Samsung Galaxy Note review

[Vision33r]

Is it a tablet or phone? It's a bit of both.

Had the pleasure of using an eval model for a month.

The screen is 5.3" of gorgeous SAMOLED, it's quite sharp with a resolution of 1280x800. Imagine the same resolution of the Galaxy Tab 10 in a 5.3" screen.



It came with Android Gingerbread 2.3.6 installed and this is one device you should use Touchwiz as it is tailored for the included Stylus.

Call quality: 3.5/5

Signal quality is very good with AT&T LTE service, speeds average around 17mbps. Call quality is slightly worse than the SGS2.

Battery Life: 4/5

Very good battery life in general even with a bunch of power sucking apps running still can get a full day of usage on single charge.

Build Quality: 4.5/5

Actually it's a lot better than the Galaxy Nexus, SGS2, SG Skyrocket, or any of the Galaxy line. The aluminum metal accent around the case is has a very solid feel. The back plate to the battery is made of Kevlar. The device is quite light and sturdy.

Screen quality: 4/5

Very very nice screen, most can't tell the pentile matrix panel while some can and have their feelings about it. In general it is one of the most gorgeous screens to watch movies.

Performance: 2.5/5

The AT&T US Spec gets the dual-core 1.5GHZ snapdraon while the Int version has the same SOC as the SGS2 with the Exynos SOC 1.4GHZ. At 1st from the reviews it didn't seem like a big deal but over time I realized that it's not as fast as the SGS2 overall in performance and especially gaming.

It lags under heavy multitasking loads, GPU not quite as good as the Tegra2 or PowerVR GPUs.

Usability: 3/5

The stylus or S-pen they keep focusing on has potential to be great especially the screen has Wacom multiple levels of sensitivity. What's holding it back is the slight lag or hesitation before input is registered can turn many artists off. Note taking can be frustrating at times when the S-pen's button does not activate the sticky note widget or stylus input mode.

When you bust out the s-pen and double tap and the pen input mode does not switch on without 2-3 tries.

Very sensitive gyros causing the device to change orientation a lot can be annoying at times and requires an app to adjust the levels.

Media viewing, probably this is the one feature that it handily beats just about any smartphone today. Watching native 720p video without the cropping or black bars on the screen is quite addictive.

Final Thoughts:

After the 1st week, I was pretty set on replacing my SGS2 {primary} phone with the new Galaxy Note. Then after further use I realized there are some limitations that one has to adjust to in order to live with a device this size.

At 5.3" it is about the largest smartphone. It fits my pockets but it doesn't fit my workout pants nor are there any arm band straps made for it. Holding it next to my ear to take a phone call feels awkward. There are very few car mounts that will fit this device but once it is mounted, it makes a great GPS device.

I think this device has potential if Samsung work with 3rd parties to develop more native apps since it requires app designed for the S-pen to really shine. One problem is it does not have 100% Android app compatibility. Some tablet based apps and many smartphone apps also don't work right on this device.

Finally, my final gripe with the device is that Clockworkmod currently is not supported on this device and this means no custom ROMs. I read that the Samsung ICS build is currently in alpha and it is for debugging only. I have very little faith that this device will receive ICS by summer and that does not bold very well for longevity of this device. Samsung has been known to dish out multiple models of a device with various upgrades making owners envious or angry about the lack of existing or legacy support.

Without custom rom support, the device over time lags and even with various system apps to freeze or unload bloat it is still a slow device compared to other devices available today.

[DrewSXR]

I played with one the other day. I really really like this thing. The size is very manageable.

Samsung has already moved 5 million of them apparently.

I actually might consider buying the next gen version with ICS and newer S4 or Exynos processor.

I don't need a new phone right now.

[X37]

Better as any entry level tablet than a phone IMO. Even the S2 pushes screen size a bit too much for my liking. Hate the fact the stylus is pretty much required, 1 more thing to lose and fiddle with. Drop the call option and improve proccessor,

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk

[Vision33r]

Better as any entry level tablet than a phone IMO. Even the S2 pushes screen size a bit too much for my liking. Hate the fact the stylus is pretty much required, 1 more thing to lose and fiddle with. Drop the call option and improve proccessor,

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk

The S-pen is not required, it is a bonus. There are only a few apps designed for it. As a note taking device, I find it inconvenient due to the note taking app not launching as quickly as I would like.

When you write an email with the S-pen, it actually takes more effort than typing one.

[caliatenza]

Better as any entry level tablet than a phone IMO. Even the S2 pushes screen size a bit too much for my liking. Hate the fact the stylus is pretty much required, 1 more thing to lose and fiddle with. Drop the call option and improve proccessor,

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk

as far as i know the Exynos doesnt support LTE, so thats why it cant be used in the US . Is there any word if this is coming to Verizon? I heard it was going to be called the Galaxy Journal or something.

[silver_slayer]

still haven't played with one of these things yet. and i still dont know if i could use it on a day to day basis soley based on its size. my galaxy nexus still fits in my pocket just fine, bu tthis thing looks to be much wider than the nexus...which is a huge downfall for me since the Razr is about as wide as i would want to go on a phone.

still want to get it into my hands, highly doubtful i would ever get rid of my nexus for one...but it is an interesting concept indeed.

[The Chemist]

My brother in law is going to Hong Kong next week and I'm getting him to pick me up one of these - the international version, that is.

I played with the Chinese domestic market version last weekend and I love it - I've got really big hands, so the size is perfect for me - I was able to reach all parts of the screen while holding it with just one hand.. Love the idea of the stylus so I can surf full web pages and click on links without having to zoom. Also looking forward to going to Android and getting away from the bloatware that is iTunes.

It's going to be replacing an iPhone 3G, so the performance is going to be WAY beyond what I'm used to.

[2.0T_Convert]

Just a bump for this thread.

My contract on the iPhone-4 is coming up to and end and I'm thinking of betraying Apple. The Note looking interesting but how are people living with a device that size?

[Minker17]

I have no opinion, but they are set to announce the Galaxy Note 2 either this month or next, can't remember.

[John Edword]

Samsung galaxy note is superb such a nice features and what a technology made by samsung thank you so much...