The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is the best smartphone that money can buy. Unfortunately, it's going to take all of your money to buy it (or at least more than you're likely budgeting for a smartphone purchase this year). The iPhone X drove prices to this level, and we complained then, too.

Beautiful 6.4-inch Infinity Display; Superb camera; even in low light; Battery and storage last and last; Bluetooth S Pen shortcuts are fun

Expensive; A lot of small upgrades; No HDR video recording; We hate the Bixby button

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is a catalogue of successes. With a premium build, an absolutely excellent screen, a mature software experience, great cameras, all the power you could possibly need, excellent battery life and fabulous AKG-tuned speakers, there's little it gets wrong.

Excellent display; Great camera performance in low-light; 3.5mm headphone jack; Bluetooth-enabled S Pen; Fantastic battery life

So many features you'll likely never find; Expensive; Bixby button can no longer be redirected; S9+ may suit more casual users

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 on paper doesn't do much to set the world alight. Its specifications match that of one or other previously released Samsung smartphone. What it does do, however, is improve on that hardware in almost all aspects, from a brighter display, better CPU performances, better AI...

There isn't another phone on the market quite like the Samsung Galaxy Note 9. It's unashamedly huge, seriously expensive, and jams pretty much every high-end feature into a surprisingly svelte package.

Battery lasts the day; comfortably; Fantastic; huge display with no notch; S Pen remains unique; Samsung's software has a number of handy features

The overall design of the S9 Plus is better; Bixby button is an annoyance

While some say that the Galaxy S9 is Samsung's most underrated smartphone, it could be said to an extent. The reason - probably Samsung's inability to offer something exciting and different from its predecessors.

Samsung's latest high-end smartphone, the Galaxy Note 9, follows on from last year's Note 8. So-called because of its use of an integrated "stylus" pen (S Pen), the Note 9 has several functions which are appealing to photographers.

Stuck in the same Galaxy

Impressive specs; Stellar display; Stylus functionally remains top tier

Expensive; especially in Canada; Not that much of an upgrade over the Note 8; Camera improvements are marginal

Some have faulted Samsung for not bringing a complete reinvention of the , or some other major platform upgrade. We don't share that same view, as timing of the Note 9 was such that Samsung took what they had to work with (namely Qualcomm's Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform) and seemingly worked hard...

Beautiful premium design; Best big phone display; Great performance; Killer battery life; Great S Pen refinement; Excellent camera; Good external speaker sound; Excellent features and tools with DeX

Very expensive; Sometimes funky video OIS; Fingerprint magnet

Old Galaxy Note owners, it's time to put those failing, ancient phones down and pick up this beauty, with its all-day battery. The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is the ultimate productivity phone right now, a gorgeous beast of a phablet that lets you sign PDFs, annotate presentations, and take conference...

Big battery; Lots of storage; Excellent S Pen stylus; Class-leading processor and modem

Expensive; Heavy

The Galaxy Note 9 is Samsung's ultimate powerhouse smartphone. It's hard to think of much else it can cram into a phone, particularly when this one is so good. Here's our full review