Samsung - Galaxy Note9 128GB (Unlocked) - Midnight Black

I upgraded from a ATT branded Note 8 and initially I was asking myself why? So one week after purchase of the unlocked variant here we go. The first thing you notice is the screen is better...it's difficult to quantify but you just go WOW...especially when watching HDR content from Netflix or whoever. Blacks darker...contrasts higher...colors brighter. Just better. I've never been big into watching high quality video on a phone but this baby could change that. Similar results when doing photography...even though the imager is the same as the Note 8. And the low light performance of the imager is remarkable. Shooting at dusk or in a darkened (but not dark) room...you'll think no way I'll get that shot without a flash...but you do! Now let's talk about the S pen. I don't doodle and I don't draw...but I LOVE that the S pen now becomes a mini remote for the camera...and several other apps. But primarily the camera...you can now take a pic/selfie with the main back mounted camera and use the S pen to trip the shutter. Sure you can't see exactly how the image will look first...for that you'll have to use the front camera...but you no longer have to worry about dropping the phone or not finding the shutter button while pointing the 12MP back camera at yourself...just hold the S pen in your hand and click the button...mission accomplished! The other S pen trick I like is the ability to jot notes, reminders etc. on the black lock screen (in YELLOW ink thank you very much) for later use. Friends will go "that is SO cool!" The bad news is that when you view the note later the yellow ink is not the easiest to read when viewing it on a WHITE background which is the only choice when viewing the saved note. Ok now let's talk sound. The Note 8 had one speaker...the Note 9 has two. "Big deal" you say. And you would be right until you flip the switch to enable Dolby ATMOS in the settings! Suddenly the sound has spatial dispersion to both side of the phone...and it gets louder...quite a bit louder! And it has base response! Not a lot I admit...these speakers are tiny...but it has some! So now watching Netflix or other vid without headphones is a real option. Oh and the earbuds provided are exactly the same as the Note 8. They are actually quite good especially after you purchase some squishy foam based tips to replace the crumby silicone ones they come with. The OEM tips fall out of my ears and lack any base response. Next battery. I don't usually kill my battery because I'm not usually too phone attached. But again that could change...see above. Yesterday I TRIED to kill the battery. No charging after the day started. Full day of texting photos blah blah blah...then my schedule changed and I had to jump on a plane. Quick! Download 3 episodes of Altered Carbon on Netflix. With 128gb of internal storage, no carrier bloatware to waste it and an unlimited data plan it was on! Downloaded 3 episodes in the background while driving to, walking around and then waiting at the airport. Took 90 minutes but they were all on board when we departed. Also took the battery from 80% to 50% just doing the downloads and some other stuff on the phone while it was happening. No problem except that if you try to download anything else while all that vid is downloading it will be SLOW. Watched two full episodes and approximately 75% screen brightness (it's HDR video after all) and walked off the airplane 3 hours later with 20% battery left! NOT BAD AT ALL! My Note 8 wouldn't have done that...and wouldn't have looked as good doing it! That screen again. Last point. I love that I can unlock the phone and turn on the screen by tapping one finger on the fingerprint sensor...but for when you can't do that the NOTE 9 now offers iris scanning combined with facial recognition to unlock/turn on the phone. All you need to do is hit the screen lock button and point the phone at your face. Done. I don't use it a lot...but when I do I really need it. Ok...I probably missed a couple things but those are the big ones. I no longer have any doubt's about whether the phone was a worthwhile upgrade...it ROCKS! And now that I have an unlocked phone I no longer have pushy AT&T (who I otherwise like quite a lot) insisting I go find wifi somewhere to download one of their tedious and annoying software updates which they just won't let you do over the air. Oh and "one more thing" ATT Numbersync for wearables now works with this unlocked phone. It didn't on the Note 8. On the Note 9 with Numbersync calls and texts go to your wearable as well as the phone even if they are not connected via Bluetooth. The only carrier branded features on AT&T you lose (that I have found) with the unlocked phone are HD Voice and Wifi Calling.

Note 8 was an excelllent phone that was held back by below average battery life. Samsung somehow has managed to improve all small shortcomings from the Note 8 but the major one which was battery is so much better. Battery life is why I ended up switching from the Note 8 to the LG V30+. When the Note 9 came out I waited for the reviews to appear to see if Samsung did something about the battery life. Most of the reviews mention on how much better it has improved with screen time duration being exteded by an 2-3hrs in most cases. Since the phone it's very expensive I figure I"ll wait till Black Friday but than Best Buy came out with the Trade In deal which in my opinion is the best deal you will get for this phone. My note 8 trade in shaved off $500 from the retail price. At this price point it was a good deal that was hard to pass up. The look and feel is very similiar to the Note 8 except for the slightly larger display and the fingerprint being on a much more easier position to reach. The edges have a chamfered finish to them that gives a more premium look. The good stuff the display probably the best mobile display currently out there for current smartphones. It's bright and colorful and no issues with outdoor visibility. Performance is good and especially on gaming where my LG V30+ would start to drop framerates on FortNite due to heat. Samsung did a good job on cooling the chipset to keep it from throttling. Speakers are now 2 and they are a night and day difference compared to the single speaker on the Note 8. The sound is much more louder and but also rich and fuller with the Dolby Atmos setting that works with everything so far. I leave it on the Auto setting. Storage is another area that I"m glad they double it from the 64gb default to now 128gb for base storage.They also kept microsd slot whichI still prefer because of how easy it is to tranfer all your media content like photos and stuff like that. Just insert the sd card to your new phone and all your stuff is there. So far I have not been able to find something negative about this phone besides the retail price of 1k. Without the trade in deal I don't think I would of gotten the phone even though I do feel if you pay full price for it you're getting your money worth. Cameras perform very well. The S Pen is something that I don't take advantage as a power user but with the added bluetooth functionality that lets you use the small button to take a picture, or pause music/videos is something that I can see myself using. Samsung is going to allow app developers to take advantage of it too. With all the improvements that Samsung has made to the Note 9 is probably the only device that can cater to multiple users. The screen is gorgeous so for media consumption your covered and the speakers is a nice added bonus. Performance is there for those that like to game on the go and now that the default storage has been doubled you no longer have to sacrifise apps to make room. Battery life compared to the Note 8 I can actually get a full day of out of it. For example Note 8 and Note 9 leaving my house at 70% battery life the Note 8 needed to be charged 4-6hrs later the Note 9 on the other hand I had enough charged left around 15-20% for the drive home. The S Pen does add functionality if you like to get some work done on your phone. It allows you to quickly write down notes, sign for documents and makes it easier to edit documents. It's like having a mouse when needed to do something like copy or highlight small text area where your finger would highlight 2 -3 lines of text. With all those upgrades this is a phone that you can comfortable hold on for a couple of years without feeling behind. With the current state of smartphones we reached a point where it's mainly small improvements to camera and nothing new besides battery life getting better overall and graphics for games. Another negative besides asking price is the software updates from Samsung. They have made improvements but still not good as a Pixel Phone from Google so don't expect the latest Android OS until early 2019 or fast security updates. If you're looking for a big phone this is the one to get. The phone offers so much functionality for all type of users.

After my Samsung Note 4 died conveniently on Black Friday, I had no choice but to upgrade to the $1000 Note 9, but because of the timing, I was able to get $200 knocked off, which allowed me to get all the extra protections (case and screen), an additional 128GB card, an extra charging cord and the tax still came out to the $1000 price tag. Although I loved my Note 4 (because I can change out the battery), this Note 9 is a BIG upgrade (although I will never like the fact that I don't have control over the battery, so if something goes wrong in that area, I have to send it off to Texas for the battery to be changed out and there goes a couple of weeks without a phone). Yes, the screen is larger and the overall phone is slimmer than my old Note 4, and with the built in AI feature, once this phone knows my patterns, it can go through the functions faster for me. I also thought it was a pain to use the fingerprint scanner on my Note 4, but this Note 9 has facial recognition to unlock your phone, so that was a plus. I also like the fact that if I want to either take a photo of myself or with my spouse, I don't have to try and find someone to ask for help. I can just set the phone up a good distance away and use the stylus pen. You can hide the pen in your pocket or behind you, press the button on the side of the pen and it'll take the photo. If you're going for the selfie, then all you have to do is raise your hand for the camera to see, then you have a few seconds to get ready for the camera to take your pic. The Bixby feature is a nice added feature. Once it's set up you can ask it all sorts of things. If you see an item at someone's house or somewhere in your travels and you'd like to get it for yourself, all you have to do is hold Bixby up to the item and it'll tell you where to find the item you're looking for, whether it be for you, the house, your pet, food, wine, beer, whatever you have an interest in. I can also connect this phone to all my other devices in my house and not even have to be there for everything to run efficiently when I'm away. One hard lesson I have learned when my Note 4 died... I lost all my info that wasn't stored in the cloud (like my Samsung Notes and text messages). With this phone I have gone double duty... now all my info is in both the Google and Samsung clouds. Also, as the Samsung rep warned me... Samsung (and all the other phone makers to be fair) programs the phone to died with 24 to 36 months of when they come out, so the company forces you to upgrade. Now that I know this, I'll upgrade every other Black Friday (which means for me that's 2020) and save my phone from an early death. I also like the longer lasting battery on the Note 9 (even though I don't have control in changing them out). It'll last a good 18 hours on a single charge if you're doing a lot on it like watching videos or playing games, but since I don't do that (much), I've been able to go 2 days before I have to charge the phone. Also, the Note 9 comes in two GB sizes... 128 GB for $1000 and 256 GB for $1300. Since I now know I'm going to be upgrading in the even years, 128 GB is enough + buying a 128 GB sim card will give you the 256 GB total space, so why spend an extra $300? I'm also paranoid about leaving my photos on the phone device. If something should happen to the phone, I know my sim card is there as the back up. It's also easy to plug the phone into your computer once a week or month and download your photos as a safety precaution. If you can wait until the Spring (like some of my friends are) you'll be able to get this phone for half the price. Wish I could have done that.

My unlocked 128gb Note 9 is the best Android phone I've owned so far (also the most expensive phone I've ever bought - Ouch). Phone/WiFi/Bluetooth: Call quality is great. WiFi, Bluetooth and cellular connectivity have been solid. No dropped calls or audio quality issues. The Bluetooth works well when connecting with my Samsung Galaxy Watch, wireless headphones and vehicle call system. Operating System/Software Functionality: Tons of interface/system tweaking options for personalizing to your preferences. The operating system is tuned well. It is snappy and has been glitch-free so far. I have yet to experience a force closure or self-reboot. There is some software bloat, but doesn't detract from or affect the device performance. Security: The face recognition, iris scanner and fingerprint sensor features have worked flawlessly and provide robust security options. Samsung Pay is easy to set up and is well integrated into the operating system. Battery: Battery life is remarkable. I easily get a full day of use and then some. Recharges quickly via cable or wireless charger. Audio: Speaker audio may not be its strongest feature, but is decent, especially if you activate the Dolby ATMOS feature. The stereo speakers produce more than adequate volume for my needs. S-Pen: The S-Pen is a decent feature with lots of potential. I haven't used it much, but the more I do, the more I like it and am beginning to use it more often. Display: The display is large, bright, very crisp and very responsive. The curved-edge Infinity display is a carry-over from previous S-phones, but is still pleasing to me. Camera: The camera is capable of taking excellent photos and video, and the Note 9 is regarded as one of the best camera phones. However, I believe its full capability is limited by the weak Samsung camera app and current firmware. Its OK, but not great and will hopefully improve with future firmware updates. The auto mode tends to smoothen out skin texture and details a bit too much for my liking. Low-light conditions can produce some annoying noise in the shadow areas of your images. That said, if you learn to use the manual/Pro Mode effectively, you can easily overcome some of these shortcomings and produce images perfect suitable for enlargement and framing. If someone at Sumsung reads this - Please update to include the option of showing a histogram in Pro mode. It would help make optimal settings much easier. Bixby: Folks tend to hate on the dedicated Bixby button and Bixby assistant in general, but there are ways to disable Bixby and re-assign the button to another app/function. It looks like Samsung has doubled-down on Bixby and has continued it as a baked-in feature on the new S10 lineup. I just wish Samsung would make it easier for the user to ignore it or reconfigure/disable it out of the box. Summary: Overall, I am glad I spent the extra money on the Note 9. Although an expensive phone, you get lots of bang for the buck and I highly recommend it if you can afford it. Is it the "BEST" phone out there? That is largely subjective, but the Note 9's feature set and performance definitely puts it up among the top flagship phones. If you do buy one, be sure to get a good case to protect your investment.

I'm one who has always liked to tinker. I'd always opt for a phone that I could root and play with. My previous phone being a 3-year-old Nexus 6P, it was time for something new. I wasn't impressed with the current Pixels and decided to take a chance on the Note 9 knowing full well that there would likely never be a root method available for it. The specs and reviews won me over, and the blue color is pretty sweet. So far, it's been a few days with it as my daily driver, and I don't think I'll miss my tinkering days at all (well maybe a little). This thing is simply amazing. The screen is bright and clear, though the curved edges are somewhat weird to me. The OS is buttery smooth and fast. I am missing Android Pie, but I'm sure it'll be coming for this device soon. The fact that it's one of the only flagships without a screen notch, stereo speakers and includes a headphone jack is a winner, but it also includes some really nice earbuds besides, which was a bonus. Wireless charging is something I thought was a fad of the past, but it's back now and extremely convenient. Dusted off my old Qi wireless charger that I had for a motorola phone a few years ago and it works great. I am not fond of all of the Samsung bloatware that comes on this, being used to a stock android experience, but getting over it pretty quick. It really is a great experience. However, this is the sole reason it loses a star in the review. There's just too much "Samsung" that can't be disabled when it's not really necessary. So far, haven't used the active S Pen too much as I'm not really a stylus guy, but it is a pretty neat feature, especially with the button that can remotely activate the camera or whatever other apps you want it to. Regarding the size. Coming from a Nexus 6P with a 5.7" screen, I was expecting the Note with a 6.4" screen to be physically bigger. I was shocked to find that it is approximately the same physical size. No problem with one-handed reach. The fingerprint scanner is placed a bit high on the back, in my opinion, but that's likely just something to get used to. I find myself searching for it to unlock the device. Face unlock doesn't seem to work well for me, despite every review showing how great it is. Maybe I'm just doing it wrong. :) I have not done much with the camera yet, but so far photos are clear and detailed. Battery seems to be pretty good, but haven't yet tested it out thoroughly. I'll update the review if I'm able once I have more detail there.

Before I made any decisions I looked at all comparables possible and came to a decision based solely in trying to get the best phone possible. Forget operating systems (Android and Apple) just focus in one thing the phone. There are plenty of reviews online to help you somehow choose but here are 4 things to keep in mind when choosing the best. #1 QUALITY. That is something Samsung devices really do have plenty to offer. The way the phone is built is rock solid and beautiful. SCREEN quality is just phenomenal. Unlike other brands you don't have to stress about screen burns or loss of image or non color accuracy. Rock solid performance and super fast. I mean fast. If oyu love multitasking this device will not disappoint. # BATTERY LIFE. Unlike other brands with this phone you get 4000mah battery which is massive. You can do what you want without having to worry about finding a plug in the middle of the day or even sooner for some others. No compromises you can do what you want and if you think you are a heavy user and wont be home till late (7am- 10pm) turn that battery saver mode once you reach 50% and no worries you will get home just fine with juice to spare. # CAMERAS. One of the most important reasons to have a great phone. The cameras and options found on the Note 9 and just beautiful to look at it. Like shooting videos amazing quality. Imagine stabilization does a superb job on this phone. # VALUE. Compared to certain phones, this phone starting price is $999 but since Black Friday even up to now there are just so many discounts and specials that you can even get this phone for $300 less than the original price happening in many different places not only Best Buy. Again you might ask why so many discounts? Everyone is giving discounts away not only Samsung, since the market is saturated with so many phones and most people find that their current phones don't need to be changed is a win win for us the customers looking to upgrade to the newest and latest of everything without paying a hefty price for something that will loose value over a year. Nothing bad to complaint but my other final advice is see the phone for yourself, the size might intimidate you at first, but you get used to it. Once you get used to the screen real state in this device you will never go back to a smaller screen. It does come with a pen that I barely use. But again this is the latest and greatest and with so many specials you better off getting this phone, which it will exceed all your expectations. Trust me.

Samsung note9 is my second Samsung phone so far. I upgraded from a S9 bought earlier this year. Before that I was using OnePlus 3T. I will be comparing this phone with XS Max since as my wife has one and I have compared both these phones extensively. This year's note9 improves Note8, learns from Galaxy flagship of this year (S9) and retains all the good things i.e. Fingerprint scanner, headphone jack and No-Notch screen. Screen: S9 had great screen already and Note9 further improves the screen quality. I immediately noticed the improvements even when I put it side by side with my wife's XS Max Note9 still wins. Camera: Camera quality has improved a lot with dual appratute and dual cameras. Day light shots from rear camera are at similar to XS Max and Pixel however low light pictures are a lot better than XS Max. Selfies are more natural and Samsung made good use of AI here. Batter: One of the main reason of my upgrade from S9 was bettery. I always needed to charge my S9 by 4-5PM everday however Note9' easily lasts for a day and I still had some juice left. Since this comes with a fast charger which XS Max doesn't has battery charges rapidly. SPen: Since this is my first Note. I am not used to SPen feature and learning it. However based on my usage so far I think it is a good to have feature and if you are spending 1000$ on a phone you probably deserve it. Remote button on SPen works great for taking pictures and writing on screen just feels so satisfying. Dex: I haven't used Dex yet but I will update this review once I use it. Overall, I can say this is the phone which deseves 1000$ price tag. Cons, Phone has some weight and if you are coming from smaller phone like me. It will take sometime to get used to it. But increase in Battery power justifies this weight gain..

Over Christmas 2018 I had an unfortunate accident that lead to my iPhone 7 Plus being crushed. I decided to move away from Apple products due to problems before and their pricing. I decided on the Samsung Galaxy Note9 because I wanted to future proof my purchase. After 2-3 weeks with the phone I'm very happy with the purchase. While it has taken some time to get use to the differences, I much prefer this operating system when compared to IOS. Its very customizable and can be tailored to your preference, much more than a iPhone. It runs fast and smooth, while my iPhone 7 Plus was slower or just froze up. The S Pen is really nice and has a lot of features. You wouldn't think it would be that useful, but once you have it you'll never not want it. My girlfriend really likes the colorbook function of the S Pen and regularly takes my Note9 to use that feature. One last great feature is the battery. It is so much better here than my iPhone 7 Plus. My iPhone would die about half the day in, whereas my note9 goes pretty much all day long without a charge. I am a pretty big user, so battery was a real selling point for me. The charging here is fast as well, taking around an hour to charge the phone completely. This makes quick charges before leaving the house useful. Overall, this purchase was well worth the investment. I plan on sticking around with Samsung phones and never touching another apple product again.