Samsung unveils new Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+ phones; does away with the headphone jack
We were in New York to check out the latest additions to the South Korean tech giant’s premier phone series. Here’s a rundown of what to expect (and what not to) from the Note 10 and 10+.
The new Galaxy Note 10 (right) and Note 10+. (Photo: Gaya Chandramohan)
Another one bites the dust as Samsung revealed it has scrapped the 3.5mm headphone jack from the Galaxy Note, the first of its flagship phone models not to have one.
True to the recent leaks, the new Note 10 and Note 10+ phones will not be coming with audio ports and will instead have a single USB-C connection.
The two smartphones – along with its respective 5G variant models – were unveiled at the tech giant’s Unpacked event held at the Barclay’s Centre in New York on Wednesday (Aug 7).
READ: Samsung Galaxy Note 10, Note 10+ phones available in Singapore on Aug 24
Despite the absence of a headphone jack, the Note 10 phones have mostly been beefed up, including bigger screens, more cameras, larger storage and bigger batteries. Its popular S-Pen stylus has also been given an upgrade with more productivity tools.
At the event, Samsung also announced that it will be introducing the S-Pen to the Galaxy Tab S6 and unveiled the Galaxy Book S, a super-thin laptop. The company also said it will partner with Microsoft for future collaborations.
BATTERY AND STORAGE SPECS
In many ways, the two models sandwich last year’s Note 9, which is evident in terms of battery –the standard Note 10 has 3,500 mAh to play with (a step back from the Note 9’s 4,000 mAh) but the Note 10+ takes it up a notch with a 4,300 mAh battery.
That said, both new phones sport intelligent batteries capable of superfast charging. According to Eric Chou, director of product, Samsung Australia, the Galaxy Note 10+ can last a whole day on a speedy 30-minute charge with the 45W charger that comes separately.
In terms of storage and power, the Note 10 boasts 256GB of internal storage and 8GB of RAM. Its bigger brother – or sister – has its RAM amped up to 12GB and it has an additional 512GB internal storage version. It also comes with an expandable microSD storage option of up to 1TB, like last year’s Note 9.
When it comes to its display, the Note 10’s 6.3” AMOLED screen is a step down from its Note 9 predecessor, with a 2280 x 1080 resolution compared to the latter’s 2960 x 1440 resolution. Meanwhile, the Note 10+’s 6.8” screen is the largest seen on a Note to date.
THREE CAMERAS OR FOUR?
On the camera front, the Note 10 gets three instead of the speculated four – ultra-wide, wide-angle and telephoto lenses – while the Note 10+ gets the quad-camera setup with an extra time-of-flight (TOF) camera or 3D depth Camera, which can judge depth and distance.
Both phones have advanced imaging software that allows for features such as Live focus video, which adds depth-of-field adjustments so you can blur the background to focus on your subject. A zoom-in mic function, meanwhile, amplifies any strain of audio in a frame and push background noise aside to help focus on the sounds that you want.
READ: Samsung's new Note takes on Huawei in selfie beauty pageant
An extra new feature for the Note 10+ is a 3D function that allows you to map an object, creating a photorealistic virtual version of it. The 3D render mirrors the movements of whoever comes into the frame of the phone's camera, matching them when they turn around, wave or dance.
The almost bezel-less phones' Infinity-O display means it has a hole cut-out at the top centre of its screen for the front-facing camera. The S10’s Night Mode has also been adopted as a feature to allow for better low-light photos.
FLICK-OF-THE-WRIST FOR THE S-PEN
For many Note loyalists, the S-Pen is really what defines the phone. And the new version incrementally adds on to last year’s much-welcomed Bluetooth function.
It’s now been reimagined to take the user’s productivity and creativity to the next level. For one, users will be able to instantly convert their handwritten notes on the screen into digital text, which can then be exported in different formats such as Word and PDF.
The Air action function first seen in the Note 9’s stylus is now more complex, with commands such as left, right, up, down and rotation. The stylus’ motion sensors also mean users can carry these out just by flicking their wrist and without even touching the screen.
SINGAPORE RELEASE DETAILS
The Note 10 and Note+ will come in three colours: Aura Glow, Aura Black and Aura White. These will be available in Singapore from Aug 24 at local telco operators, electronics stories, mobile retailers, Samsung Experience stores and Lazada Singapore, with pre-orders starting on Aug 8.
The Note 10 is priced at S$1,398 while the Note 10+ retails for S$1,598 and S$1,898 for the 256GB and 512GB variants, respectively.
CNA Lifestyle was in New York at the invitation of Samsung.
