THE LAUNCH OF THE Galaxy Note 10 is fast approaching, and rumours suggest it’ll bring a host of significant updates to Samsung’s big-screened smartphone lineup.
Expect three versions of the Note 10 to arrive in August; the Note 10 Lite, Note 10 and Note 10+, the latter two of which will reportedly be made available in 5G variants. According to online murmurs, we can also expect quad cameras, a super-sized 6.7in screen on the Pro-branded model, along with support for 45W charging.
We’ve rounded up everything we know about the Galaxy Note 10 lineup below.
Release date
Samsung has confirmed that the Galaxy Note 10 lineup will make its official debut on 7 August.
The firm has sent out invites to an Unpacked event in Brooklyn, New York, which shows a black stylus and what appears to be a camera lens on a white background. The teaser doesn’t give much away, but the placement of the lens all-but-confirms that the Note 10 will feature a centrally-aligned punch hole camera.
Price
According to a recent leak, the entry-level version of the Galaxy Note 10 will launch with a starting price of between $1,100 and $1,200 (around £870-£950). That suggests that, like last year’s Galaxy Note 9, pricing will start around the £899 mark here in Blighty.
Latest news
12/7/18: The Galaxy Note 10+ has prematurely shown up at the FCC, in turn revealing the handset’s specs in full. The leak, spotted by XDA Developers before it was taken down, confirms that the device’s full dimensions (below), along with its centred punch-hole selfie camera and lack of buttons on the right-hand edge. It remains unclear whether the Note 10+ will lack a physical power button, or whether Samsung will instead rid of the Bixby key.
The FCC post also all-but-confirms that the Note 10+ will support WiFi 6 and LTE, though there’s no mention of 5G support in the filing.
Elsewhere, two additional images posted by XDA confirm that the handset will sport a vertically-aligned triple-lens camera on its left side and that it will indeed lack a 3.5mm headphone jack this time around.
11/7/19: The first official pictures of the Note 10 (above) have leaked ahead of the handset’s 7 August launch. The legit-looking snaps come via the WinFuture‘s Roland Quandt and MySmartPrice contributor Ishan Agarwal, and while they don’t tell us much we don’t already know, it does show off a new Huawei-esque blue-purple pearlescent model, which will launch alongside the less-flashy black variant (below).
They high-res renders also seem to suggest that the Note 10 could launch without a physical power key, adding weight to earlier rumours that it’d feature a largely button-free design. Either that, or Samsung has finally decided to ditch the much-maligned Bixby key.
9/7/19: Samsung has posted an official teaser for the Galaxy Note 10 ahead of its unveiling next month.
Say goodbye to hassle, and hello to powerful!
Register now on https://t.co/ZwHvMZlCpg & get a chance to win the Next Galaxy!See the Next Powerful Galaxy on August 8, 2019 #SamsungEvent pic.twitter.com/yToGVbq9Bz
— Samsung Indonesia (@samsungID) July 8, 2019
The short video (above), posted by the Samsung Indonesia Twitter account, focuses on the Note 10’s biz credentials and appears to show that it can work as a smartphone, laptop and desktop PC, the latter thanks to Samsung DeX.
8/7/19: Despite touting the Galaxy Note 10’s screen as “the best” to come in 2019, tipster Ice Universe has confirmed that it won’t boast a 90Hz refresh rate.
90Hz is not a factor in determining screen quality, because xiaomi 9 can also have a refresh rate of 84Hz.
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) July 7, 2019
Over on Twitter (above), the serial leaker shared pictures of Note 10 screen protectors, confirming the handset’s centrally-placed punch-hole camera and triple-lens rear setup. However, in a follow-up tweet, he notes that the display won’t offer a 90Hz refresh rate, despite this being a headline feature of the OnePlus 7 Pro and, allegedly, the upcoming Huawei Mate 30 Pro.
5/7/19: The Galaxy Note 10 will feature one, and maybe even two 3D Time of Flight sensors. So says Korean publication ETNews, which reports that, like the S10, the Note 10 lineup will feature the depth-sensing sensors for rendering bokeh effects, AR applications and facial recognition. It reports that thanks to a recent partnership with Samsung, South Korean lens maker KOLEN is investing $21.6m to build a new plant in Vietnam, which will increase its production capacity of ToF sensors 13 million to 25 million lenses ahead of the Note 10’s impending launch.
Like the Galaxy S10, the Note 10 could feature two ToF modules – one on the front and one on the back – though it remains unclear how this will work with the handset’s centrally-placed punch-hole design.
1/7/19: The first live images of the Galaxy Note 10+ have surfaced online. The flagship, previously rumoured to launch as the Galaxy 10 Pro, has shown up in a video courtesy of TechTalkTV (below) which all-but-confirms its official branding, centrally-placed punch-hole camera and iPhone-like vertical camera system.
The blurry images don’t give much else away, but the lack of visible earpiece adds yet more weight to the rumours that the Note 10 will adopt ‘Sound on Display’ technology.
27/6/19: A freshly-leaked case, seemingly designed for the Galaxy Note 10, has added more weight to the rumours that it won’t ship with a headphone jack.
#Samsung #GalaxyNote10 pic.twitter.com/PYpJxxelQl
— Sudhanshu Ambhore (@Sudhanshu1414) June 26, 2019
The accessory, shared by Twitter user Sudhanshu Ambhore (above), shows that the Galaxy Note 10 won’t carry a 3.5mm headphone jack, instead opting for a USB-C connector. Alongside this, you’ll find the S-Pen slot, a single speaker and what looks like an infrared blaster.
26/6/19: The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Pro might launch with 5G as standard. While earlier rumours claimed the device would be offered in LTE-only and 5G variants, retailer MobileFun – which has obtained a SKU list via an official Samsung distributor – claims that the Note 10 Pro “could well be launched as a 5G variant as standard.” However, it notes that if Samsung does release a separate 5G model of the Pro, then “it’s been confirmed to us that cases will fit both the standard Note 10 Pro and the 5G variant.”
24/6/19: If you want a microSD slot on your Galaxy Note 10, you’ll have to fork out more for the Pro-branded model. That’s according to XDA Developer’s Max Weinbach, who claims to have spent some time with both Note 10 models, the standard of which lacks the long-standing port.
My source got to play with a Note 10 and Note 10 Pro. Here is what they said about it.
1. Both of the models he used had headphone jacks.
2. Renders are almost perfect.
3. SPen is almost the same as the Note9
4. Non-Pro has no micro sd card slot.— Max Weinbach (@mweinbachXDA) June 21, 2019
Weinbach also notes that the masses of leaked renders are “almost perfect”, and while he initially claims both models had headphone jacks, he later noted that the jack was fake, adding that the Note 10 will ship with USB-C AKG earbuds in the box.
21/6/19: We’re still around six weeks away from the unveiling of the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10 Pro, but MobileFun has already started flogging accessories for the flagship duo.
The accessories, by Olixar, confirm the design of the Note 10 range, including its barely-there bezels, centrally-placed front-facing camera, vertically-stacked rear camera array and its lack of fingerprint scanner and earpiece. The latter all-but-confirms that the Note 10 will adopt ‘Sound on Display’ technology that uses vibrations to replace the earpiece.
19/6/19: CNET is reporting that Samsung will launch the Galaxy Note 10 at an Unpacked event on 7 August, debunking earlier online chatter of a 10 August launch. The “flashy” event, which will reportedly take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, could also see Samsung announce a release date for the long-delayed Galaxy Fold, according to recent reports.
14/6/19: While previous rumours have claimed the Galaxy Note 10 will use both Exynos 9820 and Snapdragon 855 SoCs, it looks like the top-spec Pro model with 5G connectivity will pack Samsung’s homegrown Exynos 9825 chip.
A long time ago, I found the benchmarking Samsung uses internally. It shows model number, a score, and SoC along with build numbers for the devices. The Note 10 showed up today confirming the Exynos 9825. pic.twitter.com/NlXjsaQ8jR
— Max Weinbach (@mweinbachXDA) June 14, 2019
This 7nm SoC is expected to be a more powerful version of the 9820, and equivalent to Qualcomm’s upcoming Snapdragon 865 chip in the performance stakes.
7/6/19: The Galaxy Note 10 has been shown off in high-quality renders, confirming that it’ll ditch both the 3.5mm headphone jack and much-maligned Bixby button.
The images, courtesy of OnLeaks and 91Mobiles, also reveal that the Note 10 will see a design overhaul; the flagship will sport a 6.3in QHD+ screen with a sized-down Infinity-O cutout in the middle, alongside a repositioned vertical triple-camera array on its backside. There’s no fingerprint scanner on the rear, so it’s likely the Note 10 will ship with an in-display sensor.
The leak, which is accompanied by a 360-degree video (below), also claims the Note 10 will pack a Snapdragon 855/9820 SoC, up to 12GB RAM and Android 9 Pie.
91Mobiles notes that the higher-spec Note 10 Pro will sport a larger 9.75in screen, a quad-camera setup including a ToF sensor, UFS 3.0 storage and 45W fast-charging support. Backing up earlier rumours, it suggests the Pro variant will also feature HTC-esque pressure sensitive buttons in place of physical keys.
6/6/19: It was only a matter of time until the price of the Galaxy Note 10 leaked. A source familiar with the matter, via Russian website Hi-Tech, claims that the “basic version” of the smartphone will launch with a starting price of between $1,100 and $1,200 (around £870-£950). However, it’s unclear whether the report is referring to the entry-level Note 10 Pro model or the lesser-specced standard version.
The same report claims that the Note 10 will sport a smaller punch-hole cutout than the Galaxy S10, noting that Samsung has managed to reduce the diameter of the hole by one millimetre.
4/6/19: The Galaxy Note 10 has made a premature appearance on Geekbench. As spied by MySmartPrice, a variant with the model number ‘SM-N976V’ has shown up on the benchmarking website, revealing that it packs a Snapdragon 855 chip paired with a hefty 12GB RAM; it speculates this could be the 5G variant headed to Verizon, as it’ll likely ship with an Exynos chip here in Blighty.
The device scores 3,529 points in the single-core test and a slightly less impressive 10,840 points in the multi-core test; less than the 11,101 points racked up by the OnePlus 7 Pro.
3/6/19: Though earlier rumours have pointed to a fairly incremental update, the Note 10 looks set to one-up its rivals when it comes to fast charging.
According to a cryptic Twitter post from Ice Universe, the Galaxy Note 10 could boast 45W fast-charging technology; the tweet (below) includes a picture of da Vinci, believed to be the codename for the Galaxy Note 19, alongside the caption ‘101101’, which is the number 45 in binary.
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) June 1, 2019
If legit, the Note 10 looks set to offer a hefty improvement over the Galaxy Note 9, which came with a 15W charger. It’ll also trump the Huawei P30 Pro, which comes with 40W fast charging and can juice from 0 to 70 per cent in just 30 minutes.
21/5/19: The Galaxy Note 10 looks set to be a fairly incremental update over last year’s Galaxy Note 9 if leaker Ice Universe is to be believed.
According to the Twitter tipster, the handset’s “biggest change” will be its camera placement, which will reportedly be vertical rather than horizontal. In response to questions on Twitter, he notes that the device, codenamed ‘Da Vinci’, would have “the same camera hardware”, suggesting it’ll either feature the same 12MP dual-lens setup as the Note 9 before it or an upgraded triple-camera like that seen on the Galaxy S10.
Da Vinci’s two biggest changes:
1.Change the front camera position
2.Change the rear camera position— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) May 19, 2019
Ice Universe’s tweet also notes that the placement of the front-facing camera will be different, all-but-confirming that the Note 10 will adopt a punch-hole-equipped Infinity display panel.
Looking ahead, Ice Universe reveals that the Galaxy S11 is codenamed ‘Picasso’, though no further details about the device have been leaked.
20/5/19: The Galaxy Note 10 looks set to feature a similar display to the Galaxy S10, according to leaked HTML5 benchmarks.
Spotted by Mobielkopen, the benchmark lists the SM-N976V, which is believed to be the model for the Galaxy Note 10 Pro 5G, and reveals that it’ll boast a display resolution of 1440×3040 and an aspect ratio of 19:9.
The lesser-specced Galaxy Note 10 is expected to sport the same resolution on its 6.27in display, which will be smaller than the 6.75in screen rumoured for the Pro-branded model.
While not a groundbreaking leak, it suggests that Samsung will bring its Infinity-O panel to the Galaxy Note line, as the Galaxy S10 sports the same 19:9 aspect ratio.
Other leaked specs include Android 9 Pie, a 4,500mAh battery with support for 25W fast-charging and support for both 4G and 5G on the highest-spec model.
10/5/19: The Galaxy Note 10 could ship with Samsung’s new 64MP image smartphone sensor, which is being touted as the “industry’s highest resolution” camera for mobile devices.
The ISOCELL Bright GW1, to give it its official name, uses the same 0.8μm-sized pixels as Samsung’s current 48MP component and adopts the firm’s Tetracell tech to merge four pixels into one to create 16MP images. The sensor also supports real-time HDR of “up to 100-decibels”, which Samsung says beats the current average of 60dB.
The sensor will enter mass production in the second half of the year, just in time for the arrival of the Galaxy Note 10, along with the ISOCELL Bright GM2, an upgraded 48MP sensor.
“Over the past few years, mobile phone cameras have become the main instrument for recording and sharing our everyday moments,” said Samsung’s Yongin Park.
“With more pixels and advanced pixel technologies, Samsung ISOCELL Bright GW1 and GM2 will bring a new level of photography to today’s sleekest mobile devices that will enhance and help change the way we record our daily lives.”
25/4/19: US carrier Verizon has confirmed that Samsung will, as expected, launch a 5G variant of the Galaxy Note 10.
“The Note and the Galaxy coming this year will both have 5G,” Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg confirmed during the company’s Q1 2019 earnings call.
While hardly surprising, the remark backs up recent rumours that the Galaxy Note 10 and so-called Note 10 Pro will both be available in two variants; one with 5G, and one without.
Vestberg’s comment is also confirmation that Verizon will be offering the Note 10 5G Stateside, just as it this week started flogging the 5G variant of the Galaxy S10. It remains unclear if the handset will be offered here in Blighty, but with the likes of EE and O2 primed to switch on their 5G networks, we’d be surprised if a UK release wasn’t on the cards.
18/4/19: Previous rumours that Samsung will launch four variants of the Note 10 have been confirmed, with SamMobile obtaining model numbers for the devices.
As expected, the model numbers show that Samsung is plotting two different Galaxy Note 10 models, both of which will ship with an accompanying 5G variant.
SM-N970 and SM-N975 will be the two main models of the Galaxy Note 10, according to SamMobile, while M-N971 and SM-N976 will be the same phones with the addition of 5G.
The two main variants will likely arrive as the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10 Pro, according to recent murmurs. The latter will allegedly pack a 6.75in display, compared to the standard model’s 6.28in offering, along with a quad-lens camera system compared to a triple-lens array.
SamMobile notes that “it’s unclear if the battery capacity may differ as well but that remains a possibility.”
11/4/19: The Galaxy Note 10 will be made available in four variants at launch, according to ET News.
We’ve already heard chatter about a “compact” Note 10 variant, and this new report elaborates further. ET News, citing “industry sources”, the 6.75in Note 10 and smaller 6.28in variant will both be made available in two versions; one with 5G, and another without.
“Samsung’s attempt to launch the Galaxy Note in several models is intended to maximize sales volume by segmenting the market,” a shonkily-translated version of the report reads.
The report also claims the smaller Note 10 will have three rear cameras like the S10 (likely with the same wide, ultra-wide, and telephoto cameras), while the larger variant will sport quad cameras including a Time of Flight sensor, like that found on the Galaxy S10 5G.
4/4/19: Samsung will shove four cameras onto the rear of its flagship Galaxy Note 10, according to yet another scoop from The Bell.
The site, which claims to have got its information from several industry officials, says the larger Note 10 model will pack a quad-camera array similar to that found on the Galaxy S10 5G, which today made its debut in South Korea.
If it does adopt the same setup as Samsung’s first 5G smartphone, expect to find a horizontally-aligned array comprising a 12MP lens with OIS, a 16MP ultra-wide lens, a 12MP telephoto lens and a 3D hQVGA depth-sensing camera.
These quad cameras will be reserved for the higher-specced Note 10, the report claims, with the smaller Note 10e tipped to sport a triple-camera setup.
While previous rumours had pointed to a 6.66in screen on the flagship model, The Bell has also heard that the Note 10 will sport a larger 6.75in screen.
3/4/19: The Galaxy Note 10 will be launch alongside a new ‘compact’ variant, according to a report at The Bell.
The Korean newspaper reports that Samsung, much like it did with the Galaxy S10, will launch the ‘Galaxy Note 10e’ alongside its flagship phablet later this year.
The Bell‘s report doesn’t tell us much about the so-called Note 10e other than the fact it’ll have a smaller display than the 6.7in screen on the standard Note 10. However, if anything like the Galaxy S10e, it’ll likely miss out on other high-end features such as an in-screen fingerprint scanner and 5G support.
Saying that, The Bell‘s sources tell it that it won’t be a “mid or low price” smartphone, and will instead be marketed as a flagship smartphone with, presumably, a flagship price tag.
The Galaxy Note 10e will reportedly launch alongside its higher-spec sibling in August this year and looks set to be released exclusively in Europe.
27/3/19: Samsung’s next Galaxy Note will feature a major redesign when it launches later this year, according to ET News.
The website’s source claims that the Galaxy Note 10 will be the first Samsung device to boast an entirely buttonless design; that means no power button, no volume rockers and – praise the lord – no side-mounted Bixby key.
Instead, the Note 10 will likely adopt a fully gesture-based interface or capacitive buttons along the edge of the device, similar to those seen on HTC’s recent flagships. ET News‘ report is light on details though, so we’d take this with a pinch of salt now.
It does say add, however, that Samsung will apply a similar design to its A-Series phones, so expect this experimental design to show up on a mid-range handset before the Note 10 debuts.
27/2/18: The Galaxy Note 10 will reportedly pack the same quad camera setup as the Galaxy S10 5G.
So says a report at SamMobile, which reports that the incoming flagship will sport four cameras on its backside. It’s unclear whether it’ll pack the exact same setup as the S10 5G, but if so, expect a Time of Flight (TOF) sensor to accompany telephoto, wide-angle, and ultra wide-angle lenses.
SamMobile’s report also notes that the “5” in the device’s model number – SM-N975F – is likely a nod to a 5G variant of the device, which it expects to debut alongside a 4G-only Note 10 model.
Elsewhere, it’s likely that the Note 10 will feature the same Infinity-O display panel as its S10 predecessors, with the increased screen-to-body-ratio enabling Samsung to opt for a larger display panel.
6/2/19: Samsung has patented a James Bond-esque stylus that comes with a built-in camera and could debut alongside the Galaxy Note 10.
While the Galaxy Note 9’s bundled S-Pen doubled-up as a long-range shutter button, Samsung’s next-gen stylus could replace the front-facing camera altogether, according to a patent granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
Spotted by Patently Mobile, the patent, which was originally filed in February of 2017, describes an “electric pen device” with an “optical system including a lens and an image sensor”.
While it’s unclear if the S-Pen will ever see the light of day, bundling such a stylus with its smartphones could allow Samsung to ditch the selfie camera completely to create a proper full-screen display without a notch or punch-hole design.
9/11/18: The Galaxy Note 10 will dwarf this year’s Note 9 flagship with a monstrous 6.66in bezel-less display.
That’s according to Korean newspaper The Bell, which reports that the Galaxy Note 10 – codenamed ‘DaVinci’ – will sport a 6.66in Super AMOLED screen with a 4K resolution and HDR support.
The report claims that Samsung decided on the display specifications this month, and has handed over to its Samsung Display unit to start production of the Note 9-dwarfing panels.
It doesn’t tell us much else about the Note 10, though, although separate rumours claim the smartphone will pack a triple-lens camera, 5G support and a bigger battery than this year’s model.
The Bell does have some more info about the incoming Galaxy S10, however, and reports that Samsung is plotting a super-sized S10 Plus model that will sport a 6.44 OLED display.
15/10/18: It’s been less than two months since the Galaxy Note 9 arrived on shelves, and we’re already hearing chatter about next year’s flagship.
According to Korean website The Bell, next year’s Galaxy Note 10 will be Samsung’s biggest smartphone yet with a 6.66in OLED display, 0.26in larger than the screen found on the Galaxy Note 9 and, according to the report, biggest than next year’s iPhone XS Max sequel.
Samsung won’t wait until late in 2019 to take the fight to Apple’s latest flagship, though, as the report notes that the Galaxy S10, set to debut early next year, will sport an XS Max-rivalling 6.44in screen.
The other two S10 versions are expected to stay at 5.8in, the same size as the current Galaxy S9.
Despite its super-sized screen, the Galaxy Note 10 is unlikely to feature a larger footprint than Samsung’s latest Note flagship. The Bell notes that the phone’s bezels will continue to decrease in size, which could result in the phone’s dimensions remaining largely unchanged.
The Bell also notes that it’s still early in the phone’s development cycle, so specs could change between now and the Note 10’s unveiling in the “second half of 2019”. However, it says that since the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 disaster, the company has extended the amount of time it spends developing phones from six months to one year.
The report doesn’t tell us much else about the smartphone, but recent rumours suggest that Samsung is planning to remove the headphone jack on either the Galaxy Note 10 or Galaxy S11. Instead, the company will rely on a combination of the phone’s USC Type-C port and a bundled headphone dongle.
Reports haven’t said why Samsung would want to get rid of the headphone jack but speculate that, like other manufacturers, the company simply wants to save space for other parts. µ
