You probably don’t need a 4,000-word review to tell you that the Galaxy S9+ is a good phone. Now that everyone’s got all of the Note 7 jokes mostly out of their system, we can mostly agree that Samsung makes good phones. The S8 was great, and the S9 builds on that success in a number of ways.

Our deep dive testing reinforces the feeling that both the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus are great phones, sitting atop the market as of their release. Their weaknesses are generally relegated to features rather than capabilities, but there’s always room for improvement.

This will be a short summary. The Galaxy S9+ is the most fully-featured smartphone around today. And in terms of all-round performance, it is hard to beat. In my opinion, this is the best smartphone by a mile. That is it on my Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus review.

Each year we look to Samsung's Galaxy S release as the smartphone that will be purchased by the masses and it is clear that the Galaxy S9 Plus will be one of the best smartphones of 2018.

Stunning display; Strong reception and fast wireless network support; Multiple security features; including an iris scanner; Fast and wireless charging; microSD expansion card slot; High level water and dust resistance; 3.5 mm headset jack

Back is a fingerprint magnet

The Galaxy S9+ is one of the best smartphones money can buy—but should you buy it?

Since the dawn of this decade, Samsung has been at forefront of making high-end Android smartphones. Tech enthusiasts have been looking up to the Galaxy S series of smartphones as devices that can make a statement with outrageous features and iconic designs (except for the Galaxy S5).

A big, blockbuster phone that awesome at pretty much everything. It’ll probably be too big for most people though.

Stellar screen; Top-notch camera; Incredibly powerful

Almost unchanged design; Uncomfortable to hold for some

When I first picked up the Galaxy S9+ I was certain it would be the better phone of the two new Samsungs. Now I’m not so sure. Dual cameras aside, there’s barely any difference between the two phones and I just find the standard S9 easier to hold. To me at least, that’s a bigger deal than being able to zoom in a little bit more than normal on your photos. If the S9+ is a better fit for you, then you’ll have quite the phone on your hands. Especially if you didn’t get ahold of a Galaxy S8 last year. ‘Cos when you add up all of this handset’s myriad charms it’s a truly awesome proposition with a superb screen, handsome design and one of the best cameras around. That’s a level of refinement that only the iPhone X and Google Pixel 2 XL can come close to. Plus, this phone won’t set you back a thousand quid. So while Samsung’s Galaxy S9+ truly is a little bit boring, it’s exceptionally good. And one of those qualities outweighs the other by quite some margin.

Stellar screen; Top-notch camera; Incredibly powerful;

Almost unchanged design; Uncomfortable to hold for some;

The Galaxy S9+ is still a gorgeous and almost flawless phone, offering premium specs and features in a sleek and well-made design. There is the issue of it being very similar to its predecessor but we're glad Samsung hasn't dropped the headphone jack and introduced a notch - if it 'aint broke. Of course, the brilliant Galaxy S10 Plus is here to replace it now which will be tempting for its new design and features, but it's expensive so the S9 Plus remains an excellent option at a much lower price. Below is our original Galaxy S9 Plus review.

Times have changed since Samsung revealed the Galaxy S9, Galaxy S9 Plus and even the Galaxy Note 9 last August. The Galaxy S10 ($330 at Amazon) looms large on the horizon, launching on Feb. 20 in San Francisco -- this year we expect three new models, including a cheaper Galaxy S10 E, or S10 Lite. Normally the Galaxy S10 Plus would steal the show, but we're also expecting Samsung to tease or even fully unleash its first 5G Galaxy S10 model, and it first foldable phone, which the company briefly showed off this past November.

Samsung's most robust Galaxy S9 of 2018 is still a good buy, but not until after the Galaxy S10 starts selling.

The Galaxy S9 Plus one-ups the excellent Galaxy S9 with a second rear camera for taking portrait photos.

Battery life fell short of last year's model in our early tests, and the Galaxy S9 Plus suffers from the same underbaked extras as the smaller Galaxy S9; The dual-aperture camera tends to overexpose low-light photos in auto mode.