Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro Review
Samsung's smartphone lineup has a lot of overlaps and there are confusing similarities between models, especially since older ones continue to be sold alongside newer ones. The Korean giant has also recycled its basic template over and over again, and even with a move to metal bodies over the past year or so, most of its phones look just like one another. With its nimble Chinese competitors releasing new models every few months and shoving more features and better specifications into devices across the price spectrum, it has been hard for Samsung to keep up.
However, the new Galaxy C9 Pro is a direct shot against all the upstarts nipping at its heels. It's the biggest departure we've seen from this company in ages, in terms of styling as well as strategy. It capitalises on the premium Samsung brand in a price segment that people look at when they want a polished, capable device, and it is designed around exactly the features and specifications that people want right now.
Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro look and feel
The metal wraps around the sides of the device, and the glass has subtly rounded edges - this is a look we've seen on many phones before, but Samsung manages to make it seem like its own.
The most surprising new touch is that Samsung has gone with striped antenna lines on the top and bottom of the phone. While these lines look like grooves, they're thankfully flush with the rear. The camera lens does protrude a tiny bit, but it's nearly unnoticeable. It's worth noting that this phone doesn't have a water and dust protection rating.
There's still a physical Home button with an integrated fingerprint sensor below the screen, with capacitive buttons on either side of it. There are volume buttons on the left and a power button on the right. Also on the right edge are two separate trays; one for dual Nano-SIMs, and one for a microSD card. On the bottom, you'll find a USB Type-C port with a standard 3.5mm audio socket to one side and a tiny speaker cutout on the other.
The Galaxy C9 Pro is quite hefty at 190g, and you'll definitely feel its weight in a pocket and in your hand. The 6-inch screen necessitates a tall, wide body, but it's only a few millimetres bigger than an iPhone 7 Plus in both dimensions, and is in fact quite a bit thinner at 6.9mm. The matte texture does a lot to make this phone easy enough to hold - one-handed use isn't impossible at all, but we would not attempt it when walking or being jostled around in a bus.
Surprisingly, this phone is available only in black and gold.
| LAUNCH | Announced | 2016, October |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Available. Released 2016, November |
| BODY | Dimensions | 162.9 x 80.7 x 6.9 mm (6.41 x 3.18 x 0.27 in) |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 189 g (6.67 oz) | |
| SIM | Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) |
| DISPLAY | Type | Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 6.0 inches (~75.5% screen-to-body ratio) | |
| Resolution | 1080 x 1920 pixels (~367 ppi pixel density) | |
| Multitouch | Yes | |
| Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass |
| PLATFORM | OS | Android 6.0.1 (Marshmallow) |
|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Qualcomm MSM8976 Snapdragon 653 | |
| CPU | Octa-core (4x1.95 GHz Cortex-A72 & 4x1.4 GHz Cortex-A53) | |
| GPU | Adreno 510 |
| MEMORY | Card slot | microSD, up to 256 GB (dedicated slot) |
|---|---|---|
| Internal | 64 GB, 6 GB RAM |
| CAMERA | Primary | 16 MP, f/1.9, phase detection autofocus, dual-LED (dual tone) flash |
|---|---|---|
| Features | Geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, panorama, HDR | |
| Video | 1080p@30fps | |
| Secondary | 16 MP, f/1.9, 1080p |
| SOUND | Alert types | Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones |
|---|---|---|
| Loudspeaker | Yes, with stereo speakers | |
| 3.5mm jack | Yes | |
| - Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic |
| COMMS | WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, WiFi Direct, hotspot |
|---|---|---|
| Bluetooth | 4.2, A2DP, LE | |
| GPS | Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS/ BDS (region dependent) | |
| NFC | Yes | |
| Radio | Stereo FM radio with RDS | |
| USB | Type-C 1.0 reversible connector |
| FEATURES | Sensors | Fingerprint (front-mounted), accelerometer, proximity, compass |
|---|---|---|
| Messaging | SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Mail, IM | |
| Browser | HTML5 | |
| Java | No | |
| - Fast battery charging - ANT+ support - MP4/WMV/H.264 player - MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+/FLAC player - Photo/video editor - Document viewer |
| BATTERY | Non-removable 4000 mAh battery |
|---|
| MISC | Colors | Gold, Pink Gold, Black |
|---|---|---|
| SAR EU | 0.79 W/kg (head) 1.62 W/kg (body) |
Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro display and specifications
The star of the show here is undoubtedly the 6-inch Super Amoled screen. The Galaxy C9 Pro might be larger than Samsung's Galaxy S and Note models, but it isn't quite at that flagship level, so the screen has a full-HD panel rather than 2560x1440. However, 1080p should be good enough for most people. Viewing angles are good and colours aren't too saturated.
The SoC is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 653, which has four Cortex-A72 cores running at 1.95GHz and four more Cortex-A53 cores running at 1.44GHz, and integrated Adreno 510 graphics. One of this phone's headline features is that it has 6GB of RAM, which might be overkill but definitely looks good to prospective buyers.
You get 64GB of built-in storage and microSD card compatibility goes up to 256GB, so you really shouldn't be worried about running out of space. The Galaxy C9 Pro also supports dual-band Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.2, LTE, VoLTE, and GPS. Samsung is late to the USB Type-C party, but at least the company is on board now. We're also grateful for the presence of a 3.5mm audio port.
The Galaxy C9 Pro's body is large enough for a 4000mAh battery, and quick charging is supported with a compatible charger. The front and rear cameras both have 16-megapixel sensors and f/1.9 aperture lenses, and there's a dual-tone LED flash on the rear.
Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro camera performance
With 16-megapixel sensors at the back as well as at the front, it's clear that Samsung is trying to impress buyers. The camera app has a very clean layout, and you can double-press the home button to launch it at any point. The Pro mode lets you adjust metering in addition to exposure, ISO, and white balance. There's a button for video recording so you don't have to switch to another mode first.
You can swipe right to choose from one of eight filters, but what's more interesting is that you can download more filters and effects including ones from third-party apps such as Line and Candy Camera. Most of these are free as of now.
The quality of the Galaxy C9 Pro's rear camera really is brilliant. It's quick to lock focus and there's no shutter lag to speak of. Photos look sharp and rich, with fine detailing even when seen at their actual size. The large screen makes framing very easy.
Video was also impressive both in the daytime and at night. The ability to record in 4K would have made this phone more useful for lots of people, so it's a curious omission.
Wrap Up
There isn’t anything wrong with it – it’s got a beautiful display, better speakers than any previous Samsung phone, a premium design, and impressive software performance. But it also fails to do well with what should be its highlight features. The 16 MP front camera is a downright disappointment, and the rear camera can only take good pictures in daylight. The stereo speakers don’t elevate the audio experience by a huge margin compared to existing Samsung smartphones, and battery life is nowhere near as good as it should be with a 4,000 mAh battery and a Full HD display.
With a price tag of 5500MAD in the Moroccan market, the Galaxy C9 Pro has the task of competing with a lot of value-for-money devices, including the Snapdragon 821-820. In fact, the OnePlus 3T is almost $100 cheaper, yet features top-of-the-line specs that match the C9 Pro’s in many respects, such as the 16 MP front camera and 6GB of RAM. Huawei can also offer tough competition with devices like the Honor 8, which are considerably cheaper than the C9 Pro yet provides a high-end experience. Even the Galaxy A9 Pro is a better buy.
| Pros | Cons |
| Beautiful display | 16 MP selfie camera is a letdown |
| Premium design | Battery life isn’t great |
| Rear camera does well in daylight | Stereo speakers should have been better |
| Stereo speakers are nice for videos and gaming | 6GB RAM only better compared to Samsung phones |
| Nougat features on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow | Poor low-light camera performance |
| 6GB RAM enables enhanced multitasking |
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