There has been a lot of talk about the Galaxy Note 9 S Pen lately. Leaked renders and schematics of Samsung’s upcoming phablet have suggested that it would look almost identical last year’s Galaxy Note 8. Of course, it will bring improvements to camera, battery life and other areas. But much of the magic is going to happen in the Galaxy Note 9 S Pen stylus. A reliable Chinese tipster has learned from sources that the new S Pen will be a portable Bluetooth controller.
Galaxy Note 9 S Pen is getting a major upgrade
Ice Universe, who has a decent track record with smartphone leaks, said in a tweet that Samsung will add Bluetooth capabilities to the Galaxy Note 9 S Pen. The stylus has been one of the biggest selling points of the Note series. Since the stylus is getting Bluetooth, it will require an internal battery to make things work. The current S Pen lacks a battery, and is capable of launching only a few features on the phablet when in close proximity.
The Galaxy Note9 SPen can be used to control long-range self-timer, control music playback, because it is a Bluetooth device, it will do something unrelated to the pen. pic.twitter.com/WPS83xUskq
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) July 1, 2018
Thanks to Bluetooth support, the Galaxy Note 9 S Pen could be used to control a long-range self-timer. It could even control music playback on the device. It could also allow users to control photo capture from a distance. For instance, the S Pen will prove handy when you are taking pictures from the phone placed on a tripod. It will also have some work-focused features to attract business users.
Samsung teased the S Pen rather than the phablet itself when it sent out press invites for the Galaxy Note 9 Unpacked event. The launch event will take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City at 11 AM ET on August 9th. The company will also live stream the event online for fans who cannot attend in person.
Ice Universe has said previously that the Galaxy Note 9 S Pen would be “worth the wait.” Reputed Russian tech tipster Eldar Murtazin recently got a chance to spend some time with a pre-production unit of the Note 9. Murtazin also confirmed that the new stylus will get Bluetooth support and some new software features. Last year’s S Pen was already an impressive stylus with support for features like Screen Off Memo, Pen Up, Live Messages, and 4,096 pressure levels.
Do you often use SPen for Galaxy Note? The Note9 SPen feature is worth the wait.
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) June 24, 2018
Galaxy Note 9 specs
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently approved the Galaxy Note 9 with model number SM-N960F. It also certified two other model numbers SM-N960X (Asian variant) and SM-N960F/DS (dual-SIM variant) of the device. The FCC listing revealed that it would offer wireless charging and LTE support.
Just days after the FCC certification, Chinese regulator 3C has also approved the Note 9 with model number SM-N9608. These regulatory approvals are mandatory for a vendor sell their devices in these markets.
Eldar Murtazin also confirmed that the Note 9’s design would be similar to its predecessor. It is said to sport a 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Infinity display, though the top and bottom bezels are expected to be slimmer than Note 8. The upcoming model will be heavier than its predecessor due to a bigger 4,000mAh battery. It will also get an upgraded Bixby 2.0 AI assistant that would enable a more natural communication between the device and the user.
Leaked renders have suggested that the Galaxy Note 9 would feature a horizontally aligned dual camera system on the back. The fingerprint reader will be located below the camera module. The phablet is said to borrow variable apertures and Super Slo-mo from the Galaxy S9 series. Samsung will reportedly use the ISOCELL Plus camera technology in Note 9 to enhance color accuracy and light sensitivity.
According to Murtazin, the Galaxy Note 9 will be powered by the Exynos 9810 (global version) or Snapdragon 845 (US version) chips. The base model will have 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. Other configurations include 8GB/256GB and 8GB/512GB. Samsung is rumored to introduce a new Crown UX skin with the Note 9. The phablet should run Crown UX on top of Android 8.1 Oreo.
