In Orbit Outside Samsung’s Galaxy (Premium)

At various times over the years, I’ve tried to make the Samsung ecosystem part of my regular rotation, alongside Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS. Doing so would make sense: While Samsung’s mobile products are largely based on Android, the firm sells more smartphones than any other and it has extended Android, via software on its devices and with unique peripherals and services, to the point where the Samsung ecosystem—the Galaxy ecosystem—is its own thing.

But despite Samsung’s near-ubiquity, the Galaxy ecosystem has never really come together for me. And I’m not entirely sure why.

No, I’ve never been a huge fan of Samsung’s Android skin, once called TouchWiz, but the modern Samsung Experience looks modern and professional. Likewise, I’m no fan of Samsung duplicating many of the built-in apps in Android, but its recent partnership with Microsoft suggests that some quality software may be on the way there as well. And I’m certainly no fan of Bixby: I feel that we already have too many digital assistants as it is. But … well, there’s no “but” there. Bixby makes little sense to me, beyond my vague understanding of Samsung’s strategy to replace as much of Google in Android as possible.

On the hardware front, I’ve used many of Samsung’s products, but I’ve never really stuck with any of them. I was an early user and fan of the firm’s first Windows phones, and I’ve owned a variety of Galaxy S handsets, or have at least reviewed them in more recent years. I understand Samsung’s desire to create Android tablet alternatives to the iPad and iPad Pro, but don’t quite get why anyone would use such a product. (Or Dex, Samsung’s desktop environment for Android, functionality that I feel should be left to the platform maker.) I’ve owned a few Windows-based Samsung Ultrabooks over the years, and those were always excellent. But in more recent years, I’ve found myself more interested in Surface, HP, ThinkPad, and other non-Samsung options for whatever reasons.

Samsung also makes wearables, like fitness trackers and smartwatches, each of which runs on different software platforms. It makes headphones, including the well-received Galaxy Buds. It makes a stunning array of consumer electronics products, in fact, including smart TVs (of which I own two, come to think of it.) And a crazy number of home appliances, many of which are now “smart” as well. Samsung isn’t so much a company with an ecosystem as it is a way of life. The totality of these offerings kind of makes Apple look small-minded by comparison.

And yet, I feel like I’ve been hovering outside of Samsung’s galaxy, if you will, for years. I’ve dipped in from time to time. But I’ve always drifted back out. It seems like something I should be part of. But I’ve always been pretty ambivalent about it. Again, I can’t quite explain why.

Naturally, I’m going to try again with the Galaxy Note 10.

And me being me, I’m curious what the deal breaker will be. The obvious culprits are camera performance and Google Fi compatibility, though most smartphones work at least pretty well with Google’s excellent wireless network now. But the camera issue has been the problem with recent OnePlus handsets too: Overall, I really like them, but the cameras have always let me down.

But it’s another year, and another round of refinements, and I never spent any time with the Galaxy S10+ on which the Note 10’s camera system is based. Could this be the one? Maybe.

I’m not exactly diving right in, but I did preorder a Galaxy Note 10, and I’ve been wondering whether I should have gone all out for the bigger Note 10+ ever since. I’ve also ordered a pair of Galaxy Buds, which should arrive today. And … we’ll see. My track record here isn’t great. But I’m going to try again.

Note: As always, I’m interested to hear what you’re looking for here. If there’s anything specific to the Note 10 or any other Samsung product/service you think I should be looking at, please do let me know.