Samsung’s latest flagship handsets for 2018: the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ are finally here. In terms of design, the handsets look the same as their predecessor but sport some major internal upgrades. If you are wondering how the Galaxy S9 stacks up against its predecessor, the Galaxy S8, check out our Galaxy S9 vs Galaxy S8 specs comparison.
From the front, you will be hard pressed to distinguish between the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S9, though the vertically placed camera setup at the rear does give the S9 away. Internally though, there’s nothing common between the two handsets with every aspect getting a huge update. I have also thrown in the Galaxy Note 8 in the
Samsung Galaxy S9 vs Galaxy S8 Specs Comparison
| Basis of Difference | Galaxy S9 | Galaxy S9+ | Galaxy S8 | Galaxy S8+ |
| Dimensions | 147.77 x 68.7 x 8.5mm | 158.1 x 73.8 x 8.5mm | 148.9 x 68.1 x 8.0 mm | 159.5 x 73.4 x 8.1 mm |
| Weight | 163g | 189g | 155g | 173g |
| IP Certification | IP68 | |||
| Display | 5.8-inch Super AMOLED Infinity Display | 6.2-inch Super AMOLED Infinity Display | 5.8-inch Super AMOLED Infinity Display | 6.2-inch Super AMOLED Infinity Display |
| QHD+ resolution – 2960×1440, 529ppi | QHD+ resolution – 2960×1440, 570ppi | QHD+ resolution – 2960×1440 | QHD+ resolution – 2960×1440 | |
| HDR, Dolby Vision, Always On Display | Always On Display | Always On Display | ||
| Chipset | Octa-core Snapdragon 845 – 2.8GHz (U.S. only), 2nd gen. 10nm process | Octa-core Snapdragon 845 – 2.8GHz (U.S. only), 2nd gen. 10nm process | Snapdragon 835 – US Only – Octa core (2.3GHz Quad + 1.7GHz Quad), 64 bit, 10nm process | |
| Octa-core Exynos 9810 – 2.7GHz (International markets), 2nd gen. 10nm process | Octa-core Exynos 9810 – 2.7GHz (International markets), 2nd gen. 10nm process | Exynos 8895 – International markets – Octa core (2.35GHz Quad + 1.9GHz Quad), 64 bit, 10nm process | ||
| RAM and Storage | 4GB RAM (LPDDR4), 64GB (UFS 2.1) | 6GB RAM (LPDDR4), 64GB (UFS 2.1) | 128/256GB variants in certain international markets | 4GB RAM (LPDDR4), 64GB (UFS 2.1) | |
| microSD card slot | ||||
| Camera | Rear: Primary 12MP Super Speed Dual Pixel, F1.5/F2.4 aperture, OIS | Rear: Dual Pixel 12MP OIS (F1.7), 1.4um Pixel | ||
| – | Secondary: 12MP F/2.4, 2x optical zoom, OIS | – | ||
| Super Slow motion video recording (960fps at 720p) | 120fps 1080p slow motion | 120fps 1080p slow motion | ||
| Front: 8MP F/1.7 | ||||
| Battery | 3000mAh | 3500mAh | 3000mAh | 3500mAh |
| Fast charging | ||||
| Fast wireless charging | ||||
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi ac, Enhanced 4×4 MIMO, LTE Cat. 18 (1.2Gbps download speeds), hybrid dual-SIM | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz), VHT80 MU-MIMO, 1024QAM, LTE Cat.16 | ||
| Bluetooth v 5.0 (LE up to 2Mbps), ANT+, USB Type-C, NFC, Location (GPS, Galileo, Glonass, BeiDou) | Bluetooth v 5.0 (LE up to 2Mbps), ANT+, USB Type-C, NFC, Location (GPS, Galileo, Glonass, BeiDou) | |||
| Sensors | Accelerometer, Barometer, Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Heart Rate Sensor, Proximity Sensor, RGB Light Sensor, Iris Sensor, Pressure Sensor | Accelerometer, Barometer, Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Heart Rate Sensor, Proximity Sensor, RGB Light Sensor, Iris Sensor, Pressure Sensor | ||
| OS | Android 8.0 Oreo, Samsung Experience 9.0 | Android 7.0 | ||
| Features | Samsung Pay, AR Emoji, Bixby, Live Focus, Live Translator, Stereo Speakers | Samsung Pay, Facial Recognition, Bixby with dedicated hardware button | ||
| Colors | Midnight Black, Titanium Gray, Coral Blue, and Lilac Purple | Midnight Black, Orchid Gray, Arctic Silver, Coral Blue, and Maple Gold | ||
| Biometric Authentication | Iris scanner, fingerprint scanner, face unlock, Intelligent scan which combines iris scanning and face unlock | Face unlock, Iris scanner, fingerprint scanner | ||
As you can see from the comparison above, the Galaxy S9 is a major upgrade internally over the Galaxy S8. The handset promises to deliver a more refined and overall better experience than the Galaxy S8 thanks to its more powerful internals and other user-facing changes like the repositioned fingerprint scanner, improved face unlock, and stereo speakers. The variable aperture rear camera also promises to take smartphone photography to a whole new level and challenge the likes of the Pixel 2.
