"More of an evolutionary step, rather than a revolutionary one." You have probably heard that statement, in some form or another, more than a few times over the years. I actually heard it a few different times just yesterday, following the announcement of the Galaxy Note 9. Samsung unveiled its newest flagship phablet early on Thursday, and so far it looks like the company has a solid contender on its hands.
I just want to say that I don't think an evolutionary step is worse than a revolutionary one. We saw Samsung revolutionize its smartphone lineup with the Galaxy S8 when it adopted the Infinity Display design and drastically reduced its bezels. As far as the software goes, it feels like we're just going to remain in a evolutionary lane anyway, and until we get some folding smartphones we're probably there in the hardware department, too.
At least we have pop-out cameras to shake things up, right?
Samsung's event yesterday was in Barclays Center, a place where concerts and sports events usually take place. And Samsung filled up quite a bit of that space to announce a new smartphone that only really upgrades a few different elements over the Galaxy Note 8 from last year. Does a phone that doesn't really revolutionize something need an event at Barclays Center? Probably not! But we're probably not going to see the death of gigantic smartphone announcements anytime soon.
But the changes that Samsung did make are probably worth an upgrade this year if you're interested in the Note phablet lineup, even if you picked up the Galaxy Note 8 last year. Even the new S Pen, with its Bluetooth Low Energy support, is pretty awesome. Being able to use it as a remote control for apps, like Snapchat, Microsoft's PowerPoint, and others, is a nice addition. The (slightly) bigger display appears to be one of Samsung's best quality panels to date, the fingerprint reader has been moved to a more comfortable spot, and the camera is picking up some intelligent features, too.
So, the question I have to ask at this point is whether or not Samsung won you over with its newest flagship. Did the changes the company introduce this year convince you to pick up the Galaxy Note 9? And, if so, what about the new handset in particular sealed the deal? Are you going to pre-order, or wait to check out the GN9 in a store for some hands-on time before you decide? Let me know!