Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is now official. In keeping up with the Note tradition, the Note 9 is basically the same device we’ve gotten used to seeing in the Note series from previous years.
It has the big, beautiful curved-edge display screen that also keeps Samsung’s Infinity Display design, big battery, has the S Pen, and lots of raw power, among other stuff. But then there are those that we haven’t seen before on any Galaxy Note device, including the outgoing Note 8.
Here, we’ve put together a list of new features that are making their way to the Note series for the first time courtesy of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9. To make it more interesting, we have divided them into three sections: new for the smartphone industry, the Samsung devices, and finally, the Galaxy Note handsets.
New in the smartphone industry
Here are the features that have never been seen before in the smartphone industry, at least as far as mainstream devices are concerned.
Powered S Pen
The new S Pen is probably one of the biggest updates the Galaxy Note 9 brings. What makes it huge is not just the productivity features it brings, but the fact that it’s a powered S Pen that relies on supercapacitors and thus can be charged (wirelessly) and supports Bluetooth connectivity. This time around, the S Pen button has gotten more useful as it can be used to remotely execute various functions like taking photos remotely, change presentation slides, and many other features.
1TB storage space (512GB ROM + 512GB SD card)
For the storage thirsty, the Galaxy Note 9 may be the only genuine phone worth buying. The Galaxy Note 9 supports up to 512GB of SD cards, which may not be new, but couple it with the 512GB internal storage on the $1,250 model of the device and you have 1 terabyte of storage space. Binger watchers would love this.
Wireless Charger Duo
Many Samsung phones support wireless charging with the help of a wireless charging dock, but for the first time, we have a wireless charging dock that supports dual charging. Dubbed Samsung Wireless Charger Duo, the dock can be able to charge both the Galaxy Note 9 and Galaxy Watch at the same time, which is pretty handy for those who will also be grabbing the $330 smartwatch beginning August 24th.
USB-powered DeX support
The Galaxy Note 8 came with support for DeX, Samsung’s tech that lets you turn a smartphone into a desktop and use it with a mouse and keyboard. While the Note 8 requires a separate dock for this to work, the Note 9 only needs a USB-C to HDMI adapter and that’s all. Yes, no Dex component has to be bought with the Note 9. Even better is that you can still use the smartphone while in “DeX mode”, something that isn’t possible on the Note 8.
New for Samsung
These are the features that have been appearing first time for any Samsung device.
6.4-inch Super AMOLED display screen
The Galaxy Note 8 became Samsung’s biggest smartphone yet with its 6.3-inch display real estate, but this feat has just been surpassed by the Galaxy Note 9 with its massive 6.4-inch panel. As for the rest of the specs, they remain basically unchanged from the Note 8. You get a QHD+ resolution, Infinity Display, and Gorilla Glass 5 protection, and so on.
8GB RAM + 512GB ROM
For the first time in Samsung’s smartphone history, we have a device with a massive 8GB of RAM. The Galaxy Note 9 isn’t the only device with 8GB of RAM. In fact, we’ve been seeing this figure for quite some time now, but it’s not so common that you’ll find an even bigger 512GB of internal storage on a device with support for microSD card expansion.
Slide a 512GB microSD card in this thing and you have a TB of storage in your pocket. It’s simply insane, but of course, you’ll need to shell out a whopping $1250 to get your hands on this variant.
4000mAh battery
The Galaxy Note 7 had a 3500mAh battery and while the Note 8 toned this down to 3300mAh, Samsung went for a massive 4000mAh unit on the Galaxy Note 9. This is the biggest unit we’ve seen on a Samsung phone, but it’s certainly not the biggest there’s in the smartphone industry. The Note 9 has a USB-C port and supports fast charging technology from Qualcomm to ensure that this monstrous battery is quickly juiced up to 100%.
Bixby 2.0
In addition to unveiling the Note 9 at the Unpacked event, Samsung also gave us Bixby 2.0, the upgraded version of Bixby. The Note 9 becomes the first Samsung device to come preinstalled with Bixby 2.0, but of course, other supported devices should also receive the new digital assistant via a software update.
New camera algorithm
The Galaxy Note 9 boasts a new AI-backed algorithm that can “see” a scene you are trying to capture and with the help of 20 different pre-stored scenes, it can tune the camera to optimize the image in question. This is quite similar to what Huawei does with the P20 Pro. When you are trying to capture a photo of an object, the Note 9 camera app will “think” for a split-second and all of a sudden the object changes so slightly to make the colors richer. Even more interesting is that the camera app will tell you if someone in a photo blinks or even if the photo is blurred. Cool huh!
New to the Galaxy Note family
These are the features that are making a debut on the Galaxy Note handsets — that is, features not seen until the Galaxy Note 8. Of course, the above features — in the first for smartphone and first for Samsung devices — are also part of this, but the features below have already been seen on other than Galaxy Note handsets already, most probably the Galaxy S9 plus.
Variable camera aperture
Although not the first time on a Sammy device, it’s the first time a Galaxy Note smartphone has a variable aperture. The main sensor on the dual-lens setup on the back of the Galaxy Note 9 has a variable aperture that adjusts based on the lighting conditions. The back camera setup also doesn’t protrude and like its predecessor, both sensors have optical image stabilization.
New color variants
Samsung Galaxy Note 9 will be sold in several color variants and among them are two new entrants – Ocean Blue and Lavender Purple. Honestly, both look cool from the official images, but blue definitely carries the day, at least from this side of the table. Of course, other color variants will also be present, including Midnight Black and Metallic Copper.
It costs $1000
It’s not a feature so to say, but its worth mentioning. For the first time ever, a Samsung Galaxy smartphone has a price tag of $1000. The Note 8 started at $929 for the base model, which made it the most expensive Samsung smartphone at the time. This record has been broken by its successor, which further takes things to the next level with a price tag of $1250 for the 8/512GB variant.
