is no visible flicker. However, as the brightness decreases, modulation appears with a large relative amplitude; its presence can already be seen in a test for the presence of a stroboscopic effect or simply when fast movement eye. Depending on individual sensitivity, this flickering may cause increased fatigue. Note that at very low brightness, for example 25%, the nature of the modulation changes: a U-shaped section appears, the modulation amplitude also changes, and the flicker becomes slightly less noticeable.

This screen uses a Super AMOLED matrix - an active matrix on organic light-emitting diodes. A full-color image is created using subpixels of three colors - red (R), green (G) and blue (B), but there are half as many red and blue subpixels, which can be referred to as RGBG. This is confirmed by a fragment of a microphotograph:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

In the fragment above you can count 4 green subpixels, 2 red (4 halves) and 2 blue (1 whole and 4 quarters), and by repeating these fragments, you can lay out the entire screen without breaks or overlap. For such matrices, Samsung introduced the name PenTile RGBG. The manufacturer calculates the screen resolution based on the green subpixels; based on the other two, it will be two times lower. There is some unevenness of contrast borders and other artifacts, but due to high resolution they have only a minimal impact on image quality.

The screen has excellent viewing angles. True, the white color, when deviated even at small angles, acquires a slight blue-green tint, but the black color remains simply black at any angle. It is so black that the contrast setting is not applicable in this case. For comparison, here are photos in which the screens of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (profile Basic) and the second comparison participant, identical images were displayed, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to approximately 200 cd/m², and the color balance on the camera was forced to switch to 6500 K.

White field:

We note good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field (with the exception of barely visible darkening and a change in hue towards the curved edges).

And a test picture (profile Basic):

Color rendition is good, the colors are moderately saturated, the color balance of the screens varies slightly. Recall that photography can not serve as a reliable source of information about color rendering quality and are provided for illustrative purposes only. In particular, the pronounced reddish tint of the white and gray fields present in photographs of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 screen is visually absent when viewed from a perpendicular view, as confirmed by hardware tests using a spectrophotometer. The reason is that the spectral sensitivity of the camera sensor does not exactly match this characteristic of human vision. Note that in this case, the image occupies in height (in landscape screen orientation) the entire area available for image display and extends onto the curved edges of the screen, which leads to slight darkening and color distortion. Also, in the light, these areas almost always glare, which makes it even more difficult to view images displayed on the entire screen. And even the picture of films with an aspect ratio of 16:9 comes to bends, which interferes with watching movies.

The photo above was taken after selecting a profile Basic in the screen settings, there are four of them:

Profile Adaptive display differs in some kind of automatic adjustment of color rendering to the type of output image and environmental conditions:

The saturation is greatly increased, it looks terrible. What happens when you select the two remaining profiles is shown below.

Movie AMOLED

Saturation is slightly less.

Photo AMOLED

The red saturation is slightly lower than in the case Movie AMOLED.

Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen (profile Basic).

White field:

The brightness at an angle for both screens has noticeably decreased (to avoid strong darkening, the shutter speed has been increased compared to previous photographs), but in the case of Samsung the drop in brightness is much less pronounced. As a result, with formally the same brightness samsung screen The Galaxy Note 9 looks much brighter visually (compared to LCD screens), since the screen of a mobile device often has to be viewed from at least a slight angle.

And a test picture:

It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens and the brightness of the Samsung smartphone at an angle is noticeably higher. Switching the state of the matrix elements is performed almost instantly, but at the switching edge there may be a step with a width of approximately 17 ms (which corresponds to a screen refresh rate of 60 Hz). For example, this is what the dependence of brightness on time looks like when moving from black to white and back:

In some conditions, the presence of such a step can lead to plumes trailing behind moving objects. However, dynamic scenes in films on OLED screens are distinguished by high clarity and even some “jerky” movements. The graph above shows how after a few tens of milliseconds the brightness begins to decrease when white is displayed in full screen.

A gamma curve constructed using 32 points with equal intervals based on the numerical value of the shade of gray showed that there is no significant blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.07, which is slightly less than the standard value of 2.2, while the actual gamma curve deviates slightly from the power function:

Let us recall that in the case of OLED screens, the brightness of image fragments dynamically changes in accordance with the nature of the displayed image - it decreases for generally light images. As a result, the resulting dependence of brightness on hue (gamma curve) most likely slightly does not correspond to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential display of shades of gray on almost the entire screen.

Color gamut in the case of a profile Adaptive display very wide - wider than DCI-P3:

In profile Movie AMOLED The coverage is a little narrower, it is almost equal to DCI-P3:

When selecting a profile Photo AMOLED coverage is adjusted to Adobe RGB boundaries:

When selecting a profile Basic coverage is compressed to sRGB boundaries:

Without correction (profile Adaptive display) the spectra of the components are very well separated:

In case of profile Basic with maximum correction, the color components are already noticeably mixed with each other:

Note that on screens with a wide color gamut (without appropriate correction), the colors of regular images optimized for sRGB devices appear unnaturally saturated. Hence the recommendation: in most cases, watching movies, photographs and everything natural is better when choosing a profile Basic, and only if the photo was taken on an Adobe RGB setting, does it make sense to switch the profile to Photo AMOLED. Likewise, profile Movie AMOLED appropriate when viewing video material with DCI-P3 coverage adopted in digital cinema.

The gray scale balance is acceptable. Colorful temperature close to 6500 K, while in a significant portion of the gray scale this parameter does not change very much, which improves the visual perception of color balance. The deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) over most of the gray scale remains below 10 units, which is considered a good indicator for a consumer device (but the spread is still large):

(The darkest areas of the gray scale can in most cases be ignored, since color balance there is not very important, and the error in measuring color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

For some reason only when selecting a profile Adaptive display It becomes possible to adjust the color balance by three adjustments of the intensity of the primary colors, but due to the too wide color gamut in this profile there is no point in correcting the balance. There is a fashionable function nowadays Blue light filter, for which a more or less correct description is even given in the settings (in the menu at the level above there is nonsense written about “reducing eye strain,” but oh well):

Why such a correction can be useful is described in the article about the iPad Pro 9.7. In any case, when entertaining with a tablet or smartphone at night, it is better to reduce the screen brightness to a minimum, but still comfortable level. Yellow screen setting Blue light filter there's no point.

Let's summarize. The screen has a very high maximum brightness and has excellent anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems, even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. It is acceptable to use a mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works adequately. The advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, as well as close to sRGB color gamut(if you choose the right profile) and acceptable color balance. At the same time, let us remind you about the general advantages of OLED screens: true black color (if nothing is reflected in the screen), a noticeably smaller drop in image brightness than LCDs when viewed at an angle. Disadvantages include modulation of screen brightness. For users who are particularly sensitive to flicker, this may cause increased fatigue. However, overall the screen quality is very high. Separately, we note that from the point of view of image quality, curved edges are only harmful, since this design finding distorts the color tone and reduces the brightness at the edges of the picture, and in ambient light conditions it leads to inevitable glare along at least one long side of the screen.

Camera

The front camera has an 8 MP sensor (1/3.6″ matrix size) and an autofocus lens with F1.7 aperture. Various picture enhancement effects and portrait mode with background blur are supported. The ability to recognize faces even in complete darkness has been implemented. There is no own flash. In general, the front camera takes pictures quite well, there are no complaints about sharpness or detail.

The rear camera uses two 12-megapixel image sensors: one with a wide-angle lens with dual apertures of f/1.5 and f/2.4, and the second with a telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture that provides double optical zoom. The camera is equipped with an optical stabilization system and the flash is extremely bright. There is a popular modern background blur function (separate portrait mode).

Algorithms allow the camera to recognize 20 different scenes and try to select the optimal shooting settings for a given lighting. Accordingly, when pointed at food, greenery, buildings, etc., the camera not only reports this with an icon directly on the viewfinder screen, but also applies appropriate (in its opinion) filters to the picture.

Examples of shooting with the main camera:

The quality of the shooting is pleasantly amazing. Of course, Samsung's flagship smartphones have featured cutting-edge cameras before, and the Galaxy Note 9 at least keeps its banner held high. Detail and sharpness are simply excellent across the entire field of the frame, practically not falling even in its very corners. Reasonable image resolution also contributes to this: the sensors and lenses of smartphones, for obvious reasons, are seriously inferior to those used in full-frame DSLRs - so why try to surpass their images in resolution? Neither 18- nor 24-megapixel images from regular smartphones come close to providing the declared resolution and only multiply the amount of colored noise that has to be stored in the device’s memory. In the case of the Galaxy Note 9, the opposite is true: it doesn’t make sense to take pictures with a resolution less than the maximum 12 megapixels, in which everything is fine. Perhaps the only drawback we noticed in the test frames was traces of noise reduction on very contrasting edges, such as wires in the sunny sky, which are not visible in 99% of ordinary photographs. Overall, this is definitely one of the best cameras we've seen in a smartphone. To compare it with other contenders for this title (like the Huawei P20 Pro), we'll need a direct comparison.

Optical zoom, realized by switching to the second module of the main camera, also makes the most pleasant impression. The pictures are equally detailed and have no visible imperfections. This component in the smartphone is certainly not installed for show.

Video can be shot in 4K format at 60 fps, there is optical image stabilization. There is a slow motion mode with a frame rate of 960 fps in 720p resolution and 240 fps in Full HD resolution. The quality of video shooting is high, the picture is bright and clear, there are no complaints about detail and autofocus speed. The only criticism is that the paints are unnatural, oversaturated and caustic, which is common to all Asian developers; they like these better. The sound is recorded clearly, the noise reduction system with support for three microphones works adequately.

• Video No. 1 (120 MB, 3840×2160@60 fps, H.264, AAC)
• Video No. 2 (52 MB, 1920×1080@60 fps, H.264, AAC)
• Video No. 3 (60 MB, 3840×2160@30 fps, H.264, AAC)
• Video No. 4 (95 MB, 3840×2160@60 fps, H.264, AAC)
• Video No. 5 (59 MB, 3840×2160@30 fps, fast, H.265, AAC)
• Video No. 6 (12 MB, 1280×720, slo-mo, H.264, AAC)

Telephone and communications

Exynos 9810 uses a Gigabit LTE Cat modem. 18 (1.2 Gbit/s for reception, 200 Mbit/s for upload) with VoLTE support. Several LTE frequency bands are supported, including all three LTE FDD bands used in Russia (Band 3, 7, 20). In practice, within the city limits of the Moscow region, the device demonstrates reliable operation in wireless networks, does not lose connection, quickly restores connection after a forced break.

To work Wi-Fi module(2.4 and 5 GHz, there is support for 802.11ac) also no complaints. There is also an NFC module that works with Troika travel cards and the My Travel Card application.

The navigation module works with all modern satellite navigation systems, including even Galileo (including, of course, GPS and the domestic Glonass). The first satellites, even during a cold start, are detected quickly, within the first seconds, and the positioning accuracy does not cause any complaints. A magnetic compass, necessary for navigation programs, is installed in the smartphone.

The phone application supports Smart Dial, that is, while dialing telephone number A search is also carried out immediately using the first letters in contacts. Methods for setting up sorting and display of contacts are standard for the Android interface. The power of the vibration alert is adjustable, and in maximum mode its intensity is very high, there are no complaints.

The hardware platform allows the smartphone to support both SIM cards in 4G mode at the same time. Thus, the SIM card for voice communication will work in 4G standby mode even if another card is assigned for 4G data transmission. Cards work in Dual mode SIM Dual Standby, there is only one radio modem. VoLTE support is available.

Software and multimedia

As software platform OS used Android versions 8.1 with Samsung's own proprietary shell Experience 9.5 and the ability to update over the air (OTA).

Everything in the interface is familiar: the maximum number of settings, there is support for gestures, you can reduce the working area of ​​the screen, change the set of buttons in the navigation bar, clone applications, work in split screen mode and pin screens separately, and much more. You can even lower your screen resolution to improve performance and reduce power consumption. There is a hardware button on the case to call the Bixby voice assistant, but this service, as before, does not work with the Russian language.

One of the unique features of the Galaxy Note series has always been support for working with its own S Pen. Now you can use it not only to create notes in a notebook or write signatures under hand-drawn drawings - the pen can work as a remote control for some smartphone functions. For example, you no longer need to set a timer, take selfies at arm's length, and try to fit all your friends in a group photo—the shutter can be released from a distance using the S Pen. Holding down the button on the pen launches the camera, and double-pressing switches between the front and rear cameras. Also, using the stylus, you can switch frames in the presentation mode in PowerPoint, play a video and pause viewing - all while being at a distance of 10 meters from your mobile device.

It is also possible to note the possibility Galaxy unlock Note 9 with intelligent identification that recognizes the owner's face and iris, regardless of lighting conditions. And it really works, unlocking in any lighting conditions occurs without failure. Of course, you can unlock your smartphone using your fingerprint, password, PIN code and other familiar methods.

To play music, you use your own player; there is support for Dolby Atmos with a lot of settings and a ten-band equalizer. The sound is high-quality, loud, clear, and any user can adjust it to themselves using the Adapt Sound service. The speakers work in a stereo pair, they are loud and produce clear, bright and quite high-quality sound. The smartphone comes with branded high-quality AKG headphones.

There is no built-in FM radio, but the existing voice recorder demonstrates excellent recording quality and sensitivity, working with three microphones at once.

Performance

The hero of the review operates on the Exynos 9 Series 9810 single-chip system, Samsung’s flagship mobile platform (in the USA and China, the model will be released on Snapdragon 845). The configuration of this SoC includes two clusters of four processor cores: Exynos M3 (M3 Mongoose) with a frequency of up to 2.7 GHz and custom Cortex-A55 with a frequency of up to 1.8 GHz. LPDDR4X RAM is 6 or 8 GB, storage is 128 or 512 GB. Of the 128 GB on the new smartphone, about 108 GB are free. It also supports the installation of memory cards that are formatted only as external storage.

Exynos 9 Series 9810 is created using the proprietary FinFET LPP 10 nm process technology. This is a powerful flagship platform from Samsung, quite comparable in capabilities to the top solution from the mobile SoC market leader - Qualcomm Snapdragon 845, judging by the tests. Without a doubt, this is one of the most powerful smartphone solutions available today.

The hero of the review demonstrates maximum performance both in benchmarks and in real use; in this regard, there are no obstacles for him. The video accelerator effortlessly copes with the most demanding games at maximum settings. All the games we tested, including Modern Combat 3, Mortal Kombat X, Injustice 2, run confidently without the slightest slowdown. The smartphone certainly has a significant headroom for future updates.

Testing in comprehensive tests AnTuTu and GeekBench:

All the results we obtained when testing the smartphone in the most latest versions popular benchmarks, we have summarized them in tables for convenience. The table usually adds several other devices from different segments, also tested on similar latest versions benchmarks (this is done only for a visual assessment of the obtained dry figures). Unfortunately, within the framework of one comparison it is impossible to present the results from different versions of benchmarks, so many worthy and relevant models remain “behind the scenes” - due to the fact that they once passed the “obstacle course” on previous versions test programs.

Testing the graphics subsystem in gaming tests 3DMark, GFXBenchmark and Bonsai Benchmark:

When testing in 3DMark, the most powerful smartphones now have the ability to run the application in Unlimited mode, where the rendering resolution is fixed at 720p and VSync is disabled (which can cause the speed to rise above 60 fps).

	Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (Samsung Exynos 9810)	Pocophone F1 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 845)	Huawei P20 Pro (HiSilicon Kirin 970)	Meizu Pro 7Plus (MediaTek Helio X30)
3DMark Ice Storm Sling Shot ES 3.1 (more is better)	3348	2755	2963	1826
3DMark Sling Shot Ex Vulkan (more is better)	2840	2167	2918	1217
(Onscreen, fps)	25	55	39	14
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen, fps)	45	60	39	22
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (Onscreen, fps)	60	60	60	52
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (1080p Offscreen, fps)	146	150	108

Testing in browser cross-platform tests:

As for benchmarks for assessing the speed of the javascript engine, you should always make allowance for the fact that their results significantly depend on the browser in which they are launched, so the comparison can only be truly correct on the same OS and browsers, and this is possible during testing not always. For Android OS, we always try to use Google Chrome.

AndroBench memory speed test results:

Thermal photographs

Below is a thermal image rear surface obtained after 10 minutes of battery testing in the GFXBenchmark program:

The heating is highly localized around the vertical center and close to the left edge, which seems to correspond to the location of the SoC chip. According to the heat camera, the maximum heating was 40 degrees (at an ambient temperature of 24 degrees), this is the average heating in this test for modern smartphones.

Playing video

To test the omnivorous nature of video playback (including support for various codecs, containers and special features, such as subtitles), we used the most common formats, which make up the bulk of the content available on the Internet. Note that for mobile devices it is important to have support for hardware video decoding at the chip level, since it is most often impossible to process modern options using processor cores alone. Also, you shouldn’t expect a mobile device to decode everything, since the leadership in flexibility belongs to the PC, and no one is going to challenge it. All results are summarized in a table.

Further testing of video playback was performed Alexey Kudryavtsev.

This device supports DisplayPort Alt Mode for USB Type-C - outputs image and sound to an external device when connected to USB port. We tested working in this mode together with an adapter equipped with a pass-through USB Type-C connector with support for USB Power Delivery, an HDMI output, a card reader for SD and microSD cards, and two USB 3.0 ports. Video output is carried out in 1080p mode at 60 Hz frame rate. There are two modes of operation: duplicating the smartphone screen and working in the mode - displaying an alternative desktop. The operating mode is selected by the user when connecting the smartphone to the display device:

Note that in this case, to work in Samsung DeX mode, it is not necessary to use a proprietary adapter. An image of an alternative desktop is displayed on the monitor screen, and the smartphone screen can be used as touchpad coordinate input or work as usual. The DeX desktop can run most Android apps.

The control panel at the bottom of the screen is removed when the image is displayed on the entire screen (for example, when playing a video). Output to the monitor is carried out in a true resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels, dot to dot. Note that simultaneously with image and sound output, you can connect a mouse and keyboard to your smartphone via USB or Bluetooth, turning it into a basis for your workplace. In addition, USB drives and memory cards connected to the adapter are read. For the physical keyboard, language switching and a number of hotkey shortcuts are supported (the Meta key is apparently the Win key on a PC keyboard).

To test the output of video files on the screen of the device itself, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see “Method for testing video playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)”). Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output of frames of video files with various parameters: the resolution varied (1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels) and frame rate (24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps). In the tests we used the MX Player video player in the “Hardware” mode. The test results are summarized in the table:

File	Uniformity	Passes
4K/60p (H.265)	Great	No
4K/50p (H.265)	Fine	No
4K/30p (H.265)	excellent no Red marks indicate possible problems related to the playback of the corresponding files. According to the criterion of frame output, the quality of playback of video files on the screen of the device itself is very good, since frames (or groups of frames) can be output with more or less uniform alternation of intervals and without skipping frames. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 (1080p) on a smartphone screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the narrow border of the screen, extending to the bends. The picture clarity is high, but not ideal, since there is no escape from interpolation to the screen resolution. However, for the sake of experimentation, you can switch to the one-to-one pixel-by-pixel mode; there will be no interpolation, but the features of PenTile will appear: the vertical world through the pixel will be in a grid, but the horizontal one in this case does not have the usual greenishness for PenTile. The brightness range displayed on the screen corresponds to the actual one for a given video file, except that in the shadows a couple of shades merge with black. Note that this smartphone has support for hardware decoding of H.265 files with a color depth of 10 bits per color, while gradients are displayed on the screen with best quality than in the case of 8-bit files. Battery life The smartphone received a non-removable, capacious 4000 mAh battery. The cost-effectiveness of the AMOLED screen has a positive effect on battery life, and, as usual, top Korean mobile devices are in perfect order with this indicator. In real life, a smartphone runs out of charge within a day, like most modern devices. It all depends on the individual usage scenario, but in any case, in terms of autonomy, the Galaxy Note 9 is not a weakling. Testing has traditionally been carried out at the usual level of power consumption without using power saving functions, although the device has them. Battery capacity Reading mode Video mode 3D Game Mode Samsung Galaxy Note 9 4000 mAh 18:00 13:00 3 hours 45 minutes Pocophone F1 4000 mAh 20:00 13:00 3 hours 30 minutes Huawei P20 Pro 4000 mAh 18:00 12:00 pm 3:00 am Meizu Pro 7 Plus 3500 mAh 14:10 10:00 am 3 hours 20 minutes Samsung Galaxy Note 8 3300 mAh 15:00 12:00 pm 4 hours 20 minutes Continuous reading in the FBReader program (with a standard, light theme) at a minimum comfortable brightness level (brightness was set to 100 cd/m²) lasted about 18 hours until the battery was completely discharged, and when continuously watching videos in high quality (1080p) with the same brightness level through home network The Wi-Fi device operates for almost 13 hours. In 3D gaming mode, the smartphone can work for up to 4 hours, depending on the specific game. The smartphone supports fast charging; from the included charger it is fully charged in less than 2 hours (charging starts with a current of 1.4 A at a voltage of 9 V, then the current and voltage values ​​gradually drop). Also supported wireless charger. Bottom line Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is already officially presented at Russian market, for the version with 128 GB of memory they ask for 70 thousand rubles, and for the model with 512 GB - all 90 thousand. These are maximum figures; for the same or even less money you can buy any flagship device from any manufacturer - Apple, Huawei and others. On the one hand, representatives of the Galaxy Note series are unique in some ways - for example, in support for working with a pen, which none of the competitors at the corresponding level of performance was able to offer. Of course, here are the best cameras at the moment, and other characteristics are maximum. But on the other hand, now the market has something to offer at a very high level for much less money. How many users are willing to overpay several tens of thousands for their loyalty to the Korean brand? Those who cannot imagine their life without an electronic pen - perhaps yes, and the rest will either look at something more affordable from the Galaxy S series of previous seasons, or look for alternatives.

A flagship smartphone is always a compromise: to make money, you need to make the device mass-market. It's like a Hollywood blockbuster that should appeal to children, teenagers, their parents and grandparents. Such a smartphone, in its design and capabilities, should be appropriate in any environment - from a student campus to the office of a large company. It should also be comfortable to use for men with big hands, and a gentle woman. And it should not unnecessarily pull down the pocket - both literally and figuratively.

At some point, the engineers said: “Stop putting up with this!” And they began to make, in parallel with the main ones, ultimate lines of gadgets, where they developed to the fullest. At the same time, they tested all sorts of cool new products on living people. This is the Note line from Samsung, the Mate line from Huawei, and Sony Mobile does something similar in Premium devices.

Large, heavy and stand like two cast iron bridges. Actually, this description fits the new ultimate flagship. The top version of Note 9 will cost 89 thousand 990 rubles, the “budget” version will be available for purchase from August 31 for 69 thousand 990 rubles. In the first case, you will get 512 GB of memory and 8 GB of RAM, in the second - 128 GB and 6 GB of RAM. The latter is also not bad, considering that microSD memory cards are supported. Otherwise, the devices are identical in their filling.

Display

Note 9 best display On the market. These are not my words, this is what the experts from DisplayMate think. However, I see no reason to argue with them. The screen is of very high quality, color rendition is excellent, and the resolution is off the charts. QuadHD is supported, but the default is Full HD+, and that’s enough. The same can be said about brightness: the 6.4-inch SuperAMOLED display shines so brightly that 70-80% brightness in the settings is enough to use it without any problems even on a sunny summer day.

The smartphone is large: length 161.9, width 76.4 mm, weight 201 grams. The edges of the case are quite sharp, so it looks a little unusual against the backdrop of the eternal desire for rounded corners. And the device does not lie very comfortably in the hand. I’m serious now, this is precisely a design issue, since the dimensions of the Note 9 are generally comparable to the “plus” iPhone version, and such a problem does not arise there.

Camera

The Note 9's camera is the Galaxy S9's camera. The same module, which I consider close to the reference one. Experts from DxOMark Mobile found the Note 9 camera to be inferior only to the Huawei P20 Pro, but in my opinion it is prettier. There are fewer programmatic decorations of the picture inherent in the Chinese.

There is no point in talking much about the camera - let the pictures do the talking. Let me just say that I was impressed auto mode, which very clearly recognizes even very specific modes, such as shooting flowers or nature (these are two different modes). And everything with focusing is very cool. The camera managed to take clear pictures even of such restless models as playing dogs. Rate it!

In general, it's hard to find fault. Here's some more zoom and evening/night shots.

Well, when it comes to shooting video, the Note 9 has no equal - just as the Galaxy S9 had none.

Filling

All this wealth is controlled by the Samsung Exynos 9810 processor; there is also a version based on the Snapdragon 845 from Qualcomm - it will be sold in other markets. The top solution receives a rather modest 240,000 points in AnTuTu, but this is normal - the synthetic test is tailored primarily for Qualcomm processors.

Chips for work

Look what's here? Well, of course, a stylus. Some people mistakenly perceive this accessory as the main feature of the Note line. This is certainly not true. The stylus in this case is the pinnacle of that semantic superstructure that explains why, in fact, all this power is needed. But it is needed for work - for this reason the device is niche. Consume content by viewing videos and photos using mobile gadgets Many people love it, but only a few do something serious.

The Note 9's stylus is still great for drawing and handwriting, taking quick notes, sketching a small drawing or plan, or making notes on text or photos.

Galaxy Note 9 stylus. Photo: website

What's added? The stylus has become a remote control for Note 9. Now you can use it to take photos, switch music tracks, flip through photo galleries and switch presentation slides. The stylus is charged in the smartphone body. This happens almost instantly - in one or two minutes. After which you can safely demonstrate another presentation or do a photo shoot.

Another option to work with is built-in Samsung Dex. Let me remind you that this is an external module that turns Samsung gadgets, by connecting to a monitor, into some kind of computer. Now you just need to plug a special HDMI adapter cable into the USB-C connector - and you’re good to go.

Safety

In terms of security, there is nothing fundamentally new: a fingerprint scanner on the back surface under the camera, face and iris recognition using an infrared camera on the front side. It all works surprisingly quickly. The system is not bothered by the absence or presence of glasses, or insufficient lighting. The sensors easily coped with unlocking in the evening. For old-school fans, there are still passwords and PIN codes.

Battery

During the presentation, Samsung speakers said that the Note 9 lasts “all day long.” I have lived for a long time and remember that this is, in general, normal. But if the iPhone (as well as the Galaxy S9) needs to be fully charged at least twice a day, then with the Note 9 everything looks really good: the 4000 mAh battery charge is enough for a full working day and even for a working night.

But as usual, everything depends on the tasks. If you just make occasional calls, surf the net, and read Facebook, you'll be fine. But if you charge tanks or some Asphalt, then everything will turn out to be much sadder. The battery drains within a few hours. There are no miracles.

By the way, those who pre-ordered will get wireless charging. This device costs almost 7 thousand rubles, but here it’s free.

Money

In general, Samsung's pricing strategy looks interesting. On the one hand, 89 thousand 990 rubles for the “older” version of Note 9 (with 512 GB) is a little too much. On the other hand, the Chinese offered to buy the Huawei Mate RS Porsche Design with the same amount of memory for 147 thousand rubles, presented in the spring. Well, on the third side: Samsung announced the Samsung Forward program, with the help of which you can happily fall into credit slavery. Paying Koreans 3 thousand 990 rubles every month, after 6 months you can exchange your device for a new Galaxy S10, paying another 3 thousand 990 rubles on top. Or after a year, exchange your device for another new product for free. Well, not counting the money you will have already paid by then... and will pay every month in the future. As a bonus - the program Samsung Smart Care+. If you break the glass, it will be replaced for you free of charge. Which in the case of Note 9 is not bad at all, because glass costs something like 18-20 thousand rubles.

Sound

Another bonus of the Note 9 is the sound. The smartphone supports Dolby Atmos sound and is equipped with excellent AKG headphones from Samsung's Harman/Kardon brand. The sound quality from the built-in speakers is almost flawless, and as for the headphones, they are a very cool accessory. At some point, manufacturers began to save on headphones, but it’s great that the Note 9 has done everything right. I've listened to several live concerts with this headset and I can say that it's one of the best examples of a set of ears I've encountered.

Should I buy the Galaxy Note 9?

If you are buying a smartphone to “make calls” and are based on the cost of the basic set of functions, then there is no point. You can buy last year's Note 8, look at the Galaxy S9 or Huawei P20. If you need to get a cool gadget with the maximum of everything, if you need ample stylus capabilities and a business component, then you need to boldly grab the free 90 thousand and run to take it. There won't be anything similar in terms of characteristics on the market in the near future. Yes, of course, Huawei is about to show a new Mate, and it will be cheaper than the budget one Note versions 9 for about 8-10 thousand rubles. But without a stylus, and we already decided that this was important.

2018 wasn't a great year for phones. Sales Samsung flagship The Galaxy S9 was a bit slow and it became one of the least successful S-series devices. The Galaxy S9 is a great phone, but it doesn't have any innovation or anything particularly new.

From what I've seen, it could be a similar story with the Galaxy Note 9, which at first glance looks like a redesigned version of the 8. It has a bigger battery and some new features that debuted with the Galaxy S9, but will that be enough?

I've always liked the Note series. It's certainly for everyone, but it has features that you simply won't find anywhere else. With such a big battery, a huge amount of storage, and that gorgeous display, the Note 9 really shines. I'd like to see more. The lack of real updates to the camera is a sore point.

website

Performance

Autonomy

pros

• Excellent performance
• Working hours
• Not a bad design

Minuses

• No significant update
• Expensive price

Total Score

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 release date

You can pre-order the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 now. It will start shipping on August 24th. There are a number of pre-incentives available and these will vary by region.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 price

In the UK, the price of the Galaxy Note 9 is as follows:

128GB – £899
512GB – £1099
If you want to buy a phone in the US, these are the prices:

128GB – $999
512 GB – $1299

In Russia, its average price is:

128GB – 70 thousand rubles

512 GB – still in question

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – Design

If you've seen the Note 8, then you've seen the Note 9. Samsung has kept the overall design very similar, and that's not entirely a bad thing. Even though it's over a year old, the curved lines and metal bezel still feel thoroughly modern. Many phones have taken a similar look to this, but none feel high-tech and polished to perfection.

Glass is still a magnet, and I'm constantly worried about giving up such a large device, but I'm inclined to forgive these shortcomings for such a well-designed phone.

The biggest design difference is that the fingerprint sensor is now located below the camera instead of next to it. This small change makes a difference: I no longer blurt out the camera every time I want to unlock the phone.

Samsung rarely changes the colors of its products, but with the Note 9 things are a little different. There's a vibrant blue finish that contrasts with the sharp yellow S-Pen. I love it and feel like it's a real step forward for a device that was once known for being too businesslike.

I'm also a big fan of the fact that you can buy S-Pens separately for the first time, allowing you to experiment with different combinations. The Note 9 will also come in standard black, the same lavender purple as the S9, and copper and gold - although unfortunately these won't be available everywhere.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – Specifications and Features

• Screen 6.4-inch, quad-core HD AMOLED, HDR
• Snapdragon 845 / Exynos 9810 performance
• RAM 6GB/8GB
• Storage 64GB / 128GB / 256GB / 512GB + microSD
• Rear camera 2 x 12MP (f/1.7 – f/1.5 – f/2.4 – main), OIS, 4K video, Dual Pixel
• Front camera 8MP, f/1.7
• 4000 mAh battery, fast charging, wireless charging
• S-Pen Yes (with Bluetooth)

There was a time in the earlier generations of the Note where it was superior to the S-series when it came to performance. Now it just matches its smaller sibling. The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is powered by a Snapdragon 845 in the US and an Exynos 9810 elsewhere (same as the S9 and S9 Plus). It contains the same 6GB/8GB RAM as the S9 Plus and a Quad-HD HDR AMOLED display.

The display is slightly larger than the S9, but only by 0.2 inches. This is an absolutely stunning display that delivers an unforgettable experience. There's also improved AKG-tuned speakers so your media will look and sound great.

The biggest differences in specifications come down to battery and memory sizes. If you want to store everything on your phone, then the 512GB (now 128GB is the starting base) Note 9 is for you. You can even expand this thing up to 1TB with the addition of a microSD card. The battery is also huge: 4000 mAh.

During the release of the Note 9 version, Samsung also unveiled a partnership with developers Epic for Fortnite. Samsung will be the first device to debut Fortnite, with other Android phones coming later.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – S Pen

The S-Pen remains the Note's biggest selling point. The Wacom-supported stylus gives the Note a feature that may seem like an unnecessary thing, but that's far from true. Adding Bluetooth seems out of place: will I ever use this to control the camera or flip through presentations? Probably no.

When using the S Pen, everything is as good as before - it's fluid, smooth and uber-responsive. I've never been able to use the S-Pen for long, but considering how many Note fans use them, the S-Pen remains a positive addition.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – Camera

There's a new camera on the back of the Note 9. The 12MP variable aperture (f/1.5 + f/2.4) camera has been taken straight from the S9 and S9 Plus. Next to it is another 12MP camera, this time with a longer focal length for 2x zoom.

The setup appears to be unchanged from the Galaxy S9 Plus, which may be a disappointment for those hoping the Note 9 will compete with the Pixel 2 or Huawei P20 Pro for the best phone camera. I took a few quick shots with the Note 9 during my demo, and they looked very similar to the S9: colors were very vibrant, but details were a bit washed out. I like having control over the aperture, especially since f/1.5 is good for blurring backgrounds and enhancing low-light shots.

In the camera app, Samsung has taken a note from the Huawei P20 series and added automatic scene detection. Samsung says there are 20 scenes it can detect, which will change the image depending on your environment. There is also a mode that can notice shortcomings and offer to correct them.