Thoughts on the Note 10 and Note 10+ now that everything has been laid out?

[Golurk]

Many people don’t seem to understand several things about the Note series:

1. It’s main target base are power users and businessmen who will make use of the extra battery/performance, S-Pen and multitasking abilities (and Dex). Most others will find that the Galaxy S series suits their needs better and they don’t need the Note’s extra features. The Note has always been more niche than the Galaxy S.

2. For the past few years all the major changes have been happening in the Galaxy S series then being refined and slightly improved in the Note series. So I’m not sure why some are expecting a radical new design and cameras...the Note 9 wasn’t too different from the S9+, and the same for the S8 and Note 8.

3. You COULD consider the Note 10 as being a Note 10+e. It is smaller and has slightly less features and ever so slightly inferior specs. Just like the S10e compared to the S10(+).

4. I agree that Samsung downgrading the resolution to FHD from QHD on the standard Note 10 is unexpected and below-expectations, but an FHD sAMOLED 6.3 inch display is still damn good. I don’t see anyone complaining about the P30 Pro’s 6.47 inch FHD OLED or the OnePlus 7’s 6.4 inch FHD AMOLED. Unless you stick the phone directly into your eyes you won’t really notice the difference in everyday use. The iPhone XR is different because at that price you are expecting at least an FHD OLED and not an LCD with the same pixel density of the iPhone 4.

5. Having no expandable storage is regrettable but at least the base storage is 256GB and 8GB of RAM. That is more than enough for the vast majority of users and makes the phone future-proof (memory wise)

 

[mundo472]

The move to 1080p and no expandable memory seems like a page from the Apple playbook. It's a crummy move that makes this. a non-starter. Don't they realize we buy Sammy's for the best screens? That size made me consider moving from the S to the Note for the first time but that's done for now. I'll look at the 10+ but it's probably larger than my taste.

 

[Golurk]

The move to 1080p and no expandable memory seems like a page from the Apple playbook. It's a crummy move that makes this. a non-starter. Don't they realize we buy Sammy's for the best screens? That size made me consider moving from the S to the Note for the first time but that's done for now. I'll look at the 10+ but it's probably larger than my taste.

The base storage is 256GB and 8GB RAM. That kinda makes up for the lack of expandable storage in my opinion. 256GB is plenty enough for most people. As for the lower resolution it’s disappointing but I doubt you’ll notice it in everyday use. The P30 Pro has the same resolution but a larger screen.

Samsung’s displays are the best in the business, but I’m sure that they’re not the only reason we buy their phones.

 

[Gary02468]

they fell miserably short of our expectations for the phone

"Our"? For whom do you speak?

...

For the record, I am getting the Note 10 plus variant with 256GB.

That's all Samsung wants to know.

 

[dendron01]

Samsung’s displays are the best in the business, but I’m sure that they’re not the only reason we buy their phones.

Its definitely the main feature on a Note though. The basic equation has always been top specs + big beautiful screen + SPen = productivity. They have tweaked that formula with the Note 10 - apparently to get the SPen into a device with a more affordable price point and (hopefully) into more people's hands. That at the expense of the Note series maintaining its reputation as the 'Cadillac' of the Galaxy line.

I'm not so sure Samsung picked a good year to do this because it's S10 line has already been selling very well, apparently. They may just be splitting the existing Note base rather than finding new customers for it. As we have read here, the Galaxy line was so good this time around it enticed many Note users to buy in as well...

 

[msm0511]

Its definitely the main feature on a Note though. The basic equation has always been top specs + big beautiful screen + SPen = productivity. They have tweaked that formula with the Note 10 - apparently to get the SPen into a device with a more affordable price point and (hopefully) into more people's hands. That at the expense of the Note series maintaining its reputation as the 'Cadillac' of the Galaxy line.

I'm not so sure Samsung picked a good year to do this because it's S10 line has already been selling very well, apparently. They may just be splitting the existing Note base rather than finding new customers for it. As we have read here, the Galaxy line was so good this time around it enticed many Note users to buy in as well...

The S10 hasn't been selling well though. Flagship sales are down, and the A series has taken its place as Samsung's top sellers.

 

[dendron01]

The S10 hasn't been selling well though.

That's not what I've been hearing from people on the carrier side. The exact opposite, in fact.

 

[msm0511]

That's not what I've been hearing from people on the carrier side. The exact opposite, in fact.

While revenue was up 8 percent at Samsung’s mobile division, profit was down 42 percent year on year. Samsung says that overall phone shipments increased, with strong sales for mid-range models like the Galaxy A50 and A70, but the flagship (and more profitable) Galaxy S10 experienced “weak sales momentum” during the quarter.

That's from an article on Samsung's most recent quarter.

 

[dendron01]

While revenue was up 8 percent at Samsung’s mobile division, profit was down 42 percent year on year. Samsung says that overall phone shipments increased, with strong sales for mid-range models like the Galaxy A50 and A70, but the flagship (and more profitable) Galaxy S10 experienced “weak sales momentum” during the quarter.

That's from an article on Samsung's most recent quarter.

Excuses from upper management to placate shareholders. I never said they were smashing any sales records. What I am talking about is relative to how other flagship devices are selling right now particularly other Android flagships. The S10 is doing very well in this regard.

Everyone knows the flagship market is saturated, even with Samsung's own products let alone competitors. Emerging markets may still be seeing "strong" growth and that is where lower end products are intended.

If Samsung wants to focus on the mid tier to maintain market share by flooding the market with cheaper devices that is their prerogative. How many millions of units do you figure they must be pumping into that segment, and at what cost to their bottom line? It's obviously their investment in the mid tier that is dragging down profit but just look at those revenue numbers LOL...short term pain for a bigger piece of the pie.

 

[neil74]

I’m not keen on the colour options here in the UK (aura and black), no gear VR compatibility and no headphone jack.

Agreed, the blue looks quite nice but having seen the prism silver S10 I am worried that the aurora is too glossy and a little bling. I have the ceramic white S10+ and love the finish, it is a shame they dropped ceramic on the Note.

Like many on here I was interested in the normal Note 10 for the smaller size but the normal S10 is a pretty compelling option for anyone looking for a slightly smaller device.

 

[kevinpleasants]

The Note 10 Plus has just about the same footprint of the Note 9.

The move to 1080p and no expandable memory seems like a page from the Apple playbook. It's a crummy move that makes this. a non-starter. Don't they realize we buy Sammy's for the best screens? That size made me consider moving from the S to the Note for the first time but that's done for now. I'll look at the 10+ but it's probably larger than my taste.

 

[trucksmoveamerica#AC]

The S10 hasn't been selling well though. Flagship sales are down, and the A series has taken its place as Samsung's top sellers.

Price all the way

 

[Golurk]

That's not what I've been hearing from people on the carrier side. The exact opposite, in fact.

I agree. If you do some research you’ll find that sales for the S10 series surpassed sales for the S9 series by 16% in the US during the first week. Globally sales for the S10 series are noticeably better than sales for the S9(+). Considering the recent global slowdown in flagship smartphone sales, the fact that Samsung has managed to improve last year's flagship sales is still an achievement.

In terms of big things Samsung has gotten right this year is definitely the Galaxy A range. This year phones like the Samsung A50, A70 and A80 have demonstrated that Samsung is capable of selling a value for money, feature-packed and highly capable mid-range phone. The A50 in particular has sold very well. Next year I hope that the Galaxy A range improves in camera abilities (mainly in low light) and performance (Exynos 9620 8nm design process, newer cores/GPU and maybe 6000 on geekbench?)

 

[Carrie Greicar]

You would still need a dongle if you wanted to use your 3.5mm wired (possibly high end) headphones.

Good point. I guess I didn't think about that because I already own wireless ones.

 

[Carrie Greicar]

Yeah , that is called a double dungle , damn that sounds explicit ??????

In a case like that, couldn't you put it on a wireless charger and still have headphones in?

 

[Carrie Greicar]

Yeah , that is called a double dungle , damn that sounds explicit

In a case like that, couldn't you put it on a wireless charger and still have headphones in?

 

[Golurk]

In a case like that, couldn't you put it on a wireless charger and still have headphones in?

Yes, but try doing that while you’re on a flight/bus/train/car :-\

Unless you’re at home, it’s extremely difficult to listen to music using USB-C earphones AND wirelessly charge your jackless device at the same time. I suspect many of us listen to music whilst charging our devices when we are travelling.

 

[CKwik240]

Yes, but try doing that while you’re on a flight/bus/train/car :-\

Unless you’re at home, it’s extremely difficult to listen to music using USB-C earphones AND wirelessly charge your jackless device at the same time. I suspect many of us listen to music whilst charging our devices when we are travelling.

Unless you get a portable battery with wireless charging built in. There are a number of them out there.

 

[debdroid1a]

...

 

[SZQnl]

Does anyone know if the Note 10 has a DC Dimming option like OnePlus, Huawei and Xiaomi?

My eyes are sensitive to PWM at lower frequencies and my last OLED display phone regularly gave me red eyes after prolonged usage.

Thanks