36 PCWorld OCTOBER 2019REVIEWS SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 10+
quickly become your favorite
phone of all time. No matter
what handset you’re upgrading
from, the Note 10+ will be an
improvement, likely a significant
one. It’s not just the speed
(though it’s basically the fastest
phone ever made) or the display
(which is pretty much flawless).
From the bezels to the battery
life, the Note 10+ is at the very
top of its game, capping off
Samsung’s strongest year in
recent memory.
It’s so good, I’m not sure where Samsung
goes from here. While previous Galaxy Note
phones have left clear upgrade paths for
future models, the Note 10+ clips every
branch with a package that’s as stunning as it
is expensive. As long as you can handle its
massive size.THE CLOSEST YET TO A
SMALL-SCREEN DESIGN
The first thing you’ll notice about the Note+
is what it doesn’t have. Namely, bezels.
Samsung has somehow trimmed the area
above and below the display beyond even
what the Galaxy S phones brought earlier
this year, giving the Note 10+ a real full-
screen feel. The bezels are so skinny, I didn’t
even mind the extra millimeter of space on
the bottom.
Without the Note 9’s bezel, which heldthe front camera, receiver/speaker, and
various sensors, Samsung has gotten
creative with the 10+. Like the S10, there’s a
hole in the screen for the camera, but the
centered circle is way easier on the eyes than
the S10’s right-corner design. It’s still too low
to center itself in the status bar, but most of
the time, I barely noticed the camera on the
Note 10+ (even without applying special
gradient wallpaper).
The back of the Note 10+ repositions the
camera array in the left corner—a first for the
Note line—and introduces a new Aura Glow
color that turns the back of your phone into a
mirror prism. It’s a cool look when the light
hits it just right, but it’ll pick up more
fingerprints than a glass door in an elementary
school after a Popsicle party.
Along with the camera, the left side of the
phone is also where you’ll find the device’sThe “hole-punch” selfie cam is much less offensive on the Note
10+ than it is on the S10+.