When 4.8" isn't big enough, there's the Galaxy Note 2 (1 Viewer)

[Hanson]

5.5" 720p SAMOLED screen with Wacom digitizer and S-Pen, first phone to ship with Jelly Bean (that I can think of). First impressions and glorified first impressions dubbed reviews are starting to roll in, as it drops tomorrow in Europe (the US version looks like a November launch).
http://www.phonearena.com/reviews/Samsung-Galaxy-Note-II-Review_id3134#1-
I am 95% certain this is my next phone.

 

[Hanson]

I am 100% certain this is my next phone.

http://www.androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-note-2-review



Quote:

[FONT= 'Helvetica Neue']In our [/FONT]review of the S3[FONT= 'Helvetica Neue'] back in May, we pointed out that it was a device without any major Achilles' heel. The same isn’t quite true of the Note 2 -- in fact, paradoxically, its greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. For every consumer who buys a Note 2 because they love the gigantic display, there’ll be at least one more who sees it as unwieldy or even comical.[/FONT]

[SIZE= 15px]Can't wait for it to hit Sprint.[/SIZE]

 

[Sam Posten]

Yer gonna need a bigger boat, er cargo pants =p

 

[Hanson]

Nah, I already shoved a 7" tablet in my front pocket. The Note 2 should be no sweat.
When the 5" Dell Streak was released two years ago, the specs were:
Dimensions 152.9 x 79.1 x 10 mm
Weight 220 g
Here's the Note 2:
Dimensions 151.1 x 80.5 x 9.4 mm
Weight 183 g
I remember bagging on the Streak back then. But other than the weight, the size is very similar.
Here's an oddity. The Nokia Lumia 920 is actually thicker and heavier than the Note 2:
Dimensions 130.3 x 70.8 x 10.7 mm, 99 cc
Weight 185 g
It's actually thicker than the Streak. But if you want thick, check out the Evo 4G:
Dimensions 122 x 66 x 13 mm
Weight 170 g
For its time, the Streak was actually a svelte phone.

 

[Sam Posten]

Yeah but now ya got a 7" AND a big ole phone in there. Getting crowded =)

 

[Hanson]

I moved to a 10" tablet and got a messenger style netbook bag since that was clearly not going to fit in any of my pockets. I didn't even make the attempt.

 

[DaveF]

Looked at the note tonight. My wife said it looked like a grandma phone with its absurdly large buttons.
I didn't know what to make of it. I stared for a few minutes trying to figure out if it was a "phone". It seemed initially like a SNL mock device, taking the idea of a phone to its ridiculous logical extreme.
But ok...lets say I want one device...not a duo of phone and tablet...split the difference with a 5" device?
But to me, while the idea of all those pixels in a pocket device sounds appealing to me, in hand its too unwieldly.

 

[Hanson]

I'm pretty sure you were looking at the first Note, and not the Note 2. The biggest difference is that the device is thinner and narrower and fits better in the hand.
That said, it's still quite honking big. I'd guess I'll end up using it one handed 80-85% of the time.

 

[DaveF]

Yes,it was the Note. The 2 is smaller? Your headline indicates its getting much larger, from 4.8" Note to 5.5" Note 2. Is it doing that while shaving the bezel to be smaller overall?

 

[Hanson]

The 4.8 refers to the GS3. The first Note was 5.3" at 16:10 aspect, which is slightly wider and shorter than the Note 2 at 16:9.
The Note 2 screen is 150% larger than the iPhone 5 - in other words, the Note 2 is two and a half times the size of the iPhone 5.

 

[DaveF]

Ah.

I had my iPhone 4 with me (and had just compared it to the 5) and was comparing it to the Note and GS3. They are huge. As I said, looking at the Note I wasn't sure if it was actually a "phone". I found the phone icon, and dialed my number to convince myself it was a phone, and not a small tablet

Not the device for me. But I can imagine use cases -- daily commuter seated on the metro -- where it's the right mix of features.

If it has screen-independent scaling, and can make everything 150% larger than on the iPhone, I see very practical use low-sight, or simply aging sight, population. Retina Display is a young-man's game, as I've said.

 

[Joseph DeMartino]

My original Galaxy Note (refurb) arrived Monday, and I've been having fun with it ever since. (I'd love a Note 2, but I'm a poor underpaid civil servant, and I was able to swing a deal to get the old Note for $50.)
I was going to buy myself a tablet for Christmas this year, but I don't think I'm going to need it now. I have one device that I can easily carry that lets me comfortably do most tasks I've done on friends' iPads and Android tablets, with a dash mount and an app it is a GPS navigation system and, by the way, it is also a phone. I can see where it might be a bit too big for some, but I'm 6"1" and find it fits both my hand and my jacket pockets easily. Still working on the handwriting recognition, and it is a little small as a drawing tablet, but still a bargain compared to other phones, not to mention another phone plus a tablet.
If I win the lottery I'll definitely pick up a Note 2 - or maybe I'll grab a 2 or 3 in a couple of years when my contract comes up for renewal again.
Regards,
Joe

 

[KeithAP]

I originally had my eye on the Note II but now I am not so sure. I don't know if they are accurate but I keep reading rumors of a new Nexus phone from Google that will have 5" 1080P display (I believe both LG and Sharp are making 5" 1080P panels now).

Plus, I really like the idea of having a phone with just Android and no other GUI "enhancements" from the phone maker even if it means buying a phone that isn't subsidized.

-Keith

 

[Hanson]

I don't think I would be swayed by the Note 2 just for the gigantic screen. The stylus and dual-pane multi-tasking are big factors here, and since those are Touchwiz add-ons, they would not be available on a Nexus device. A 5" Nexus phone would simply be a 5" phone and not the same kind of device as the Note 2.

One thing I learned today regarding the cameras on Nexus devices is that you will never get a good camera because everything on AOSP has to be open source. So they can't use licensed software and drivers from Sony for their cameras like Apple, Samsung, and HTC do. That's the fundamental reason why the Nexus cameras have been subpar and the reason why there are no panorama or HDR modes for Nexus phones. You can always download apps for this kind of functionality, but these modes are not actually part of AOSP.

The other thing is that HTC and LG are moving towards sealed batteries to save on thickness, and that's a deal breaker for me. Google is moving towards internal storage only, which means no SD card slot, which is another deal breaker.

 

[Hanson]

Engadget Review




Quote:

[COLOR= rgb(68, 68, 68)]To answer the question we posed at the beginning of this review, this thing is the real deal, and it's decisively better than the device that began the whole phablet craze. With SIM-free versions starting in the ballpark of £530, it's a bit on the pricey side, but for good reason: it offers best-in-market performance, an S Pen experience that blows its predecessor out of the water, a solid OS in Jelly Bean and plenty of other features that will make this a tempting offer to even the most petite-handed individual. To do so in a package that's actually thinner and narrower than the first Note is a tremendous accomplishment, and one that'll be hard to match. Get ready to have your cake [/COLOR]and [COLOR= rgb(68, 68, 68)]eat it too.[/COLOR]

 

[Hanson]

The Verge review




Quote:

[COLOR= rgb(51, 51, 51)]While I admit I didn’t think about using the S Pen at all for my first few hours with the Galaxy Note II, once I started playing around with it, I found myself using it more and more. On multiple occasions I even opted to write out a text message instead of typing it — a credit both to the pen’s ease of use and Samsung’s improved handwriting recognition. Samsung has really taken a leap forward in the latter department, as the original Galaxy Note struggled mightily to understand my written missives whereas the Note II is almost error-free.[/COLOR]

Quote:

Overall, the Galaxy Note II offers the most fluid Android user experience I’ve enjoyed yet, bringing it on a par with the excellent iOS and Windows Phone.

 

[DaveF]

Watched Verge video review. Interesting device. The s pen didn't work at AT&T on the Note, so couldn't play with that gadget.

 

[Joseph DeMartino]

I think the real reason some men are reluctant to get a Galaxy Note is that they don't want their wives and girlfriends to get the idea that 4.8" isn't enough.
Regards,
Joe

 

[Hanson]

And they don't want to admit their hands are too small.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

I still think they should just make good size, ultra-thin/lite tablets (w/ decent one-handed ergo) w/ built-in phone capabilities via BT headsets (or similar) instead of going this route... at least until they can give us holographic projection displays on an ergo/comfy handset or something else that doesn't need to be big.

For those who don't want a tablet at all, something like this will likely be too big anyway.

If they're making so many models to maximize profits via volume (due to their low margins), they can always do that w/ better wireless headsets to go w/ those tablets (or perhaps license whatever software to headset makers to make it all work much better than it does now). OR maybe their margins would be better if they're first-to-market w/ something like that working flawlessly...

_Man_