Where the Samsung Galaxy S9 phones last year felt mostly iterative, the latest S10 devices are some of the company’s biggest changes yet, with the company’s modus operandi being to win over customers that didn’t shell out for an upgrade last year.
The latest S10 flagship phones are packing a punch — they have more RAM, larger storage options, newer Snapdragon processors, better screen resolution, and Wi-Fi 6 support. That means that for almost the same weight and dimensions, these phones should be faster and better for streaming Netflix in HD while on the go. There are three rear cameras rather than two and the S10 Plus has dual selfie cameras as well — along with a built-in Instagram mode.
While that all sounds impressive, the past year has also brought some serious flagships like Pixel 3, 3XL, iPhone XS, and XS Max, with the latter offering the biggest screen out of all the devices. What those phones lack, compared to the S10, are in-display fingerprint scanners and built-in cryptocurrency wallets, as well as the headphone jack.
As usual, while specs don’t always help with deciding which phone you should buy, they are useful to look at when comparing your options if you’re looking to purchase a new smartphone soon. We’ll have full reviews of the S10s in the weeks to come to help add more color, but for now here are the hard numbers. Also, if you’re looking for lower-priced devices that don’t cost around a thousand dollars, we’ve compared the S10E with its rival iPhone here.
Samsung Galaxy S10 spec comparison
Specification | Galaxy S10 | Galaxy S10 Plus | Galaxy Note 9 | iPhone XS | iPhone XS Max | Google Pixel 3 | Google Pixel 3 XL |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Display | 6.1 inches | 6.4 inches | 6.4 inches | 5.8 inches | 6.5 inches | 5.5 inches | 6.0 inches |
Resolution | 3040 x 1440 | 3040 x 1440 | 2960 x 1440 | 2436 x 1125 | 2688 x 1242 | 2160 x 1080 | 2880 x 1440 |
Processor | Snapdragon 855 in the US/ Samsung Exynos 9820 elsewhere | Snapdragon 855 in the US/ Samsung Exynos 9820 elsewhere | Snapdragon 845 (2.8GHz and 1.7GHz, octa-core) | A12 Bionic | A12 Bionic | Snapdragon 845 (2.5GHz and 1.6GHz, 64Bit octa-core) | Snapdragon 845 (2.5GHz and 1.6GHz, 64Bit octa-core) |
RAM | 8GB | 8GB, 12GB | 6GB, 8GB | 4GB | 4GB | 4GB | 4GB |
Storage | 128GB, 512GB | 128GB, 512GB, 1TB | 128GB, 512GB | 64GB, 256GB, 512GB | 64GB, 256GB, 512GB | 64GB, 128GB | 64GB, 128GB |
Rear camera | 12 megapixels, 16 megapixels (ultra-wide), and 12 megapixels (wide) | 12 megapixels, 16 megapixels (ultra-wide), and 12 megapixels (wide) | 12 megapixels, 12 megapixels (wide) | 12 megapixels, 12 megapixels (wide) | 12 megapixels, 12 megapixels (wide) | 12 megapixels | 12 megapixels |
Front camera | 10 megapixels | 10 megapixels and 8 megapixels | 8 megapixels | 7 megapixels | 7 megapixels | 8 megapixels, 8 megapixels (wide) | 8 megapixels, 8 megapixels (wide) |
Battery | 3,400mAh | 4,100mAh | 4,000mAh | 2,659mAh | 3,179mAh | 2,915mAh | 3,430mAh |
Water protection | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 | IP68 |
Wireless charging? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Ports | USB-C, headphone jack | USB-C, headphone jack | USB-C, headphone jack | Lightning port | Lightning port | USB-C | USB-C |
Weight | 0.35 pounds | 0.39 pounds | 0.44 pounds | 0.39 pounds | 0.46 pounds | 0.33 pounds | 0.4 pounds |
Dimensions (in.) | 5.90 x 2.77 x 0.30 | 6.20 x 2.92 x 0.31 | 6.37 x 3.01 x 0.35 | 5.65 x 2.79 x 0.30 | 6.20 x 3.05 x 0.30 | 5.70 x 2.70 x 0.30 | 6.20 x 3.00 x 0.30 |
Starting price | $899.99 | $999.99 | $999.99 | $999.00 | $1,099.00 | $799.00 | $899.00 |
Misc. | In-display fingerprint scanner, cryptocurrency wallet, dual SIM, records video in HDR+ | In-display fingerprint scanner, cryptocurrency wallet, dual SIM, records video in HDR+ | Dual SIM, Bluetooth S Pen, iris scanner, mechanically adjustable aperture | Face ID, Dual SIM, software-adjustable aperture | Face ID, Dual SIM, software-adjustable aperture | Google Duplex spam transcription, squeezable sides | Google Duplex spam transcription, squeezable sides |
Correction February 21st, 3:07PM ET: This article previously described the Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3XL incorrectly as rated IPX8. They are both rated IP68, meaning they’re also dust resistant.