The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus is a big and powerful phone. It is smartphone luxury with a 6.8-inch screen, fast performance and a really fun camera. Battery life is good and combined with the S Pen’s abilities, it is a phone to die for, if you can afford its hefty price tag.
Check out Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus – Aura Blue on BestBuy.com here
List of Specifications
Dimension: 162.3 x 77.2 x 7.9 mm (6.39 x 3.04 x 0.31 in)
Weight: 196 g (6.91 oz)
Display: 6.8 in Dynamic AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors. 1440 x 3040 pixels, 19:9 ratio (~498 ppi density)
Storage Options: 12GB RAM, 256GB Internal Storage / 512GB Internal Storage, micro SDXC – dual model only
Software: Android 9.0 (Pie), upgradable to Android 10, One UI 2.5
Rear Camera: Quad: 12 MP, f/1.5-2.4, 27mm (wide), 1/2.55”, 1.4um, dual pixel PDAF, OIS; 12 MP, f/2.1, 52mm (telephoto), 1/3.6”, 1.0um, PDAF, OIS, 2x optical zoom, 16 MP, f/2.2, 12mm (ultrawide), 1/3.1”, 1.0um, Super Steady video, 0.3 MP, TOF 3D (depth). LED flash, Auto HDR, panorama
Front Camera: 10 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3”, 1.22um, Dual Pixel PDAF; Dual video call, Auto-HDR
Battery: Non-Removable Li-Ion 4300 mAh, Fast Charging 45W, USB Power Delivery 3.0, Qi/PMA wireless charging 15W, Reverse Wireless Charging 4.5W
Other Features: Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer, Bixby natural language commands and dictation.
Pros
- Superb selfie camera
- Rear cameras are fun to use
- Definitely the best screen on a phone
- Good battery
Cons
- Design is slippery
- Small hands will struggle with the size
- A very hefty price tag
Design and Layout
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus is a really big, but really good looking phone. Surrounded by the thinnest of bezels, and equipped with a beautiful screen, this phone is a real stylish one.
The phone comes in Aura Glow, Aura Black, Aura White and Aura Blue colors that are really eye-catching. The Aura Glow, especially, is a show-stopping color that will make you fall in love with the phone. Aura Blue is exclusive only to the U.S.
Unfortunately, the back of the phone seems to scratch easily so extra care for the phone is needed. The reflective design makes even tiny scratches very noticeable so the best thing to do is to give it extra protection with a phone casing. Go with a clear case so that the beautiful design is not hidden.
This phone has all its buttons on the left side. The placement will be a little awkward if you are not used to having all buttons on the left side. To turn off the phone, you will need to use the software toggle located in the notification drawer. It may take a little while to adapt to if you are used to switching your phone on and off with a side button.
Similar to the other phones in the S10 range, this phone has an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor that is on the front, under the glass. Better than the other phones in the S10 range, the sensor here is faster and more reliable. There is also Face Unlock if you do not want to use the fingerprint sensor.
One thing that’s missing from this phone is a headphone jack. According to Samsung, it was removed to make space for the phone’s battery. Instead, there are USB-C AKG earbuds included in the box.
Display
At 6.8 inch, the screen on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus is just huge. It has an edge to edge design that takes up all of the front. The curved Super AMOLED screen combined with its Quad HD+ resolution makes images satisfyingly sharp and superb. If you watch movies and videos on your phone frequently, this device will give you the ultimate viewing experience. We might even go as far as to say that this is the phone with the best screen.
Having said this, the curved edges sometimes result in false touches, especially if you are holding it with one hand. Additionally, it does not have the 90Hz refresh rate that we are starting to see in newer phones.
Battery Life
At 4,300 mAh, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus has the biggest battery ever on a Samsung phone. This batter will easily last you through the day even when on the default Full HD resolution, with 20 to 30% left after heavy use. Samsung has improved tremendously on its power management and considering the 6.8-inch screen on this phone, its battery life is pretty good.
Fast Charging capabilities have aso been upgraded to an incredible 45W. With a 45W charger, you will be able to charge up your phone for a full day’s use in 30 minutes. Unfortunately, the 45W charger is sold separately. The 25W charger in the box will give you a 100% charge in 70 minutes, which is still very fast.
Overall, the battery life for this phone is pretty great. Combined with its fast charging capabilities the Note 10 Plus is a phone to consider if you use your phone heavily and need something that charges up at lighting speed.
Software and Performance
Samsung’s One UI interface makes everything easy to reach. This is especially pleasing as most of the navigation options are within thumb’s reach even though the phone is really big.
With the Samsung Dex, a simple plugin of a USB-C cable will enable you to view your phone on your desktop, dock free. There is also now a ‘Link to Windows’ mode that enables you to receive messages on your desktops.
However, some of the often-used apps such as Samsung Notes do not have a desktop edition that is reliable. Samsung could take note of Apple’s handle on continuity software in this department.
Nonetheless, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus is still one of the best performing phones on the market. It has 12GB of RAM as compared to the 8GB of the normal Note 10, giving it more than enough for web browsing on Dex desktop.
If you play games on your phone, you will be happy to know that this device has been outfitted with a vapour chamber that works to cool the phone, enabling it to handle 3D games really well.
Additionally, if the 256Gb or 512GB internal storage is not enough for you, expandable storage is an option with the microSD card slot.
Camera Performance
The Galaxy Note 10 Plus has 5 cameras and all of them have superb performance. Four of the cameras are on the rear, with the Night Mode feature benefiting the main 12MP camera. Pictures taken in low light look amazing and you’re going to have fun capturing memories using this feature.
The best part of the camera is telephoto and ultra-wide lenses. These lenses offer different perspectives, enabling you to capture more interesting photos. With the 2x zoom telephoto lens, images can now be taken up close without having to deal with distortion. The ultra-wide-angle lens makes getting everything in the shot really easy.
As for the front 10MP camera, the Live Focus feature provides fun filters for selfies. There is also a new filter – Big Circles – which blurs the background in a natural way. The colourpoint filter is another fun filter that you should try out.
The cameras on this phone are really excellent and it’s one of the best cameras for capturing selfies. In addition to this, the VGA Depth lens helps to apply ‘Live Focus’ for the photos.
Competition
The Galaxy Note 10 is a smaller, cheaper version of the Galaxy Note 10 Plus. It has a 6.3 inch screen, a smaller battery and 8GB RAM instead of 12GB. However, as the screen is smaller, the battery life lasts just as long as the Plus version. This could be a good alternative.
Besides this, if you love Apple products, the iPhone 11 has a great camera with excels in low light environments, good battery life as well as great performance. The price is quite reasonable as well.
The Bottom Line
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus is the phone for you if you love watching videos on your phone. With its 6.8 inch screen, you can immerse yourself in the movie while everything else around you fades away. This is also the phone for you if you love taking notes. The S Pen is the perfect tool for writing and sketching. Additionally, the S Pen Remote Camera Shutter makes taking selfies really fun!
However, if you have small hands you might want to look for other options as this phone can be a little hard to use with one hand. Also, if you are on a budget, the price tag for this phone is rather hefty. There are plenty of phones out there that cost way less that can perform just as well.
Check out the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus on BestBuy.com today!
