Samsung Galaxy Note 9: Everything you need to know
Pushed to a corner by sluggish Galaxy S9 and S9+ sales, South Korean smartphone maker, Samsung, is now looking to win back lost ground with its third flagship for the year, the Galaxy Note 9.
Expected to be unveiled at Samsung's Unpacked 2018 event in New York on August 9, the phablet with its iconic stylus, will look to replicate the success of the Note 8 which was received with cheer from audiences across the globe.
With so much riding on the device, the Note 9 has already become one of the most anticipated smartphones of the year, and as such, has been a constant topic of discussion and speculation in the tech world.
So, ahead of its launch, let's take a look at what the ever-churning rumour mill has to say about Samsung's upcoming flagship.
Design and display
To begin with, let's talk about the design of the phone.
Much like its predecessor, the Galaxy Note 9 is expected to follow a design scheme that will feature glass sheets at the back and front, and a metal frame sandwiched in-between them. As was seen on the Note 8, the phone will feature curved glass which will not be as pronounced as on the Galaxy S9, but will still be discernable enough to help the device stand out from the crowd in terms of design.
At the front, the device will sport a QuadHD+, 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Infinity Display with narrow bezels. Though it isn't much, this display will make the Note 9 look favourable to the Galaxy Note 8, which only came bearing a 6.3 inch panel.
As per leaked images, the biggest difference to the design will be seen at the back of the phone with the fingerprint scanner now being moved to just below the rear camera module. Leaks also point to the phone being available in three colours – black, blue and brown.
S-Pen
Change is coming August 9th 2018. Can you keep up? #Unpacked pic.twitter.com/ToJkS28eXc
— Samsung Mobile (@SamsungMobile) June 27, 2018
If leaks are to be believed, with the Note 9, Samsung will also bring some interesting changes to the S-Pen.
The iconic stylus that differentiates the phablet from others in the market will see a redesign as well as the addition of new functionality. Though much isn't known about the stylus as of now, if leaks and Samsung's own teasers of the S-Pen are to be believed, the stylus could well end up being the defining factor of Samsung's upcoming flagship.
The stylus, as per reports, is expected to be announced in three colours – red, black and yellow – and could also bring with it Bluetooth support and allow music playback control among other things.
What's under the hood?
As far as the specsheet is concerned, the Note 9's will resemble the one that Samsung put out for the Galaxy S9 and S9+.
The device is expected to be powered by the Snapdragon 845 in the United States and Exynos 9810 SoC in India and other global markets. The chipset will be paired with 6/8GB of RAM depending on the storage variant of choice – 128GB or 512GB.
However, these specs don't mean there will be nothing new under the hood. Two years after the Note 7 battery fiasco which forced Samsung to recall millions of units and face major economic damages, the South Korean smartphone maker is now finally looking to bump up the battery packs in its Galaxy Note devices.
According to various reports, and a teaser released by Samsung itself, the Galaxy S9 would bring with it a larger battery that would help it outlast competing phones.
Camera
As far as the cameras go, the device is expected to sport a dual camera setup very similar to the Galaxy S9 Plus. As such, the Dual aperture feature too should make way to the Galaxy Note 9. The particular feature allows the user to switch the camera's aperture to their preference, helping reduce the chance of clicking over or underexposed pictures.
Price and availability
Eventhough the Galaxy Note 9 will be announced globally on August 9, it could take a few days to find its way to Indian shores. Much like the Note 8 which was announced in India over 15 days after its global launch, the Note 9 too may only make its way to the country in late August or early September.
As for the price, a leak from Indonesia suggests the device will be offered in two storage variants – 128GB and 512GB. While the former is expected to come bearing a price tag of approx Rs 64,400, the top-end model could cost as much as (approx Rs 83,500) in India.
Having said that, there is no guarantee that Samsung will indeed bring both variants to India. Much like last year, it could very well decide to only bring the lower RAM/storage variant to India.
Until we know, enjoy the rumours.