Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Review – Top tier specs comes in a top-tier price

The Samsung Galaxy Note series has been one of the best high-end smartphone series, famous with its premium design and powerful features (especially the signature S Pen). Now Samsung has brought their latest entry to the series – Samsung Galaxy Note 9 to Malaysia, and we are lucky to be able to get our hands on it. Check out our Samsung Galaxy Note 9 review below to know how we feel about the new beast!

Design and Display

Undoubtedly, the Note 9 is beautiful in its refined design. It features the 6.4-inch Quad HD+ Super AMOLED Infinity Display – a near bezel-less, edge-to-edge screen on the front, while the rear camera seamlessly blends into the back on top of the fingerprint sensor. The design is all good, however, the fingerprint sensor is having a small target area, yet it is located too close to the camera (a bigger target area would be a better design).

Other than the usual volume button and power button, there is also a Bixby button located at its left side. While on the bottom, it has a headphone jack, a USB port and of course, the S Pen. There are 4 colour options for Samsung Galaxy Note 9 – Midnight Black, Metallic Copper, Lavender Purple (not available in Malaysia) and Ocean Blue. They come with a matching S Pen except for the Ocean Blue version, which it comes with a bold yellow S Pen.

The Note 9 is taller and heavier than its predecessor (Note 8), it is 161.9mm tall and weights at 201 g. It might be a little dangerous to hold it with one hand or bring it around in your pocket, so handle it with care!

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Main Specifications

• Size:
  • Galaxy Note 9: 161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8 mm
  • S Pen: 106.37 x 5.7 x 4.35 mm
• Weight: 201 g (3.1 g for S Pen)
• Color: Midnight Black, Metallic Copper, Lavender Purple, Ocean Blue
• Display: 6.4″ Quad HD+ Super AMOLED
• Resolution:  2960 x 1440 pixels
• AP:  Samsung Exynos 9810 10㎚ 64-bit Octa-Core Processor
• OS: Android 8.1 (Oreo)
• Memory:  6GB / 8GB RAM + 128GB / 512GB ROM + MicroSD slot up to 512GB
• Camera:
  • 8 MP Front Camera
  • 12 MP + 12 MP Dual Rear Camera with Dual OIS
• Battery: 4000 mAh with fast charging compatible on wired and wireless

Camera

Builds on Samsung’s industry-leading camera technologies, the Note 9‘s camera doesn’t disappoint. It is having a 12MP Dual Aperture lens + a 12MP telephoto lens on its rear with advanced noise reduction technology that allows you to take crystal-clear shots no matter the lighting conditions.

The camera is smart, it uses AI-technology to identify the scene or object and instantly optimize them for lifelike images. It also features flaw detection that detects any flaws such as blinks or smudged lenses then notifies the users to reshoot with a popup message. Plenty of camera modes including the Super Slow-Mo (up to 960 FPS) and Hyperlapse are featured in the Note 9 too.

It has an 8MP selfie camera, which it comes with an autofocus. There is an AR emoji mode where you can create an avatar using your face and personalize it with different outfits or accessories. You can take a selfie or video using your avatar or send a range of animated stickers to your friends! Well if you don’t want to use your avatar, there is a ton of different stickers and animated characters (including Frozen and Mickey Mouse) for you to play around as well.

Performance and Battery

We are having the Samsung Exynos 9810 processor along with 6GB RAM on our Samsung Galaxy Note 9, and it is capable to deliver high performance on both multitasking and gaming. We tried a few games in their best graphics and framerate settings including Fortnite, PUBG Mobile and Asphalt 9: Legends, fortunately, there is no lags or long loading times yet.

Although 128GB ROM + microSD up to 512GB on the Note 9 we get is already more than enough for a ton of apps or entertainment stuff, you can choose the 512GB ROM version for up to 1TB storage in total. Its stereo speakers come with the Dolby Atmos feature too, which offers you a theatre-like and immersive 3D experience in entertainment or gaming.

In addition, it packs a massive 4000mAh battery, allowing you to enjoy gaming for plenty of hours or all-day of normal usage. Even though your battery is running out, you can charge it back up quickly thanks to the fast charging technology (both wired and wireless).

Samsung DeX, Bixby and S Pen

The Note 9 delivers a PC-like experience with Samsung DeX too. Connect your Note 9 to a monitor, and you will be able to work on presentations, edit photos or watch your favourite show all on a big screen. It can even serve as a second screen or trackpad when connected to a monitor.

Of course, Note 9 comes with the personalized intelligent assistant Bixby. You can call Bixby by voice, or press the Bixby button on the left side of the device. While the signature S Pen is now featuring the Bluetooth Low-Energy (BLE) support, which you can take selfies and group pictures, change slides, pause videos and more just by simply pressing a button.

Conclusion

With the top-tier specs such as the Infinity Display, industry-leading cameras, powerful processor and a massive battery, you can expect its price to be on top tier too. Arriving in Malaysia from 24 August, it costs RM 3699 (128GB) and RM 4599 (512GB).

In my opinion, it is not as overpriced as some of the others said, but considering our tight budget to spend on smartphones, it might be something that most of us couldn’t afford. However, if your budget is enough, Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is worth the money. For more information, you can visit the official site.

Join Us!