Samsung launches Galaxy Note8 to compete against Apple

The device will be available from mid-September and will be offered in “Midnight Black”, “Orchid Gray”, “Maple Gold”, and “Deepsea Blue”. However, the color availability will vary by region.

The South Korean technology giant first introduced the Note series in 2011. Since then, a community of enthusiasts emerged through their affinity for Note’s signature expansive screen and S Pen. According to Samsung market research, 75 percent of Note users say it’s the best phone they’ve ever had.

That’s not to say that all Note’s have been a hit. Samsung was forced to recall all of its Galaxy Note 7 devices last year, following widespread reports of handsets catching fire - and in some instances self-combusting - due to faulty batteries. The launch of Samsung’s Galaxy S8 in April helped Samsung regain the top position in the USA and restored the company’s reputation for producing reliable smartphones.

“We appreciate the relentless passion of the Note community,” said DJ Koh, president of Mobile Communications Business at Samsung Electronics. “They’ve been a constant inspiration to us and we designed the new Note for them. From the Infinity Display to the enhanced S Pen and a powerful Dual Camera, the Galaxy Note8 lets people do things they never thought were possible.”

To reassure customers that the Note7 fiasco won’t be repeated, Samsung said in a statement that the Note8 battery has undergone Samsung’s 8-Point Battery Safety Check – the “most rigorous in the industry.”

Sajeev Jesudad, President of UL International, an independent safety firm, said the company has been “working closely with Samsung to make meaningful advancements in the science of smartphone quality and safety evaluation.” The Galaxy Note8 “successfully completed” a series of device and battery safety compatibility test protocols, Jesudad added.

Camera, S Pen & Infinity Display

For many people, one of the most important things they look for when purchasing a new device is the camera. Samsung has delivered one of its most powerful smartphone cameras yet with the Note8. It’s the first smartphone with 12MP rear cameras with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) on both the wide-angle and telephoto lenses, allowing you to capture sharper images.

For more advanced photo-taking, the Note8’s Live Focus feature lets you control the depth of field by allowing you to adjust the bokeh effect in preview mode and after you take the photo.

In Dual Capture mode, both rear cameras take two pictures simultaneously and allow you to save both images; one close-up shot from the telephoto lens and one wide-angle shot that shows the entire background.

The wide-angle lens has a Dual Pixel sensor with rapid Auto Focus, so you can capture sharper, clearer shots even in low-light environments. The Note8 is also equipped with an industry-leading 8MP Smart Auto Focus front-facing camera for sharp “selfies” and video chats.

The Note8 features the biggest screen ever on a Note device, yet its narrowed body makes it comfortable to hold in hand. The 6.3-inch Quad HD+ Super AMOLED Infinity Display lets you see more and scroll less.

Note users have long been able to do more with Multi Window feature. With the Note8, the new App Pair feature lets you create a custom pair of apps on the Edge Panel and simultaneously launch two apps with ease.

The Note 8 also features a new-and-improved S Pen which has been one of the Note’s defining features. The enhanced digital pen unlocks new ways to write, draw, and interact with the phone and communicate. It has a finer tip and improved pressure sensitivity compared to the Note5 S Pen.

The Live Message features allow you to tell expressive stories by sharing animated texts or drawings across platforms that support animated GIFs. It’s a “whole new way” to communicate with the S Pen, Samsung sayid.

For overseas travels or when you come across a website in a foreign language, the improved S Pen Translate feature lets you hover over text to quickly translate not only individual words, but entire sentences in up to 71 languages, and instantly convert units and foreign currencies.

Other notable features of the Note8 include water and dust resistance; fast wireless charging; plus iris and fingerprint ID scanning for security. The device comes with 6GB RAM, a 10nm processor, and expandable memory (up to 256GB). The Galaxy Note8 also includes Bixby, Samsung’s AI assistant.