Samsung Galaxy S10+ Quick Review: One Decade of Innovation

Last updated on June 15th, 2019

Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked launch event was promising. But, I wanted to get the hands on experience of the device to let you guys know if it is worth the price tag (73,900 INR) and whether the eye popping features showcased in their presentation is the real deal.

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It was a pleasant experience to be a part of the new “Pre Book Fan Activity” in my city (Bhubaneswar) while also attending the event for Sambalpur.

Fret not, I won’t be covering what happened there, but to sum up:

The experience was good to get the hands on the device while also getting the chance to interact with some of the customers. This was something new to me.

Now, moving forward to the device (here, the Samsung Galaxy S10+), I’ll briefly explain most of the essential features that are worth pointing out.

Key Specifications:

  • Exynos 9820 Chipset + 8 GB RAM + 128 GB Internal Storage
  • Triple rear camera (16 MP ultra-wide angle + 12 MP wide-angle + 12 MP telephoto lens)
  • Dual front-facing camera (10 MP – 4K Video Recording support + 8 MP RGB Depth sensor)
  • 6.4″ Quad HD+ Dynamic AMOLED Display
  • 4100 mAh battery + IP68 certified

The Display & Design

galaxy s10 plus

Of course, Samsung’s display is the best in the Industry right now. I’m not the only one appreciating it, and you must be already knowing it. In this case (Galaxy S10+), the AMOLED screen a.k.a hole punch display with a dual front-facing camera is definitely a new thing.

Well, the technical specification hints at an amazing 1200 nits as the peak of brightness for the display. It is almost as bright as a big LED TV – so you shouldn’t have an issue with the daylight screen visibility. It is a 6.4″ Quad HD+ Dynamic AMOLED screen with HDR10+.

The bezels are minimal and essentially placed as well. You may go ahead to term it “Bezel-less” – almost, huh!

On the other hand, it is practically usable to hold the phone without any weird feeling of touching the screen (Xiaomi did try a bezel-less display with Mi Mix 3 which looks good but not so comfortable to use). So, I’ll appreciate what Samsung has done here with the display and design.

Overall, it is easy to hold even with the 6.4-inch display and looks beautiful. The power button could have been placed a little lower – you might have a problem if you have small hands. But, that’s all there is.

Security

You must be already aware of Samsung’s Knox security to help protect your data and your device against malicious attacks. In addition to that, the Galaxy S10+ stepped up a notch by including an “Ultrasonic Fingerprint scanner” – which in theory is more accurate and secure than the optical fingerprint scanner.

In my usage, it was definitely fast, even though my hands were sweaty! You can use the 2D face recognition unlock method – but I always prefer the fingerprint scanner.

However, do note, that you have to avoid using a “tempered glass”, if you are using the fingerprint scanner, this may not work as uncovered by MKBHD in his recent video. You just have to use the regular screen protector.

Camera

I couldn’t bring the sample shots with the experience unit for you. But, I was amazed to see the responsiveness, details, and the ultra wide camera of course!

So, if you want to know more about it, I recommend watching SuperSaf’s comparison video:

After LG, Samsung really did a very good thing by adding an ultra-wide camera – which was very much necessary. Kudos to that!

With the S10+ you get triple camera – 12 MP + 12 MP + 16 MP.

The 16 MP sensor is the ultra-wide camera and the rest two camera sensors – wide-camera and the telephoto lens. It is interesting to note that the regular wide-angle camera offers switching between F/1.5 and F/2.4 mode.

On the front, you have a dual camera – one, which is responsible for selfies (10 MP), and the other is a depth sensor – which helps in better bokeh effect.

Performance

Unlike others, I won’t repeatedly mention the same benchmark tests. The unit I used had the Exynos 9820 chipset. If you are really into video editing on mobile – the Snapdragon 855 variant could have been the better option – but unfortunately that is not available for India.

To my fair usage of switching between multiple apps – it was very smooth. In my opinion, 8 GB RAM is still a far-fetched idea to multi-task for an average consumer in India, but, yeah, that helps.

The Bixby Button

You must be surprised why this needed an additional mention. But, with the recent software update to the Galaxy S10+, you will be able to launch any custom app using the Bixby button. You just have to go to the Settings menu and search for the Bixby customization.

Hold on, you still can’t make it the Google Assistant button yet – but that might be soon possible..

Wireless Powershare

The smartphone already supports fast charging 2.0 along with wireless charging. As a major upgrade, you will now be able to charge other devices (or accessories) which support wireless charging from your Galaxy S10+.

Simply pull down the notification bar and enable the powershare feature to charge other devices by keeping them on the back of your smartphone.

Other Important Notes:

  • If you are curious about the battery backup – you really don’t have to follow the claims advertised or take the word from someone else. The battery juice offered 4100 mAh is enough for a full-day usage and would always depend on what you do on your smartphone.
  • The device runs on Android 9.0 Pie (Samsung One UI). When compared to Samsung’s previous custom UI’s – this is a good update with a cleaner interface and less bloatware.
  • If you are a Samsung Galaxy S8/S9 user – this is a significant upgrade. But, if you own the Note 9 – I’d say it will be your decision with what exchange offers you get online/ at retails stores.

Final Impression

With what I experienced, I would definitely recommend this device for power users. In either case, if you are not sure if you can utilize all its glory and features offered, you have the option to consider the Galaxy S10 or the S10e – which costs less and comes with almost the same features (with some stripped down of course).

What do you think about the device? Are you planning to get it? Do you want to know something else from my hands on experience, if I missed mentioning?

Let me know in the comments below.

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