Samsung Galaxy S10

Introducing the new Samsung Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10+, Galaxy S10e and Galaxy Fold

Ooooh, it’s definitely been worth the wait. Samsung have celebrated the last 10 years of the Galaxy S series in style, bringing us not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 new phones in the next generation: Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10+, Galaxy S10e, and the ground-breaking Galaxy Fold.

What’s the main difference between the S10s?

To make your decision slightly easier, here’s a description of the 3 S10 devices in a nutshell: the S10 is the premium Galaxy experience with a perfect balance of performance and size; the S10+ ‘supercharges’ the experience with more screen, more cameras and bigger battery; and the S10e has all the essentials in a more compact form. Got it?

If you love what you’re about to hear, it’s worth knowing that with Three you can trade in your Samsung Galaxy S7, S7 Edge, S8 or S8+ and upgrade to a Samsung Galaxy S10, S10+ or S10e on a 24-month Unlimited data plan and get up to £300 on a Three gift card (in store) or cashback (online). This awesome offer if available until 31 March 2019, so don’t hang about.

So, what does it look like?

With the new Galaxy S10, you’ve got a choice of finishes, a classy ceramic black or white or, you can mix it up with 1 of the 10 vibrant prismatic colours that catch the light and make your spangly new phone look beautifully futuristic.

Samsung have also introduced us to the Dynamic AMOLED Infinity-O Display that gives you a totally uninterrupted view. Yep, that’s right, totally uninterrupted. Thanks to some seriously clever laser cutting, the front camera’s been hidden away inside the screen using just a tiny hole punch sized hole and a pill-shaped hole for the dual front-facing camera on the S10+.

We regularly hear about how bad blue light is for us and you might even adjust your screen manually to try to avoid straining your eyes and to get a better sleep but, with the S10 you don’t have to. It adjusts to the light for a better view, taking care of that nasty blue light for you, reducing it by a huge 42%.

What’s more, it doesn’t affect what’s on screen so, you can carry on binge-watching Netflix or gaming into the night without having to worry about straining your eyes.

Next generation performance

The new Galaxy series brings us advanced speeds and laptop-style storage without the laptop. We’re talking up to 12GB RAM and even 1TB storage on the S10+, which can be extended up to a huge 1.5TB using a MicroSD card. All that extra storage means you don’t have to worry about running out of space for those endless pics of your dog or selfies for your Tinder profile.

The new processor means up to 29% faster CPU (Central Processing Unit) and up to 37% faster GPU (Graphic Processing Unit) so gaming is going to be slicker than ever. The S10 is the first mobile device to work with adaptive performance for smoother, seamless play, even with graphic intensive games. To crank things up to this level, Samsung have joined forces with Unity who’s real-time engine powers half of the world’s games and Conde Nast.

Samsung Galaxy S10 camera spec

Samsung are always cutting edge when it comes to cameras and, unsurprisingly, you get the most advanced experience on a smartphone with the S10 and S10 Plus.

Phone photography has reached new levels, because now you can switch lens to suit the moment, just like a professional photographer. This is all thanks to a next generation triple rear camera system (bit of a mouthful!). There’s an everyday wide-angle lens with 77-degree field of view; a telephoto camera with optical zoom for getting twice as close; and a game-changing ultra-wide camera that has a 123-degree field of view and mirrors the human eye – so you can capture a exactly what you see without taking a step back. This means you get stunning landscape shots which are so much better than panoramic pics because they also stretch vertically, ‘from the ground to the sky’.

The S10 also improves Samsung’s Live Focus feature letting you add even more artistic flair with things like lighting and blur, spin effect and fun zoom. All this can be done in real-time, before you even snap.

So what if you’re a complete amateur? You’ll still get a fab pic every time, because the S10 has professional-grade camera intelligence built in. In fact, the tech giants proudly announced that they analysed 100 million professional photos to get this level of intelligence. What does that mean for the average snapper? Well, the S10 will help you compose the perfect shot because the camera suggests where to put the subject in the frame and tells you whether the photo is level. And the AI camera optimises colour based on the scene. It’s able to recognise more scenes than any previous Galaxy phone, so you can take the best possible picture without having to ‘do’ a thing.

What about video recording?

The video recorder on the S10 not only optimises colour when you watch movies, it also optimises colour while you’re recording, thanks to HDR10+ technology (the latest version of High Definition Recording). It’s the first camera phone to be able to record in this format and your videos will be brighter and more dynamic. Oh, and the camera stays super steady so you can get brilliant action videos.

There’s some pretty exciting news for movie-makers and YouTubers too, because the S10 comes with easy video editing that you can do on the phone itself. Which makes it even easier to share top-quality stuff as soon as poss. There’s no need to upload it to a PC for editing, because Samsung have partnered with Adobe to create a version of Premiere Rush that’s been optimised for smartphones. It’s super easy to cut stuff together on your S10, and you can add titles, correct colour, and loads more.

And the selfie camera?

If you love a selfie, the front-facing camera won’t disappoint. It comes with Dual Pixel technology which makes it even better in low light, and it’s got an improved, quicker auto-focus, so you don’t have to hold that pout.

The Galaxy S10+ also has a dual camera for selfies, so you can experiment with the depth of field and artistic effects.

Both the S10 and S10+ support 4K Ultra High Def video for the best selfie footage ever. And sharing this is easier than ever because Samsung have teamed up with Instagram to give a brand new camera mode called (wait for it…) Instagram mode. It means you can take a pic and then easily access stories, add a hashtag, use creative tools like stickers and music and then share it there and then. And if you’re in other favourite apps like Snapchat, the shots you take have low-light optimisation and High Dynamic Range (for better light and dark contrast) so they’re just as good as the ones you take in the camera app itself.

Battery and power

You won’t be disappointed when it comes to juice, because the battery in the S10 lasts 25% longer than the S9. It also cleverly identifies the apps you use the most and optimises the CPU (central processing unit) to consume less power on them.

And when it comes to power, the S10 takes things to the next level with its wireless charging pad. You can power more than just your phone – slap a watch, your earbuds or even a mate’s phone on the charging pad and as long as their Qi-charge compatible you can watch the battery fill up. It’s known as fast wireless charging 2.0, which means you get a 0-100% charge up to 36% faster than before. Phew!

Vault-like security

Protecting your phone as soon as it’s turned on, Samsung Knox keeps your info safe and privacy-protected.

And with this new, ramped up security comes the Ultrasonic Fingerprint Scanner. It uses ultrasonic waves to map your fingerprint and analyses it to make sure it’s a match. There’s even anti-spoofing technology to recognise any fake fingerprints. All you need to do is tap your finger on the screen to quickly unlock your phone; it works without a hitch, even in bright light or wet conditions.

Samsung Galaxy Fold

Samsung have also launched a brand new category with the Galaxy Fold, and it’s unlike anything else on the market: a powerful smartphone and tablet in one. When it’s folded you get a 4.6-inch screen and when you open it up it’s a 7.3-inch infinity flex display, which basically turns it into a tablet.

https://youtu.be/7r_UgNcJtzQ

This new type of smartphone needs to be pretty robust if it’s being folded and unfolded so it comes with a new type of hinge that you can’t even see. The Samsung Fold also comes in some lush new colours too: Cosmos Black, Space Silver, Astro Blue and Martian Green. Well the names are definitely different!

As with all the S10 devices, you get amazing sound that’s powered by AKG on the Galaxy Fold. And another great feature is the 3-app multi-tasking tool which takes the need to do loads of stuff at once to the next level: update Instagram, watch YouTube and read your emails in one go. Then, when you fold out the phone, each screen can work on its own or work together for a larger view. Because of app continuity you can switch between screens without missing a thing. And Samsung have partnered with Google and Microsoft to optimise apps like WhatsApp and MS Office for the Fold. They’ve also partnered with YouTube to give Galaxy Fold users access to YouTube Premium. Nice touch.

As you’d expect with Samsung, not only is this a smartphone and a tablet – it’s also a pretty awesome camera. You get 3 cameras on the back, 2 on the inside and 1 on the front, so no matter how you hold the phone it’ll capture the moment. Oh, and it has 2 batteries – one on each side of the device – which combine together to give a single power source.

Universal Flash Storage 3.0 means the Fold reads data twice as fast as the S9, which it makes it incredibly responsive for gaming; the 7 animator processor and 12GB RAM is the most powerful on the market; and there’s a whopping 512GB onboard memory to play with too.

There’s new wearable tech too

The next generation of Samsung Galaxy phones weren’t the only things announced at the Unpacked event, Samsung also introduced us to the latest version of the Galaxy Buds and their wearable tech: the Galaxy Active Watch and Galaxy Fit. And the new version of the Galaxy Buds.

Galaxy Buds

These super-light Buds are 30% smaller and made for all-day comfort. They’re long-lasting, so you get up to 5 hours of calls and can stream up to 6 hours of music on a single charge. What’s more, the cord-free wireless charging case means you can charge them using the S10 wireless Power Share feature.

With AKG sound you’ll be able to hear everything. And the adaptive dual mics on both the inside and outside mean you can heard better too. It’s clever stuff. If it’s loud around you, they’ll switch to the inside mic so you’ll be heard loud and clear.

The Galaxy Buds are Bixby-enabled too. You can use your voice to check your battery, turn them on/off and control Bixby on your S10 – all without taking your phone out of your pocket. If you pre-order the S10, S10+ or S10e before 7 March on Three you’ll get a free pair of wireless Galaxy Buds, worth £139, thrown in

Galaxy Watch Active: the full smartwatch experience

The super-light Galaxy Watch Active is designed to help you be a healthier version of you. It’s made from soft, durable material, so it’s comfortable to wear whether you’re clocking up miles on the treadmill or catching up on some sleep. The Galaxy Watch Active is also 5ATM water resistant so you can even track your workout if swimming’s your thing.

With 3 colours and over 60,000 different watch faces to choose from, it won’t be hard to find one that you can totally rock.

Galaxy Fit: dedicated to fitness

If you’re after a light-weight wearable device that’s completely dedicated to fitness, the Galaxy Fit could be just what you’ve been looking for.

Weighing just 23g – the same weight as a single strawberry, don’t you know – the Galaxy Fit is super light. But it packs a punch with it’s full colour AMOLED display, showing you essential info about your health at a glance.

Both of these brand-new wearables automatically track your activities and can quickly and easily be linked to your S10, S10+ and S10e. And that’s not all, both the Galaxy Watch Active and the Galaxy Fit support sleep tracking, heart rate monitor and even stress management.