Samsung fans have started counting down the days to August 9 as that's when the company will officially unveil the Galaxy Note 9. I'm looking forward to the new flagship because from what we have heard so far, it's going to be a promising option. There are some Galaxy Note 9 features that I am particularly excited about.
Galaxy Note 9 features
The Galaxy Note 8 was Samsung's saving grace. It proved that the company could bounce back in spectacular fashion after the disaster that was the Galaxy Note 7. Many had actually written off the company's phablet after the handset was discontinued. They felt that the Note series may not be able to recover from the negative impression that the Galaxy Note 7 left behind.
Samsung proved its detractors wrong with the Galaxy Note 8. It delivered a device that did all the right things for Note fans. The company made it clear that its Note series is here to stay and with good reason. It serves a purpose that no other device in Samsung's smartphone lineup does.
We have already talked about the Galaxy Note 9 specs in detail. They will largely be similar to the Galaxy S9 but Samsung may add a variant with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. You can expect the Galaxy Note 9 to deliver top-notch performance comparable to most other flagships.
Camera
The camera will be one of the main Galaxy Note 9 features. No, there's not going to be a triple camera system because Samsung is likely saving that for the Galaxy S10. The company did unveil its new ISOCELL Plus technology recently which may debut with the Galaxy Note 9. The new technology improves light sensitivity and color fidelity which allows for clearer and more accurate photos. Simply put, the Galaxy Note 9's camera will be able to deliver photos that look at lot better.
Improvements for the front camera will also bring features like AR Emoji to the Galaxy Note 9. It will allow Samsung's phablet customers to get in on the action as well which has been limited to the Galaxy S9 so far.
S Pen
Granted that the camera figures prominently in the decision-making process of smartphone buyers these days but there's another reason why customers purchase the Galaxy Note 9. It's the only smartphone in Samsung's lineup that ships with a stylus. The Galaxy Note series is meant for people who want to get serious work done on the go and the S Pen helps them do just that.
The S Pen is shaping up to be one of the core new Galaxy Note 9 features. After all, Samsung did say last year that it would make improvements to the S Pen for its next Note flagship. It's expected to get Bluetooth support. The S Pen will thus effectively double as a portable Bluetooth controller. It could be used for triggering a long-range remote self-timer, music playback control and more. There have also been whispers that the S Pen could offer some gameplay features as well.
The S Pen is an integral part of the Galaxy Note experience and any improvements that Samsung makes to the stylus will have an impact on the productivity quotient of the flagship. I'm looking forward to a new S Pen that does more than what one would normally expect from a stylus.
Bixby 2.0
Bixby is a polarizing feature on Samsung's smartphones. Some can't stand it and just want to learn how they can completely disable Bixby. Others swear by it. Samsung's initial goal with Bixby was to quickly roll out its assistant as it was already quite late to the party. It has since been focusing on transforming Bixby into an intelligence tool.
Samsung confirmed earlier this year that Bixy 2.0 will be a “bold reinvention” of the platform and that it will launch with the Galaxy Note 9. We can expect quicker response times from Bixby on the Galaxy Note 9 which may help bring back users who left because it wasn't fast enough. Bixby 2.0 is also expected to get enhanced natural language capabilities and noise resistance.
I've been a believer of Bixby and feel that with enough time and polish it can be a powerful digital assistant. I'm looking forward to seeing just how Bixby might make our lives easier on the Galaxy Note 9.
Battery
As one of my colleagues expressed recently, the 4,000mAh battery is one of the only Galaxy Note 9 features he needs to “throw money on the Galaxy Note 9.” The battery is said to last for up to two days and up to 25 hours of continuous video playback at maximum screen brightness.
Given Samsung's habit of better optimizing Note devices for performance and battery life, the Galaxy Note 9 looks set to deliver truly long-lasting performance with its expected 4,000mAh battery. That will also increase its appeal to customers who value productivity and want a device that can keep up with them without requiring them to plug in their smartphone too often.
These are few of the Galaxy Note 9 features that I am looking forward to the most. We'd love to know what features have you excited about the new flagship. Let us know in the comments section below.
