Even one year after its release, the most affordable Galaxy S10 is still the smallest. At 5.8 inches, the S10e is tiny by today’s standards. It’s even smaller than the 5.5-inch Google Pixel 3, although the S10e’s screen is slightly larger than that of Google’s 2018 flagship due to the near absence of bezels and the placement of the front camera within the display. It’s more comparable to the Pixel 4a, as both offer very slim bezels and front cameras in small bodies.
The S10e is significantly smaller than the other S10 models, but it has the same aesthetics. The S10e’s mirrored aluminum frame is sandwiched between two sheets of Gorilla Glass. The display glass is flat, while the back is subtly curved for a comfortable grip. And there is a headphone jack on the bottom an increasingly rare and valuable feature among today’s top smartphones.
Although the Infinity-O camera in the S10e’s display may be annoying to some (I find it less egregious than the notch), there’s a lot to like about the S10e’s design. The S10e feels like a premium product, only smaller. And the right customers will appreciate the better build quality of the S10 and S10 Plus. And the right customers will see the handier, more compact dimensions as a big advantage in an era of ever-larger flagships.
Less iPhone 11, more iPhone SE. Aside from size, the S10e’s most notable departure from the other models is its side-mounted fingerprint sensor. Samsung decided against the in-display ultrasonic solution found in the S10 and S10 Plus, presumably to keep costs down. That is not necessarily a bad thing. The 5.8-inch AMOLED display lives up to the Galaxy S name with vibrant colors and sharp details.
If you do not like the color balance, you can touch it up with a simple solution called “Vivid Mode”, which does exactly what it says on the box and lets you adjust the picture even warmer (more red) or colder (more blue). If even that isn’t enough, you can adjust the RGB levels individually. The S10e’s battery has a capacity of 3,100 mAh, which is enough to get you through the day while managing chat apps and emails and listening to music.
Charging is fast with up to 15 W fast charging (and 15 W wireless charging), which is not the fastest charging performance on the market, but it does the job. And if you have other wireless devices, you may need to charge them a bit more often – because thanks to a new feature, the S10e can now charge them itself: Wireless PowerShare.
