The Samsung Galaxy S10+ has now been credited with taking the top smartphone ratings spot by Consumer Reports.
The product-testing and consumer-focused organization made the announcement today citing the Galaxy S10+ is the overall best phone you can buy. However, Consumer Reports took an interesting approach with its validation, suggesting it is not the usual reasons (alone) that make it such a great purchase.
There’s no denying the Galaxy S10+ comes with all the bells and whistles, as well as the high-end and detailed specs, one might expect from a flagship smartphone. However, what seems to have caught the organization’s eye the most is the “exceptional way it performs the basics.”
In summing this up, Consumer Reports states the Galaxy S10+ excels in areas such as the battery life, the cameras, and durability. Which presumably when coupled with its usual premium selling points is now what makes it such a top attraction.
In spite of the high praise, the verdict was not overwhelming positive though. For example, when looking closer at the cameras Consumer Reports found the front-facing cameras were not fantastic in all respects, and especially when it came to employing the help of a bokeh effect.
Similarly, the embedded fingerprint sensor (which is one of the main premium selling points) was not so raved about due to its tendency to be “buggy.”
Not all smartphones are created equal, and that’s even true of the Galaxy S10 series. When the Galaxy S10 was announced, it was introduced in three primary flavors: the Galaxy S10e, Galaxy S10 and the Galaxy S10+.
Here, the focus is on the Galaxy S10+ specifically. This is the largest, most premium and most expensive version of the Galaxy S10 (excluding the upcoming 5G model), and so consumers in general should not necessarily expect to receive a product of identical quality if opting for one of the other options.
For example, the standard Galaxy S10 and the more affordable Galaxy S10e both feature lesser capacity batteries and so are not expected to offer as long of a duration away from the charger as the + model might. In addition, during the durability testing the cheaper Galaxy S10e was found to not hold up quite as well as the standard and + options.
On a similar note, the smartphones ratings now take into account “reliability” although this is not necessarily something that consumers should bank on with the latest announcement explaining this particular factor is more relevant to the brand, than the device in question. It’s simply more of an indicator the device comes from a name considered reliable, based on consumer feedback.
The latest report does take a moment to caution buyers before purchasing, suggesting if they are interested in holding on to their next phone for an extended period of time before upgrading again, then they might want to take a moment and wait to see what price point the 5G model arrives at – due to the likelihood of the 5G option being more of a future-proofed solution.
You can find out more about what makes the Galaxy S10 sing by checking out our good review, or learn more about some of the ‘buyers bewares’ by checking out our Galaxy S10 bad review.