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Samsung Galaxy Note 9
92
Engadget Review
Samsung continues its nearly spotless history of delivering excellent big-screen phones with the Note 9. It offers powerful performance, a long-lasting battery and a brilliant display. Its cameras aren’t the best in class, but they still take great photos, and the new S Pen remote controls make the stylus useful for more than just doodles. This is hands-down one of the best phones of the year.
Bigger and more useful than before.
Cherlynn LowAugust 15, 2018
Pros
- Useful new S Pen features
- Excellent performance
- Big and bright display
- Good battery life
- Capable cameras
Cons
- Ships with outdated Android Oreo
- Bixby is wack
Samsung
Galaxy Note 9
Engadget
92
Critics
10 reviews88
AVERAGE CRITIC SCORE
Users
119 reviews87
AVERAGE USER SCORE
View All Critic & User Reviews
Samsung Galaxy Note 9
- Critic Reviews (10)
- User Reviews (119)
- 88AVERAGE CRITIC SCORE10 ReviewsWired80REVIEW: SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 9For the people who Samsung insists love the Note line, they’re going to love this one, too. They’ve already resigned themselves to a big, expensive phone, and are getting the performance, storage and battery goodness that should come with that. For those people, the Note’s place in a market full of large smartphones has never been a question. For the rest of the $1,000 smartphone population, other flagship phones will almost certainly do the trick—and might even have more advanced tech if you wait a few months longer.CNET90Samsung's best 'everything' phone. But...The ultrapricey Note 9 is one of the year's best phones. But unless you're in dire need of an upgrade, the smart move is to wait for what the next iPhone, Pixel and even Galaxy S10 bring.PC Mag90Samsung Galaxy Note 9The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is an attractive pen-enabled phablet with a fast processor, a terrific modem, and a huge battery.ZDNet100Samsung Galaxy Note 9 reviewThe Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is fantastic and it's been a while since I've been this excited about a phone. I plan to use the Note 9 as my daily driver for months.Gizmodo90You Can Really Feel the Note 9's $1000 Price TagNothing else out right now has as many tools, tricks or feature as what Samsung smashed into the Note 9. And while its price tag means this isn’t a device for everyone, for the people who want to push the limits of what a phone can really do, the Note 9 is here to give them that opportunity.Tom's Guide80Great, But Is It Worth $1,000?Get the Note 9 if you want a big-screen phone with a pen and strong cameras. But you may want to wait for the Pixel 3 and next iPhones before you buy.Wired UK80A great phone blighted by BixbyThose looking for never-before-seen mobile innovation won’t find too much of it in the Galaxy Note 9. If Samsung’s engineers have cracked a few more mobile features, we’ll see them in the Galaxy S10 next year, not here.However, it’s wrong to class the Note 9 as anything but a success. It has the speaker and camera upgrades of the S9 family, matched with the S-Pen many love, enriched with remote Bluetooth control features.Mashable90No compromisesSamsung's Galaxy Note 9 is pricey, but it's the only flagship Android phone with every feature under the sun.The Verge90MORE, MORE, MOREFor the Note 9 to make sense, you need to want more than just “more,” you need to want the most. And having the most will cost you the most.CNBC90The $999 Galaxy Note 9 is the best Android phoneI love the Galaxy Note 9. It has the best hardware of any Android phone on the market. If you liked earlier Galaxy Note phones, you'll love this and you should buy it. It's the best Android phone right now — as the Galaxy Note 8 was last year — and it will probably hold that title for a while, unless Google really wows the world with its next Pixel phone expected in the fall.But the Galaxy Note 9 starts at $999, which is a lot of money. It's also overkill for most folks. If you want a similar experience but want to save some cash, consider the Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+.
- 87AVERAGE USER SCORE119 ReviewsSequoyah80February 28, 2020Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetKathy100June 9, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetBryce50May 23, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I seriously hate this phone. I have to restart it almost every day for it to make or receive calls. I don't even get calls half the time. For the $900 plus I spent on this thing, I'm ready to go back to my Motorola Startac.Amiri70March 23, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetSanghar80February 15, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!-picture quality of the rear camera is not upto the mark in indoor settings-low light selfie cam quality is very poor..iphone 7 is better (not tested after the android pie update)-need a new method to pull down the notification panel without reaching topDavor70February 13, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetSam20January 29, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Does a bunch of nonsense you don't need but fails to get the basics right.The bluetooth connectivity is awful. It regularly drops connections if you manage to get it connected but even worse, it fails to connect to things all the time. This is especially bad if you use nfc to connect to this piece of garbage.It is creepy to have a bunch of software installed on your phone without your permission. To make matters worse, they do not let you uninstall most of this software.This is a vastly inferior phone to my oneplus 5t that I replaced with this phone.Leonard100December 23, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!PERFECTEduardo90December 22, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetHailey90December 22, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Love everything except Bixby.David90December 22, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Cool phone that I can use a whole day with my SNS and business works.Dex is amazing while LoD beta works well as a laptop, for now, I can jusr bring my Note 9 to office and connect to the monitor, tada, that's easy for my office works.sharjeelhkhan90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetBlake100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetGOJIRA515090December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetBoris90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Bixby is a nice idea but i am on google assistant ecosystem. Samsung simply is not catching up with all of that. Plus it sometimes bixby sux at placing simple callsRicardo90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetKnightrider16290December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Everything is great about this phone outside of Bixby being forced (would love to remove Bixby and remap the hardware button) and the outdated OS.Joshua90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Definitely the best mobile device I've ever owned! This powerhouse has something for everyone! The battery is the best I've experienced on any smartphone. From there you move into the dial play, another feat from Samsung. Then talk about storage, omitting the common place starting point of 64gb to an amount that is double that, hard to run out of space (but there's a 512gb option with more Ram if you need it).Samsung packs in some unique offerings unavailable on other phones, chief among them is the S-pen. The addition of Bluetooth functionality is something we didn't know we needed, I've utilized it for music controls on Spotify far no or than i ever thought I would. Also the camera's shutter button being controlled from the Spen is a treat! Definitely looking forward to what developers dream up as this program is being opened up to them. Then we have the peculiar existence of Dex... Peculiar mainly because it seems such an odd feather, until you employ the feature. Add a Bluetooth keyboard and wireless mouse and boom tie running an android desktop that feels like a traditional Windows experience. Many uses for this! Last feature to touch on is the camera, sightly tweaked from the year's earlier offering in the s9. The AI that's been added is quite impressive. My biggest qualm with the camera is the low light capability, though improved my iphone X took better pics at a dimly lit concert venue. However that's the only time I use that iPhone. My note 9 is my daily driver and I see no end point in sight of that changing. I'm a staunch Samsung Pay supporter and you should be, too! Bottom line : the Note 9 is a beast of a device in a beauty of a forum factor. Expensive, but worth every penny!Hydro90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Some time place a call take 20-25 secHave to click 2-3 time on screen to open the folder or appOutdated AndroidMartin-Joseph100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Finally I have found the phone that I have always looked for. It has all that I need and more! It's a 'Pocket Computer' and it also still has the headphone jack! I have waited for this pone all my life and now that I got it I can easily say that this is the best phone that Samsung ever made! Bye bye iPhones for me. This is by far the best phone of 2018. Well done Samsumg!Ryan90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetHariz70December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The S-Pen adds so much to the user experience. Remote functions should only improve hands-free operations.Even with the Edge Display, the phone isn't narrow, but is quite tall. One handed usage is far from the best. There are apps and features to aid with this, but you're still using a big phone at the end of the day.Camera isn't bad, but it's not one of the best in my opinion. There isn't any standout feature. There is the f/1.5 aperture, but Huawei and Google have their versions of long exposure shots in dark conditions, which should be better.Dapo80December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A very decent phone by all means. It's wowed everyone who's seen me with it. Snazzy & snappy.The reception is the best I've experienced so far with any of my phones.I particularly like the DeX feature. This iteration is a brilliant plug & play setup without the need for a separate clumsy workstation.Also, the improved S Pen is great most especially for its remote control features. I use it almost exclusively for taking pictures.My main gripe though is with the battery. I find it hard to process that a fully-charged 4000 mAh battery in the morning can barely get me to bed with only average use. Maybe it's a function of the Exynos variant that I have; I'm not sure as I haven't researched a comparative analysis with the Snapdragon variant. The battery certainly should deliver a LOT more than it is currently doing.Also, Pie is no date away as of my writing this on 21 December 2018. Although they've delivered the monthly patches fairly early enough since October.And Bixby who? That thing should just go away.I'd give it an 8.1 overall. Get the battery life sorted, deliver Pie & my ratings would go north.sae89194100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Best phone I've ever had. Battery life is fantastic and the stylus is great when I need it, although I don't use it often. The button is great for photos. I've had the phone for months and have never used or configured Bixby, so I have to mark it down a little for that. Camera is great, but the ARmoji thing is not good. Just ugly and doesn't even have hair for a buzz cut. Overall truly great where it counts.David70December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetBernadette70December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetAustin90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetChris100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The Note 8 was my first experience with this product line and I learned why the Notes had such a devoted fan base. I actually had no intentions of upgrading to the Note 9, with reviewers stating that it wasn't that much of an improvement over the N8. But when my carrier made a Godfather offer (one I could not refuse) of half off the MSRP with the trade in of my beloved Note 8 along with enhanced cameras, greater battery life, Dolby Atmos stereo speakers, a feature rich S-Pen, and more powerful radios for improved signal strength, I had to get it and I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever with the choice I made. In the 4 months since I unboxed this juggernaut of technology I have found the Note 9 to be a pocket computer that is the perfect blend of fun and functionality. It is hands down one of the best devices I've owned. From producing eye catching photos to streaming movies, this Swiss Army knife does so many things and does them well.The Note 9 is everything thing the Note 8 is and so much more. I can't afford to purchase flag ship level phones on a yearly basis so I'm depending on this phone to last for a number of years. Hats off to Samsung for producing such a great piece of technology.MannyZoom100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Camera is awesome. Bixby sux!Muhammadhu80December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!let's start with the worst, Camera,-crippled app; lots of features, and useful features at that, are missing from the note 4, more capable hardware coupled with less useful software equals frustrations, the higher resolution sensor needs better software optimization on focusing, right now its extremely inaccurate. the note 4 had much more accurate focusing.-locked down, third party apps cannot access many features, no time lapse or video recording with screen off now, that was a major feature as it reduced battery drain and kept the phone from heating up in long recordings, while the s-pen remote is just begging for screen off camera use, the feature itself is firmly locked and cannot be used..Desktop Experience-nonexistent software support, even the software that do work don't have full functionality, which is a shame given the hardware is fully up to it.-only MS office is even remotely close to full functionality, and ONLY the paid version.Maldives:(not an issue with the note9 or Samsung) popular honeymoon destination, 5 star resorts, white sandy beaches etc, but very restricted app store, 90% of the more popular apps, by bigger names like MS, Adobe, Autodesk are region locked out of Maldives, and 99% of the big name games are locked out, so basically have to sideload everything, major hassle, can't install apps on the fly.Jyve90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Been a long time since using a Note. It was a Note2 with Cyanogenmod that was my main phone for a LONG time, with the looks people gave a huge phone obvious. If I'd not dropped it when fumbling for car keys, I might still be using it today. A few other phones (lots of Motos) went by, but none /really/ hit all the points I prefer for a phone.Amoled screensdcardWhen the S9 was released, and TMo was doing a 'buy one, get one free', I /almost/ jumped. Glad I waited. The Note9 was announced, but the price was still "you've gotta be joking". But Tmo offering a trade in, and an Verison S7 I'd got cheap to do some dev work on sat on my desk, halved the price and I thought "back to the Note we go". First impressions were "this is a thing of beauty, please don't drop it, please don't drop it". The case I've got is one of those wrap around leather things that you can put cards in too, protects the screen/should handle a bounce. Next main thing noticed was the battery life. This thing is simply scary after coming from a phone that was starting to struggle. The note9's left on my desk when I get home, used it for Google Maps traffic, sometimes forgetting to plug it in, next day/afternoon it's still 70%. That battery life is just simply monstrous. (and why I like Amoled screens with a Dark/Black theme). Speaking of themes, and no idea why Samsung doesn't make this more obvious, but the GoodLock app from the Samsung app store should be right up there, the way it lets you tweak everything is fantastic. That was the reason that I flashed Cyanogenmod in the first place on the Note2, to get rid of the horrible mess of Samsung's heavy Touchwiz stuff, to get it 'lighter'. I've really not felt the need to do this at all with this phone. They've got it better, the popup menu when you take the stylus out? /shrug. Doesn't intrude normally. And GoodLock lets me tweak all the other stuff I'd normally use Cyanogenmod+custom launcher to tweak. (though still using Novalauncher because I've got used to it on all the phones/tablets). The OS, that it's Oreo and not Pie? /shrug. It works and works well, for once, I don't feel the need to flash it (but being on Tmo, US version, I can't unlock the bootloader anyway which is a shame, maybe one day). With a bit of launcher tweaks, it's pretty much one handed use anyway, but the new Pie stuff being beta'd looks interesting. But not essential. Camera is decent. I don't really take many pics, but when I do, results seem ok. Low light is far better than any prior phones. Bixby annoyed me. Spent a buck to get some app that disabled it. Wish could get rid of it for good and use the button for something else perhaps. Dex. Ordered a 20 buck usb docking thing that has hdmi in as well as charging. It's amazing that it works, but not had need to use it for anything yet. If I'm away on holiday and still doing support, I think I'd prefer to take the cheapo laptop than rely on this. But can see it's the way of the future, good to know it's there just in case, but won't rely on it yet, and wish could remote in to it to get that screen instead of it only working on a plugged in hdmi device, would be useful for support/developing on. Speed.Nothing's slow, nothing. Everything, the camera, powering on and unlocking, UI stuff, games, Dex, browser, downloading and installing, I'm never noticing it slowing down for anything. With this much oomph, the processor, the memory, I'd be miffed if there was, but as is, it's just incredible (I did crank the rez down to extend battery, perhaps that helps, but with my eyes, I can't tell the difference between the lowest rez/highest rez, so I might as well get more battery life if I can't tell the difference).Downsides.I use Google Voice for my number, occasionally, and I don't know why, the Note9 doesn't ring, the other phones on my desk to. Not sure if that's a note9 thing, TMO wifi calling/something else. Doesn't happen all the time, but once a week is more than enough to be annoying. The stylus, though the remote button for pics is cool, seems far less durable than prior Note Stylusesesssi. I've not broken it, but I'm /very/ wary of sliding it out. Wifey got a note9 when her Pixel went kaput and seeing my phone. She loves the stylus, seems a lot smoother in her phone than mine. /shrug. It's also the monstrous battery life that she likes, the Pixel wasAaron10December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Camera freezes and no fix releasedBhavit60December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Almost the full package. Great phone awful post purchase experience.Camera freezes, videos freeze, PIE not available. Not sure how Samsung can call this a flagship and charge $1000 for this. Cameras are critical these days and the experience is far from acceptableSharnessa100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love this phone I love the whole galaxy note swriesEngadget Reader90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Love this phone I got the 512 gb verzion version since pre-order and I love it battery is very good, camera is awesome. S pen is pretty neat don't use it much. Only grip I would wish they use stronger glass or material. But hey that's why we have cases lol.Engadget Reader90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The biggest flaw on the Note 9 is the price tag. The next biggest flaw was in how clunky the ordering process was. The Samsung website interface with Verizon was horrible. Even after chatting with the Samsung-Dumb-Chat-Bot, and getting frustrated beyond belief, I finally typed in a few choice words and was informed, "Well, that's not very polite." Well, I could not let that stand and asked if it really wanted to know what I thought. This is where the "dumb" comes into play, it responded, "Sure!" I blasted. Finally, I think I twisted the bot's cyber-knickers because it informed me that a human agent would take over the chat. I thought, "Great!" The bot was smarter. :::sigh:::I ended up calling customer service and playing the press this number game. I eventually spoke to a human. This is nearly 3.5 hours after I set out to order the device. I explained that the Samsung site handled the transaction fine, but when it handed off to the Verizon site to complete the transaction, all functionality and order details were lost and I could not finalize the order. I then started the whole process over from the start. I explained each step to someone in another country and when it handed off to Verizon, CLUNK! So the kind person told me that was a different department and put me on hold for almost ten minutes. It was the same generic .wav sounding music that replayed endlessly on a 20-second loop. Yes, I timed it. In case you ever wanted to know, there are 30 20-second loops in 10 minutes. Finally I hear the phone click off of hold expecting to be speaking with someone in that special department. Except, it is the same person who happily thanked me for waiting while they typed a summary of the call and now needed my name, number, and email so that the special department can contact me to work out what the problem is. Three days later I went to Verizon and placed the order. It took over a month to get the phone. It took another month before anyone at Samsung ever contacted me about the KLUNK in ordering.The phone is sleek. The screen is OMG! The sound is not on par with iPhone when playing the same .mp3 on the native sound players. The iPhone has richer mids and harder lows, while the Note 9 had fuller sounding upper mids and very crisp highs. I love the Samsung feature that allows you to use a headset and adjust the different frequencies until you can hear them. I have some mild hearing loss in each ear. That feature is only effective using that particular set of headphones. I wish it would let me save different ones as a profile.Using some tips and tricks picked up reading articles, my Note 9 is way faster at changing between programs/apps than an iPhone X. Really, there is no comparison. The Samsung left the iPhone in its digital dust.I do not like the way the wireless modem connects to WiFi without letting me select the minimum connection speed. Not only that, finding out at what speed you are connected is not as seamless as it was on my Note 4. It takes so many steps that I installed an app that lets me monitor connection speed and allows me to specify the lowest speed. (I finally went into my router and set the top speed for this particular device so that there was no auto-speed changing happening.)Every time you open another app for the first time, there is a little bar near the bottom asking if you want the app to fill the entire screen. To me that falls into a dumb question category. I just spent over $1000 on a device that wants to know if I want to use all of its real estate? Samsung needs to have a box to click so that it uses the entire screen for every app.I opted for the larger storage model. I love it. On my Note 4, all of my apps and storage had to be directed to my SD card. Which means each time an app updated, it moved it back to the internal drive. Unfortunately, I use a lot of apps and some of them are rather large. After a week of automated updates, the Note 4 was out of storage, and prompted me to please move some to the SD card. I have a great idea, how about leaving them on the SD drive where I had it? Why does Android do that? That is a real question. Explain it using logic that makes sense to everyone. I am a techie and have found no single logical answer. In fact, a few Google searches gives you a myriad of answers with no two being exactly the same.The camera is super. I like its ability to take pictures in low light. The super slow mo option for video is great!Because I run so many apps, my battery life is bad. I know this and am never too far from a charger. I ran an experiment one day and did not recharge until after the phone did its thunk vibration and the screen went black. It took a bit over 6 hours. Two hours later it was at 100%. I am not complaining. And the battery has not exploded or even felt hot. The Note 4 got hot to the touch almost daily. I had more than one battery puff up on the Note 4. Once it puffed up enough that it cracked my Otterbox Defender case.Overall, the phone exceeded my expectations. That is tough to do. That it beats the iPhone X in many places is just super duper bragging rights. Now if Samsung will fix the order problems and the lack of real time customer support, I would be happy indeed.Engadget Reader90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love it!!!Engadget Reader90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I bought the Note 9 on day 1, and the Galaxy Note 9 easily has the most features, but at a price. It's very evident that Samsung spent their time making sure everything was held to a higher level of quality than ever before, and it shows. The only issues I have are with Bixby, which just doesn't work well at all. This, however is a small issue because it's an extra feature over competitors either way. I am excited to see what they can do with Bixby in a years time since Samsung has made it open source now.My only other issues are that I don't find the battery life to be quite as good as everyone hypes it up to be, but it's certainly excellent and will only get better with the next version of Android. The camera as well maybe doesn't have a fast enough shutter speed when it comes to taking sports photos, but this camera is already the best on any phone out there, so it really is a small issue.These small problems can be easily fixed, and while the phone is amazing, it simply isn't perfect, but no phone is.Engadget Reader90December 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetLOGAN90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Reception has been mediocre at best. I work in a steel structure with a metal roof so I'm guessing that has something to do with the poor reception but it should be able to punch through because standing outside the building I have 5 full bars of 4G LTE. When I have the note 9 in my phone holder attached to the dashboard of my vehicle I cannot use speech-to-text function I don't know if it's the grip sensor or what but it refuses to recognize speech when in my grip holder attached to the dash if I remove it from the grip holder and speak at the same volume holding the phone the same length of distance away it recognizes it just fine. Also while making and receiving phone calls the microphones seem to have a mind of Their Own if I speak in a low tone the person complains they can't hear me but if I speak up they say it's too loud I've checked the microphone holes and there's no obstruction and I have almost no aftermarket apps installed many of the built-in apps like Facebook excetra are disabled. It's a real Puzzler. Other than those two things I have been happy I upgraded from the Note 8.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Before I disabled Bixby, then removed the physical button from my case I wanted to get rid of this phone, but all or it's other attributes kept reeling my in. Without the distraction of Bixby rearing it's ugly head this thing is a beast. Battery life is great, especially now that I have a few 10 dollar wireless chargers at my office desk and by my bed side. The form factor seemed large but now when I pick up my old pixel XL or even iPhone 6s they seems comically small. I use the S-pen far more often then I thought I would. Taking notes in meetings or scribbling a quick gesture sketch. I even pacify my 2.5 year old son by letting him color when we are out at a restaurant. The keys to my acceptance and eventual real joy of this device was a customization, killing Bixby, and secure folder. It took about a week to tweak the software down to get an efficient experience that keeps me ontol of everything. Again cutting the Bixby let off my rhino shield case (which is a beast by the way love it. The rhinoshield solid suit I think.) I'm able to keep work logins in the secure folder so having multiple accounts is as easy as swiping my finger print. Which I use face detection and the fo get print sensor and very happy with that. The Iris sensor was just too much work but nice to have. Ithi k that sums it's up. The headphone jack, huge battery, S-pen, water resistance... It all adds up to a great package. Honestly I thought I would miss stock Android but have not even flinched. I do miss the Google pixel camera but I carry a real camera for real pictures so not super hurt by the pixel cameras slight edge over this one. Oh, and I got this on a Black Friday deal for like $650! I really could not be happier. The note 9 got me back to a Samsung fan boy. From the Galaxy s4, to the iphone 6, to the pixel XL, and finally the note 9. I'm glad I chose this rig.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Overall best phone out there. Wrote a 800 word review, but lost it because i had to make a new account, not writing again.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This phone is amazing. I got the 512GB version and I updated from a Note 4. The speed is unbelievable and the battery life is finally what all smartphones should have had for years now. And the three cameras! This thing takes better sunset pics than my dSLR's! But I know that the phone is processing the images a bit. It is clearly, subtly and automatically removing some blemishes from faces and applying HDR to things like sunsets.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Hands down the best smart phone out there. You get sooo much more for the money. The display, finger print reader, s pen, Android customization, Samsung pay headset Jack, no notch, and the list goes on. Used to be an apple fan and entered the Android arena with the note 8. Loved everything but the battery comming from the 6s plus. Note 9 fixed that and it is just a beast. Since the note 3 Samsung photos are brighter in low light, and sharper when zooming(pinching) more vivid, and just better all around and the the iPhone xs has that cell phone photo feel. The brief experience I had with a iPhone xs last week that to be honest I really wanted to like because of imessage and Apple watch 4, was ok, more of the same and felt like it was out dated and way over priced to justify a plus 1k price tag. The power of my Note 9 paired with my Gear 3 Frontier cannot be beat by Apples ever shrinking batteries and same old restrictive platform. Surprisingly several of my everyday apps ,Arlo, life360, a major banking app, were very slow and in some cases didn't even function good on the iPhone xs. The note 9 runs smooth, is super fast, and lasts all day. A perfect phone for me.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetJoe70December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!For the most part, I love this phone. The biggest problem though is the camera. If I don't reboot the phone right before I plan on taking pictures I can usually expect it to freeze on me. Taking videos are almost impossible or even just trying to scan a barcode with a different app. It sucks! Honestly if I wasn't stuck in a contract I would trade it on a Google pixel. I had high hopes for this phone but the camera kills it. As for DEX, I bought the higher memory phone because I planned to use it, but finding DEX hardware is almost impossible. If Samsung made a doc, or even a keyboard-monitor device I could plug it into, that would have been at the top of my Christmas list. But I never see anything advertised for DEX.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Have owned most other Notes, a few iPhones, Nexuses, Sony XPerias etc. The Note 9 is like any latest model of a product, excellent and Samsung’s best phone ever. Whilst Samsung’s own apps are fine, it, like most Android devices, it suffers glitches. Some apps stop responding, (Chrome included), or act weird. I simply force quit all apps or restart the phone. My only other niggles are: Face unlock is nothing like as good as the iPhone (patent issues no doubt) and there is no true wide angle camera like the much underrated LG G5. Other than that, it is the best phone I have ever owned, along with my Nokia N95 8GB Black, that like the Note 9, did everything well.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I have never been a big Samsung fan, but this device has somewhat changed my mind. From a software standpoint, there are still things that I'm not a fan of, but as far as performance, and functionality, it's been amazing. I have run into a few instances when the camera app would not load properly when using it inside of an app. Other than that, it has been spot on.Engadget Reader70December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A dependable product that doesn't really stand out from the competition. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This is the largest and heaviest phone I've ever had! I am willing to lug it around because of the huge screen and battery.I don't really mind that it shipped with Oreo, Pie will get here soon enough.Android is hugely customizable, but that means you can spend a while getting everything the way you want. The factory setting for the screen was not full resolution, and had zoom set!The phone does last a long time, but with my use, I doubt it would go two days.Have just started trying new things with the pen, it is really good for drawing in various apps. You can choose to write instead of type whenever a keyboard is present - I found this to be lacking, I think you need to write really quickly and probably in cursive. If I write mom, it usually comes out as M o m.Facial recognition is really fast when it works, which is most of the time, but not always. Good to have the pin as a backup. SSound quality of the phone speakers is stereo and pretty good for such a small device. The included AKG ear buds are terrible, tinny sound, not even as good as the old Samsung buds.Overall I am very happy so far, look forward to some amazing video with it! Just found out you can save RAW image files? Will check that out.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Bixby needs more work and slow responded , I wished it has more battery capacity , the rest of the phone is the highest on its category.Engadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader70December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The two best things about the Note 9 are the battery life and the screen/image quality. I can honestly go 48 hours before charging my phone. I use my phone off and on all day, more on than off. The image quality is incredible. It is the best I have seen on a phone. Colors are vibrant. Blacks are dark and crisp. There is also the sound! The phone sounds amazing. So that is 3 things. Wait, no, 4 things, the camera is better than my DSLR that I never use anymore. 5 things actually, this phone downloads and uploads shockingly fast. It is impressively powerful. The downside to having a Note 9 is the cases. The available cases are trash. I hate the way they look and perform. It is a constant let down not having access to the number of cases available to apple users. The durability question is silly. No one makes a phone you can just drop. I mean, it is glass. It is breakable. Sure it is durable as long as you don't drop it.All I need to make this totally perfect is a case that isn't hideous, looking at you, Otterbox.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I'm truly enjoying my Note 9 and I haven't even fully used all the features yet. What's most important to me is the battery life, because in the construction field you don't always have power. So thank you Samsung for a phone with a all day battery.Engadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader70December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!To start with, I keep getting a Notification sound like a doorbell and it comes at random times. I installed a notify app and it does not show up. I turned off all app notifications, I turned off NFC, I turned off accessibility. I still hear it, At 3 am this is annoying. I have searched the web and nothing. If I could, I would take it back. I gave up my Note 3 for this 9. I loved my Note 3. easier to find things. I am hoping with the software update, that things will improve. I also had to put on a screen protector, not glass, so that the screen would have a better feel to it. I could tap on something over and over and not open. The text keyboard has been a problem also. It hardly wants to enter the correct letter or number. Seems better with the protector on it. I should have bought the Pixel instead, I mean who really uses the pen except maybe business people. If anyone knows the answer to the doorbell problem, please post it everywhere.Danielle80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love my note 9! It does everything aphone should do plus much more. The display is bright. The S pen is great in the penup app. I can color and doodle at will. The sound is AMAZING!! The battery is great i dont have to charge my phone for at least 2 days. I dont use bixby very often i actually forget i have it. Overall i love this phone!!!Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Have used this since release. The only problem i have is with the bixby software and inability to reprogram the button. I've not used Bixby and have no desire currently. This is not to say it's good or bad, i just don't use it.Engadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Good phone. My only dislike is the battery life. Seems about the same as my S8 active.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Love the phone.Only challenge was using Android Auto, then discovered that you MUST use the dedicated USB cable that came with the phone.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Absolutely flawlessEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best note yet!Engadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I've owned several Notes and without a doubt the 9 is the best yet. Display, camera, a pen, security features and battery life are all a huge improvement. The only complaint I have is Bixby which doesn't really work as described and needs an overhaul. Highly recommended Note as far as I'm concernedEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!It blows relatives iPhones out of the water for reception bars, clearness of call audio, longevity of hot spot use, and the related battery life.That's what a PHONE is for.The rest is just the crapola that Apple-ola has to add to compete based on the marginal uses of a PHONE.Engadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This review is written by someone who upgraded from the Galaxy S7 Edge. Why did I have that phone for almost 3-4yrs? Because the Note 7 got recalled and I made do with a phone of a similar color at the time. After several years, I really wore down the memory on my S7e, and so an upgrade to a current generation phone was much appreciated. So, if you're reading this, I hope you enjoy my perspective of not only enjoying a new phone after a well-deserved 3yr upgrade, but one in ode to the Note 7 long ago! The battery life was an amazing welcome to the new device. After probably getting only 3-5hrs of uptime on my old phone (I'm an excessive user: always on display, custom launcher, many game apps and chrome tabs clogging up my phone), having almost 8-10hrs of battery seemed like a dream. I DON'T have to bring around my 10000k MaH portable battery? I don't have to browse Instagram with my phone hooked to my 10m charging cable?? Say it isn't so!The camera was a bit to get used to, especially the front facing camera. I'm so used to taking selfies on my smaller S7e with a lower resolution, that when just switched to the N9, seeing every pore and blemish on my face at a bigger resolution on a bigger screen gave me a scare for a week. How could I take cute selfies to show off to friends?! It was a learning curve to get used to the beauty correction built into the camera, along with my face being almost 150% bigger on screen, but that's okay. And it goes without saying the back camera is also pretty great, but for someone who's 3-4 gens behind, that's a given. As someone who creates her own ecosystem of apps from the Play Store, from custom launcher to 3rd party keyboard, to customizable messaging and email apps that provide me more productivity and efficiency, I can tell you that Samsung and Google still have the same feel that makes me want to go to my own ecosystem. If you prefer defaults, go for it! But the N9 has enough power for me to install all my own apps to replace things without performance dropping, and that's what makes me fall in love with using a phone. I will say however, as someone who doesn't really use phone assistants, but is used to Amazon Echo, Bixby's voice recognition and trigger times are AWFUL, like I can't even properly get a full command sentence to follow through! And that button is such a waste of real estate. BUT NEVER FEAR, the app store has several Bixby Button Remappers for you to try. c; I use bxActions, which is free, if you're in the market of replacing it. Just don't expect it to work too seamlessly, since Bixby is stubborn in not turning off. I wish I could gleam more about my new phone. Yeah it's a bit bulky but the phone has so much screen space! It still touts it's IP68 protection so I always take it into the shower with no issue. Audio is amazing especially with the double speakers. Not much issue with media support, didn't need to install Gear 360 to view my old 360 footage. I'd say it still has its cons, just Samsung being stubborn with their old antiquated bloatware and complicated settings that won't let me fine tune my phone to where I want it to be (here's hoping One UI would be an interesting addition to my day to day life after beta), but if you can get past that, then it's a wonderful phone.Does it measure up to the Note 7? I'd think so. I miss that thing dearly and keep my rose colored lenses for how well it performed. But the Note 9 has been more than satisfactory as an avid phone user.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetJacob100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!It has all the features packed in that one would expect from a new Samsung phone. Great camera, display, speed, features, compatibility, etc. Have had no problems. Preordered from Best Buy.Engadget Reader40December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Battery life not as expected. At max I get 14 hours with maybe 3 hours screen time. I work in tech support... definitely not what was promised. Camera: Hot garbage. Great for things that don't move. Good luck taking pics of kids. I'm also a Professional part time photographer. Camera's useless out the box if you're taking pics of people that move, or breath... or simply have a heart beat.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This phone is the best smartphone hands down... and I've got the Note 8 to compare to. First this new Note 9 is faster... noticeably faster with every task. Right up to the intelligent scan that combines both iris and face. It'll have your phone opened before you see your irises display(probably. 5 secs) the finest print reader is quicker too. No more multi tapping the reader. The camera seems just as good as the Note 8 and may require a pro to decipher the differences visually. It's still amazing in low light...maybe better.The battery is a real game changer. It's probably why it got a little fatter, but it'll squeeze into some Note 8 cases, but the VR headset needs an adapter. I've never bought another brand since my first s4, and that sold me on Samsung... the Note 5 I got next was the deal sealer. Don't waste your money on an Apple. They're made _with_ Samsung's screens. Oh and no dumb notch on my Note. Just a huge screen! (I hate how apple hides the damn eye sore in their commercials. Samsung for life! NOTE 9 512MBEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Overall 9/10, still the best phone on the market in 2018.- Display = 10/10, best on the market, hands down. - Speakers = 9/10, really quite good- DAC = 6/10, big step down from previous Samsung phones- Hardware = 1/10, the Bixby button is the worst hardware decision of any major phone manufacturer this year, even worst than the f'ugly'ass Pixel 3 notch. Also I really hate Samsung's curved display. The Note line should NOT have curved displays, nor should they employ the longer 16/9 ratio, should be fatter and flatter. - Battery = 10/10, it's big enough to overcome Samsung's terrible app maintenanceEngadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Very happy to upgrade from note 5. love the expand sd memory card, headphone plug, and pen stylus (with capable bluetooth remote selfie+)Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!It checks off all of my needs. I have zero complaints.sazi25ster90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Fantastic phone. Battery life is probably the best thing, screen is amazing in all settings, and the pen is definitely a plus once again. I love the pen. Only issue I have is Bixby. Even when I try to use it with an open mind its just not very good and the button doesn't get in the way but why is it there? Who needs a button right under the volume for a feature that isn't very good? Bought the phone and spent 18 days in Mexico. Battery, screen and camera were absolute amazing. Battery life was probably the best thing. Even while roaming and watching NFL red zone all day it lasted me the whole day! Great device minus Bixby.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!so far, everything is exceptional, my only gripe being that it is still on android oreo and bixby.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The only truely no compromises phone with all features and gizmos well thought of and implemented into the OS. Would welcome a bigger battery in the next iteration but not that the current battery life is a let down. If you are looking for the biggest and best out there this is the phone for you period.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!A gadget unicorn - EngadgetEngadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!1. Bixby is awful - it sometimes turns ON it self, I can see it on the status bar.2. Lack of smoothness in OS - for some reason it doesn't feel so smooth like iOS or stock android - I wish it was. It lags sometimes not very much but just a bit noticeable.3. Intelligent unlock is way slower than face id in iOS and touch id.Other than above three things - Note 9 has been exceptional for my daily use. I love it's battery, camera, display, designEngadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Best phone I've ever had. I'm a developer and I use Linux on Dex quite a lot and have Android Studio working on the phone. Having full Linux on the phone is a quantum leap forward and means I can carry a PC in my pocket. My biggest complaint is when connecting to my Samsung 4K TV -- the phone goes into "low resolution" mode, even when the display is set in Dex for HD. I sometimes need to replug the USB connection ten or more times before an HD picture finally kicks in.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Since the day I received my Note 9 from pre-orders, it has had its ups and downs like any other phone. Allow me to list off the numerous pros that it easily delivered:The Great Stuff:- Fantastic Screen (as expected of Samsung).With the exception of Samsung making the display panels for Apple's latest iPhones, you really can't find any other phone that delivers the vibrancy and solid brightness that the Note 9 has as of right now.- Dual Speakers (finally!)It's been a long time coming for the company to finally join the party of using the earpiece as a secondary speaker alongside its bottom-firing brother to give a louder and better audio experience.- Superb battery life compared to previous Notes.From the Note 8 to this, it is a world of difference. I personally use it heavily. Like, I'm talking media consumption by the hour, 3D games running for probably at least 3 hours per day, and the use of GPS occasionally. This would get me through a day for I'd say 14 hours with about 20% left in its tank. Definitely an All-Day battery we're talking here.- Quality media machine for videos or games.I've just mentioned this in the audio section, but it needs to be reiterated. This easily gives you the best experience for anything that moves on the screen.- Being an all-rounder with a little bit of everything you'd really need.Really, this is just it. A phone that really anyone can get by with without any major issues. That being said, that doesn't mean it is without its flaws here and there. So now we go onto the slight inconveniences that one may come across using this:The Somewhat Inconvenient Stuff:- The physical size of the device. If you're not a fan of "big" phones these days, and let's be real, every phone is basically bigger than they were back just a few years ago, this may be something of an issue if you got small hands. But it comes with the namesake, so you know what you're getting into.-Dealing with Bixby:In my case, I don't ever use it. But it doesn't mean that I find it awful and that it should just be vanquished purely because I don't use it. It has some incredible use cases, being locally integrated with the device and able to find settings of direct you to wherever you need to go on your phone if you don't know where the destination is. That being said, there are ways around to using it, and technically "disabling" it. But don't make this your dealbreaker on a such an incredible device.Camera Issues (Ahh yes, quite the controversy.):We all have our preferences. Got to have the pictures be slightly muted for that realism, or punching with rainbows that it looks like a children's coloring book. The cameras on the Note 9 deliver a definite quality that can definitely be usable for anyone. With only a few other phones to match or best it in this case. Now, that being said, there are other issues that may or may not be prevalent in other people's Note 9's. I have noticed that the camera would be rather slow at times, and when recording, it would severely lag and the video you're recording would freeze up. You'd think that it's just the display having an issue keeping up with the recording. But nope, it is in the recording itself and the lag will remain there once done. At this time, Samsung has yet to release an update to fix the issue, so this can be considered a major issue if you don't want to have a heart attack every time your phone did not record that special moment that you may never watch again.There are more things here and there to mention about the Note 9, small Quality-of-Life improvements to usage, the fluidity, storage, and so on. But I can honestly say that it's a phone that can last you for at least four years without any real hitches. A definite 9/10 from me at this time.Jocelyn100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Hard to find assecories for it especially cases that encase the entire phone. Extended battery cases are also. Limited. Battery life has improved a great deal and last me at 12 hours a a charge. If you switch to the power saving even longer. Pretty design and lightweight. It is a fingerprint magnet if you don't have a caseEngadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Bixby is too late to the party.meringo90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Although they didn't put the latest version of Android on it right away, the phone is quite polished in just about every other way. The build quality is quite high, the screen is the best-in-industry, and the battery life is incredible. If you want a large screen for video content/games, and like the idea of a stylus, this is the phone for you.Engadget Reader70December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is the best phone from the big 5 manufacturers this year. While other phones come in with a smaller price tag, they also sacrifice something as compared to the Note. But in terms of bang for your buck, there doesn't seem to be anyone giving you quite this much bang, period.The screen is best in class. Bright, crisp, and huge. It is actually an enjoyable experience to take in a movie or Netflix on this device.S Pen. It has one. Do you need it? Probably not. Has it been nice to have when I wanted it? Absolutely.Battery Life has been the best of any Samsung device I've ever owned. (of the S3, S4, S5, Note4, Note5, S7, S8, and Note 9) This beast has a 4,000MaH battery, and I can go all day with heavy use and come home with 30% to go.If there is a down side, it's the size, which is also what gives it so much upside. This bad boy is almost impossible to carry in a pants pocket. But that giant screen makes it worthwhile when you're able to split screen without your eyes bleeding.The cameras are excellent. Sure some of the other manufacturers are doing more with image processing, or putting 20 cameras in their devices, but if you just want to be able to take a printable, clear picture any time of day or night without much editing this phone is a great choice.Gaming on this phone is a fantastic experience. While titles like PUBG or Fortnite are gaining fame, phones struggle to produce an enjoyable experience. The speed of this chipset coupled with the screen and spaced out feel when gaming with on screen controls makes it a much better experience.Oh, and, headphone jack, anyone?This phone is expensive, but you get what you pay for in this device.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love the bixby button for what I can currently use it for. I have quick commands like "Optimize" does 3 tasks, or like using it to control my smart devices. I so love the Camera pro and auto mode especially with the s-pen. dex mode is what I am using to setup a new blog and kubernetes with Ubuntu installed. It is definitely the do anything phone and with pie and one UI coming sooon I can't wait to fall in love all over.Robert100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Great phoneEngadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!There's a lot to like about this in spite of a few flaws. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!If you are fan of samsung Note line, this is the best samsung's phone right now in day, the camera and battery is better compare to his predecessor, but unfortunately like everyone is saying, Bixby is still raw and with a lot of mistakes. If you are looking for innovation in a phone, you won't find it in here, but if you want something quality and speed, definitely recommended.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Coming from a Pixel Xl the Note 9 is a good phone but not great. Yes the screen is great, the phone is a good size, the battery life is great, I love the stylus, I love how Samsung Pay seems to work just about everywhere and yes Bixby sucks. I've set up the bx Actions app to have the button be used as a flashlight but hearing Bixby kick on for half a second does get annoying but I can live with that for now. The battery life is great as I mentioned. One day I took the phone of the charger at about 4:30 am and went hunting in the cold, watched a few hours of Netflix when it was raining, used google maps a lot and some other hunting apps, sent quite a few text messages and snaps and by 9:30 pm there was still 20% left. So I must say that the battery is great. The few things that I don't like about the phone are all of the Samsung apps, I so disabled and uninstalled what i could but there's a few apps that you can't get rid of. I'm also not a huge fan of the finger print reader, in my opinion it needs to be slightly larger. The camera is great but I do miss the quick multiple shots I could take with the Pixel. I also don't like Samsung's Gallery app that can't be changed when viewing pictures when you're in the camera. The gallery app puts white boxes around the pictures that make it blinding. If it was black like on the Pixel it wouldn't be as bad. I'm also not a huge fan of the curved edges on the screen. yes it does look nice but it does have it's issues. For one I bought a cheap ($12 or so) tempered glass screen for it that basically just sticks to the screen from static. (Same type that I had on my pixel) and it seemed to work for about a day then there would be spots that you needed to touch a bit harder to get the phone to realize what you wanted to do. This was mainly on the edges because the tempered glass would lift up a little bit. So after about a week, I had to get a different type of tempered glass and best reviewed one was the whitestone dome and I must say that it is nice but expensive (about $50). So I was able to put it on without too much hassle. (I do have one small bubble but i'll live with it) Now my screen works like it would without a cover but it has only been a week so we'll see if it holds up. I do hear that come next year the Note 9's will get Android Pie with a simpler Samsung UI over it, but hopefully they don't change too much over the stock version. I really like it on the Pixel. The main reason I went with the Note 9 was because the Pixel 3's have been having a lot of problems and I did really like my Note 7 before it was recalled multiple times and eventually seized.Engadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This is truly an amazing phone. Got it the day before release and has not once failed me nor rebooted. Connectivity is great (gets better connections than my LG V40). My only gripe with the form factor is the curved display - not a fan and which we had an option for a non-curved phone but Samsung has taken that privilege away from the user.Durability is great as I have dropped it twice, both times shattering the glass screen cover I installed but not even a scratch on the phone (I do use a Spigen Thin-Fit case to keep it sleek).The photos are simply amazing (even compared to my wife's Xs Max) and not had the option of comparing with a Pixel 3 or other phone.Do not understand why these are so expensive. I paid more for this phone than my current laptop. Can't change as often as I used to considering the pricing.THe battery juts barely gets me through the day. I do watch movies during my daily commute and use Bluetooth headphones, especially in the gym. Greta life but still not an entire day.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I am a Samsung consumer from the beginning. I have been waiting for this Note to come out and I love everything about this phone, especially the capability to take selfies with the S-Pen. I love the Note product and I am very happy Samsung brought it back.... I would like to see a fingerprint scanner on the main screen on the next note.Thomas80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!According to a Samsung tech my Unlocked Note 9 is not capable of WiFi calling. I have been in contact with Verizon tech support and they have done everything on their end to make it work. This is very disappointing since my Google Pixel 2 Xl would do WiFi calling.Engadget Reader80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Bixby is useless. I disabled it and use the button for other purposes. I wish voice to text/email and text/email to voice were much easier.Brandi80December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I have been a consumer of two phones both iPhone and Samsung for a while. Last month upgraded both to iPhone xs and Samsung note 9. Of course love the iCloud features but google/Samsung is comparable now. I.love the s pen feature, the camera is a bit better quality than the iPhone, and the biggest asset for me with the pen is easy translation in different languages while traveling. ...of course the purple color was a favorite this year..overall I do more business with my Samsung and more personal things with my iPhone. Also love the live messages u can send in Samsung. Ans both phones have good company warranty ...you wont go wrong picking Samsung for more bang for your bucks and the iPhone just for brand loyaltyEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love the phone. I am very impress with the build quality. Samsung Pay is awesome! Audio quality has been very good. The thing just works. This is coming from the Google Pixel XL and my wife has the Pixel 2. Just the usability and functions just works for me. I did fix the camera blurriness issue by disabling AF tracking in the camera app.Engadget Reader70December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Finally. If I had to use one word to describe my Note 9, that would be it. Finally, I was able to buy a Note device that hit every goal I had for a mobile computing device. Leading edge processor power, adequate RAM total (8GB), plenty of storage (512GB + expansion capability), S-Pen features, large screen, adequate sized battery, adequate speed battery charging. I've been waiting for Samsung to reach this level of capability since I started out with my Note 3. Maybe Samsung doesn't like to hear this, but with the Note 9, I know my mobile device needs will be satisfyingly met for at least a couple or few years. But then, as long as Samsung is still going strong in its work, I'll be looking forward to replacing it with another one from them that has commensurately improved speed, capacity and features.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!This is the best phone I every bought. It has everything we need. Photos and videos are amazing. Battery doesn't need to be charged every night. S-Pen is very useful.My wife has iPhone X. She says that if she knew about this phone before, then she would have definitely bought this. And I paid 60% of what she paid.Engadget Reader100December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The phone doesn't have very many flaws in my opinion. The only big flaw I give it is that it drops calls ALL the time. I don't think that's just a sprint issue because even when I'm using hangouts calling over wifi ppl complain of not being able to hear me or the call just suddenly ending. I think it's an issue with the mic possibly. Other than that though, I have no complaints. I ABSOLUTELY love this phone. Especially with the few updates they've added(like manual mode for slow-mo videos). The updated software for the camera makes it even better and i already thought it was pretty perfect. Stereo audio, I just recently started using Dex and I do like it for certain uses. I genuinely can't complainEngadget Reader90December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The best in its category. We highly recommend it. - EngadgetEngadget Reader30December 20, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!In my family we have 3*note 8 and 2*note 9, actually we all like the Note 8 design more, especially the edge, the note 8 edge is just none exist on both size, the note 9 try to make the edge easier to use (this is really better then note 8) but the edge is just no good looking now and also there is a black border. either use the note 8 design or just a flat screen. Note 9 edge design is really worst, and even worst then S7 edge. The finger print scanner is also no better then the note 8, why it need to stick with the camera? put it on another place alone will be much better. I really don't know why samsung try so hard to keep the edge, even it make make it look worst. In short, Note 8 is much better then Note 9, and Note 9 don't have anything that is a huge improvement, so stick with Note 8 or wait for the next note.Engadget Reader90November 21, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!The Galaxy Note9 is one of Samsung’s best devices to date. It offers great performance, an amazing camera and improves upon the Note8.Pros- Beautiful display- Amazing camera with great low-light performance- BLE is a nice addition to the S PenPremium design- All-day battery life- Big storage options (128GB and 512GB)Cons- Fingerprint sensor seems small in comparison to the size of the phone- Expensive- Samsung Experience skin can be frustratingsurojit_das100October 30, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Better battery, great camera, and improved stylus. Best note everkevin1890290September 17, 2018Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Probably the best phone I've ever owned. I waited quite a while to own one. First eyeing the Note 7 then the Note 8, now finally purchased the Note 9. I have no real complaints and most of the aspects of the phone I really love. At this price I do wish that the phone had a few additional customizable options but none is a deal breaker. Bixby sucks, however.
Key Specs
TYPE
Smartphone
OPERATING SYSTEM
Android
SCREEN SIZE
6.4in
INTERNAL MEMORY
128GB
CAMERA
Yes
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