Wait, what? Did you also see what I just saw? Well yes, seeing is only enough and one doesn’t need to take a ‘look’ to spot out how the Galaxy S9 is hardly different from its own brother S8!
Not that I’m saying it isn’t sassy and classy, but then there is a thing called predictability. Even iPhone has been looking all the same since 2013, so we can give Samsung that right?
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Yes there are a couple of ground-breaking new innovations along with some subtle enhancements in the S9 which I shall cover in just a minute. Not to mention, there are a few gimmicky attributes that you should really really know while you are being awed by the beauty of this beast at the same time!
Samsung Galaxy S9 Coral Blue
Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus Coral Blue
Table of Contents
Comparing Design:
| DESIGN | Galaxy S8 | Galaxy S9 | Galaxy S8+ | Galaxy S9+ |
| 1.Display | Super AMOLED / 570ppi / 83.6% Screen to Body Ratio | Super AMOLED / 570ppi / 83.6% Screen to Body Ratio | Super AMOLED / 529ppi / 84% Screen to Body Ratio | Super AMOLED / 529ppi / 84% Screen to Body Ratio |
| 2. Form Factor | Front-Back 3D curved Gorilla Glass with Aluminium frame 3D touch Home button | Front-Back 3D curved Gorilla Glass with Aluminium frame 3D touch Home button | Front-Back 3D curved Gorilla Glass with Aluminium frame 3D touch Home button | Front-Back 3D curved Gorilla Glass with Aluminium frame 3D touch Home button |
| 3. IP-X | IP68 certified / water and dust proof | IP68 certified / water and dust proof | IP68 certified / water and dust proof | IP68 certified / water and dust proof |
It seems a bit tedious to look at the 4 different columns isn’t it? But reality is far too simple. And as you can see there is hardly any noticeable difference between all the 4 models. The screen on both S8 and S9 feels almost like an immersing pool of colours, thanks to the 3D curved glass and filleted corners which go in sync perfectly with the phone’s curvature.
Samsung Galaxy S9 Midnight Black
Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus Midnight Black
Adding to that there’s a best in class 18.5:9 display, water and dust resistant…you know how it goes. The main and much needed design change is in the fingerprint scanner; it is features beside the camera in S8 which is very irritating to use sometimes as there is an ample probability that you will end up swiping the camera lens. Well this time it’s placed below the camera making it a whole unit. It’s not circular, therefore small, but pretty fluent and responsive.
And being more and more obvious here Samsung also designed an Iris scanner in reply to FaceID. It is good, but far too less seamless than Apple’s FaceID. Fortunately you can always use the easier fingerprint sensor!
Did you know?
Samsumg Galaxy S was the first Android phone to feature an AMOLED display in 2009 while Nokia’s N85 made the debut for the same back in 2008?
Comparing Camera & Audio:
| CAMERA & AUDIO | Galaxy S8 | Galaxy S9 | Galaxy S8+ | Galaxy S9+ |
| 1. Main | 12MP / OIS / (f/1.7, 26mm, 1/2.5”) 1.22μm avg pixel 2160p@ 30 fps 720p@ 240 fps | 12 MP / OIS / (f/1.5-2.4, 26mm, 1/2.5”) 1.22μm avg pixel 2160@ 60fps 720p@ 960 fps | 12MP / OIS / (f/1.7, 26mm, 1/2.5”) 1.22μm avg pixel 2160p@30 fps, 720p@240 fps | Dual 12MP / OIS (f/1.5 – f/2.4 , 26mm, 1/2.55”) + 12MP ( f/2.4, 52mm , 1/3.6”) 1.2μm avg pixel 2160@ 60 fps 720@ 960 fps |
| 2. Front | 8MP (f/1.7, 25mm, 1/3.6”) 1.22μm avg pixel 1440p@ 30 fps | 8MP (f/1.7, 25mm, 1/3.6”) 1.22μm avg pixel 1440p@ 30 fps | 8MP (f/1.7, 25mm, 1/3.6”) 1.22μm avg pixel 1440p@ 30 fps | 8MP (f/1.7, 25mm, 1/3.6”) 1.22μm avg pixel 1440p@ 30 fps |
| 3. Audio | 32bit / 384kHz | 32bit / 384kHz Stereo speakers | 32bit / 384kHz | 32bit / 384kHz Stereo speakers |
This is where the major impression of this phone comes down to. For the first time ever in a smartphone Samsung came with a variable aperture lens set up. Okay, just a little bit of briefing; have you ever noticed how your eyeballs are wide open in the night and suddenly when you step out into bright daylight they tend to shrink?
That’s exactly how the dual aperture of Samsung will work. It physically widens and narrows the lens element to switch between f/1.5 and f/2.4 apertures on the fly. This is very much supportive while switching between varying light intensity shots. Additionally the S9+ also sports a secondary lens to aid upto 2x optical zoom and the portrait effect.
Samsung Galaxy S9 (Lilac Purple, 64 GB)
Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus (Lilac Purple, 64 GB)
And we also got a super slow-mo video recording @960 fps / 720p just like we saw it in Sony’s Xperia XZ Premium last year. And the 32bit / 384 kHz is actually something excessive and not at all necessary. Yes, it does make your device future proof, but usually what we hear in day-to-day lives is 16bit / 48kHz or at the most 24bit / 192kHz if we consider studio quality.
What I’m really stoked about is that they have kept the 3.5mm headphone jack! And surprisingly, the list of flagships with the headphone jack getting smaller by the day, Samsung really gives the choice to the users by not disabling it.
Did you know?
Samsung Electronics has been the key display supplier for iPhone X and it reportedly makes $110 for each iPhone X sold.
Bottomline:
| BOTTOMLINE | Galaxy S8 | Galaxy S9 | Galaxy S8+ | Galaxy S9+ |
| 1. Processor | Exynos 8895 Octa / Mali-G71 MP20 Qualcomm Snapdragon 835(US & China)/Adreno 540 | Exynos 9810 Octa / Mali=G72 MP18 Qualcomm Snapdragon 845(US & China)/Adreno 630 | Exynos 8895 Octa / Mali-G71 MP20 Qualcomm Snapdragon 835(US & China)/Adreno 540 | Exynos 9810 Octa / Mali=G72 MP18 Qualcomm Snapdragon 845(US & China)/Adreno 630 |
| 2. Memory | 64 GB / 4 GB RAM | 64 / 128 / 256 GB – 6 GB RAM | 64/128 GB 6 GB RAM | 64/128/256 GB 6 GB RAM |
| 3. Battery | 3000 mAh Qi Wireless Charging | 3000 mAh Qi Wireless Charging | 3500 mAh Qi Wireless Charging | 3500 mAh Qi Wireless Charging |
Firstly, do not disappoint on getting the Exynos processor in favour of Snapdragon 845. Samsung has been shipping almost all their flagships in this manner and for what it’s worth, the Exynos is as good as Qualcomm’s when it comes to delivering kick-ass performance. There is now an option open for a higher storage version too i.e 256 GB which you can still expand upto a whopping 400 GB.
Also there is AR Emoji which is a counter to iPhone’s Animoji feature. While you can only use over a dozen of animals and creatures in iPhone, Samsung allows you to create your own Avatar and modify it in n number of ways as you like. Again, obviously, predictable but it’s a cool tech nonetheless and it won’t be much time when every OEM out there jumps on the same bandwagon.3
The ‘Itch’:
In a nutshell, the S9 is a good upgrade over S7 but there is hardly any substantial difference between the S8 and S9. Probably like the iPhone 7 and 8 versions, if you are an S8 owner, there is not much looking forward to in the S9 and that is sometimes disappointing to the fans who are always in a pace with the latest tech.
But I’d like to say that with the magnificent build, a super cool display, an intuitive camera and Samsung’s own toppings like Bixby and the S9 is the best package amongst any smartphone which is a flagship.
So the clear winner here among Nokia 8 Sirocco, Samsung Galaxy S9 and Sony Xperia XZ2 is obviously the Galaxy S9!
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Also Read:
1) Top 5 Smartphones Under Rs. 10,000
2) Top 5 Best Flagship Killer Smartphones
3) Top 5 Smartphones Under Rs. 20000
4) Nokia 8 Sirocco vs Nokia 8
Please do comment below to add your suggestions and feedback.
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About The Author :
Shubham
Shubham Garg (Editor Shubz.in) is an engineer with a specialization in Mechanical Engineering from AKTU, Uttar Pradesh. Being a mechanical engineer he has always loved to learn the inner working of various machines and consumer electronics. He regularly tests various audio, home appliances, and daily use products, to provide the best advice to readers. He is a wizard that can make your shopping easy, saving you time and stress of figuring out what to buy.
