SpecEagle
SpecEagle review · Samsung

Galaxy Note 8 review: Samsung’s first dual-camera phone — and the Note that restored trust.

SpecEagle Editorial·Sep 2017·$929
Overall
68/100
Class rank
#3 of 7
Tier
Flagship
Buy?
Look elsewhere
The verdict, up front

The Note that rebuilt the line’s reputation.

The Note 8 brought Samsung its first dual camera and steadied the Note line after the Note 7. It is a legacy device today — no 5G, ended support, small battery.

01Display

84/100

84/100 — right at the average for flagship phones of 2017.

TypeSuper AMOLED Infinity Display, 60 Hz
Size6.3 inches
Resolution2,960 × 1,440 px (521 ppi)
ProtectionGorilla Glass 5

02Camera

74/100

74/100 puts it above the 72-point average for flagship phones of 2017.

Main12 MP, f/1.7, OIS
Telephoto12 MP, f/2.4, 2× optical, OIS
Selfie8 MP, f/1.7
Video4K @ 30 fps

03Performance

60/100

60/100 — right at the average for flagship phones of 2017.

ChipsetSnapdragon 835 / Exynos 8895 (10 nm)
CPU8 cores
GPUAdreno 540 / Mali-G71
RAM6 GB
Storage64 GB / 128 GB / 256 GB · microSD

04Battery

68/100

68/100 — right at the average for flagship phones of 2017.

Capacity3,300 mAh
Wired15 W
Wireless9 W

05Build

84/100

84/100 — right at the average for flagship phones of 2017.

06Value

62/100

62/100 — right at the average for flagship phones of 2017.

What works
  • Samsung’s first dual-camera phone, both lenses OIS.
  • Built-in S Pen and a big Infinity Display.
  • IP68, headphone jack and microSD.
  • Premium build.
What doesn't
  • Small 3,300 mAh battery (post-Note-7 caution).
  • Mono speaker; 15 W charging.
  • No 5G; software ended at Android 9.
  • Discontinued.

How this review is built: every section score, spec row and comparison on this page comes from SpecEagle's tracked catalogue — scores weight measured specs against the 7-phone cohort of flagship devices released around the same time. We don't publish invented lab anecdotes. Spot an error? .