Two notes are better that one. That’s right. Because for the first time ever there are two Galaxy Notes. Actually, three if you count the 5G Edition. But there’s much more you should know about the Samsung Galaxy Note 10. And plenty you should be excited about.

Display and design

The new Galaxy Note 10s come in two sizes: The Note 10 is 6.3 inches while the Note 10+ is 6.8 inches

They come in two sizes. The Note 10 is the smallest Note they’ve ever built. I’m happy users who prefer smaller phones now have a Note to pick from. The Note 10+ is roughly the same size as the Note 9 but has the largest display on a Note ever. We’ll get to some of the differences later.

Samsung has a long history of making the best smartphone displays and the Note 10 is no exception. In fact when it comes to displays, the Note 10 has the best one yet. There’s more edge hugging than ever before with only a single punch hole to break up the infinity display illusion.

This time around its centered on the top of the display which Samsung says gives the phone a more symmetrical look. Coupled with stereo speakers. This is definitely going to be a great device for watching videos.

When you flip the phone around you get an all glass back in a variety of colors. This one is called Aura Glow which is the one that got leaked and we all said looked similar to the Huawei P30. Man were we wrong. Up close it’s got a more mirror-like finish that will reflect the colors of its surroundings.

Case in point. There is no Green Note 10.

The phone also comes in Black and White. Here in the US you can also get your hands on Aura Blue — an exclusive to BestBuy and Samsung.com and only available on the Note 10+. I love this glossy blue finish. Much nicer than the Blue finish of the Note 9.

In other regions the Note 10 also comes in Pink and Red. Which color do you fancy?

All buttons have now been flushed to the left side of the device. You have the volume rocker and the Bixby button. It’s remappable. Like the iPhone, there is no power button. Instead you have to hold the volume down button and the Bixby Button a few seconds to power off your device.

Redesigned S Pen

Did you know that my first Android phone was the Note 2. I loved it so much because of the S Pen and I’ve been a fan ever since. I’m the type that loves taking notes and I like being able to whip out my pen to jot down ideas or put together a To-Do list.

The Note 10 comes with character recognition built in so when you share your handwritten scribbles to Microsoft Word the phone converts it into text.

Samsung says they’ve used machine learning so the phone can recognize your handwriting even if you’re a doctor 😝. It can also recognize 62 different languages.

Of course the S Pen can do other things. It’s my favorite fidget toy. It has a button that doubles as a camera remote and now you can wave your stylus like a magic wand to control certain apps including your camera.

That feature is called Air Actions — yes, the same one that’s present on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 that was announced last week.

Press on the button and wave up and down to switch between rear and selfie cameras. Wave left to right to switch camera modes and draw a rainbow to zoom in and out. Samsung says they’re opening up an SDK so 3rd party apps can use Air Actions too. Imagine casting spells with the S Pen on the new Harry Potter AR game Wizards Unite. Wingardium Leviosa!

AR Doodle

Speaking of AR there’s a new cool augmented reality feature called AR Doodle that lets you create AR objects by drawing them over the real world people and things. The phone can also track your face so you can wiggle the mustache you could never grow in real life.

Triple Cameras, upgraded for video makers

Similar to the Galaxy S10+ the Note 10 has 3 rear cameras: A 12MP wide-angle lens, 16MP ultra-wide angle, and a 12MP telephoto lens.

The Note 10+ has a fourth camera that is a dedicated depth sensor. You’ll have to wait till our review to see sample photos but we’re told the Note 10 uses the same cameras and sensors as the S10+ so expect results to be similar.

One thing that’s been added though is Live Focus for Video.  You can now add bokeh to your video and see the effect in real time as you are shooting. This also applies to other background effects.

Speaking of video. Samsung says they’ve made it a point to ensure the Note 10 has the best hardware and software for capturing, editing, and sharing video. They’ve added things like Zoom-In-Mic that focuses audio on subjects your zoomed in on. Video stabilization has been improved and Hyperlapse support was added.

The native video editor is also better. In case that’s still not good enough, you can download the mobile editing app Adobe Rush is also optimized for the Note 10.

Maxed out specs

Of all its flagships the Note 10 is Samsung’s creme dela creme. Designed for the creative who wants the utmost in power and performance and as always the phone delivers with powerful processors.

There’s Snapdragon 855 on US devices and Samsung’s new Exynos 9825 elsewhere in the world. There are options for either 8GB or 12 GB of RAM, and at least 256GB of storage. The phones also have bigger batteries. That’s 3500mAh for the Galaxy Note 10 and 4300mAh for the Galaxy Note 10+.

Fast charging is also in place. You’ll go from zero to 100 percent in just over an hour on the Note 10+ using the bundled 25W charger. Samsung is also promising faster wireless charging speeds and is selling an optional 45W charger for even faster wired top-ups on the Note 10+

The bigger battery however comes at a cost. To get the bigger battery you lose the headphone jack. Yep,Samsung has finally killed it off.  Samsung ships USB-C AKG headphones in the box instead.

It can game… and then some

Of course, with all this power expect the phone to crush your favorite games, be that Fortnite or Arena of Valor.

There’s AI Game Booster that optimizes for either power or performance based on what games you play and how you play them. And there’s a slim vapor chamber that keeps your phone cool while you’re at it.

Samsung is also working on a feature called Play Galaxy Link that lets you remotely play your PC games on your mobile device. A very interesting concept if it works. Hopefully we’ll have the full details in time for our review.

You can also now connect the phone to a PC or Mac to use via a standard USB Cable and use Samsung Dex for PC to use phone and PC apps side by side. And drag and drop content between devices.

Is the Galaxy Note 10+ Your GadgetMatch?

It’s too early to answer that except if you’re one of those users who can see the benefits of the S-Pen.

There’s really nothing quite like the Note 10 in this category. Get the Note 10+ if you want a bigger screen, and a bigger battery, and that depth sensor. The Note 10+ also has a microSD card slot. The Note 10 does not.

Does the phone come with any ground breaking features? Probably not. If you’re into that, then the Galaxy Fold might be more your cup of tea.

Having said that, its a solid phone with everything done well and right. And that makes it an easy recommend to anyone who wants the best phone money can buy.

The Note 10 will retail for US$ 949 while the Note 10+ goes for US$ 1099. Pre-orders for the Note 10 start on August 8th right after midnight Eastern. If you opt to pre-order you get a US$ 100 and US$ 150 credit for the Note 10 and Note 10+ respectively which you can use on Samsung.com.

The phone will be available in stores starting August 23rd.