I was asked by Samsung to make a video about their new Galaxy S10+ smartphone.

As opposed to doing a standard unboxing and phone review I thought I'd try and share some tips and tricks that you may not have known about.

I've also created some hyperlapse and timelapse shots on the phone which you can see in the intro the video below.

Key features of the Samsung Galaxy S10+

Let's have a quick look at some of the key selling points of this new phone. This isn't a complete list but it's what I find most relevant to my line of work and how I use the phone.

• The phone has 5 lenses. The ultra wide angle lens on the back is the one I'm most excited about. It has a 123 degree field of view and is great to give you a new perspective on all of your favourite locations.

• Super steady video mode. When you're shooting video you can enable this mode at the top of the screen. It limits the video resolution to Full HD (1920×1080) however it applies a digital stabilisation algorithm to the footage that makes it look like it was shot on a gimbal. Check out this comparison!

• Up to 1 terabyte of storage. You can buy this phone with a whopping 1 terabyte of internal storage! On top of that you can insert a 512 GB micro SD card, which gives you a total of 1,5TB. There is no need to worry about shooting in 4K60 when you have this much storage on hand.
• Wireless Powershare. Usually you put your phone on a wireless charging pad and the phone charges it's battery. When you turn Wireless Powershare on you actually turn the phone into a charging pad! I've used this extensively to charge my Galaxy Watch because I keep forgetting to bring the dedicated watch charger.

• Invisible finger print scanner. You will find an ultrasonic finger print scanner on the inside of the screen. This is some seriously cool tech that I can't believe already exists in the real world. It works with selected screen protectors (I believe they need to be extra thin) but it's fastest on the screen with no protectors at all.
• Speaking of the screen, this is a HDR10+ screen. Basically that means that you can display extreme colours and contrasts. Another fun thing to note 9 (pun intended) about the screen is that it's bigger than the Note 9 screen, even though the actual phone is smaller.
• The S10+ has a 4000 mAh battery. I've been using the phone for the last few weeks and it is very rare for me to run into an empty battery at the end of the day. Definitely noticeably better than the Note 9 I've been using before.
• At 7.8mm and 198 grams this is a slim and light weight phone. I'm not a fan of the trend where tech keeps getting thinner and thinner but as long as the battery lasts long enough I don't care. That being said, I wouldn't mind a phone that is a centimetre thick with a battery that goes for two days straight!

Favourite tips and tricks of the Samsung S10+

I've been on the Samsung team for about a year and a half now. With every new firmware update I find new, useful features. This new phone is no exception.

Here are some of my favourite tips and tricks on the Samsung S10+

• Night mode. With the latest Samsung One UI  firmware update you can very easily switch to Night Mode. I've always preferred night (or dark) mode on any interface. It's easier on the eyes and in my opinion looks more slick.
• Bixby button remapping. We can finally modify the dedicated Bixby button to open other apps. I don't use Bixby often (even when I was still on Apple I almost never used Siri). I've got the button set to open my Amazon Kindle app, which makes it faster and easier to start reading when on public transport. I've also replaced my Twitter app on my home screen with the Kindle app in the hopes that it forces me to spend less time on Twitter and more time learning new things!
• Grid lines in the camera. This isn't new, but it is a tip I recommend everyone looks into. When shooting photo or video the grid view helps you with your composition and makes it easier to get a level horizon. Few things irk me as much as a crooked photo! Enable the camera grid view by tapping the gear icon on the top left of the screen and scrolling down to grid view. I use the 3×3 grid.
• HDR10+ video recording. I mentioned earlier that the screen is HDR10+ ready, now very few people actually have a camera that shoots this type of footage. The gist of it is that HDR10+ allows you to capture (and display) footage with much more wider dynamic range. This is great when you're in challenging lighting conditions. For now this feature has beta next to it, but I'm sure it'll be finalised very soon.
• Flatlay camera guide. I found this feature on accident when I was testing how wide the wide angle camera lens was. It's a very handy little guide that tells you when your camera is facing exactly down or up. Great when shooting flatlays to make sure all of the lines (like the sides of the table you're shooting) are perfectly straight.

• Drag the shutter button to enable a floating shutter button. This is handy when you're trying to take a selfie at an awkward angle and you can't reach the shutter button. Alternatively, enable the voice control and say cheese or hold up the palm of your hand to trigger the photo!
• Press and hold the screen when in the Pro camera mode to enable AE and AF lock. This allows you to control your exposure and focus differently. Only works when you have auto shutter speed enabled.

Things I don't like about the S10+

It's not all puppies and sunshine. I don't know if that's a saying but maybe it should be. Here are the (few) things that I don't like about the Samsung Galaxy S10+.

• Hyperlapse mode needs work. It is limited to Full HD recording and every now and then the stabilisation seems to screw up resulting in bumpy looking footage. It also doesn't work well when the light is changing, for example for a sunrise or a sunset.
• Pro video mode is gone. This was one of the key features I loved about the previous phones however since the Samsung One UI firmware upgrade this mode has been removed. Having full control over your shutter speed, iso, white balance and aperture while you're shooting video is crucial. I hope this returns in a future firmware upgrade.

That's about it. I hope you learned a thing or two today.

Thanks for reading my blog.

If you'd like to learn more about timelapse photography, have a look at my e-books about timelapse and astro photography!