1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:00,800


2
00:00:00,800 --> 00:00:02,610
CHERLYNN LOW: A new
year, a new Galaxy.

3
00:00:02,610 --> 00:00:04,590
While Samsung's flagship
lineup has gained

4
00:00:04,590 --> 00:00:06,990
some exciting improvements
in recent years,

5
00:00:06,990 --> 00:00:10,620
this generation feels
more like a subtle update.

6
00:00:10,620 --> 00:00:13,140
I'm not going to fault
Samsung for that, though.

7
00:00:13,140 --> 00:00:16,680
It's no easy feat trying to come
up with groundbreaking changes

8
00:00:16,680 --> 00:00:19,860
every year, and sometimes
it's the small improvements

9
00:00:19,860 --> 00:00:21,150
that count.

10
00:00:21,150 --> 00:00:24,810
But with the Galaxy S9 and S9
Plus none of the new features

11
00:00:24,810 --> 00:00:26,430
are must-haves.

12
00:00:26,430 --> 00:00:29,520
In fact, this generally feels
like a skippable year for those

13
00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:31,650
looking to upgrade from an S8.

14
00:00:31,650 --> 00:00:34,650
All told, though, the Galaxy
S flagships are still among

15
00:00:34,650 --> 00:00:36,480
the best Android phones around.

16
00:00:36,480 --> 00:00:43,120


17
00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:44,480
Before we get
ahead of ourselves,

18
00:00:44,480 --> 00:00:46,570
let's dive into what's new.

19
00:00:46,570 --> 00:00:49,000
This year's updates are
mostly about cameras,

20
00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:51,390
and apply to both new flagships.

21
00:00:51,390 --> 00:00:54,940
The S9 and S9 Plus are by and
large the same phone, barring

22
00:00:54,940 --> 00:00:57,550
size, memory, and the
fact that the Plus

23
00:00:57,550 --> 00:01:00,930
has two rear cameras, while
the regular S9 just has one.

24
00:01:00,930 --> 00:01:04,810
The S9 Plus is also the first
of the Galaxy S series to sport

25
00:01:04,810 --> 00:01:07,750
a pair of cameras on its back,
adding features like Live

26
00:01:07,750 --> 00:01:09,730
Focus and Dual Capture.

27
00:01:09,730 --> 00:01:12,220
The setup here is basically
the same as on the Note 8,

28
00:01:12,220 --> 00:01:15,400
with a wide angle primary
lens, and a telephoto partner

29
00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:16,450
for close-ups.

30
00:01:16,450 --> 00:01:18,880
The regular S9 doesn't
have this hardware,

31
00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:21,100
but it can still add
artificial depth of field

32
00:01:21,100 --> 00:01:25,240
to your shots via Samsung's
selected focus software, which

33
00:01:25,240 --> 00:01:27,160
isn't a shabby alternative.

34
00:01:27,160 --> 00:01:29,500
The difference between
portraits shot with the two

35
00:01:29,500 --> 00:01:31,270
isn't so big that
you'll feel the need

36
00:01:31,270 --> 00:01:33,100
to shell out for the Plus.

37
00:01:33,100 --> 00:01:35,860
Really, you're just missing
the dual capture tool,

38
00:01:35,860 --> 00:01:38,050
and the ability to frame
your shots more tightly

39
00:01:38,050 --> 00:01:39,550
with the telephoto lens.

40
00:01:39,550 --> 00:01:42,760
The most interesting of
Samsung's new camera features

41
00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:46,450
is dual aperture, which
is available on both S9s,

42
00:01:46,450 --> 00:01:50,290
and supposedly mimics the
way the human eye works.

43
00:01:50,290 --> 00:01:52,780
When you're in a dark
environment the lens can jump

44
00:01:52,780 --> 00:01:56,500
to a wide aperture of
f/1.5 to let in more light,

45
00:01:56,500 --> 00:01:58,660
just like our irises do.

46
00:01:58,660 --> 00:02:02,620
If the scene is bright enough
the camera defaults to f/2.4.

47
00:02:02,620 --> 00:02:06,100
In pro mode you can choose when
to use which of the two levels,

48
00:02:06,100 --> 00:02:08,620
but you can't pick
f stops in-between.

49
00:02:08,620 --> 00:02:10,840
For those who like shooting
on auto and letting the phone

50
00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:12,460
do the thinking,
this means you can

51
00:02:12,460 --> 00:02:16,360
effectively get brighter shots
at night or in dark locations.

52
00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:19,390
You'll sometimes find
details blown out at f/1.5,

53
00:02:19,390 --> 00:02:21,490
but in general, the
larger aperture is good

54
00:02:21,490 --> 00:02:23,590
at letting you capture
what otherwise might

55
00:02:23,590 --> 00:02:25,990
have been a dim noisy mess.

56
00:02:25,990 --> 00:02:29,020
This new wider aperture is
now the largest available

57
00:02:29,020 --> 00:02:31,750
on a smartphone, and will be
a welcome touch for those who

58
00:02:31,750 --> 00:02:34,090
want to fine-tune
settings like ISO

59
00:02:34,090 --> 00:02:36,460
and shutter speed
for even exposure.

60
00:02:36,460 --> 00:02:40,150
Being able to go to f/1.5 gives
you about two more f-stops

61
00:02:40,150 --> 00:02:43,870
to play with, and f/2.4, meaning
you can then dial down things

62
00:02:43,870 --> 00:02:46,660
like ISO or exposure
compensation

63
00:02:46,660 --> 00:02:49,840
for less noisy pictures
that are just as bright.

64
00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:51,700
Those who have the
skill or patience

65
00:02:51,700 --> 00:02:53,650
to tweak those settings
should consider

66
00:02:53,650 --> 00:02:56,050
shooting primarily in pro mode.

67
00:02:56,050 --> 00:02:59,240
Samsung added dedicated
ram to the S9 sensors

68
00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:02,410
to process multi-frame noise
reduction more quickly.

69
00:03:02,410 --> 00:03:04,860
And in general, this
works as promised.

70
00:03:04,860 --> 00:03:07,600
I easily fired shot
after shot in the dark.

71
00:03:07,600 --> 00:03:09,790
And the S9 Plus
never slowed down,

72
00:03:09,790 --> 00:03:11,680
unless I was testing
its ability to keep

73
00:03:11,680 --> 00:03:15,880
up by hitting the button nonstop
like a deranged shutterbug.

74
00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:18,580
The pictures also turned
out relatively clear.

75
00:03:18,580 --> 00:03:20,260
There are barely
any color specs,

76
00:03:20,260 --> 00:03:23,200
although details like building
edges are often muddy.

77
00:03:23,200 --> 00:03:24,730
You only really
notice those artifacts

78
00:03:24,730 --> 00:03:27,940
when you zoom up close,
which people don't often do.

79
00:03:27,940 --> 00:03:29,320
Because of these
small blemishes,

80
00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:32,410
though, pictures from
the Pixel 2 and iPhone 10

81
00:03:32,410 --> 00:03:35,260
generally appear more
crisp than the S9s.

82
00:03:35,260 --> 00:03:39,220
Something that the S9s do that
Pixels and iPhone can't do yet

83
00:03:39,220 --> 00:03:43,120
is shoot super slow-mo
at 960 frames per second.

84
00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:45,730
For the most part, people don't
need such a high frame rate.

85
00:03:45,730 --> 00:03:48,040
The 240fps on the
previous generation

86
00:03:48,040 --> 00:03:50,050
is perfectly adequate
for your scampering

87
00:03:50,050 --> 00:03:52,570
pets or skateboarding tricks.

88
00:03:52,570 --> 00:03:56,770
And as fun as the 960fps clips
are, trying to record them

89
00:03:56,770 --> 00:03:58,450
requires some finesse.

90
00:03:58,450 --> 00:04:00,250
You can use auto
mode, which switches

91
00:04:00,250 --> 00:04:01,900
to slow-mo when
it detects motion

92
00:04:01,900 --> 00:04:03,670
in a square within your shot.

93
00:04:03,670 --> 00:04:05,800
This means you'll have to
aim your phone at a spot

94
00:04:05,800 --> 00:04:07,780
where you expect
something to happen--

95
00:04:07,780 --> 00:04:10,210
something that's better
for orchestrator setups,

96
00:04:10,210 --> 00:04:12,790
like throwing peanut M&M's
into a friend's mouth,

97
00:04:12,790 --> 00:04:14,620
or popping a firecracker.

98
00:04:14,620 --> 00:04:17,140
But for unpredictable
subjects this method is

99
00:04:17,140 --> 00:04:19,130
less likely to be successful.

100
00:04:19,130 --> 00:04:22,120
You can also try manually
triggering slow-mo capture,

101
00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:23,670
which lets you press
a button to capture

102
00:04:23,670 --> 00:04:27,340
a burst of 0.2 seconds
in extreme slow-mo

103
00:04:27,340 --> 00:04:29,320
during an ongoing recording.

104
00:04:29,320 --> 00:04:31,780
Your limit's up to six
bursts per recording

105
00:04:31,780 --> 00:04:34,030
in order to avoid
amassing huge files.

106
00:04:34,030 --> 00:04:36,580
This method is slightly
easier to control,

107
00:04:36,580 --> 00:04:38,290
but it still requires
you to predict

108
00:04:38,290 --> 00:04:41,480
when something worth slowing
down is going to happen.

109
00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:42,850
I had the same
complaint when Sony

110
00:04:42,850 --> 00:04:45,450
introduced this exact
same feature in the Xperia

111
00:04:45,450 --> 00:04:47,340
XZ Premium last year.

112
00:04:47,340 --> 00:04:49,630
But it seems like neither
company has been able to find

113
00:04:49,630 --> 00:04:52,200
an easier more meaningful
way to record video

114
00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:56,000
at such a high frame rate
yet, which begs the question,

115
00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:58,330
is this feature
really necessary?

116
00:04:58,330 --> 00:04:59,590
Probably not.

117
00:04:59,590 --> 00:05:02,050
But still, it's there
in the S9 and S9 Plus

118
00:05:02,050 --> 00:05:04,570
if you want to get
exaggerated videos.

119
00:05:04,570 --> 00:05:07,540
On the whole, the new
additions to the S9's cameras

120
00:05:07,540 --> 00:05:10,150
don't give the new
flagships a significant edge

121
00:05:10,150 --> 00:05:13,420
over the competition,
nor their predecessors.

122
00:05:13,420 --> 00:05:16,090
Aside from situations
with barely any light,

123
00:05:16,090 --> 00:05:20,080
there's no real reason to pick
a phone with an f/1.5 aperture.

124
00:05:20,080 --> 00:05:23,470
All that said, the Galaxy
S9s both take lovely pictures

125
00:05:23,470 --> 00:05:26,800
and smooth video in
daylight, and even indoors.

126
00:05:26,800 --> 00:05:29,220
I love how bright and
colorful my photos turned out.

127
00:05:29,220 --> 00:05:31,390
And I have a hard time
picking between shots taken

128
00:05:31,390 --> 00:05:33,760
on my Galaxy S9 and my Pixel 2.

129
00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:36,220
The new camera features
may not be groundbreaking,

130
00:05:36,220 --> 00:05:37,930
but they don't take
away from an already

131
00:05:37,930 --> 00:05:40,390
solid formula that's
won the S series

132
00:05:40,390 --> 00:05:42,220
so much acclaim over the years.

133
00:05:42,220 --> 00:05:45,000
A more polarizing feature
debuting in the S9s

134
00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:49,990
is AR emoji, or
augmented reality emojis.

135
00:05:49,990 --> 00:05:52,240
You've probably seen
these online by now--

136
00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:54,070
animated talking
heads that vaguely

137
00:05:54,070 --> 00:05:55,900
resemble people you know.

138
00:05:55,900 --> 00:05:57,640
Some people find them creepy.

139
00:05:57,640 --> 00:05:59,170
Others find them fun.

140
00:05:59,170 --> 00:06:02,680
So far I'm ambivalent, although
I'm leaning towards the latter.

141
00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:06,130
I like how easy it is to create
an avatar that resembles me.

142
00:06:06,130 --> 00:06:08,350
Just snap a photo of
you facing forward,

143
00:06:08,350 --> 00:06:10,840
and the phone generates
a digital version of you

144
00:06:10,840 --> 00:06:12,550
that you can tweak
with hairstyles,

145
00:06:12,550 --> 00:06:14,230
skin tone, and outfits.

146
00:06:14,230 --> 00:06:17,260
But after testing it on
a bunch of my colleagues,

147
00:06:17,260 --> 00:06:19,870
it's clear Samsung
software isn't always

148
00:06:19,870 --> 00:06:21,460
good at replicating faces.

149
00:06:21,460 --> 00:06:24,970
Some people look uncannily
like their avatars.

150
00:06:24,970 --> 00:06:27,460
Others look nothing
like themselves.

151
00:06:27,460 --> 00:06:30,670
With some styling, though, you
can usually get pretty close.

152
00:06:30,670 --> 00:06:33,550
After you're satisfied with
your image, save the emoji.

153
00:06:33,550 --> 00:06:36,370
And the S9 generates a
set of animated reaction

154
00:06:36,370 --> 00:06:38,470
GIFs featuring your avatar.

155
00:06:38,470 --> 00:06:41,320
Conveniently, you can
insert these in any chat app

156
00:06:41,320 --> 00:06:44,200
that supports AGIF,
whether it's messages,

157
00:06:44,200 --> 00:06:46,180
messenger, or WhatsApp.

158
00:06:46,180 --> 00:06:49,180
These are cute to send
and receive at first,

159
00:06:49,180 --> 00:06:52,150
and feel more personal
than regular emoji.

160
00:06:52,150 --> 00:06:53,890
But over time I
got used to seeing

161
00:06:53,890 --> 00:06:56,200
the same few expressions
from my peers,

162
00:06:56,200 --> 00:06:57,820
and the novelty wore off.

163
00:06:57,820 --> 00:06:59,770
To mix things up,
you can send a video

164
00:06:59,770 --> 00:07:01,990
of you talking
through your emoji,

165
00:07:01,990 --> 00:07:03,850
much like Apple's Animoji.

166
00:07:03,850 --> 00:07:05,470
Instead of mapping
your expressions

167
00:07:05,470 --> 00:07:08,800
onto a generic graphic,
like a robot or a turd,

168
00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:11,470
Samsung lets your
emoji do the talking.

169
00:07:11,470 --> 00:07:13,900
This will be a fun feature,
except the S9 struggles

170
00:07:13,900 --> 00:07:15,460
to pick up facial movements.

171
00:07:15,460 --> 00:07:18,820
When I smiled into the front
camera my emoji cringed.

172
00:07:18,820 --> 00:07:21,640
When I tried to wink my
emoji suddenly developed

173
00:07:21,640 --> 00:07:25,630
an odd lazy eye, and squinted
like a belligerent drunk,

174
00:07:25,630 --> 00:07:28,240
which, to be fair, is not very
different from what I look

175
00:07:28,240 --> 00:07:30,070
like when I'm trying to wink.

176
00:07:30,070 --> 00:07:33,460
This is the crux of why
AR emojis seem creepy.

177
00:07:33,460 --> 00:07:36,730
Your expressions tend to be
more hilarious and wonky than

178
00:07:36,730 --> 00:07:39,740
accurate, and generally fail
at conveying any emotion

179
00:07:39,740 --> 00:07:41,800
you're actually trying to send.

180
00:07:41,800 --> 00:07:43,860
Until Samsung can make
this more accurate,

181
00:07:43,860 --> 00:07:45,340
or commit to
consistently adding more

182
00:07:45,340 --> 00:07:47,840
expressions to the
auto-generated set,

183
00:07:47,840 --> 00:07:50,590
AR emojis will remain a novelty.

184
00:07:50,590 --> 00:07:53,380
And even after it does that
this won't be a feature

185
00:07:53,380 --> 00:07:55,180
that wins over users.

186
00:07:55,180 --> 00:07:56,860
In my week so far
with the phone I've

187
00:07:56,860 --> 00:07:59,680
barely sent any to my
friends, other than to show

188
00:07:59,680 --> 00:08:01,460
off the fact that I have them.

189
00:08:01,460 --> 00:08:05,470
Moving on to the next bit of
improvements in the S9s, Bixby.

190
00:08:05,470 --> 00:08:08,470
Again, most of the changes
revolve around the camera.

191
00:08:08,470 --> 00:08:10,420
The updates here are
specific to Bixby

192
00:08:10,420 --> 00:08:12,340
vision, which is
the AR component

193
00:08:12,340 --> 00:08:14,350
of Samsung's digital assistant.

194
00:08:14,350 --> 00:08:16,720
Vision is now better
integrated into the camera.

195
00:08:16,720 --> 00:08:19,240
Just tap a button on the
viewfinder to bring up Bixby,

196
00:08:19,240 --> 00:08:21,100
and you'll find a
row of little icons

197
00:08:21,100 --> 00:08:22,750
at the bottom to switch modes.

198
00:08:22,750 --> 00:08:25,090
Three new modes have been added.

199
00:08:25,090 --> 00:08:27,490
Live translate,
Food, and Makeup.

200
00:08:27,490 --> 00:08:29,650
The first uses Google
Translate software

201
00:08:29,650 --> 00:08:32,169
to interpret foreign
languages, and overlay

202
00:08:32,169 --> 00:08:34,870
them onto what you're pointing
your phone at in real life.

203
00:08:34,870 --> 00:08:36,789
This came in handy when
we were in Barcelona.

204
00:08:36,789 --> 00:08:40,330
The S9 helped me make sense
of menus and warning labels,

205
00:08:40,330 --> 00:08:42,760
although this was reliant on
the phone having a working

206
00:08:42,760 --> 00:08:44,710
internet connection,
and was about as

207
00:08:44,710 --> 00:08:46,450
accurate as Google Translate--

208
00:08:46,450 --> 00:08:49,760
that is generally helpful, but
sometimes doesn't make sense.

209
00:08:49,760 --> 00:08:50,560
You're dumb.

210
00:08:50,560 --> 00:08:51,380
- What?

211
00:08:51,380 --> 00:08:52,540
CHERLYNN LOW: Is that correct?
- No.

212
00:08:52,540 --> 00:08:53,477
I said, hi.

213
00:08:53,477 --> 00:08:54,610
CHERLYNN LOW:
Meanwhile, Food mode

214
00:08:54,610 --> 00:08:57,040
will identify the dishes
you point your S9 at,

215
00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:59,350
and provide a calorie estimate.

216
00:08:59,350 --> 00:09:01,960
This is a useful idea in theory.

217
00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:03,470
But most of the
time Bixby failed

218
00:09:03,470 --> 00:09:06,580
to recognize the delicious
meals I was about to dig into.

219
00:09:06,580 --> 00:09:08,830
It couldn't even
identify a basic bowl

220
00:09:08,830 --> 00:09:11,200
of instant ramen,
not to mention offer

221
00:09:11,200 --> 00:09:13,270
a reliable calorie estimate.

222
00:09:13,270 --> 00:09:16,750
Finally, there's Makeup mode,
which has limited appeal.

223
00:09:16,750 --> 00:09:18,460
I don't think many of you
are going to be trying

224
00:09:18,460 --> 00:09:20,360
this out on a regular basis.

225
00:09:20,360 --> 00:09:23,170
But for those of us who
are more cosmetics-inclined

226
00:09:23,170 --> 00:09:25,390
this has the potential
to be a useful tool.

227
00:09:25,390 --> 00:09:28,220
It will overlay
lipsticks, blushes,

228
00:09:28,220 --> 00:09:31,150
eyeshadows, and eyebrows
on your face in real time.

229
00:09:31,150 --> 00:09:33,070
And you can click
through to buy or learn

230
00:09:33,070 --> 00:09:35,320
more about a product you like.

231
00:09:35,320 --> 00:09:37,300
Sounds nifty,
except it's just not

232
00:09:37,300 --> 00:09:39,570
comprehensive enough just yet.

233
00:09:39,570 --> 00:09:41,860
Makeup aficionados
like myself probably

234
00:09:41,860 --> 00:09:44,260
already use apps like
YouCam Makeup or Meitu

235
00:09:44,260 --> 00:09:46,630
to see what colors we like.

236
00:09:46,630 --> 00:09:49,870
And those offer far more options
than Bixby does right now.

237
00:09:49,870 --> 00:09:52,110
Long story short,
the Bixby updates

238
00:09:52,110 --> 00:09:53,740
are nice, because
you can conveniently

239
00:09:53,740 --> 00:09:55,570
access them from the camera.

240
00:09:55,570 --> 00:09:57,670
But you can also
install third party apps

241
00:09:57,670 --> 00:10:00,730
to get the same results,
or sometimes better.

242
00:10:00,730 --> 00:10:02,560
They're not exactly worth
going out and buying

243
00:10:02,560 --> 00:10:04,330
a new phone for right now.

244
00:10:04,330 --> 00:10:07,720
So far we've gone over the most
notable of the little changes

245
00:10:07,720 --> 00:10:11,590
Samsung made to the S series,
and we're still not done.

246
00:10:11,590 --> 00:10:13,000
One more update,
which once again

247
00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:17,650
has to do with the camera, is a
refined biometric login method.

248
00:10:17,650 --> 00:10:19,270
Samsung noted that
its existing iris

249
00:10:19,270 --> 00:10:21,550
scan works well in low
light, but struggles

250
00:10:21,550 --> 00:10:22,560
when it's bright out.

251
00:10:22,560 --> 00:10:24,670
To make it easier to unlock
your phone with your face

252
00:10:24,670 --> 00:10:27,370
regardless of your
surroundings, the S9s

253
00:10:27,370 --> 00:10:30,790
offer what the company
calls intelligent skin,

254
00:10:30,790 --> 00:10:33,910
a hybrid of IRIS
authentication, and camera-based

255
00:10:33,910 --> 00:10:35,650
facial recognition.

256
00:10:35,650 --> 00:10:37,680
When you're trying to get
into your phone intelligence

257
00:10:37,680 --> 00:10:40,180
scan will first try
to identify your eyes.

258
00:10:40,180 --> 00:10:42,990
If that fails it will
look for your face.

259
00:10:42,990 --> 00:10:44,850
It was nice seeing this at work.

260
00:10:44,850 --> 00:10:47,490
The lock screen displays symbols
to show what the phone is

261
00:10:47,490 --> 00:10:49,890
looking for, so you can
shift around to accommodate

262
00:10:49,890 --> 00:10:51,480
the system if you wish.

263
00:10:51,480 --> 00:10:53,670
In general, this
worked very quickly.

264
00:10:53,670 --> 00:10:56,920
And I usually got into my
S9 with little trouble.

265
00:10:56,920 --> 00:10:57,720
All right.

266
00:10:57,720 --> 00:11:00,800
We're almost done with all the
ways the S9 has been tweaked.

267
00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:04,140
At least we're finally moving
away from camera changes.

268
00:11:04,140 --> 00:11:06,290
The S9 has stereo speakers.

269
00:11:06,290 --> 00:11:08,070
One firing down from
the bottom edge,

270
00:11:08,070 --> 00:11:10,020
and one forward from the screen.

271
00:11:10,020 --> 00:11:11,820
This boosts the
S9 volume, making

272
00:11:11,820 --> 00:11:13,710
it easier to hear
what people are saying

273
00:11:13,710 --> 00:11:15,390
in your videos and games.

274
00:11:15,390 --> 00:11:16,920
I appreciated the
louder sound when

275
00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:19,020
I was trying to show my
friends some funny YouTube

276
00:11:19,020 --> 00:11:21,000
videos in a crowded restaurant.

277
00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:23,400
Samsung also tidied
up the phone's face,

278
00:11:23,400 --> 00:11:25,530
masking the array of
sensors above the screen

279
00:11:25,530 --> 00:11:27,330
and trimming the bezels.

280
00:11:27,330 --> 00:11:28,950
These changes are
subtle, and you

281
00:11:28,950 --> 00:11:30,210
wouldn't notice
them unless you went

282
00:11:30,210 --> 00:11:31,920
looking for the differences.

283
00:11:31,920 --> 00:11:33,840
Something else you won't
catch until you're actually

284
00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:36,120
using the phone is
a new Snapdragon

285
00:11:36,120 --> 00:11:38,790
845 processor under the hood.

286
00:11:38,790 --> 00:11:41,070
Oh, and the fingerprint
sensor on the back

287
00:11:41,070 --> 00:11:44,190
now sits comfortably within
reach below the camera,

288
00:11:44,190 --> 00:11:46,170
instead of right up next to it.

289
00:11:46,170 --> 00:11:48,040
Like previous
Galaxy S flagships,

290
00:11:48,040 --> 00:11:50,310
the S9 handles
multitasking well.

291
00:11:50,310 --> 00:11:53,040
The new chipset is also
supposed to squeeze about 30%

292
00:11:53,040 --> 00:11:54,930
more battery than the 835.

293
00:11:54,930 --> 00:11:58,860
And given the S9 has the same
size batteries as the S8,

294
00:11:58,860 --> 00:12:01,080
this should provide
longer run times.

295
00:12:01,080 --> 00:12:03,480
My S9 Plus generally
lasts a day and a half

296
00:12:03,480 --> 00:12:05,700
before throwing up
a low battery alert,

297
00:12:05,700 --> 00:12:08,920
which isn't significantly
longer than its predecessor.

298
00:12:08,920 --> 00:12:11,820
Still, extra juice is nice.

299
00:12:11,820 --> 00:12:14,670
I had hoped that after
exhaustively going over

300
00:12:14,670 --> 00:12:17,880
all the ways the S9 is new
I'd find the updates here

301
00:12:17,880 --> 00:12:19,780
to be more significant.

302
00:12:19,780 --> 00:12:22,380
But I'm still struggling to
find a reason to recommend

303
00:12:22,380 --> 00:12:24,990
upgrading to the S9 from an S8.

304
00:12:24,990 --> 00:12:27,360
The new camera features
aren't must-haves,

305
00:12:27,360 --> 00:12:30,060
unless you plan on shooting
in pitch black a lot.

306
00:12:30,060 --> 00:12:32,280
And you can basically get
all the new Bixby stuff

307
00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:34,470
by installing third party apps.

308
00:12:34,470 --> 00:12:37,200
Plus Samsung will most
likely eventually roll out

309
00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:39,820
those updates over
a software patch.

310
00:12:39,820 --> 00:12:42,230
But even though these
changes feel incremental

311
00:12:42,230 --> 00:12:45,900
the S9s are still strong
flagships in their own right.

312
00:12:45,900 --> 00:12:48,510
If you're looking to upgrade
from an older Android phone

313
00:12:48,510 --> 00:12:50,010
these are worth
considering, thanks

314
00:12:50,010 --> 00:12:52,620
to speedy performance,
capable cameras,

315
00:12:52,620 --> 00:12:54,690
and long-lasting batteries.

316
00:12:54,690 --> 00:12:57,480
As the first major
flagships launched in 2018

317
00:12:57,480 --> 00:13:01,200
the S9s are decent, although
Samsung may have to try harder

318
00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:03,210
at inventing
meaningful new features

319
00:13:03,210 --> 00:13:05,130
before the year is up
if it wants to keep

320
00:13:05,130 --> 00:13:07,830
up with its competitors.

321
00:13:07,830 --> 00:13:08,864