Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ hands-on review

25 February 2018
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ are here, official, unwrapped, and we go in full hands-on mode. We might be sending off another UNPACKED event preceded by weeks of overwhelming leaks, but we are surely heading towards a new chapter in the smartphone photography.

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  • C
  • Carol
  • L7b
  • 28 Feb 2018

So, where is the part that stoled the show? All i see is an s8 with another cpu. Thatsl's about it. Same battery, same shape, same touch wiz crapp. Same antena, same wi-fi same gorilla glass, same RAM, same camera. Samesung!

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    • Harsenik
    • QTb
    • 28 Feb 2018

    Roby , 28 Feb 2018The stereo speakers its only thing that make me to buy S9+ ... moreTheres no use for stereo speaker on such a small device...

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      • Roby
      • M0n
      • 28 Feb 2018

      The stereo speakers its only thing that make me to buy S9+ but its so expensive to give a 1000 euro. I will wait a little time when the price drop down. Maybe the device have some problems so better to wait to be sure.

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        • expert
        • LgP
        • 28 Feb 2018

        Paul L, 28 Feb 2018The first phone that could genuinely tempt me away from App... moreFor this you don't need more then the Galaxy S3!

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          • TN1
          • 7X9
          • 28 Feb 2018

          Kiyasuriin, 26 Feb 2018Uhm. let me remind something... 1. the REMOVABLE BATTERY w... moreAnd there are news that the S9 has FM radio back. LOL.

            The first phone that could genuinely tempt me away from Apple. Look forward to GSMArena's full review.

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              • expert
              • mVs
              • 28 Feb 2018

              Onyxia, 26 Feb 2018Show me any other smartphone from a major brand that have: ... moreAnd the very poor 3000 mAh battery even comparing with some cheaper phones¡¿

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                • Negrut Ioan
                • ajS
                • 28 Feb 2018

                949€ in Romania (64 gb) start in 09 march.

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • 3Ak
                  • 28 Feb 2018

                  Anonymous, 25 Feb 2018The price aint worth it!, still gonna keep my S7 Edge.S7 edge is probably better anyway.

                  Similar performance (Exynos 8890 ~ Snappy 845), same amount of ram, similar camera quality, LARGER battery, FRONT FACING fingerprint, similar PPI.

                  It is literally a downgrade for many/most to go to S9 from S7E...

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                    • AnonD-740956
                    • mqu
                    • 27 Feb 2018

                    Dark blue looks great and Samsung do it so well. I still don't get why Apple don't embrace this shade. It looks awesome! I remember a Samsung feature phone I had in 2007 in dark blue (can't recall model anymore)... everyone said "great looking phone" to me, even strangers in public who saw it. Dark blue was unusual for a phone then.

                      • ?
                      • Anonymous
                      • 3pv
                      • 27 Feb 2018

                      Imperator Neubaticus, 27 Feb 2018Nope. Perhaps only oneplus is admittedly a better choice if... moreyou can't say S9+/S9 is worth 990€/840€ with a MINIMUM upgrade from S8+/S8. it's true, S9/S9+ has better processor but normal user won't notice that because S8 is still has one of the fastest chipset. Only diference is in camera, but that is not worth 200€ more (in EU you can get new S8 for 560€).. and yes, there are some phones worth of their money, and S9 is definately not one of those. S9 is wort to buy if you are currently user atleast of S6..

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • mqp
                        • 27 Feb 2018

                        AnonD-249659, 27 Feb 2018Fingerprint sensor on the back is not always handy what i... moreyou wont need to it has iris and facial recognition or you can give bixby a secret word to unlock the phone too if you are using hands free in a car, just press the bixby button once and say the word or say bixby then the word and it will unlock, like i press the button on my note 8 and say goodnight and it puts my phone on silent and dims the brightness and locks my phone after

                          Tim is scared now, 27 Feb 2018Like i said, this phone is minimum upgrade. While acceptabl... moreNope. Perhaps only oneplus is admittedly a better choice if you take into consideration the value for your money. But no huawei, xiaomi, sony, or htc phone comes close to the internals of the s9/s9+ duo, especially when you're talking about hardware. The exynos is clearly ahead of the snapdragon counterpart except for gpu capabilities and even then it isn't that far behind. The variable aperture camera IS a big deal. And even though the final verdict is still to come regarding how samsung made use of that hardware, downplaying it as just an incremental camera upgrade is incredibly ignorant. So no. Just no. Try again.

                            The s9+ retails for more than the note8 lol. But of the two, i'm liking the non plus version more.

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                              • AnonD-632062
                              • 3Yf
                              • 27 Feb 2018

                              Pretty good evolution. I like it. Valuable under the hood additions like the vastly improved camera, stereo speakers, awesome chip set. Thanks for listening to customers & keeping the 3.5 mm jack.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • 2Gr
                                • 27 Feb 2018

                                Gan, 27 Feb 2018do not follow a company blindly... 4:3 is standard aspect r... moreNot sure what country you live in but it's been a looooooong time since i saw TV (or anything) in a 4:3 ratio.

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                                  • Tim is scared now
                                  • 6TT
                                  • 27 Feb 2018

                                  Like i said, this phone is minimum upgrade. While acceptable a few years back, now we have other flagships like Oneplus / Huawei / Xiaomi / Sony / HTC at lower price point and similar specs. They are fighting a losing battle. Enterprise / normal consumer will not be impress with just a camera gimmick.

                                  They need to push for intel's thunderbolt 3 tech, make a good docking station/laptop with eGPU (Not rubbish like this Dex Pad that block their own fingerprint scanner). Brush up their DeX software with Galaxy on Linux.. have a few great software options like full fledged desktop class Photoshop, laptop/desktop replacement. That will also aid in VR / AR. While tablet may failed to defeat iPad, DeX station with egpu.. would be another story.

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                                    • Gan
                                    • tTi
                                    • 27 Feb 2018

                                    Anonymous, 27 Feb 20184.3 video's ? What company would make aphone with 4.3 vide... moredo not follow a company blindly... 4:3 is standard aspect ratio for television and also near to aspect ratio of majority of old movies. Also the still photos in its full resolution is 4:3 ratio in majority of phones camera including s7, s8 and s9. Its a very bad experience to watch a 4:3 ratio photos or videos in s9. Also I am not fanboy of any x company... I just shared my disappointment of these curved display flagship phones with no choice of flat screen...now I am stuck with samsung s7, which I think is the best the samsung design till date.

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                                      • AnonD-249659
                                      • 3pS
                                      • 27 Feb 2018

                                      Fingerprint sensor on the back is not always handy
                                      what if you have the phone on a car stand
                                      you will have to remove it everytime in order to unlock it.
                                      It would be wiser to have one on the front and one on the back side of the phone.

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • 39x
                                        • 27 Feb 2018

                                        gan, 26 Feb 2018when I decided to buy s8...I went to showroom and tested it... more4.3 video's ? What company would make aphone with 4.3 videos, oh wait... the xfoolphone, I'd like to see that stuck in the middle of my 65" Samsumg 4k sreen. Gimme a break xboy.