Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (left) vs the Samsung Galaxy S9+ (right)
Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy Note 9 smartphone at its Unpacked event, and the latest flagship brings a host of hardware and software improvements. The Note series' big USP - the S Pen gets many new features, including Bluetooth support. Because of this, it gets additional capabilities like the ability to become a presentation remote control, be able to control Gallery, YouTube, and other apps, become a camera shutter button, and more. The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 has been launched in a slew of colour options with matching stylus, except for the Blue colour variant which has a yellow coloured S Pen to match. The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 has been launched in two RAM/Storage options - 6GB RAM /128GB storage and 8GB RAM/ 512GB storage options.
We pit Samsung's new Galaxy Note flagship - Galaxy Note 9 - with the company's 2018 Galaxy S-series flagship, the Samsung Galaxy S9+, to see which one fares better, at least on paper, apart from the S Pen upgrades that is.
Samsung Galaxy Note 9 price in the US starts at $999 (roughly Rs. 68,700) for the 6GB RAM/ 128GB variant, while the 8GB RAM/ 512GB variant is priced at $1,250 (roughly Rs. 85,900). Pre-orders in the US will begin on Friday, August 10, with the phone slated to become available on August 24.
In comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S9+ price in India starts at Rs. 64,900 for the 64GB model, Rs. 68,900 for the 128GB variant, and Rs. 72,900 for the 256GB variant. To put pricing in better perspective, the Galaxy S9+ in the US is currently priced at $839.99 (roughly Rs. 57,800) for the 64GB variant, $889.99 (roughly Rs. 61,200) for the 128GB variant, and $959.99 (roughly Rs. 66,100) for the 256GB variant. In India, the phone is available in Lilac Purple, Coral Blue, and Midnight Black.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 supports dual-SIM slots (Nano+Nano) and runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with Samsung Experience UX customisations on top. It sports a 6.4-inch Quad HD+ (1440x2960 pixels) Super AMOLED Infinity Display with 18.5:9 aspect ratio and a 516ppi pixel density. The smartphone is powered by a 10nm 64-bit octa-core processor (Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 in the US, and Exynos 9810 in the rest of the world) and is paired with 6GB or 8GB of RAM. Internal storage options are at 128GB and 512GB with the option to expand further using a microSD card slot (up to 512GB).
Coming to the optics, there is a dual camera setup at the back of the Galaxy Note 9 with one dual-pixel 12-megapixel wide-angle sensor and another 12-megapixel telephoto lens. Both the lenses support OIS, 2x optical zoom, 10x digital zoom, and autofocus as well. At the front there is an 8-megapixel lens with autofocus and f/1.7 aperture. The smartphone packs a 4000mAh battery that is fast charging and wireless charging compatible.
Connectivity options include Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, NFC, GPS, Bluetooth 5.0, USB Type-C port, and MST. Dimensions are at 161.9x76.4x8.8mm, and it weighs 201 grams. The smartphone is IP68 certified which means it can survive in up to 1.5 metres for up to 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy S9+ packs a 6.2-inch QHD+ Curved Super AMOLED 18.5:9 display, and is powered by the Samsung Exynos 9810 SoC in India. It packs a 6GB of RAM and comes with 64GB and 256GB internal storage options. There is also microSD card slot for further expansion (up to 400GB).
The Samsung Galaxy S9+ sports a dual rear camera setup with dual OIS, specifically a wide-angle lens with Super Speed Dual Pixel 12-megapixel autofocus f/1.5-f/2.4 sensor and a telephoto lens with 12-megapixel autofocus f/2.4 sensor. There is also an 8-megapixel autofocus front camera with f/1.7 aperture. It packs a 3500mAh battery, measures 158.1x73.8x8.5mm and weighs 189 grams. Connectivity options include Gigabit LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11ac, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.0, and, yes, the 3.5mm headphone jack.
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| Display | |||
| 6.40-inch | 6.20-inch | ||
| Processor | |||
| Samsung Exynos 9810 | Samsung Exynos 9810 | ||
| Front Camera | |||
| 8-megapixel | 8-megapixel | ||
| Rear Camera | |||
| 12-megapixel | 12-megapixel | ||
| RAM | |||
| 6GB | 6GB | ||
| Storage | |||
| 128GB | 64GB | ||
| Battery Capacity | |||
| 4000mAh | 3500mAh | ||
| OS | |||
| Android 8.1 | Android 8.0 | ||
| Resolution | |||
| 1440x2960 pixels | 1440x2960 pixels | ||
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