Despite the leaks that ran up to its Galaxy Note 10 launch, Samsung still manages to impress its fans with the latest phone in the Note 10 family, a radically different and improved device — in terms of design, specs, and many other aspects — from those that came before.
The Galaxy Note 10 is hardly a surprise; leaks already revealed what it was going to look like and what specs it's going to boast. Samsung unveiled not one but two smartphones: the base Galaxy Note 10 that's got a 6.3-inch screen, and its bigger sibling, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus, which boasts a whopping 6.8-inch display.
Galaxy Note 10 And Note 10 Plus
The regular Galaxy Note 10 starts at $949 and has just one configuration: 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. The Note 10 Plus costs $1,099 and packs 12 GB of RAM and has the same storage as its little sibling, though users can splurge $100 more to bump it to 512 GB. There's also technically a third model capable of 5G, and it will be exclusive to Verizon for "a limited" time.
Galaxy Note 10 Design
Like most other premium phones, Samsung's latest is made of metal and glass, but the company is putting a huge emphasis on overall fit, finish, and build quality. The top and bottom bezels are almost nonexistent, and the sides taper thanks to curved edges. The hole-punch camera has been relocated to the middle and is even smaller than the one found on the Galaxy S10. The fingerprint sensor is tucked underneath the screen. On the back, the cameras are stacked vertically much like on the iPhone X.
New S Pen
Clearly, Samsung added improvements across the board. Even the S Pen got a pretty cool spec bump, as it now features an accelerometer and gyroscope, which paves the way for air gestures or being able to control and navigate the device even with the S Pen just hovering near, sans any direct contact.
But even though Samsung brought a lot, it also had to take something crucial — the headphone jack. For years, the company stood firm and unflinching against the tidal wave of phone manufacturers opting out of the traditional audio port, but alas, it's finally caved in. Samsung says it used the extra space for more battery. To be fair, Samsung is including a pair of USB Type-C headphones in the box, but there's no dongle, which costs $10.
Another thing that's gone is the Bixby button, the function now relegated to a long-press on the power button. Double-pressing it, meanwhile, launches the camera.
Check out the specs at a glance:
Galaxy Note 10
• 6.3-inch display, 2,280 x 1,080 resolution
• 8 GB RAM
• 256 GB UFS 3.0 storage, no microSD expansion
• 3,500 mAh battery
Galaxy Note 10 Plus
• 6.8-inch display, 3,040 x 1,440 resolution
• 12 GB RAM
• 256 GB or 512 GB UFS 3.0 storage, with microSD expansion
• 4,300 mAh battery
• VGA depth-of-field camera
Both
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chip
• S Pen with Bluetooth LE, accelerometer and gyroscope.
• Dynamic AMOLED screen with tone mapping
• 16-megapixel wide-angle camera.
• 12-megapixel dual-aperture camera
• 12-megapixel telephoto camera
• 10-megapixel selfie camera
• In-display fingerprint sensor
Check out the official introduction video below:
Both phones go on preorder starting Aug. 8, then go on sale this Aug. 23. Colorways include Aura White, Aura Black, and Aura Glow, which is a new iridescent color. There's also an Aura Pink variant spotted in the UK, and Auira Red will be available in some countries. The Note 10 Plus will also come in Aura Blue, but only for customers who buy directly from Samsung or Best Buy.
