Samsung Galaxy Note 8 vs Galaxy S8+ design, specifications, and more: Here’s what has changed

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 has finally been launched, and the flagship smartphone will hit the shelves in the US starting September 15. The Galaxy Note 8 takes several cues from Samsung’s Galaxy S8 series smartphones, including the larger screen size. With a 6.3-inch Infinity display, Samsung says the Galaxy Note 8 is its biggest Note device ever. Just like the Galaxy S8, the Note 8 smartphone gets a widescreen 18:9 ratio, and it has been designed to easily fit in users’ hand.
As with other Note devices, Samsung Galaxy Note 8 ships with S Pen. The S Pen has a 0.7 mm tip, thinner than 1.6 mm in the one that was released with the Galaxy Note 5. There’s a button on the side of the device that can be pressed to use the S Pen as an eraser. It has 4096 levels of pressure and other features include live message, smart select, Bixby Vision, and more.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 comes with company’s voice assistant Bixby, which was unveiled with Galaxy S8 series smartphones. Both Galaxy Note 8 and S Pen are rated IP68, which makes the devices dust and water resistant. So how do Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy S8+ smartphones really differ in terms of design, specifications, and features? We take a look:
Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8+ Design and Display
Samsung Galaxy S8+ and Galaxy Note 8 look similar in terms of design, except the latter has more squarish edges. Both feature dual edged curved glass back and and bezel-less, edge-to-edge (Infinity) display covering the entire front. There’s no physical home button on either of the two smartphones, and fingerprint scanner has been shifted to the back.
Coming to display, the Galaxy Note 8 gets a 6.3-inch Quad HD+ Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 2960 x 1440 pixels and a pixel density of 521 ppi. Samsung Galaxy S8+ has a slightly smaller 6.2-inch Quad HD+Super AMOLED screen. The display in both Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy S8+ is dual edge. Unlike Galaxy S8+, the Galaxy Note 8 ships with S Pen.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 can be bought in Midnight Black, Deepsea Blue, Orchid Gray, and Maple Gold colour variants. It measures 162.5 x 74.8 x 8.6 mm and weighs 195 grams. The Galaxy S8+ is available in Midnight Black, Coral Blue, Maple Gold, and Orchid Gray colour options. The dimensions of the smartphone are 159.5 x 73.4 x 8.1 mm. It weighs a little lighter at 173 grams.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8+ Camera
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 gets a major upgrade when it comes to camera department. The Galaxy Note 8 features dual rear camera setup and this is the first time a smartphone maker has introduced optical image stabilization (OIS) for both cameras. The cameras on Galaxy Note 8 offer 2X optical zoom, 10X digital zoom, and dual capture.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 comes with 12MP + 12MP Dual Pixel rear cameras where one lens in telephoto whereas the other is wide-angle camera. Features of the telephoto camera include auto focus, 1.0µm pixel size, 45-degree filed-of-view, and f/2.4 aperture. Those of the wide-angle lens include auto focus, 1.4µm pixel size, 77-degree field of view, f/1.7 aperture, Pro mode, Panorama, Slow motion, Hyperlapse, and Food mode.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 gets an 8MP auto focus front camera with f/1.7 aperture, 1.22µm pixel size, 80-degree filed of view, selective focus, and wide selfie. Samsung Galaxy S8+ sports single 12 MP rear camera with Dual Pixel technology, f/1.7 aperture and OIS. The front camera is 8MP with f/1.7 aperture, auto focus and flash.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8+ Processor, Battery, Memory
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is powered by the same 10nm, 64-bit, Octa-core Snapdragon 835 processor that we saw in the Galaxy S8+ smartphone. The devices ship with Samsung’s Exynos 8895 processor outside the US. Samsung Galaxy S8+ ships with 6GB RAM coupled with three storage options – 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB. The storage is expandable up to 256GB via a microSD card.
Samsung Galaxy S8+ features 4GB RAM and 64GB of internal memory, which can be further expanded up to 256GB via a microSD card slot. There’s a 6GB RAM + 128GB storage variant of Galaxy S8+ as well.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8+ and S Pen are IP68 certified, meaning the devices are protected against dust ingress and are water resistant. Water resistance rating is based on test conditions of submersion in up to 1.5 meters of fresh water for up to 30 minutes.
On the battery front, the Galaxy Note 8 is backed by a 3,300mAh one, while the Galaxy S8+ gets a 3,500mAh battery. The Galaxy Note 8 uses a USB Type-C slot for charging and comes with support for fast charging technology and wireless charging.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8+ Software, Security, Authentication
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 runs Android 7.1.1 Nougat, with Android Oreo update expected in a few months. Samsung Galaxy S8+ ships with Android Nougat. Both the smartphones come with Samsung’s own voice-assistant Bixby out-of-the-box. Pressing the Bixby button will take user to Bixby Home, while pressing and holding it will enable people to give voice commands to the assistant. They also support Samsung Pay.

On the security front – apart from lock pattern, PIN, password; both Samsung Galaxy S8+ and Galaxy Note 8 support biometrics lock options such as iris scanner, fingerprint scanner, and face recognition. Both the smartphones ship with Knox protection that offers real-time device monitoring as well as malware prevention. Users can put their apps, photos, movies, etc in Secure Folder, which can only be accessed via iris scanning or fingerprint scanning.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8+ price
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is already up for pre-orders in the US. The smartphone starts at $930 (or approx Rs. 59,561) for the base 6GB RAM + 64GB storage variant. In UK, it is priced at at £869 (or approx Rs 71, 171). India price and availability hasn’t been announced as of now. But the pricing makes it clear the Galaxy Note 8 is one of the most expensive phones launched by the company. Samsung Galaxy S8+ with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage costs Rs 64,900 in India. The 128GB storage option was launched at Rs 74,900.