Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones are ranked among the most successful and popular models on the market by the bank away. Every product release is eagerly awaited, as high-class smartphones generally represent an inexpensive alternative to Apple’s latest iPhone. Due to the great interest in smartphones alone, we feel it is almost our duty to devote ourselves to them in great detail. We did the same with the Galaxy S10. In this article you can find out how it performed in our practical test, what we think of it and whether we can recommend it.
Design and processing: More screen can hardly be
If you hold the smartphone in your hands, you’ll soon notice that it’s dominated by the huge display we’re going to look at in the next section. It covers almost the entire front side and thus becomes the defining design aspect. Compared to the S9, the phone has grown by a few millimetres in both length and width. This space is consistently used for the display, which now measures 6.1 inches in diagonal.
Since the display covers almost the entire front, there is no room for a conventional front camera. Samsung relies on a tiny opening in the upper right area, surrounded by the display – this allows photos to be taken. This small camera aperture takes up less space than the typical Notch and is therefore certainly advantageous from a space-saving point of view.
Otherwise, the Galaxy S10 doesn’t come up with any surprises. It is – like all other Galaxy models – excellently finished and relies on high-quality materials. So it lies well in the hand, feels high-quality and makes an overall very good impression. The device is available in four colour variants – white, black, blue and green.
As a supplement we tried the LED cover. Unfortunately, we didn’t like this so much. The interface is very vulnerable and notifications about calls, messages, alarms and battery status are not really practical. The light effects, such as the smiley visible on the photos, are automatically deactivated after a short time.
Screen: Huge and sharp
As already mentioned, the all-dominant screen measures 6.1 inches diagonally. This makes it a little larger than its predecessor – it only managed 5.9 inches. Thus, with a maximum resolution of 3,040 x 1,440 pixels, optimal conditions for best image display are given.
In the practical test, the display could actually knock us out: All content displayed was crystal clear. However, there were two small shortcomings. So very few apps were adapted to the huge screen. For example, videos were much smaller and displayed with huge black borders. This is unfortunate in that the potential of the display is not exploited.
Furthermore we noticed the so cleverly attached front camera negatively. It can be seen more or in the middle of the picture, which can be annoying for some special applications and content. It should be noted here that we quickly got used to it and soon didn’t pay any attention to the camera in the way.
Purely technical and with regard to the simple display, however, the display is hard to beat. It achieves a brightness of almost 1000 candela per square meter and a very high color fidelity. This makes it one of the very best models on the market.
All in all, the display is outstanding. The small blemishes have nothing to do with the display technology, so we don’t rate them too highly.
Camera: Triple strength
Many reports about the S10 focused on the camera equipment. And for good reason: With a triple camera, the smartphone clearly stands out from its predecessors. At the back three lenses sit directly next to each other. In addition to the twelve-megapixel main camera, which photographs with a slight wide angle, there is also a twelve-megapixel telecamera and a sixteen-megapixel super wide-angle camera.
The photographic possibilities exceed the usual Smartphones thereby far. With the triple camera, the S10 comes close to professional cameras with a quadruple zoom. By the way, this is not only the case on paper. We tested the highly acclaimed camera extensively and were thrilled.
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The photos can be downloaded as an archive in original quality here. In the web view, these are compressed to allow better loading time.
Great photos can be produced in good lighting conditions. Particularly interesting are the many additional functions offered by the camera. For example, depth of field effects are possible. Funny, but probably less serious are the AR-Emojis, which basically work like Apple’s Animojis.
If the exposure is poor, the camera should not be used without a flash; otherwise, the results will not be miserable, but far from the outstanding quality that can otherwise be produced with the camera. Despite the F1.5/F2.5 and F2.2 aperture in the main camera and the F1.9 aperture in the front camera, this can’t be prevented, but it’s the same with other smartphones. But with these apertures, the camera of the S10 is definitely one of the best.
What we noticed very positively was the significant improvement in automatic scene recognition. Anyone who has ever used a grade of 9 will know how badly this extra works there. The weaknesses of the S10 are largely eliminated. The scene optimizer shoots several photos one after the other at night and merges them into one image, so that an almost optimal result is ultimately achieved. The technology also intervenes in other lighting conditions – exposure settings, for example, are automatically adjusted to get as close as possible to the best possible result.
Scanner and Face Detection: Nice Extras
A fingerprint scanner and facial recognition technology are now standard features of new smartphones. Samsung doesn’t break with what can be expected and also uses the two components in the S10. What is special here is the fact that the fingerprint scanner is located under the display.
So if you want to unlock your smartphone using your fingerprint, you have to put your fingertip on the display – and not on the back or on a button on the front like with many other mobile phones. In the test, this circumstance was neither positive nor negative. The scanner worked reliably and was no longer noticeable.
Facial recognition was a bit of a hiccup now and then. Overall, however, it also worked well, so that we don’t have to criticize these two extras.
Performance: leaves almost nothing to be desired
The device is driven by the Exynos 9820, which is manufactured by Samsung itself. The chip convinced us both in benchmark tests and in practice. It promises high speeds that leave nothing to be desired. We could not detect any longer delays or dropouts in the test. The only downer is that in other regions of the world, the S10 is likely to be even faster because a different chip is being used there. The chip is supported by six or eight GB RAM.
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | OpenGL Manhattan | OpenGL Car Chase | T-Rex |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 11,0 | 7,3 | 42,0 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 4,4 | 2,1 | 0,0 |
| 3 | UMi London | 0,0 | 0,0 | 7,3 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 3,4 | 0,0 | 11,0 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 46,0 | 20,0 | 59,0 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 9,6 | 0,0 | 35,0 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 32,0 | 14,0 | 60,0 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 10,0 | 3,6 | 22,0 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 9,6 | 3,5 | 22,0 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 11,0 | 3,9 | 22,0 |
| Smartphone | OpenGL Manhattan | OpenGL Car Chase | T-Rex |
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | Sling Shot | Sling Shot Extreme | Ice Storm Unlimited | Ice Storm Extreme |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 1.348 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 284 | 6.816 | 4.361 | |
| 3 | UMi London | 0 | 2.827 | 1.951 | |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 161 | 3.710 | 2.333 | |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 2.416 | 0 | 0 | |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 1.023 | 15.606 | 9.343 | |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 2.688 | 29.138 | 13.288 | |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 461 | 13.637 | 8.091 | |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 847 | 13.986 | 8.335 | |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 481 | 9.294 | 5.486 | |
| Smartphone | Sling Shot | Sling Shot Extreme | Ice Storm Unlimited | Ice Storm Extreme |
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 4.115 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 2.892 |
| 3 | UMi London | 2.475 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 2.600 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 5.550 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 3.975 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 6.431 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 4.594 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 4.889 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 3.183 |
| Smartphone | Score |
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | AnTuTu Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 22.297 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 37.569 |
| 3 | UMi London | 22.297 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 29.251 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 33.943 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 84.997 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 139.020 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 63.206 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 66.149 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 45.024 |
| Smartphone | AnTuTu Score |
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | Single-Core | Multi-Core |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 2.719 | 2.618 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 1.063 | 1.563 |
| 3 | UMi London | 685 | 1.146 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 820 | 1.298 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 3.585 | 3.271 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 2.167 | 3.731 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 3.270 | 4.519 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 1.433 | 2.661 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 1.444 | 2.279 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 1.205 | 2.164 |
| Smartphone | Single-Core | Multi-Core |
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 2.803 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 2.697 |
| 3 | UMi London | 2.162 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 1.794 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 4.569 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 5.869 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 7.316 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 3.325 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 3.461 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 2.914 |
| Smartphone | Score |
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | Single-Core | Multi-Core |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 1.115 | 4.376 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 602 | 2.468 |
| 3 | UMi London | 371 | 1.064 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 535 | 1.493 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 1.626 | 3.872 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 1.648 | 4.053 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 1.934 | 5.998 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 830 | 3.004 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 921 | 4.495 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 731 | 2.738 |
| Smartphone | Single-Core | Multi-Core |
Battery: Sufficient for one working day
The battery holds 3,400 mAh and lasted between twelve and fourteen hours in our practical test. The exact duration depends on the intensity of use. Overall, it can be stated here that the battery has grown significantly compared to the predecessor model – which of course has a positive effect on the battery life. However, the running time is still not really grandiose. However, during the test we managed to get through the day without any problems and had 80 percent battery charge in the evening with little use.
| wdt_ID | Smartphone | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moto X Force | 549 |
| 2 | Neffos C5 Max | 0 |
| 3 | UMi London | 248 |
| 4 | Gigaset GS160 | 442 |
| 5 | Sony Xperia XZ | 391 |
| 6 | Kodak Ektra | 293 |
| 7 | Huawei Mate 9 | 505 |
| 8 | Huawei Nova | 317 |
| 9 | BQ Aquaris X | 553 |
| 10 | Neffos X1 | 345 |
| Smartphone | Score |
The internal memory has a capacity of 128 or 512 GB, depending on the version. This should be enough for most purposes.
Result: As always a flagship
All in all, it can be said that the S10 performs very well in terms of design and performance. In the vast majority of cases, the camera delivers great photos, the device is fast and works flawlessly.
Samsung has introduced the smartphone to the market at a high price, but prices for the smallest models (with 128 GB memory) have already dropped from 899 euros to just under 600 euros. For the price one can access in good conscience. Unfortunately we were very disappointed by the LED cover as an accessory.
Samsung Galaxy S10
Workmanship
Features
Battery
Camera
Value for Money
An attractive smartphone with impressive performance.
