Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite

I bought a new phone, Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite and I have been using it for over a month now. For two years (from Nov’ 2017) I have been using a Google Pixel 2, I like the phone – it takes amazing photographs and you get the best experience possible with Android in any phone – the phone never lags on day-to-day tasks, at 5 inches it is compact and delivers a decent battery backup. The shortcomings with the phone were signal quality and the speakers.

Last month, I noticed in Flipkart an offer for a new phone – Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite and at a price of Rs.39,999 (USD 540) I was tempted. The specs were impressive (GSMArena): a massive 6.7 inches super AMOLED display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor, a large 4500mAh battery, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage, a 32MP front camera, and a triple rear-camera setup – 48MP Super Steady, 12MP Ultra Wide and 5MP Macro. I traded-in (exchange) my OnePlus 3T that I have been having from early 2017 as my fully-configured & ready-to-use backup phone, for Rs.8250 (USD 110) – OnePlus 3T has a sturdy build, and was a workhorse, the only thing I disliked with the phone was the camera.

Disclosure: I write reviews about products that I have bought for my usage and paid in full. There were no sponsorship or advertisement or commission of any sort involved in this post. 

Coming from the small Pixel 2, my first impressions with S10 Lite feels were: this was a gigantic phone with a gorgeous display. The battery life was great, easily lasting well-over a day, and the radio (signal) quality is good with less call-drops.

A transparent back cover, USB-C earphones, charger and a screen protector installed

Samsung ships two useful accessories: an USB-C Earphone and a transparent protective case. The camera takes great pictures, has fast focus and no shake. The Selfie camera was much better than the Google Pixel 2.

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite – Triple Camera setup

Being a Samsung phone, the camera app in “Auto” mode over brightens the pictures – for important photos, I go to the “Pro” mode, something which I have never needed to go with the Pixel, thanks to Google’s amazing camera software. My main complaint with the phone will be with the speaker, the audio is less pronounced and subdued. While the ‘face unlock’ works fast, the under-screen fingerprint reader often fails to read my finger and I have to revert to entering PIN – I am missing the physical fingerprint reader of Pixel 2.

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite that I purchased for Rs.31,849 (USD 427)

Initially, I was sceptical of Samsung’s customized Android, but after using it for some time now, I can say the Android 10 with One UI 2.0 is better than I expected. It was mostly non-intrusive. The Phone ships out of the box, the Link to PC feature, using which you can connect to your phone from Windows 10 (Your Phone app) and access Photos, Messages, Notifications and even operate the phone, all without lifting the phone.

I replaced the default Samsung apps with ones from Google:

1. Google Keep
2. Google Calendar
3. Google Contacts
4. Google Fit
5. Google Photos
6. Google Pay
7. Google Chrome
8. Google Assistant
9. GBoard Keyboard

Apps that I have installed in the home screen – Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite

The other apps I have installed include the following:

1. Microsoft SMS Organizer
2. Microsoft To-Do
3. Microsoft Office
4. Microsoft Onedrive
5. Microsoft Authenticator
6. Microsoft Teams
7. Linkedin
8. Dropbox
9. WhatsApp
10. Pocket
11. Evernote
12. Splitwise
13. Ola
14. Uber
15. Swiggy
16. PayTM
17. Amazon
18. SPI Cinemas
19. Pocket Casts
20. Plex.TV
21. Goodreads
22. IMDB
23. Google YouTube
24. JioTV
25. Netflix
26. Amazon Prime Video
27. Amazon Prime Music
28. Amazon Kindle
29. HP Print Service Plugin
30. Sellinam Tamil keyboard

Overall, I am liking this phone, especially considering the price. Good job Samsung!