Samsung announced the Galaxy S10 lineup in February 2019 at the “Samsung Galaxy Unpacked” event. This event brought the introduction of the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10+, along with the slightly more budget-minded, Galaxy S10e. The Galaxy S10 lineup came available for purchase a few weeks after the announcement and began shipping in early March 2019.
The Galaxy S10 series, as the 10 in the name suggests, serves as the 10th anniversary of the Galaxy S line. Today we’ll be taking a look at the Galaxy S10, which originally shipped with Android 9 Pie and version 1.1 of the Samsung One UI. The Android 10 (with One UI version 2.0) update began arriving for the U.S. carrier models of the Galaxy S10 in December 2019.
Overall, the Galaxy S10 serves as a nice step up from the Galaxy S9 lineup, with solid improvements in terms of the camera. The Galaxy S10 lineup also brought a bump in terms of battery life, processing power, RAM, and storage.
Galaxy S10: Size and colors
The Galaxy S10 measures in at 5.9-inches (H), by 2.77-inches (W), by 0.31-inches (D), and weighs in at 5.54 ounces. Looking in comparison of the Galaxy S9 — the S10 is slightly larger and slightly lighter, however, probably not enough that you would notice outside of looking at the numbers. The Galaxy S9 measured in at 5.81-inches (H), by 2.70-inches (W), by 0.33-inches (D), and weighed in at 5.75 ounces.
The bigger size of the device also allowed for a bump in display size. The Galaxy S9 featured a 5.8-inch AMOLED display at 2960 x 1440. The Galaxy S10 display measures in at 6.1-inches, and it is AMOLED at 3040 x 1440. The Galaxy S10 display is Dynamic AMOLED, and offers an HDR10+ viewing experience. Samsung also notes the display reduces blue light by up to 42 percent.
Samsung is offering four different color options for the Galaxy S10. The device can be found in; Prism White, Prism Black, Prism Blue, or Flamingo Pink.
Galaxy S10: Specs
- 6.1” Quad HD + Dynamic AMOLED display (551ppi and 19:9 aspect ratio)
- Gorilla Glass 6
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor
- 8 GB RAM
- 128 GB or 512 GB of internal storage
- microSD card slot (support for cards up to 512 GB)
- WiFi 6
- Bluetooth 5
- IP68 rating
- 3400 mAh battery
- Ultrasonic in-display fingerprint ID
- USB-C
- Fast charging
- Fast Wireless charging 2.0
- Wireless PowerShare
- 149.9 x 70.4 x 7.8 mm (5.9” x 2.77” x 0.31”)
- 157 grams (5.54 ounces)
Galaxy S10: Camera
Samsung is touting the Galaxy S10 as having a “pro-grade camera that sees what you see.” While that may sound like fancy marketing speak, the camera setup on the S10 is one of the main updates as compared to the S9. The Galaxy S9 had a single rear-facing camera and a single front-facing camera. Samsung added two additional cameras on the rear of the S10, making for a total of three. And, those two extra cameras include a telephoto and ultra-wide.
The Galaxy S10 camera setup includes three rear-facing cameras and one front-facing camera.
- Rear-12 MP dual-aperture (f/1.5 & f/2.4) with optical image stabilization
- Rear-12 MP telephoto 45 degree field of view (f/2.4) with optical image stabilization (with 2x optical zoom)
- Rear-16 MP ultra-wide 123 degree field of view (f/2.2) fixed-focus
- Front-10 MP dual-pixel (f/1.9) with auto-focus
Samsung added an Advanced Scene Optimizer on the Galaxy S10, which will optimize color according to your subject. Along with a display that offers an HDR10+ viewing experience, the rear-facing camera can capture HDR10+ footage. The rear-facing camera also includes a video stabilization feature called Super Steady. Other perks of the Galaxy S10 camera feature lineup includes Shot Suggestion and Flaw Detection, which should help the user to get better images.
Galaxy S10: New features
Coming from the Galaxy S9, the Galaxy S10 saw a bump in the processor and RAM – going from a Snapdragon 845 to a Snapdragon 855 and from 4 GB of RAM to 8 GB of RAM. You’ll also see an improvement in battery life due to the jump from a 3000 mAh battery in the S9 to a 3400 mAh battery in the S10.
Internal storage also switched up with double the storage capacity on the Galaxy S10. The Galaxy S10 has options for 128 GB or 512 GB, while the Galaxy S9 came with a base option of 64 GB and topped out at 256 GB on the high-end.
The internal storage, processing power, and battery life all saw improvements coming from the Galaxy S9. But, some features remained the same such as the IP 68 rating, the USB-C, and the fast charging. Both models also have fast wireless charging, however, the Galaxy S10 increases the wireless charging to 2.0 and also adds in Wireless PowerShare. The Wireless PowerShare means your Galaxy S10 will be able to wirelessly charge other devices such as your watch, headphones, or another phone.
The Galaxy S10 also saw a change in terms of device security. Samsung introduced an in-screen fingerprint sensor on the S10, which is a change from the capacitive sensor that was found on the Galaxy S9. The S10 also dropped the iris scanner.
Galaxy S10: Models
Samsung released an unlocked version of the Galaxy S10, which is the SM-G973U1. There are also several carrier-specific models, to include one for Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and US Cellular. The carrier-specific models of the Galaxy S10 will show up as the SM-G973U.
Outside of the US market, you may also find the SM-G973F and the SM-G973W which are both international models and the SM-G973F/DS which is an international dual-SIM model.
Galaxy S10: Pricing
The Samsung Galaxy S10 is available in two storage capacities, a 128 GB model and a 512 GB model. The unlocked SM-G973U1 and the carrier-specific SM-G973U models are both priced the same – $899.99 or $1149.99 depending on the storage capacity. Pricing for each model breaks down as follows:
- Unlocked (128 GB) – $899.99
- Unlocked (512 GB) – $1149.99
- Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, or US Cellular (128 GB) – $899.99
- Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, or US Cellular (512 GB) – $1149.99
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