Samsung has finally unveiled its next flagship in its Galaxy S line with the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus. If you are a user of the S8 series or even the
Galaxy Note 8 on the outside side by side Samsung’s next iteration doesn’t look that much different on the surface. When you get into the hardware of this new flagship is when you get to see the details.
Specs:
Display: Galaxy S9: 5.8” (529 ppi) | Galaxy S9+: 6.2″ (570 ppi) Quad HD+ Curved Super AMOLED
Cameras: Galaxy S9: 12 MP rear facing camera |
Galaxy S9+: Dual rear-facing 12 MP cameras (wide-angled and telephoto) / 8 megapixel front-facing cameraProcessor / RAM: Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 / 4GB RAM | Galaxy S9+: 6GB RAM (S9+)
Memory: 64GB Internal Memory (with expansion slot up to 400GB memory card)
Battery: 3,000 mah non-removable / 3,500mah (S9+)
Connectivity : Bluetooth 5.0 / Wi-Fi / Nano SIM / USB-C / Headphone Jack / Gear VR / Google Daydream
OS: Android Oreo 8
Features: Bixby | IP68 Water and dust resistant / Fast Wired (QC 2.0) and Wireless Charging / Dolby Atmos Surround Sound
Camera – The Star of the Show
The Galaxy S8 series and Note 8 took some impressive photos and Samsung wanted to up the ante throwing in a Super Speed Dual Pixel Sensor. While the last phones can do slow-mo at 240fps with this new feature you can crank it up to 960 frames for even more impressive shots. I got to see it in action with several different sequences including doing my own little quick clip which you can see below.
Low light has been improved with a Samsung’s Dual Aperture 1 (F1.5 – F2.4) which is setup to bring in more light in the darkest of areas. I haven’t got around to testing this yet but will let you know how it is when I get around to it.
For those that love Animojis from Apple might be in love with Samsung’s AR Emoji as it actually uses you as the avatar and will create a digital emoji in your image. It is pretty quick and I felt it was in my likeness beside the slicked back hair which you can change it. Once you create your own emoji you can have a plethora of gifs which you can send anyone not just Samsung users.
Also what may happen if you travel abroad is the ability for your camera to translate language just by pointing your camera at it. Powered by Bixby you can simply point your camera and the Galaxy S9 will change the language in almost an instant.
Flipping the Script
Besides changes in the camera Samsung moved some things around and even made some additions. They flipped the camera lens around and also the fingerprint sensor making it slightly separate and under the camera. Hopefully it will stop all those accidental smudges of the camera which I was and still am guilty of. Samsung has also added stereo speakers tuned by AKG with the capability of having Dolby Atmos. For all those that like to take in a good amount of media on your phones and don’t want headphones plugged in(yes the headphone jack is still there) you may not have to worry about that tinny mono speaker of the past.
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ will be available in 3 colors such as midnight black, coral blue, and lilac purple with a fourth colorway coming down the line. It will be available for for pre-order on March 2nd from major carriers. It will be available in stores on March 16th.
Beginning March 2, 2018, consumers who pre-order a Samsung Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+ can save up to $350 with qualifying trade-in of various devices . The Galaxy S9 will retail at $719, or $35/24mth, while the S9+ will be 839.99 or $35/ 24mth from Samsung.com . The promotion will last for a limited time and is available at Samsung.com, the Shop Samsung app and select retailers. Visit samsung.com/us/trade-in for more information.
Picking up a Galaxy S9?
As mentioned earlier on the outside the Galaxy S9 series doesn’t look too much different from its predecessor but the hardware behind it brings some welcome changes and innovation in features such as the audio and camera grab your attention.
