More Galaxy Note 10 case renders leak showing much of the same

The Galaxy Note 10 and its bigger sibling have been spotted once again in a series of case renders. They reveal much of the same characteristics which have been floating around for the past several weeks, and they leave very little to the imagination – assuming this is indeed the flagship’s final design.

The Galaxy Note 10+ is showcased in a more toned-down white color whereas the standard Galaxy Note 10 seems to be sporting the Prism White gradient. This is in addition to the black color option spotted last week. The Bixby button appears to be missing, for better or for worse; unless Samsung removed the Power key, which is more unlikely to have happened.

3.5mm headphone jack nowhere to be found

Sadly, these fresh case renders further strengthen the fears of some Galaxy Note enthusiasts because they show no 3.5mm headphone jack. There have even been rumors that the microSD card slot may not be present on the Galaxy Note 10. On the plus side, the source of these renders previously claimed that the wider hole at the top edge of the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+ conceals an IR blaster. If true, this might score a few points in the eyes of some prospective buyers who miss having the ability to control their TVs and air conditioning units using their smartphones. It is, however, still an unsubstantiated rumor so perhaps don’t hold your breath for it just yet.

Overall, the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+ share the same design language which looks very slick. They also appear to share the same features and shortcomings, except for their size difference – which can’t really be noticed in these renders – and their camera configurations.

Both models have a centered front-facing camera and three main sensors at the back, presumably taking advantage of three-stage variable aperture. But the Galaxy Note 10+ is once again depicted as having a Time-of-Flight (ToF) module below the LED flash, in addition to the triple-camera combo. It remains to be seen if the two phones will differ in other ways internally.

We will find out more about the upcoming Galaxy Note 10 series sooner rather than later. Samsung already confirmed that the flagship will be unveiled on August 7 in New York City.

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Galaxy S9 July 2019 update out in Brazil, camera improvements inbound

The rollout of the Galaxy S9 July 2019 update has begun today. Brazil is the first market where last year’s flagship has received the latest security maintenance release. It brings all of the patches that are part and parcel of this month’s Android security bulletin. That’s in addition to the patches for Samsung’s own software vulnerabilities.

The changelog also mentions camera stability improvements. This may also mean that the update brings those two coveted features – Night mode and QR scanner – that Samsung is gradually rolling out to existing devices.

Galaxy S9 July 2019 update is now rolling out

Introduced first to the Galaxy S10 with a software update last month, the improved camera Night mode has since trickled down to older devices like the Galaxy Note 9. Samsung has also enabled the camera app to scan QR codes on its own. This means that it’s no longer necessary to fire up Bixby Vision for this. Just enable this feature from the Camera settings and then scan QR codes by just pointing the camera at them.

Samsung is now rolling out firmware version G9600ZHU5CSFC for the (SD845-powered) Galaxy S9 in Brazil. The update applies the latest security patch for the month of July 2019. It fixes dozens of vulnerabilities in the Android OS as well as Samsung’s software. The camera stability improvements likely point to the addition of these two features. The Exynos-powered variant has already had these features for three weeks now.

Users in Brazil will soon receive OTA update notifications for this firmware if they haven’t already. As always, you can download it from our firmware section right away. It should also be out for the Galaxy S9+ in due course.

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The Galaxy A80 has a Blackpink Special Edition in some markets

After several months of waiting for signs of its release, the Galaxy A80 is now finally available for pre-order in various markets. Some of these markets seem to be getting a Special Edition package themed after the South Korean girl super group Blackpink. It can be acquired by pre-ordering the device in Thailand through Samsung’s official website, as well as in Malaysia via ESH Electrical. To make it that more attractive, the aforementioned Malaysian retailer even throws in a Galaxy Fit wearable for free as a pre-order bonus.

The Galaxy A80 itself doesn’t appear to have received a unique color option with this Special Edition, but it comes in a different retail box which includes a Blackpink charging stand, a special case, and photo cards featuring the members of the band. The device even seems to have been pre-loaded with a Blackpink theme for One UI.

The Galaxy A80 Blackpink Special Edition will probably not be offered in western markets. Nevertheless, the group is pretty big in South Korea where it’s been ranked first for brand reputation in mid-2018 by The Korea Reputation Research Institute. The group’s members were also named as the most influential celebrities of Korea in 2019 by Forbes Korea Power Celebrity.

As for the smartphone itself, the Galaxy A80 is an ambitious device for Samsung because it sports a unique sliding and rotating camera system. We’ve showcased this characteristic in our video preview and we’ll take an even closer look at it in our upcoming full review.

 

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July security update hits the Galaxy J4+ and A7 (2018)

Samsung kickstarted the rollout of the June 2019 security patch beginning with the Galaxy S8/S8+ earlier this week. A couple of days later, the same update was made available for the Galaxy J4 users in India. Now, the company is adding Galaxy J4+ and A7 (2018) to the growing list of July update recipients.

The update for the Galaxy A7 (2018) is currently available only in Colombia, while the update for the Galaxy J4+ is out in Vietnam and Thailand. As is often the case, the release doesn’t seem to pack any new features, but that shouldn’t be a concern since these devices received Android Pie with One UI not very long ago.

According to Samsung’s security bulletin, the July Security Maintenance Release (SMR) includes Google’s patches for ten critical and more than a dozen high-risk vulnerabilities in Android. Additionally, the release also contains fixes from Samsung for 13 vulnerabilities that are specific to Galaxy devices.

It is worth pointing that not all eligible devices may receive the OTA update at once as Samsung adopts a staged rollout for updates. To check for the update, go to Settings, select Software Update, and tap on the Download updates manually option. If that doesn’t trigger the update, you have to either wait or download the latest compatible firmware from our database and manually flash it. You can find the Galaxy J4+ firmware here and the Galaxy A7 (2018) firmware here.

Galaxy A7

• Model: SM-A750F
• Dimensions: 159.8 x 76.8 x 7.5 mm,
• Display: 6.0" (152.4mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 7885
• Camera: 24 MP, CMOS F1.7, 8 MP, CMOS & 5 MP, CMOS

More specifications

Galaxy J4+

• Model: SM-J415F
• Dimensions: 161.4 x 76.9 x 7.9mm
• Display: 6.0" (152.4mm) TFT
• CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 425
• Camera: 13 MP, CMOS F1.9

More specifications

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Daily Deal: 45% off the Samsung Galaxy Watch

We have covered deals for Samsung smartwatches before and we’re back with an exceptional one. We had praised it in our Galaxy Watch review as being close to perfection and it’s still a very compelling option today. It’s very durable (and water resistant) with a nice and bright display as well as innovative software features. We also liked the bezel ring which makes navigating the UI intuitive and much easier to fly through than any other smartwatch.

You’ll now be able to grab this 46mm Galaxy Watch at 45% off and it ships to a lot of countries for a little extra as well. Use the Buy Now button below to get one before they sell out!

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The Galaxy Watch Active 2 will really elevate Samsung’s smartwatch game

As we pointed out in our Galaxy Watch Active review, there’s was still room for improvement in an otherwise quite capable and affordably priced smartwatch. Samsung needed to introduce a few big-ticket items that have already been present on some other smartwatches. The company now seems set to do just that.

The Galaxy Watch Active provides Samsung with a good base to work off of. It ditches the rotating bezel for a sleek profile that’s also very light, thus making the smartwatch extremely comfortable to wear. Throw in a slightly bigger display and a larger battery with new features and you get a very compelling product as a result.

We exclusively confirmed last week that Samsung is already working on the Galaxy Watch Active 2. It’s going to be offered in 40mm and 44m sizes, as evidenced by the very first live images of the upcoming smartwatch that we leaked online. There’s no rotating bezel here so we can expect it to do just as well in the comfort department. While this might be enough to entice some fans to upgrade, the upcoming smartwatch will actually have much more to offer.

Several new Galaxy Watch Active 2 features were exclusively confirmed by us yesterday. This will be Samsung’s first smartwatch that allows users to take an electrocardiogram or ECG from their wrist. Since health monitoring is a big deal for most customers who purchase these devices, this functionality will be much appreciated by many. It will allow them to capture their heart rhythm to identify symptoms like irregular, high or low heart beat.

Atrial fibrillation notifications will significantly improve the usefulness of Samsung’s smartwatches as well. It’s a quivering or irregular heartbeat which if left untreated can cause strokes, blood clots, heart failure and other complications. Millions of people across the globe are living with Afib. Since Afib is often asymptomatic (without symptoms), many individuals who have this condition may not be aware that they do. The smartwatch will thus keep an eye out for the user and inform them of periods of irregular pulse that could be suggestive of Afib.

Lastly, Fall Detection will be a new addition to the Galaxy Watch Active 2 as well. The feature will nudge the user if the watch detects that there has been a hard fall. If the user doesn’t interact with the notification, it will be able to alert pre-determined contacts and even call emergency services.

To many, it will seem like Samsung has taken a lot of inspiration from the Apple Watch Series 4, so much so that perhaps it may not be classified as inspiration anymore. Should one waste time on this debate, though? The simple fact is that you can only ever get the best experience possible from a smartwatch if you use it within its ecosystem. So while the Galaxy Watch Active can indeed sync up to an iPhone it still leaves a lot to be desired as far as compatible functionality is concerned. Similarly, you won’t get far with the Apple Watch if you’re unwilling to give up your Galaxy S10.

Samsung will not be breaking any new ground with these features but it will be significantly improving the experience for its customers who are loyal to the Galaxy ecosystem. Smartwatches already have significant limitations that companies like Samsung have to work within. They can’t be too hefty or large and the circular design really is what makes the most sense for a device like this. There isn’t much wiggle room here. The Galaxy Watch Active already has some of the most sought-after features on a smartwatch. There’s a built-in GPS and the ability to store music for offline listening, for example. You might hope for LTE connectivity and we can confirm that there’s going to be an LTE variant of the upcoming smartwatch.

ECG, Afib notifications and Fall Detection will prove to be really useful additions to the wearable device. Better to have these features than something like Bixby which has been a disappointment on the company’s smartwatches since day one. So should a grudge be held against Samsung for elevating the smartwatch experience for its customers? You already know which side we’re on and we’d love to hear what you think about the matter. Drop a comment below and let’s get the conversation started.

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