Samsung Galaxy S9 vs. Galaxy S9+: Which should you buy?

An easy-to-manage decision.

Samsung’s seen serious success with launching its yearly flagship in two sizes. In the last couple of years, the larger version has become the more desirable model while the smaller turned into the solid, default choice at a lower price.

Unlike the Galaxy S8 release, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ have more differences than just size: you get a few feature and spec improvements as well, offering a bit more to justify the higher price.

So when you go to get a new Samsung flagship, you have a choice: should you buy the Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+? Here’s what you need to know to make the best decision.

What’s the same

When it comes to design, Samsung doesn’t discriminate between its two flagship sizes. Whether you get the compact Galaxy S9 or larger Galaxy S9+, the materials and proportions are identical. Neither size has an exclusive color or hardware feature. When it comes to the core experience of using the phones, you won’t notice a difference beyond the size.

The screens are of course different dimensions, but the resolution and quality of the panel are the same. Yes, that means that the Galaxy S9 has a slightly higher pixel density, but in real-world use you’d never notice the difference — particularly if you leave the phones set at the 1080p resolution they are out of the box.

What’s different

The Galaxy S9+’s differences come down to a larger size, two spec changes and a camera addition. The most important ones to consider are about size: moving up to a 6.2-inch display gives you more room to work and play, but also makes the phone larger and relatively tough to manage in one hand. The Galaxy S9+ is about 10 mm taller, 5 mm wider and 15% heavier than the standard Galaxy S9 — that’s nothing to sneeze at.

But to go along with that increased size is, of course, a larger battery, which at 3500mAh can help you get through a full day without worrying about charging. The capacity is over 15% higher than the Galaxy S9’s 3000mAh, but the larger display certainly doesn’t use that much extra power — so you’ll be able to do all of the same things for longer on a charge.

The Galaxy S9+ gets a secondary camera, but it may not be a deciding factor in your buying decision.

The primary camera on the Galaxy S9+ is identical to the Galaxy S9, but the larger chassis afforded Samsung the room to add in a secondary camera that mimics the Galaxy Note 8’s. That means it has a longer “telephoto” focal length, roughly twice the length of the main camera. The secondary camera lets you seamlessly zoom in without losing resolution at 2X, and enables Samsung’s “Live Focus” portrait mode that artificially blurs the background behind your subject for a dramatic effect.

The secondary sensor isn’t the same type of “Super Speed” Dual Pixel that the main camera is, so the quality isn’t the same. And as we saw with the Note 8, those extra features of zooming and Live Focus aren’t something that completely changes the camera experience. The main camera’s improvements in this generation are far more important for daily photography — you just have to decide how much you want the zooming and Live Focus, because you just don’t get them on the Galaxy S9.

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ specs

The least consequential addition in the Galaxy S9+ is more RAM, which Samsung bumped up to 6GB to match the Galaxy Note 8. Considering it left the standard Galaxy S9 with 4GB, and the two phones run identical software, it’s hard to think that Samsung’s done much optimization to take advantage of that extra RAM itself. But the extra memory will, of course, help you hold just a few more applications in the background, and give you more runway into handling future software updates and more powerful apps. This is absolutely a “nice-to-have” and not a necessary feature.

Bottom line: Which should you buy?

As I said from the start, at this point, the Galaxy S9 is the default choice when you walk in the store. If you’re unsure about whether you want a “big” phone, start by using the standard Galaxy S9 — you won’t regret the size, and it can do almost everything the larger Galaxy S9+ can.

You’re going to want to start with the standard S9 and decide whether it’s worth spending the extra money on a second camera and larger battery.

By moving up to the Galaxy S9+, you have to know you like a bigger phone — in that you want the extra screen space for everything you do and need the extra battery life, but also that you can manage the extra size and give up one-handed usability. If you want to take that trade-off, you then also get the bonuses of more RAM and a secondary camera — I very clearly put those two additions below the decision regarding screen size and battery capacity.

Finally, remember the cost involved. To get that bigger screen, larger battery and couple extra features, you have to pay about $150 more for the Galaxy S9+. Over the course of a two-year payment plan, it’s about $6 more a month — but everyone has their own threshold for how much they’ll pay for a new phone, especially when it’s just incrementally better than the other option.

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+

• Hands-on with the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+
• Galaxy S9 and S9+: Everything you need to know!
• Complete Galaxy S9 and S9+ specs
• Galaxy S9 vs. iPhone X: Metal and glass sandwiches
• Galaxy S9 vs. Google Pixel 2: Which should you buy?
• Join our Galaxy S9 forums

MrMobile Hands-On: the Galaxy S9 is an incremental update with intense optics

The Android world is a diverse landscape of distinctive, powerful, and sometimes bizarre smartphones … but let’s face it: Samsung’s new Android flagship is always “the next big thing.” The Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ are all you’re going to be hearing about for the next few weeks – and even if nine out of ten people wouldn’t be able to tell them apart from their immediate predecessors at a glance, there are at least a few new features worth checking out. Among them: a fingerprint sensor whose placement actually makes sense; revamped speakers for more immersive audio; and a variable-aperture camera capable of some truly magical slow-motion video.

Just how iterative are these Galaxy S8 sequels, and how old does your current phone need to be for you to consider upgrading to them? Get an early taste ahead of the full Galaxy S9 review, in MrMobile’s Galaxy S9 / Galaxy S9+ Hands-On above! Then be sure to hit up the Android Central preview post for the deeper dive.

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Where to buy the Galaxy S9: Best deals for your new phone

It’s more expensive than last year.

The Galaxy S9 and S9+ are coming on Friday, March 16, but we already know how much they will cost, and where they will be available. Here’s everything you need to know.

U.S.

T-Mobile

You’ll be able to pre-order the Galaxy S9 and S9+ starting 9:01pm PT on March 1, or just after midnight ET March 2. T-Mobile is doing its usual trade-in bill credit, offering $360 off either the Galaxy S9 or S9+ with an eligible trade-in.

Here are the phones eligible for $360 in credit:

• GS8
• GS8+
• GS8 Active
• GS7
• GS7 edge
• GS7 Active
• Note 8
• iPhone 8
• iPhone 8+
• iPhone 7
• iPhone 7+
• iPhone 6s
• iPhone 6s+
• LG V30
• LG V30+

Here are the phones eligible for $200 in credit:

• GS4
• GS5
• GS6
• GS6 edge
• GS6 edge+
• GS6 active
• Note 4
• Note 5
• iPhone 5s
• iPhone SE
• iPhone 6
• iPhone 6+
• LG V20
• LG G6
• LG G5

As for official price, here’s what T-Mobile says:

The Galaxy S9 is available in Midnight Black, Lilac Purple or Coral Blue for just $30/month on the T-Mobile Equipment Installment Plan ($0 down, FRP: $720), with the larger Galaxy S9+ also available for pre-order in the same colors for $30/month ($120 down, FRP: $840).

T-Mobile says that the S9 series plugs into its new 600MHz spectrum, which offers more coverage in rural areas.

Availability applies to MetroPCS, too.

See at T-Mobile

AT&T

AT&T customers can pre-order the Galaxy S9 starting March 2, with an on-sale date March 16 in stores and online. The same for Cricket Mobile users, too.

Here’s the pricing:

On AT&T Next, consumers can buy the Samsung Galaxy S9 for $26.34 or the Samsung Galaxy S9+ for $30.50 over 30 months.

In other words, you’ll end up paying a little over $790 for the Galaxy S9 and $915 for the Galaxy S9+ if you go with AT&T. Compared to T-Mobile, that’s a price increase of $70 and $75, respectively.

See at AT&T

Xfinity Mobile

If you’re a Comcast customer rocking that Xfinity Mobile life, you can pre-order the Galaxy S9 and S9+ in Lilac Purple, Coral Blue, and Midnight Black on March 2 with pre-registrations beginning February 26. On March 16, the phones will officially launch both online and at physical Xfinity Stores.

To help commemorate the launch fo the Galaxy S9/S9+, you’ll be able to get a $250 prepaid gift card when purchasing a select Samsung phone on a new line of service between February 26 and March 22. Better yet, Xfinity Mobile is also offering a guarnateed $200 credit when trading in a qualified device.

See at Xfinity Mobile

Verizon

For customers on Verizon, you’ll be able to pick up the Galaxy S9 for $33.33/month and the Galaxy S9+ for $929.99/month. Both of these are stretched out over the course of 24 months, meaning you’ll ultimately pay $799.99 for the S9 and $929.99 for the S9+.

To help reduce those costs, you can trade-in an eligible phone on Verizon and get a credit up to $350. Additionally, Verizon is also offering a $150 prepaid MasterCard if you port your existing number to a new line of service.

• $350 credit – iPhone X/8/8 Plus, Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+/Note 8
• $300 credit – iPhone 7/7 Plus/6S/6S Plus, Google Pixel/Pixel XL/Pixel 2/Pixel 2 XL, LG G6/V30, Motorola Z2 Force/Z Force, Samsung Galaxy S7/S7 Edge/S7 Active
• $200 credit – iPhone 6/6 Plus, HTC 10, LG G5/V20, Motorola Moto Z Droid/Z2 Play, Samsung Galaxy S6/S6 edge/S6 edge+/S6 Active/Note 5
• $100 credit – iPhone SE, HTC M9/M9+, LG G4/V10, Motorola Moto Z Play/Turbo 2, Samsung Galaxy S5/Note 4/Note Edge

You can register for updates now and pre-orders will begin March 2.

See at Verizon

Sprint

This section will be updated when we get more information.

Unlocked

If you prefer buying your phones outright rather than paying for them month-to-month, you can get the latest entries in the Galaxy series direct from Samsung’s website.

In the U.S., you’ll pay $719.99 for the Galaxy S9 and $839.99 for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Samsung

Canada, UK, India, and rest of world

Rogers

For our Canadian readers, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that Rogers will carry the Galaxy S9 and S9+. The amount you pay depends on which plan type you choose, with the pricing working out as follows:

• Premium+ Tab – $249 for the Galaxy S9 / $379 for the Galaxy S9+
• Premium Tab – $449 for the Galaxy S9 / $579 for the Galaxy S9+
• Smart Tab – $599 for the Galaxy S9 / $729 for the Galaxy S9+
• Talk & Text or No Tab – $999 for the Galaxy S9 / $1129 for the Galaxy S9+

You can get either the S9 or S9+ for as low as $0.93 after trading in an eligible device with activation on a 2-year Share Everything plan, but you’ll need to either buy the phones in person or have them ship to your local Rogers store to take advantage of this.

As if that wasn’t enough, Rogers is also offering a free Samsung Fast Wireless Charging Stand (a $90 value) with the purchase of a Galaxy S9/S9+ on select 2-year Share Everything Plans. Unlike the above promo, this is available both in-stores and online.

See at Rogers

O2

O2 in the United Kingdom is selling the Galaxy S9 for £49.99 upfront and then £56/month for 24 months. If you want the larger and more impressive Galaxy S9+, you’ll pay the same £49.99 upfront cost but a more expensive £61/month charge.

Thanks to the O2 Recycle program, you can score £100 off the purchase of either phone when trading in the Galaxy S7, S7 edge, S6, S6 edge, or S6 edge+. To ensure you get these savings, you’ll want to get your pre-order in by March 15 and trade-in your current device by April 15.

See at O2

Vodafone

Vodafone is also offering the Galaxy S9 series in the UK, and for the regular S9 you’ll pay £29 upfront followed by £59/month.

If you want to step up to the Galaxy S9+, you’ll pay a bit more ay £49 upfront and then £69/month.

See at Vodafone

EE Mobile

For EE Mobile customers, you can get the Galaxy S9 for £58/month and the S9+ for £68/month. The former comes with 64GB of storage while the latter has 128GB, but no matter which you choose, you’ll be able to get the phones in either Lilac Purple, Coral Blue, or Midnight Black.

Similar to a lot of other carriers, EE Moible is also running its own trade-in deal. If you have a Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge, you can trade it in to EE and get a £250 discount on either the S9 or S9+.

See at EE Mobile

Modern Dad on HomePod: It’s only for the Apple Faithful

Creating converts will have to wait.

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I love me some connected speakers. I’ve got almost every speaker Sonos has released, spread throughout my home. I’ve got every Amazon Echo ever sold. (Including, yes, this thing.) I’ve got all three entries in the Google Home line.

I am, as the kids say, a fan of the audios. (The kids don’t say that? Well, they should.)

So I was very much looking forward to the Apple HomePod. I mean, sure. On one hand you wouldn’t even have to buy the thing to know that the following things would be true:

• HomePod would sound great.
• HomePod would look great.
• HomePod would treat Apple’s own devices and services first, and everybody else’s second.
• HomePod would cost more than it should.

OK, so we got surprised on that last part. At $350 HomePod is priced very competitively for a speaker of its caliber.

But it also comes with some pretty serious caveats. If you’re not all-in on Apple stuff — iPhone or iPod, Siri and Apple Music — don’t even bother at this point. In fact, you can boil it down even further. What device do you use most often to play music? If it’s not an iPhone or iPad, don’t bother.

HomePod is a great single speaker for Apple fans — and lousy for everybody (and everything) else.

If you’re a fan of flooding your home with music, with the same thing playing at the same time in multiple rooms (and I should point out that I mean wirelessly, having helped my father run what seemed like miles of speaker cable in our homes back in the 1980s), then don’t bother.

Same goes for using HomePod with AppleTV. Sure, it’ll work. But you don’t get the same room-filling sound, and that means your TV sounds like it’s got a single speaker set to one side. Which it does. And that’s no way to go through life.

More: Google Max vs. Sonos

No. HomePod is good at doing a few specific things. Apple Music, and Siri, and Siri controlling Apple Music. That’s it. (OK, it’s also good at mucking up certain finishes on certain wood surfaces. But enough nerds have shed enough blood over that one already.)

AirPlay 2 will help, whenever it’s actually released. And the adage is as true now as it ever was — buy a device for what it does today, not what it might do in the future.

Sonos still rules at whole-home music. (To say nothing of it supporting a ridiculous number of services.) Google Home one-ups Amazon in the audio quality department, and I prefer it for all the smart home stuff. But Amazon Echo also isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and it’s still a great option for a lot of folks.

But HomePod? You’re going to have to want it. For now, it’s for the Apple Faithful only.

Modern Dad

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Turn your existing desk into a standing one with this $141 converter

Sit less, stand more.

This AmazonBasics sit/stand converter lets you turn your current sitting desk into a standing one with ease. When it was first released, this adjustable stand sold for around $220, and today’s price drop makes it the most affordable it has ever been.

It has a 20-pound maximum capacity, but that should be enough to accommodate your laptop, monitor, keyboard, mouse and more. There are two built-in clips to make cable management easy, and switching between sitting and standing is as simple as pulling a lever. It sits just two inches above your current desk at its lowest and extends up to 20 inches at its highest.

There is no assembly required as it ships ready to use. Simply unbox it, put it on your desk, and start standing. If this is your first standing desk, you may want to consider picking up an anti-fatigue mat as well to make the transition a bit easier for you.

See at Amazon

For $350 you can get a Prime-exclusive Moto X4 and second-gen Echo

Why not bundle and save?

We did recently see the Prime-exclusive Moto X4 drop down to $300, and while this isn’t quite as affordable as that, it’s actually a better offer. Amazon currently sells the phone on its own for $349.99, but for a limited time, you can get a free second-gen Amazon Echo with the purchase as part of a bundle. The Echo sells for $99.99 right now.

You can pick between the silver and black phone for the bundle, but it doesn’t appear as though Amazon is offering color options for the Echo itself. Experience the true capabilities of Alexa using its hands-free on both the Moto X4 and 2nd-gen Echo. Use it to control your smart home accessories, answer your trivia questions, listen to music, and so much more.

See at Amazon

Will my Samsung Gear VR work with the Galaxy S9?

Sometimes you have to update your Samsung hardware in pairs, but that’s not a worry with the Galaxy S9.

The Gear VR is designed to work with Samsung’s flagship phones, but you have to make sure that you have generations of both devices that work together. With the unveiling of the Galaxy S9, many will ask if their next phone will work with their current Gear VR headset.

The short answer is yes, as long as you’re using the latest version of the Gear VR, but here are some more details to make sure that you’re good to go.

Checking your device’s compatibility

If you’re using the latest version of the Gear VR, it will work with the Galaxy S9. Another way to view it is that if your Gear VR works with the Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+ then it will work with the Galaxy S9. You can tell that you’re headset is the latest version a couple ways.

First, you can tell just by the look of the device. If the headset is black and comes with the motion controller, then it works with the Galaxy S8 and therefore will also work with the Galaxy S9.

Second, you can check your headset’s compatibility using your Gear VR’s model number. You can follow our how-to guide to find your model number. If your device’s model number is SM-R325 or SM-R324 then your Gear VR will work with the Galaxy S9.

Will you be upgrading to the Galaxy S9 and using a Gear VR? Let us know in the comments below to share your plans.

Russia hacked the Olympics and tried to pin it on North Korea

Now that the 2018 Winter Olympics are over, we’re now learning who was responsible for hacking the games’ systems… and the culprit won’t surprise you at all. US intelligence officials speaking anonymously to the Washington Post claimed that spies at Russia’s GRU agency had compromised up to 300 Olympics-related PCs as of early February, hacked South Korean routers in January and launched new malware on February 9th, the day the Olympics began. They even tried to make it look like North Korea was responsible by using North Korean internet addresses and “other tactics,” according to the American sources.

It’s unclear if Russia was directly responsible for the chaos during the opening ceremony, which disrupted internet and broadcast systems to the point where some guests couldn’t even print their tickets. However, the new evidence suggests Russia was in a prime position for such an attack. It also has the motivation: the country hasn’t been shy about voicing its anger over its ban following revelations of state-organized doping, and it leaked Olympic athletes’ health data following the 2016 Summer Olympics. North Korea is considered an unlikely candidate as it was using the games to improve relations with South Korea.

The same unit responsible for these hacks is also believed to be responsible for the NotPetya attacks that wiped computers in numerous countries during 2017.

Neither US officials nor Olympics overseers have publicly blamed Russia, and it’s not certain they ever will. Olympics representatives hinted that they knew who perpetrated the opening ceremony attack but were keeping it a secret. And it’s easy to see reasons why they wouldn’t want to lay blame even now. Organizers risked stoking tensions at the same time as they were running an event promoting world harmony. It’s virtually certain that Russia would deny any involvement, too, even if there was smoking gun evidence. As it stands, the hacking campaign suggests that future games’ overseers will have to treat cybersecurity as a top priority.

Source: Washington Post

Nokia’s new affordable smartphones prioritize design

Generating hype around the Nokia brand with retro-inspired feature phones is all well and good, but that doesn’t necessarily result in people opening their wallets. And to best cash in on any interest, you need a little something for everyone. To that end, HMD Global has announced a number of new Android smartphones at MWC beyond its pricey flagship. There’s the Nokia 1, the company’s cheapest entry-level device to date; the second-gen Nokia 6, which is going global after debuting in China last month and the Nokia 7 Plus, a bigger version of the China-exclusive 7, which was released last fall.

I’m not going to dedicate much time to poring over the specs. As you can see from the table, it’s all more-or-less par for the course. By the numbers, the Nokia 1 packs the usual specifications you’d expect for an entry-level device at an affordable price. Similarly, the Nokia 6 (a known quantity anyway) hits that mid-range sweet spot, and the Nokia 7 Plus is appropriately beefed up to reflect the added pressure it puts on the purse strings. However, beyond the specs, each of the handsets also has its own distinct design and personality.

The Nokia 1 is by far the cutest of the three, conjuring up memories of some of the old Nokia Lumia Windows Phones (particularly the Lumia 620). It still feels compact despite a wealth of bezel framing its 4.5-inch display, and because the curvature at the top and bottom of the handset flow differently, it’s a more interesting shape than a simple square with rounded corners. The Nokia 1 is also unashamedly plastic, with HMD spinning that as a way to further personalize your phone with different Xpress-on covers (a term we haven’t heard in quite a while).

The affordable device will be one of the first running Android Oreo (Go Edition) when it ships in April. This offshoot of Google’s mobile OS includes leaner Go versions of apps like Gmail, Assistant and Maps, which are designed to perform better on entry-level hardware. On a related note, all other Nokia smartphones from MWC onwards will be part of the Android One program, meaning they run stock clean software and are guaranteed to get OS updates for two years and security updates for three.

HMD only launched the Nokia 2 last fall — an entry-level device itself — but the Nokia 1 is even cheaper at $85 (circa €69/£61). Like Motorola’s bargain bucket Moto C, it won’t be for everyone but is aimed squarely at those wanting a cheap smartphone that’s more than capable of doing all the basics.

You may have already read about the second-gen Nokia 6 when it was announced for the Chinese market in early January, but at the beginning of April, it makes its global debut. The €279 (around $343 or £246) mid-ranger hasn’t picked up any upgrades for 2018, but boasts a more refined design. Much like Nokia phones from many moons ago, this thing is an absolute brick (in a good way), machined out of a single block of aluminum. Of all HMD’s smartphones, it’s by far the most geometric and industrial.

Though it’s mostly flat and rectangular, it’s softened by thin chamfered edges and lovely, luxurious two-tone color schemes. But if boxy isn’t your style, then maybe the mellow curves of the Nokia 7 Plus will be more appealing. This slightly higher-end handset has the same robust build quality as the Nokia 6 but feels altogether different due to its ceramic-esque back — an effect created by bonding a number of layers of paint to the aluminum frame. You will have two colors to choose from, but I feel the bronze-tinted metal dotted around the device blends better on the black model than the white.

It might be called the Nokia 7 Plus, but it’s quite different to the China-exclusive Nokia 7 released in October last year. As you’ve probably guessed, the Plus denotes a bigger screen: a 6-inch LCD display with full HD+ resolution (2,160 x 1,080), an 18:9 aspect ratio and super-slim bezels, to be exact. The camera situation has changed dramatically, too. Instead of a 16-megapixel shooter, the 7 Plus has a 12MP camera with Zeiss optics as well as a 13MP number with 2x optical zoom. The front-facing camera has also been bumped up from five megapixels to 16. The Nokia 7 Plus launches in April like the other two devices and will cost €399 (around $490, or £351), putting it somewhere between a mid-range device and a flagship.

Like many phone manufacturers, HMD is trying to make sure there’s a Nokia phone for everyone and every budget. It’s not solely concerned with making the spec sheet as attractive as possible, though, ensuring each handset has its own aesthetic appeal.

Catch up on the latest news from MWC 2018 right here.

The Nokia 8 Sirocco edition is 95-percent vacuum-molded glass

HMD brought a Nokia phone for all tastes to this year’s MWC. Just as some people might want a retro feature phone or an entry-level smartphone, others want the best that money can buy. HMD’s latest offering to these flagship fiends is the Nokia 8 Sirocco, which is pitched as a special edition of the Nokia 8 that launched last summer. Make no mistake, this isn’t merely the same phone in a new funky color. It sports a completely overhauled design consisting almost entirely of glass.

If it looks so different, why bother referring to it as a special edition and simply call it a new phone altogether? Well, HMD probably wanted to be clear that, in some ways, this is still the Nokia 8. (If you’re interested, there was special Sirocco edition of the Nokia 8800 way back when, which is where the company got the name from.) Yes, it’s still running Android (8.0 Oreo), and inside you’ll find the same octa-core Snapdragon 835 chip, 6GB of RAM and 128 gigs of storage. But that’s more or less where the similarities end.

Where the Nokia 8 was splash-proof, the Sirocco edition has an IP67 water- and dust-proof rating. It now supports wireless charging and has slightly a bigger battery capacity of 3,260mAh. None of the cameras are the same, either. You still get two around the back of the device, but instead of dual 13-megapixel sensors, you’re looking at one 12MP wide-angle shooter and a 13MP camera with 2x optical zoom (the new Nokia 7 Plus has the same setup). The selfie cam has taken a hit, though. It’s just a 5MP affair compared to the Nokia 8’s 13MP front-facer.

Despite the many changes to the spec sheet, design is the major differentiator here. The Nokia 8 was pretty standard fare: glass up front, aluminum unibody everywhere else. The Sirocco edition, however, is 95-percent vacuum-molded Gorilla Glass 5. That other five percent is the stainless steel chassis that’s only exposed to the air around the perimeter — all 2mm of it. It’s a glossy, striking handset that feels great in the hand. The only downside, really, is that glass has a habit of breaking.

Because the front pane of glass is now curved, there’s a new flexible display to go with it. The Nokia 8’s 5.3-inch LCD display has been replaced by a 5.5-inch, bendy OLED screen with the same 2,560 x 1,440 resolution. The display follows the curvature of the glass as it rounds each side to meet the stainless-steel seam — a design choice ripped straight out of Samsung’s playbook, not that we mind. Finally, the Sirocco edition looks that much neater as it does away with the physical key on the Nokia 8’s bottom bezel.

The Nokia 8 Sirocco is an iterative upgrade rather than a brand new flagship, but it looks and feels like a whole other class of premium compared to its predecessor. It’s important to stress just how solid this phone is, too. Combining the weight of the stainless-steel frame with that all-glass design creates a handset you imagine you could knock nails in with (don’t try that at home, mind.)

The only sticking point I see could be the price. When the Nokia 8 Sirocco launches in early April, it’ll go for around €749 (roughly $920/£659). That’s not a huge ask for a flagship phone. The iPhone 8 Plus starts at $799, and you can bet the Galaxy S9 we expect to see unveiled at MWC will be more expensive. But, considering the Nokia 8 went on sale for €599 six months ago, the Sirocco edition might look a bit too expensive for some people who value the latest bleeding-edge hardware over a funky design.

Catch up on the latest news from MWC 2018 right here.