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Samsung’s 1TB Galaxy S10+ costs even more than the most expensive iPhone

Published Feb 21st, 2019 2:02PM EST
Galaxy S10+ vs. iPhone XS Max
Image: Zach Epstein, BGR

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Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked 2019 event on Wednesday was less about surprises, and more about confirming what we already knew. Dozens of leaks over the past several months spoiled basically everything there was to know about the Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10+, and Galaxy S10e, but despite all of that, there was still a degree of sticker shock when Samsung announced the pricing for its top-of-the-line models, especially the 1TB Galaxy S10+.

If you want the latest and greatest Galaxy S smartphone from Samsung, you’re going to have to pay $1,599.99 for it. That’s how much the Galaxy S10+ with 1 terabyte of internal storage retails for. It’s not only the priciest (non-foldable) flagship of the year, but it’s also the most expensive Galaxy S phone of all time.

Just to put the price tag into perspective, the 256GB Galaxy S9+ (which was the most expensive model), launched at $959.99, while the even higher-specced Galaxy Note 9 sold for $1,249.99. Even the 512GB iPhone XS Max retails for $1,449. There’s really no precedent for a $1,500+ smartphone (at least not in the US), but Samsung believes there’s a market out there for a phone with more storage space than most laptops.

Perhaps even more surprising than the ballooning price of smartphones is the fact that a 1TB smartphone wasn’t the priciest device shown off on Wednesday at the Unpacked event in San Francisco.

The Galaxy Fold will retail for a stunning $1,980 when it arrives in April, which will be a deal-breaker for countless consumers. Furthermore, we still don’t know the price of the Galaxy S10 5G, but with a 6.7-inch display and a 4,500 mAh battery, its price could easily rival or even eclipse that of the 1TB Galaxy S10+. It didn’t take long for the phone industry to make $1,000 sound affordable, and now we’re extra curious about the Note 10’s price.

Jacob Siegal
Jacob Siegal Associate Editor

Jacob Siegal is Associate Editor at BGR, having joined the news team in 2013. He has over a decade of professional writing and editing experience, and helps to lead our technology and entertainment product launch and movie release coverage.