Samsung Galaxy Note 2 review
I’ve no idea what the Korean is for “let’s stuff everything we can into a phone and ram it up Apple’s jacksie” but it’s a fair bet the phrase was used at the inception of the Galaxy Note 2. This Android handset is the feature-packed successor to the surprisingly successful Galaxy Note that I was quite taken with late last year …
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Re: As a note one user..
I had already bought a Galaxy S2, when the Note came out just a few months later, so while I liked it, it was bad timing.
This Year, I purposely avoided buying the Galaxy S3, cause I figured the Note 2 couldn't be far behind...
Since drawing and painting with precise pressure sensitivity is a major benefit to me, as is the increased battery life, I'm pretty stoked about getting the Note 2 now, I'm just wondering how long I'll have to wait for the 64GB version...
I think I saw it somewhere, that they'll have one with 64 GB, right?
Most sophisticated and it only has 16GB storage? sure, you can upgrade it but if that's the case, why not 8GB or 4GB?
The screen is bigger, that is all, not higher resolution, 267dpi compared to say 326 of the Nokia Lumia 920 (higher even than the iPhone).
Quad core is overkill when few applications are massively multi-threaded, just optimise your OS or stop using hooky interpreted Java code.
It's basically a bigger S3 with a better quality screen.
Oh and why in the conclusion are you having a dig at the iPhone 5 which you gave such a good score? be consistent please.
Hook line..
...and sinker, the dig is there to bring you out to make posts like this, predictable? apple has made billions out of the same type of people.
"It's basically a bigger S3 with a better quality screen"
You say that like its a bad thing
I'll bite...
"Quad core is overkill when few applications are massively multi-threaded, just optimise your OS or stop using hooky interpreted Java code."
Damn right AC, this processor is far too fast. Why the hell do we want fast processors in the latest iterations of smartphones and pads? We should have been happy with the 500Mhz processors we had back in the days of iPaq. Goddamn kids.
Re: Hook line..
Of course there are never any comments on Apple stories/reviews that are full snipes about iSheep and fanbois are there?
"It's basically a bigger S3 with a better quality screen."
Just like the original note was basically a Galaxy S 2 with a bigger screen. That only sold in the millions!
"Oh and why in the conclusion are you having a dig at the iPhone 5 which you gave such a good score? be consistent please."
Because the iPhone 5 has proven less than perfect since release? Maps, case scratching, and today I read that there are big software-related battery drain problems for some devices.
If you want a big screen phone with working maps out of the box then the iPhone 5 is out for the moment, and the Note 2 definitely fits the bill.
I think your fanboi is showing...
SIII
"It's basically a bigger S3 with a better quality screen."
Indeed, that's a fair description of the Note 2. And since in my opinion the Galaxy S3 is a better device than the iPhone 5 that makes the Note 2 better than something that's already better than the iP5.
Quad core is overkill when few applications are massively multi-threaded, just optimise your OS or stop using hooky interpreted Java code.
===
please understand the difference between interpreted code and a JIT bytecode compiler, otherwise don't bother commenting on this aspect, as you look a bit silly.
WTF? only 16GB? surely in the new Cloudy world 16gb is more than you need..... </sarcasm>
I actually have a 16Gb S3, andf I carry multiple micro-sd cards to improve capacity... Since I can switch them out at will, plug into PC's with a tiny adaptor on my keyring.. oh and not worry about spotty data connectivity...
That is why no need for more than 16GB built in, you can just keep your media (Which is the only reason for a big storage really) on micro SD cards and switch out as needed...
I have around 320gb of capacity sitting in a stylish credit card sized holder in my wallet......
Re: The "dig"
The dig t the iPhone is just a way of suggesting that the Note II is a worthy alternative to the iPhone 5 and maybe even a way of saying that given all the extra features of the Note II, they all function as intended, which is not quite the case with the iPhone 5.
16GB because it's more useful than 4Gb or 8GB. You know, like when you have $10 instead of only $5.
Beyond around 240PPI, at a distance of about 12 inches from your eyes, you can't tell the difference.
Quadcore is most definitely needed. You don't think extra cores are put to use when running two apps at once, i.e. when using pop-up video.
Nothing wrong with Java. It means any Java developer can develop apps or Android with little or no extra learning curve, and no developer licenses needed.
"I have around 320gb of capacity sitting in a stylish credit card sized holder in my wallet......"
Linky to the holder, please?
Re: "Linky to the holder, please?"
What a great idea. I found the DiMeCard, no doubt others are available:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005SPQ8XK/ref=pd_1ctyhuc__bxgy_01_01
GJC
Re: "Linky to the holder, please?" DiMeCard
Yep thats the one, 8 cards, I have 2 x 64gb and 6 x 32gb giving me a nice 320gb of data in my wallet, very handy as I keep a full backup with me of all photos/docs/etc... I don't trust the cloud (plus would take ages to upload), and while I have a NAS backup, its still in my house...
Re: "Linky to the holder, please?" DiMeCard
Thanks both, appreciated :)
Re: "Linky to the holder, please?" DiMeCard
Learn something cool every day... combine that DiMeCard with a buttload of GB's and a USB stick reader.... negates the need for individual USB thumb drives...
Damn. the possibilities...
;)
"Quad core is overkill when few applications are massively multi-threaded"...
We're not running one thing at a time any more... It's called true multitasking. Something which has been baked into Android since the beginning. You can have dozens of apps running, and swap between them, not just a chosen few functions some fruity devices would lead you to believe is multitasking.
Re: "Dig" at the iPhone 5
You see that part at the start of the "dig" - which you had to read past - where it says "For a pound less"? Yeah, that's why the "dig".
This just in: Reviewer compares device to only competing device of same cost. Commentard offended and confused by this travesty.
"The screen is bigger, that is all, not higher resolution, 267dpi compared to say 326 of the Nokia Lumia 920 (higher even than the iPhone)."
That's not resolution, that's density. Density is resolution / area. Thus, a completely useless stat for saying which device is best. If someone took my phone and made it smaller, but with the same resolution, the density would increase. But I would consider it a worse phone, as it's now smaller.
At least you mentioned Nokia rather than iphone, as it's Apple and their fans that usually make this the number one most important stat ever, even though it's irrelevant for most comparisons. But it's funny that after Apple made this their single selling point, they've been outdone on it anyway by Nokia (who haven't even mentioned it as a selling point, AFAIK).
It's a bit too big for me personally but it sounds like a spiffing device.
Also proves that TheRegister is not fainting in awe of Apple as some commentators on this websites have accused them of doing.
"With a 1.6GHz...quad-core processor...the Note 2 has a superbly sweet and fluid UI".
6.4 gigahertzes to run a UI makes retrogrouch baby jesus cry.
Re: "With a 1.6GHz...quad-core processor...the Note 2 has a superbly sweet and fluid UI".
I still have no idea what " retrogrouch baby jesus" means. For the benefit of late comers, J Latham's post was previously at +2-1... now he's on minus... so obviously someone has the drift of what he's saying.
Re: "With a 1.6GHz...quad-core processor...the Note 2 has a superbly sweet and fluid UI".
Is this the self same John Latham who forces that horrific fvwm95 derivative with mouse-point window focus, and notes unironically containing "Windoze" onto Manchester's CS undergrads? Because you certainly bloody sound like him.
Voice and Handwriting - again
Hmmmm handwriting recognition improved over original note. Well that puts it squarely in the probablystill useless ballpark.
Me I love my note (a mobe that fits my fingers gimme!) but am i alone in finding both voice and handwriting recog a sick joke. Useless was putting it mildly. I kept wondering how mich "level 3" hospitality big S had been handing out to reviewers...
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
The handwriting recognition does actually work now, even with my left-handed scrawl. As you say, the original was pretty wretched but Note 2 interpreted my cursive scribble correctly more often than not. It's a big, big improvement.
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
Think Apple are onto more of a winner going for better voice recognition - handwriting recognition is about 10 years old these days and is still poor. Stylus - in the words of scotty - how quaint (although I know that was about a keyboard / mouse).
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
I'd rather a keyboard - can tap type quicker than I can write and it's got better accuracy. Tried Siri on a '5' the other day - it's actually getting much better. A stylus is just something to lose - at least you always have your fingers with you.
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
I can write faster using Swype on my Note 1 than I can type on this keyboard. Voice recognition on the latest ICS incarnation of the Note 1 is also much improved, though I still prefer to Swype.
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
My stylus is mainly used for playing 'Fruit Ninja'. It feels like a solution to a problem very few people have. As for voice recognition - it only works problem free about 40% of the time. That's below the 'give up' threshold.
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
Hiya, AC 101,
Just to clarify, you're talking about JB's built-in voice recognition that doesn't require a data connection, I take it?
The ICS voice recognition (done on Google's severs) works for me about 75% of the time, but that might be because my voice approaches 'received pronunciation' or because I only use voice search for phrases I suspect it will guess correctly (eg, 'Rail timetable Paddington' not 'coque au vin recipe')
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
Almost 3 years on and my N900 still has it's stylus. When the stylus clicks neatly into the body of the device it's quite easy to not lose it. I do prefer my physical keyboard over touchscreen typing or handwriting though, which is one reason why I'm hanging onto my N900 as long as possible.
If the Note2 had Maemo5 quality multitasking and Android wasn't quite so restrictive I'd be a lot more interested.
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
"...Stylus - in the words of scotty - how quaint (although I know that was about a keyboard / mouse)..."
That bit really annoys me in those films: Scotty starts typing and can type at about 500 wpm, coz he's from the future and is therefore so much more advanced than our poor 20th century computer users. But 'Shirley' he'd be more likely to make the slowest, one-finger-peckiest typist in the world look fast, as he's probably never seen a C20th keyboard outside of a museum, let alone used one before.
It'd be like me going back in time to Albrecht Dürer's time and being instantly able to typeset ten times faster than everyone else around.
[i really need to get a life!]
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
With a good predictive keyboard, I really don't need handwriting recognition.
That doesn't mean I don't love the pen, cause you can draw and scribble and design stuff without loosing it on a napkin. If I use a pen, I don't want it 'recognized' I want it to stay handwritten.
Not to mention that with 1024 pressure levels, you can do high quality artwork of whatever kind you might need to produce.
Nice job, Samsung officially has a heart for artists.
Wasn't supporting creatives once Apple's claim to fame, a long, long time ago? Now they just hypnotize the rabble...
Re: Voice and Handwriting - again
Only being able to use a bare finger, rather than choice of finger or pressure sensitive pen - how quaint.
And whilst I agree handwriting recognition is limited, voice recognition is far more so. Not that Android can't do that - Android (and Symbian) had voice recognition years before Apple decided to make it their prime marketing feature.
This will upset the Jesus Phone fanbois - seems this Samsung device has not only copied all of Lord Job's ideas for the Jesus Phone, but added a few others of its own - shame its not got a decent amount of storage though - 64G is an insult to anyone - particularly those that wish to take advantage of the HD screen, a HD movie being some 2-10G depending on codex used.
WTF?
Guess you've never heard of replaceable MicroSD cards then?
Need more films, carry more MicroSD cards! It's not exactly rocket science is it? ;)
Is that anti-Apple bias in the review? You'll never get invited to their big meets! (No I'm not a fanbois, I prefer my Samsung 7.7).
Can we have pictures of the thing
...and not some CG renders?
It makes it look like you've never even seen the thing and are just making this shit up.
Re: Can we have pictures of the thing
"It makes it look like you've never even seen the thing and are just making this shit up."
Shhhh! That is how most reviews are done, on any publication.
Size and weight are close to the original, so the new device will still fit in the back pocket of my jeans without issue.
Thems is some mighty baggy pants you've got there. (The Note 2 does look like a great bit of kit though).
"let’s stuff everything we can into a phone and ram it up Apple’s jacksie"
Now there's a thought. A modest suggestion for Sammy's next marketing campaign, "so good Apple want it banned".
Damn me for buying too early
I have a Note which I love. The size is, as said, good for making calls.
The handwriting recognition is weird. It works, but seems to interpret cursive better than plain script.
Snazzy as it isl I don't see myself upgrading unless a rich uncle I never knew about suddenly popped his clogs, but this is a desirable thing.
Bloody hell
This sounds like the first Droid device I might actually want. Would have to see paw it for a bit first, though, cause I think it might just be too big for me.
Saw a Note 2 yesterday
I popped into our local Carphone Warehouse yesterday, mainly to ask what the chances were of getting a Nokia 808 Pureview on contract (responses were (a) "what's that?" and (b) "no chance, sorry" - I should've known better :-( ). I'd gone in a few weeks ago with my wife, who upgraded to a Galaxy S3 (which she loves), and the chap in there knew I was eyeing up the Note 1, so he brought out the Note 2 which they'd just taken delivery of yesterday.
From a brief play, I must admit, the Note 2 is tempting - like an even bigger S3 (and the S3's not small). Aside from the downgrade in the camera department from my beloved Nokia N8 (then again, that applies to just about ANY 2012 phone aside from the 808 Pureview), I think I could happily live with the Note 2, especially if it'll pair with my Jabra BT headset and Apple BT keyboard. Might even replace my netbook at a pinch?
Contract coming up for renewal near the end of the year - food for thought...
I can't believe I'm actually excited about a phone release.
::Dribble::
"It has the physical presence of an A380, the power of Concorde and the stamina of a U-2, and is packed with more features than a Swiss army knife. ®"
This is what I wanted to say all the time for Samsung Galaxy Note II but I did not have the eloquence power of yours. You just took the words out of my mouth.
@Gorillaphone
Don't worry; you'll probably go through a growth spurt when puberty kicks in
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