Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite review: the most important plus and minus points discussed

Samsung released the Galaxy Note 10 Lite last month , a large smartphone that should be the new entry-level Note. What are the differences with the normal Note 10 and is the new Lite version worth it? You can read it in this review.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite review

Last year wrote an extensive review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 on Android Planet . This device was among the best smartphones of 2019, but had a hefty price tag. With the new Galaxy Note 10 Lite, Samsung makes the 'Note concept' accessible, because the smartphone 'only' costs 600 euros.

But what concessions did the company have to make for this and is the Note 10 Lite worth considering? You can read it in this review, in which we discuss the most important plus and minus points.

ADVANTAGES

Large and beautiful screen

An important difference between the normal Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10 Lite is the screen. Both smartphones have an amoled screen, but that of the Note 10 Lite with 6.7 inches is a lot bigger than the Note 10 (6.3 inches). That's nice if you use the S Pen (more about that later), but keep in mind that the smartphone can hardly be operated with one hand.

The screen quality is - as we are used to from Samsung - excellent. Colors splash off the screen, the black tones are deep and the brightness can be increased considerably. The resolution is also excellent at 2400 by 1080 pixels, which ensures sharp images. The edges around the screen are slightly thicker than the normal Note 10, but this does not bother.

It is important to know that Samsung has opted for a flat screen, not one with curved edges. That looks a little less luxurious, but the curved screen edges of the Note 10 had little practical use, so it's not a disaster.

Great cameras

On the back of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite there are three cameras, each of 12 megapixels. It is a primary camera, telephoto lens for 2x optical zoom and a wide-angle lens. At the front is a 32-megapixel camera for selfies.

Fine is that both the primary camera and telephoto lens have optical image stabilization, so that images stay sharp when your hands shake a little or take a zoomed picture. Even in the dark, this image stabilization helps, because photos are less likely to move.

During the day you take good photos with the cameras, where colors look true to life and there is a lot of detail. The quality of the wide-angle lens is - as is often the case with this type of camera - slightly less, and it is difficult to take a good photo especially in the dark. With enough daylight, however, the wide-angle lens performs well and it often comes in handy, because you can use it to simply capture more images, which gives your snapshot a great effect at the same time.

Large battery and fast charging

A nice feature of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite is the hefty 4500 mAh battery. This makes the smartphone last a full day without problems, even if you use it intensively. You should not expect that you can charge without charging for two days, but the Note 10 Lite lasts significantly longer than the normal (and more expensive) Note 10, which simply does not have a good battery life.

In addition, the Galaxy Note 10 Lite charges nice and fast. Samsung supplies the phone with a 25-watt charger and that means it is quickly full again. After half an hour of power, the device is more than half full and fully charging takes less than an hour and a half. It is a pity that wireless charging is missing; Samsung had to cancel this feature to keep the Note 10 Lite price low.

S Pen is handy

The most important reason to opt for the Galaxy Note 10 Lite is the S Pen. The stylus slides out of the housing and you use it to take notes and sketch on the device, but the pen offers more useful options.

For example, it has a button and Bluetooth support, so that you can use it as a 'sort of' remote control to, for example, take photos or give a presentation. This works well and the stylus is also useful if you take a screenshot and want to highlight something by, for example, circling something.

DISADVANTAGES

But also slightly limited

It is a pity that the Note 10 Lite does not have the same S Pen as the Note 10 and Note 10 Plus . Because of this the air gestures are missing , which make it possible to perform actions through gestures, without touching the screen.

Fortunately, Samsung has added the function that converts written texts directly into digital text. This is useful when taking notes and works well. So keep in mind that the S Pen is a little less versatile than the newer pin of the more expensive Note 10 devices.

Plastic design

Many high-end smartphones have a glass casing, but the Galaxy Note 10 Lite is plastic. That sounds worse than it actually is, but we think it's a bit of a shame. The device feels cheaper than the Note 10 and Note 10 Plus, but it is sturdy and because it is relatively heavy and further beautifully designed (199 grams), you do have the feeling that you are using a luxury smartphone.

As mentioned, there is no wireless charging and the Galaxy Note 10 Lite is not dust and water proof. The phone has no IP certification and therefore you have to be better careful if you are dealing with a rain shower, for example.

Stereo speakers are also missing, but a headphone connection is present. That's nice, because with the Note 10 phones (and the latest Galaxy S20 ) this port is missing. The Note 10 Lite is a bit more versatile in this area than its more expensive brothers.

Hardware is not the fastest

To save costs, Samsung has also equipped the Galaxy Note 10 Lite with less powerful hardware than the Note 10. Under the hood is an Exynos 9810 chip, a relatively old processor that also powers the Galaxy S9 and Note 9 . Also present is 6GB of memory and 128GB of storage space, which is great.

The processor of the Note 10 Lite is two years old and you notice that too. The smartphone is smooth, but during my test period I have regularly seen problems. This makes the device feel less smooth and most smartphones that appeared last year, such as the Galaxy S10 , are simply more powerful.

The OnePlus 7T , which costs about the same as the Note 10 Lite, has faster internal hardware and a 90Hz screen, and therefore feels much smoother. The performance of the Note 10 Lite is not bad at all, but better options are available in this price range.