Samsung reimagines the smartphone, at least in part
In a pre-launch reveal event in London, I got the opportunity to spend some hands-on time with the new devices.
Samsung will tell you that the S9 and S9+ is the smartphone reimagined in the way we communicate, share, and experience the world and in part, they’re right.
Both devices directly replace the S8 and S8+ but unless you take a close look at the rear you’d be hard-pressed to see where the differences are.
However, the single biggest gripe users of the S8 had was the awkwardly placed fingerprint reader on the back. Thankfully, the S9 and S9+ have a new position for this directly beneath the camera which will make unlocking the phone quicker and easier.
Some of the standout features include the new dual aperture lens that powers an innovative low-light camera, Super Slow-mo video capabilities, and personalised AR Emoji.
With a super, wide open aperture of f/1.5 and a world first dual aperture of f/1.5 to f/2.4, the new cameras are great for low light and extra sharp photos in good light.
The new Super-slow motion offers an incredible 960fps at 720p or 240fps at full HD. To help you capture that moment in time Samsung uses automatic Motion Detection, an intelligent feature that detects movement in the frame and automatically begins to record — all you have to do is set up the shot.
The Galaxy S9 and S9+ now have stereo speakers tuned by AKG for the first time delivering an enhanced entertainment experience, with surround effect supported by Dolby Atmos.
We’ve all heard of AniEmoji from Apple’s iPhone X and now Samsung is bringing us AR Emoj, which uses a data-based machine learning algorithm, analysing a 2D image of your face that maps out more than 100 facial features to create a 3D model that reflects and imitates expressions, like winks and nods, for true personalisation. AR Emoji shares your real-life feelings not only in video but also with a range of stickers in uses a standard AGIF file format so users can share their emojis across most third-party messaging platforms like Messenger and WhatsApp.
The Galaxy S9 and S9+ will be available from March 16 in midnight black, coral blue, and a new hue, lilac purple .
