The Galaxy Note 10 from Samsung is another range of phablet from the South Korean company that represented the brand’s most premium smartphone that’s joined by the bigger Note 10 Plus. The 6.3-inches Infinity-O display is one of the biggest compact smartphone from Samsung, and it boasts of an amazing S-Pen, new video recording features, a decent processor, and amazing battery life. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 is the first smartphone from the Note lineup to offer an all-screen display which is welcomed by everyone.
However, this isn’t the newest Note device from Samsung – the launch of Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra take over that spot, and they’ll consider your check, incase you’re looking for the latest Samsung Galaxy Note phone. They bring some upgrade in the camera department and chipset but sports some similarities with the Note 10 too.
However, there are some exceptions just like the Apple iPhone’s. The headphone jack and SDcard slot have been altered, but still, the Galaxy Note 10 is a great device. Below, we’ll talk about the Samsung Galaxy Note 10, our experience and verdict about the phone to know whether it’s worth your buy.
Table of Contents
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Key Features
- Display: 6.3-inches Dynamic AMOLED
- Resolution: 1080 X 2280 pixels
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 855
- Front Camera: 10-megapixel
- Rear Camera: 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 16-megapixel
- RAM: 8GB
- Inbuilt Storage: 256GB
- Battery Capacity: 3500mAh
- OS: Android 9 Pie, One UI 2.5
Samsung Galaxy Note 10: Design
Fortunately, the Galaxy Note 10 is one of the most striking phone design from Samsung, especially the Aura Glow color. This gives us a shiny silvery opalescence that its chromaticity changes as light reflects at different angles. You can also get any of the Galaxy Note 10 on Aura Black, Aura White, and Aura Blue, whilst the last color is only available to Best Buy and Samsung.
Another interesting aspect of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 is the curvy edges and the feelings it brings to your hands. At 6.3-inches, the Galaxy Note 10 is slightly smaller when compared to Galaxy Note 9 (6.4-inches), but it’s thinner and weighs less. The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 weighs just 168g and measures 5.9 x 2.8 x 0.31 inches thick.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 is neither big nor too small and doesn’t feel like a phablet when you hold it. If you’re looking for a smartphone that can easily slide into your pocket, or isn’t cumbersome to handle, the Galaxy Note 10 offers all these with miniscule bezels.
However, we have a problem with the way buttons were positioned on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10. Unfortunately, the power button and volume rockers are placed on the left side of the device. This will be a disadvantage to right-handed users, and generally, everyone is used to having a right placed button smartphone. However, it would have been preferable if Samsung split the keys with either of the power nor volume rockers placed on the right, and the other on the left side.
Another gripe, though depends on the color you choose, the Note 10 easily attracts print. However, lots of smartphones nowadays are fingerprint magnet, but the Aura Glow color when looked at from any perspective, you can see some smudges and smears around the phone which is not acceptable to some people.
Yes, the headphone jack and SDcard slot are gone. Samsung altered these two features on both Note 10 models to achieve a sleeker and thinner design. However, just like Apple use to replace the headphone jack with AirPod on the iPhones, Samsung decided to bundle in AKG headphones in the box as a replacement for the headphone jack. On the plus side, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 is still rated IP68 water-resistant.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10: Dynamic AMOLED Display
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 features a Dynamic AMOLED display which has an Infinity-O cutout located at the top center of the phone. The 6.3-inches dot hole is more preferable as it’s less distracting than those on the right side like Samsung Galaxy S10. However, this cutout is not nearly as obtrusive as we thought, but it’ll be more obvious when running an application with a white background.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 offers one of the best sharpest, and brightest displays we’ve ever come across. At 674 nits of brightness, the Galaxy Note 10 offers a pure accurate screen color reproduction with more saturated hues. However, none of the Note 10’s model has a 120Hz refresh rate, so you’ll miss out on smooth display strolling and animations.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10: Camera Review
The triple camera arrangement on the Note 10 is similar to the one on Galaxy S10, which means you won’t expect a lesser camera performance when taking photos. However, the launch of the Note 20 lineup offers more advanced cameras, especially on the flagship Note 20 Ultra. Fortunately, the introduction of software update brings some of the S20’s camera features into the Galaxy Note 10 – Nite Hyperlapse, single take, among many others are some of these features.
The rear side of the Galaxy Note 10 hosts a triple camera set-up that consists of a wide-angle 12-MP primary shooter, 12-MP ultra-wide camera, and 16-MP telephoto lens. However, the bigger Note 10 Plus offers an additional fourth VGA depth camera that takes Bokeh and depth shots.
Where Samsung Galaxy Note 10 camera stands out is with its video prowess. There’s a Live Focus mode for video which blurs the video background and adds special effects to the video. The Galaxy Note 10 offers an Infinity-O display that houses the 10-MP selfie camera. Unfortunately, there’s no LED flash, and will make night photo shots nearly impossible. On the safer side, daylight photos are among the best you can find on the Samsung Note lineup currently.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10: Performances and Software
The Samsung Galaxy 10 is undoubtedly one of the fastest Android smartphones, thanks to Snapdragon 855 processor, paired with 8GB RAM and 256GB inbuilt storage to deliver a fast phone performance. However, this is not the latest Qualcomm processor as it has been replaced by the newer 5G-ready 865 and 865 Plus that’s on Samsung Galaxy S20 SE.
While the Galaxy Note 10 packs an 8GB RAM, the bigger Note 10 Plus offers up to 12GB of RAM that’s complimented with the same 256GB inbuilt storage.
Out of the box, Samsung Galaxy Note 10 ships in Android 9 Pie operating system on top of Samsung One UI 2.5 user interface. The combination of these two software paves way for easy navigation around the phone with a lot of amazing pre-installed apps by Samsung.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10: Battery Capacity and Charging
On the battery side, we’ve got a slight downgrade of battery capacity on the Galaxy Note 10. The 3500mAh battery capacity on the Note 10 is smaller than 4000mAh that’s on Note 9 and 4300mAh that’s on Note 9 Plus.
Fortunately, the Galaxy Note 10 battery can last for roughly 9 and a half hours on continuous web browsing with 150 nits of screen brightness. As a makeweight for the average battery life, the Galaxy Note 10 offers a 25-watt charger which will see the phone charge from dead to 47% in half an hour.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10: Price in Nigeria and Availability
Samsung launched the Galaxy Note 10 in Nigeria in August 2019, alongside the Galaxy Note 10 Plus. That means the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 is available for purchase in Jumia, Konga, and every leading gadgets market, shop, or slot in Nigeria and beyond.
Since the launch of Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra, the price of the Note 10 has slightly gone down. Currently, you can buy any of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 for a price of ₦350,000 ($918) in Nigeria. Furthermore, you won’t have to spend again for another storage size as Note 10 comes in only one storage option.
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Full Specifications
General
- Brand: Samsung
- Model: Galaxy Note 10
- Release Date: August 07, 2019
- System: Android Version 9 Pie, OneUI 2.5
- Weight: 168g
- Colors: White, Red, Orange, Mint, Lavender, and Navy
Display
- Touchscreen: YES
- Type: Dynamic AMOLED
- Screen Size: 6.3-inches
- Screen Resolution: 1080 x 2280 pixels
- Dimensions: 151 x 71.8 x 7.9 mm
- FaceLock: YES
- In-display fingerprint scanner: YES
- Fingerprint sensor: —
Processor
- Chipset: Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 485 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 485 & 4×1.78 GHz Kryo 485)
- CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 855
- GPU: Adreno 640
- RAM: 8GB
- Inbuilt Storage: 256GB
- SD Card slot: NO
Camera
- Rear Flash: LED Flashlight
- Rear Camera: 12-MP (f/1.8) wide-angle + 12-MP (f/2.2) ultra-wide + 16-MP (f/2.1) telephoto lens
- Front Camera: 10-MP f/2.2
- Front Flash: —
Connectivity
- Wi-Fi: YES
- Bluetooth: 5.0
- USB: Type-C
- GPS: YES
- WLAN: YES
Number of Sims: Two (2)
Sim 1
- SIM Type: Nano-SIM
- 3G Support: Yes
- 4G/ LTE Support: YES
- 5G Support: NO
Sim 2
- SIM Type: Nano-SIM
- 3G Support: Yes
- 4G/ LTE Support: YES
- 5G Support: NO
Battery
- Capacity: Li-Po 4500 mAh, non-removable
- Fast Charge: 25w
Price
- Price in Nigeria: ₦350,000
- Price in Dollar: $918