Samsung has a big challenge on its hands - not only does it have to convince
people but the new Galaxy Note 8 here is actually safe to use considering last
year's battery issues, but that it's worth paying the eye-watering £869,
or $920 price tag - which is around
£90 more than the S8 Plus. There's also
strong competition from the
upcoming LG V30 and of course the new iPhone. So I've been using the Note 8 as
my main phone since it launched - and I have to say I actually really, really like it
I was initially put off by the idea of a huge 6.3 inch phone, but the Note 8 with
it's stunning infinity edge screen and 83% screen-to-body ratio means
it's actually about the same size as a 5.5 inch iPhone 7 Plus r Sony Xperia XZ Premium.
In terms of design, the Note 8 is just basically a slightly bigger S8 Plus
although we are only talking about a 0.1-inch screen size difference
The Note 8 is almost 200 grams though, that's 20 grams heavier and
also 0.5mm thicker than the s8 Plus. They do feel subtly different in the
hand as well, I'd say the S8 with its more rounded corners is a little more
comfortable but there's not much in it, and the also both IP68 water-resistant
and use Gorilla Glass 5. But the first time you see or pick up the Note 8,
it's the display that is the highlight of the phone. The 6.3 inch Super AMOLED HDR screen
looks stunning, although the resolution defaults to Full HD+ to
save battery. I would say because of the bigger screen it is worth pushing it to
the full Quad HD+ resolution to get the full 521 pixels per inch and make it look sharper.
One question I am getting asked a lot is what exactly is
the difference between the galaxy S8 & S8 Plus - and the new Note 8. Well, aside from
the bigger screen the Note 8 has a second camera giving you a 2x Optical Zoom.
6GB of RAM, that's up from 4 on the S8 - and of course the
staple of the Note series, you've got the S-Pen Stylus. But it's not all good news
the Galaxy Note 8 actually has a smaller battery than the S8 Plus - we're
talking about 3300mAH versus 3500mAH. And of course all the
new features like the S-Pen, more RAM and second camera are bound to have an
impact on battery life. So it's a bit disappointing that the Note 8 comes
across as this sort of all-singing all-dancing everything you need and want
ultimate smartphone but it doesn't have a bigger battery that will last you more
than a full day or a day and a half. Maybe Samsung are just being a
bit cautious given last year's battery fires on the Note 7, but a bigger
battery would have been nice to see especially since I found the S8 Plus
lasts around 5% longer. At least it does support wireless and fast charging though.
Performance is top notch thanks for the Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8895 chip,
depending on where you live. It'll run any App or game you throw at it
from the Google Play Store flawlessly. But since it is using the same processor
used in the S8, don't expect the Note 8 to be any faster. Although the Note does
have an extra 2GB of RAM which will help with multitasking and using split-screen apps
However, primarily the extra RAM will be used for the more demanding
dual camera processing. Now the camera on the note 8 is definitely one of the most
hyped features. You get the same 12 megapixel camera you get on the S8 plus, and a
second 12 megapixel telephoto lens that gives you 2x optical zoom.
Unlike other dual camera phones with telephoto lenses like the iPhone 7 plus
and OnePlus 5, both cameras come with optical image stabilization (OIS)
So even when zoomed in photos and videos, particularly in 4K, are sharp
and blur free. The cameras are definitely one of the Notes standout features - not
only is image quality very impressive thanks to the wide F1.7 aperture,
superfast dual pixel autofocus and excellent HDR but the new Live Focus and
2x zoom features are genuinely useful. Live Focus which is basically
Samsung's version of a portrait mode isn't perfect since it doesn't appear to
support HDR so you can get some blown out areas in photos and sometimes the
edge detection isn't quite right - but on the whole it is one of the best portrait
modes you can get on a phone and give your photos a great looking bokeh effect
I always thought portrait modes were a little bit gimmicky but the note 8 has
kind of changed my mind - and actually I find myself using it all the time.
The front-facing F1.7 selfie camera is really good too, although again
since it's the same as the S8, don't expect anything different here. I'd also
turn off the beauty modes which are on by default as it makes phptos
look too soft in my opinion. Other than that, pictures look great and the wide field
of view means it's really good for getting group selfies. So the dual camera
is one of the Note 8's biggest selling points. But of course it's the S Pen that the
Note series is most famous for although I have to be honest that while it does
have some cool uses, like writing notes while the screen is off,
taking Lasso screen-grabs and even highlighting text to translate -
I actually find myself very rarely using it. The stylus is nice to and it even has
a little clicker at the top... which doesn't do anything... as well as a new
thinner tip and the same 4096 pressure points as the one in Note 7. You can be
very precise with it, but it's more of a cool extra than a must-have feature in
my opinion but you might really like the idea of it - so it could be a good reason to buy it.
The Note 8 also supports the Gear VR
headset and Samsung's DeX docking station which actually works pretty well
when I had to go with it at the Note 8 launch event
So the big question should you buy The Galaxy Note 8...
well it's tricky because on the one hand I think
this is genuinely the best phone that's launched this year so far - but it
is very, very expensive. The dual camera is definitely a reason to buy it and the
S-Pen is a nice extra but that's about it and if you're not bothered about
either and you still want a big phone with a big screen - the Galaxy S8 Plus is
your best bet - and you'll save nearly a hundred quid in the process.
but then again if you want the best of the best right now and the
money isn't so much of an issue - then I would highly recommend the Galaxy Note 8.
So that's what I think, but what about you? Is it too big? Is it too expensive?
Are you going to rush out and get one as soon as you can? Let me know in the
comments below. Thank you very much for watching guys - if you did enjoy the video
click that LIKE and SUBSCRIBE button :) I will leave links in the description
below if you fancy buying one of these when it comes out. Thanks for watching
and I'll see you next time right here... on The Tech Chap :)