Product test
Samsung’s foldable has finally slimmed down
by Michelle Brändle
Samsung Galaxy S10 and S10+: the last cry of a generation?
8.3.2019
After a week with Samsung's new flagships, the Samsung Galaxy S10 and S10+, we can say that the devices are good, but have some noticeable flaws.
After a week of testing, video producer Stephanie Tresch and I summarise two thirds of a generation of smartphones that we will probably soon no longer know. Because the future will be foldable.
A small note before we start the review: The two devices we have could be pre-production models. They showed up on my desk about a week before launch without any other notes. The hardware is final, as far as I can tell, the software... Well, the software. We'll get to that later.
One eats battery, the other doesn't
Samsung has realised this with the S10. The phone easily survives a working day with above-average usage. Spotify, Netflix, Signal, WhatsApp and so on. The S10 does it all and still has juice at the end of the day.
But it's a different story with the S10+. After 13 hours of Plex, Spotify, Netflix, Signal, WhatsApp and so on, the battery is at 15% and the smartphone complains that it needs to be recharged. So the Power Sharing feature, which allows you to charge other smartphones wirelessly, makes little sense. This is because the function is at least implicitly based on the fact that you don't need the battery itself to get through the day.
The good heaviness
The choice of colour is similarly surprising. Stephanie's S10 is green. Exciting. She has packed her phone in a case as a precaution. Black. Boring.
Her S10 with the case seems heavier than her normal phone, the Note 9 in an Otterbox. It is obvious that this cannot be true. That's why the video producer has given it some thought. The reason is that the S10 can easily be used with one hand, even with small hands, so you tend to hold it in one hand. Plus the grip, which is not lost even with a case.
Notch or hole punch? Does it make a difference at all?
Stephanie's Note 9 impresses with its really beautiful and well-lit screen. Films, series, Pornhub and YouTube videos and the like look impressive. Samsung has continued this in the S10 series. If the front of the phone is largely made up of a screen, then it should also be good. This screen is not just good, but very good. The colours are vibrant, the Amoled black is not.
If you set the menus and everything to dark mode, then the contrast is even more present and impressive. So if you like watching videos on your phone, take a look at the Galaxy screen.
But when you look at it, you'll quickly notice the thing with the selfie cam. This is because both phones have the Infinity-O form factor patented by Samsung.
The fingerprint sensor under the screen, which uses ultrasound to read the grooves in your finger, is far less OK. But, before I describe the pitfalls and difficulties with this thing, the pre-production model comes into play. It is possible that our devices do not yet have the final software. If you can't reproduce the problem, let us know in a comment.
The AI with the aggressive eye
The camera. Oh, the camera. Stephanie in particular, who likes to film with her smartphone, struggles here. The camera's artificial intelligence (AI) is simply too aggressive. During film clips in the studio, the almost white tabletop - which is actually a bit grey - is simply turned yellow. Not a yellow tint, but a yellow colour like you know from an egg yolk. Or the colour of meatloaf. Something like that. Not very sexy. Nevertheless, I'm hungry now.
In general, the camera AI is a bit strange. It either recognises a subject perfectly, interprets colours and elements without fault, or it completely blows it. However, it does a great job in strange light. In the lift, for example. Rule of thumb: there is always light in the lift that is not particularly suitable for photos, even if there is a nice big mirror. The S10, like the S10+, goes there, looks around, thinks of something and counters the light wonderfully.
However, these problems are on the software side and not hardware issues. The engineers at Samsung can work on the AI and install it via an update. Or even better: an option like Huawei's that allows you to switch off the AI completely. That would be perfect.
In conclusion, we will both miss our Galaxies when we have to return the test devices. They are reliable in everyday use, but have their quirks. Even if the revolution from Samsung becomes foldable this year, the S10 series is definitely worth a look.
So, that's it. By the way, the green colour of the phone is really spectacularly shimmering. Just as a tip.
Journalist. Author. Hacker. A storyteller searching for boundaries, secrets and taboos – putting the world to paper. Not because I can but because I can’t not.
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