The Samsung Galaxy S10 has landed in Australia, but is the shiny new flagship worth it?
If you're looking to upgrade from your two-year-old phone, you'll no doubt be wondering what the new model has in store. Or if you're a bargain hunter, you might be wondering if you can get away with picking up the soon-to-be discounted Samsung Galaxy S8 instead. Either way, we can help.
Here's how the two phones compare on:
Galaxy S10 vs Galaxy S8: Camera
Our pick: Samsung Galaxy S10
The universal rule of smartphones is that the newer device always has the better camera.
And this year, damn, the S10 has made some big improvements over the S8. Read on.
Big improvements for Galaxy phones tend to happen every two years. In 2017 the Galaxy S8 was a great stride forward. In 2018 the Galaxy S9 was pretty same-y. Now in 2019 the Galaxy S10 is another big leap ahead.
The Galaxy S10 offers much more versatile photography than its predecessors with not one but three rear-facing cameras: a 12MP standard lens with a variable aperture, a 12MP zoom lens, and a 16MP ultra-wide angle lens. We're excited to see just how awesome photos will be with the new configuration.
Galaxy S10 vs Galaxy S8: Looks
Our pick: Samsung Galaxy S10
This year the S10 sports a bigger and better display with more room for all the Netflix you're now addicted to watching on the train.
But the camera cut-out won't be for everyone.
This is a big year for the Galaxy S series design, with the S10 sporting an all-new look. The curved "Infinity" display that first captivated the world on the S8 is still there, but Samsung has drastically cut down on bezel, so the S10 now comes with a curved 6.1-inch display in roughly the same size body as the 5.8-inch Galaxy S8.
In order to achieve this, Samsung has made a phone that's "holey". Specifically the S10's front-facing camera is integrated directly into the screen in a "hole punch" camera cut-out style as shown above. Samsung is calling this the "Infinity O".
The Galaxy S10 also comes with an in-screen fingerprint reader, which is a big improvement over the S8's awkwardly-placed fingerprint reader, located on the back of the device, right next to the camera.
Just like the notch, the "camera hole" is sure to be controversial. Some will like it. Others will hate it. It won't be for everyone, but the changes will mean more real estate for that gorgeous Quad HD+. That's always a plus - well, it might be - depending on how often you use your phone to watch TV.
Galaxy S10 vs Galaxy S8: Performance
Our pick: Samsung Galaxy S10
If you're coming from an old S8 to a new S10, there's no question you'll see a big performance improvement.
If you're thinking about a new S8, know that while it might be plenty fast at first, it's likely to lose speed and security quicker than the S10 over time.
If you're coming from an old S8 to a new S10, you're going to notice a big performance improvement. It's a sad fact that many smartphones start to feel slower over time, but the brand new S10 is bound to cure your old-phone blues.
If you're thinking about buying a new S8 today, the Galaxy S10 will still be a bit zippier, though the S8 isn't necessarily a slouch. At least, not on day one. But the real test for performance isn't how fast the phone is out of the box. It's how fast, secure, and bug-free it will be one to two years after purchase. And unfortunately this is where older Samsung models tend to fall down.
Samsung has historically only guaranteed software and security updates for its devices for two years after they first come to market. What that means is an S8 bought today comes with no guarantee of support from Samsung. That's not to say it won't get any (the S7 is still receiving updates). But when you're forking out big bucks it would be nice to think you'd get a support guarantee.
Galaxy S10 vs Galaxy S8: Battery life
Our pick: Samsung Galaxy S10
Newer phones always tend to have better battery life, and if you're upgrading from the S8, you should notice a big improvement.
On top of a better battery life, the S10 also has Qi reverse charging, which is pretty damn nifty.
Smartphone battery performance degrades over time, which means if you're coming from an old S8, your new S10 battery is going to feel like a really big improvement. But it should feel better as compared against a new S8 as well.
Why? The Samsung Galaxy S10 comes with the top-tier Exynos 9820 processor, and newer processing units always mean more efficiency, which users experience as better battery life. Aw yeah.
On top of the processor, the Galaxy S10 comes with a nice big 3,400mAh battery. The S8 only has a 3,000mAh battery. Of course, the benefit of the bigger battery may be offset by the S10's larger screen size. We'll know more once we've taken the S10 out for a spin.
Perhaps the coolest new battery feature on this year's S10, however, is the Qi wireless reverse charging. Yes, not only can the S10 charge wirelessly, it can also act as a charger. You can use any spare battery life to top up other devices, including the new Galaxy buds. Nifty.
Galaxy S10 vs S8: Price
Our pick: Samsung Galaxy S8
It'll come as no surprise to anyone that the older phone is cheaper.
Now two years old, the Galaxy S8 could save you close to $600 outright, depending on where you buy it.
One thing the S8 definitely has over the S10 is price. At $1,349 outright for the 128GB model, the new S10 is pricey.
It's got $150 on top of the S8 launch price of $1,199, which kind of sucks if you're upgrading and hoping to pay the same amount you did two years ago.
Meanwhile, now that the S8 is two years old, retailers are slashing prices. We've seen it as low as $777 outright for the 64GB model from Officeworks today. But if you want to nab it outright, we'd suggest you do it right away. Plenty of other retailers appear to be already out of stock.
Still undecided? There are more alternatives to consider. Check out how the Samsung Galaxy S10 compares to its predecessor the Galaxy S9.
Jacqui Dent
Editorial Strategist
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