Samsung Galaxy Note 8

Description

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Price in Kenya is around ksh 53000. The Note line of Samsung phablet smartphone is a high end line. I think it the 2^nd flagship line of Samsung after the S line that has the likes of the Galaxy s6, s7 and s8. This line (Note) consists of the Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy Note FE (which is Samsung made to replace the Note 7), there also is the Note 4 and Note Edge. And now, the baby of the line, the most recent note joins the family in the Galaxy Note 8 which will prove very different from the Notes we have seen from previous years, I have to mention, the Note 8 will be the first Samsung smartphone to feature a dual primary camera setup. Below we discuss the main features of the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.

• 6.3 inch display (Infinity display like in the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus)
• 12MP primary camera and 9MP selfie camera
• 64/128/256 GB internal memory + 6GB RAM
• Exynos 8895 Octa chipset
• 3300mAh battery with market dependent wireless charging and all markets fast battery charging
• Bluetooth 5.0
• Android 7.0 Nougat
• Snapdragon 835 chipset
• IP68 water and dust poof over 1.5m and for 30 minutes

Design and build

Looking at it, at first sight one might think it is the Galaxy s8 Plus. The Galaxy Note 8 will feature Infinity display just as seen on the s8. It has very slim bezels to allow for a tall display. The phone does seem too big to hold, but wait until it is in your hands. You will be amazed how comfortably it sits on ones palm. The top bezel has some sensors, a call speaker and the selfie camera. On the back, we see the same everything set up as in the Galaxy s8, well, except for the dual camera setup. Yes so two cameras, dual LED flash and a rear mounted fingerprint scanner- all placed horizontally in a dark bar. Samsung branding is also present on the upper back of the phablet. The build is metallic on the sides and the back is Corning Gorilla 5 glass panel which is an addition that will see this phone support wireless charging. It is also a water and dust resistant build for 30 minutes and 1.5m-IP68 certified. The phone weighs 195 Grams, is 74.8 mm tall and 8.6 mm thick.

*The S-Pen is also considered part of the build of any Galaxy Note Phablet.

Display

Describing the display of the Samsung Galaxy  Note 8 feels like talking about the display on the Galaxy s8. So let’s say it this way- If you love the display on the s8 then it is just what you will get here, if not better. Yes, so a Super AMOLED capacitive touch screen, 16M colors of course. It comes with a 6.3 inch display (83% screen-to body ratio) and has a 1440 x 2960 pixels (521 ppi pixel density) resolution. The display is protected with a Corning Gorilla 5 Glass, is HDR10 compliant and has 3D touch on the Home Button (only). It is a very good display on paper, and with Samsung displays, you can never expect anything short of what they promise. Samsung will always deliver what they promise. Sharp AMOLED display it is, with magnificent viewing angles and splendid color punch and representation. Sunlight readability will also be top notch with this smartphone.

Camera

As already mentioned, the camera of the  Samsung Galaxy  Note 8 is what the market is really waiting to see. This time, we will see a dual camera setup on a Samsung device. Let us talk about that. So the two cameras will be 12MP + 9MP.  The 12MP camera has (OIS) is the main camera really while the 9MP one performs functions like image recording, touch focus, face/smile detection and Auto HDR. These features, together with panorama will be present on the Note 8 camera. The selfie camera is an 8MP shooter with aperture f/1.7, autofocus, dual video call and Auto HDR. Both shooters are very impressive just as promised by Samsung upon announcement of the Galaxy Note 8. Crisp and detailed photos are what one should expect here. Video recording stands at 2160p@30fps max and there is HDR and dual video recording.

Performance and memory

• Android Nougat 7.1.1
• Exynos 8895 Octa Chipset – EMEA or
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Chipset – USA and China
• Octa core (4 x 2.3 GHz & 4 x 1.7 GHz) EMEA or
• Octa core (4 x 2.35 GHz & 4 x 1.9 GHz Kyro) – USA and China
• Mali G71 MP20 GPU– EMEA or
• Adreno 540 GPU – USA and China
• 64/128/256GB internal memory + 6 GB RAM. internal memory can be expanded up to 256 GB using an SD card.

Communication and Network

Wi-Fi, dual band, Wi-Fi direct, hotspot, Bluetooth 5.0 GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, NFC and 3.1 type C 1.0 reversible connector.

Battery

Comes with a non removable 3300mAh battery that supports Quick Charge and wireless charging. This is a very solid phablet. A high end and top notch Samsung device. Comes with the choice of 5 colors- Black, Gold, Blue, Grey and Pink.