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My Note 3 versus iPhone 5

C

ctdog

Member
Hi all,

Here are some of my impressions comparing my Note 3 to my iPhone 5.

Music: close, but the nod goes to the 5 due to iTunes Radio. No matter what genre, it blows away the competition.

Movies & TV: no contest, the 5 by virtue of iTunes and Amazon instant video crushes the competition via an enormous variety of content.

Apps: the 5, due to Apples strict insistence that the apps play nice with the devices screen size and resolution. There is no hit or miss, the apps WILL work with the device.

Ease of use: very close, but the nod goes to the Note. While it's a much bigger device, Samsung's efforts into making the device easy to use and manipulate translates into a friendlier user experience. Plus the S-pen and ability to select a keyboard-the 5 can't answer that.

Overall enjoyment: The Note. The ability to customize, plus the fun and very useful S-pen translates into a fun experience that no other phone on the market can touch.

Obviously these are my opinions and views, and hopefully they'll give someone that's never used an Apple phone some insight. I use both daily, and both in their own way are great devices. Please no flaming or stupid fan boi comments for EITHER product.
 
Interesting comparison to me as well:

I have over 1000 songs stored in Google Play Music, and the All Access feature affords me virtually every song out there. Dish Anywhere gives me everything on my DVR and all 200 channels I subscribe to. In HD. TuneIn Radio gives me just about any radio station out there being broadcast.

Advantage to Note 3 because the Star Wars Blu-ray movies I moved to the 64 GB microSD card look phenomenal in 1080p.

While we appreciate your comparison, I personally feel that it is strictly a subjective one and I'm glad the iPhone works for YOU. However, there are plenty of people - especially in a Note 3 forum - who would disagree. You are free to return the Note and keep your iPhone active if it better suits your purposes. Not trying to flame you at all, I'm glad you like your iPhone :)
 
1) yes an SD card gives a user the ability to put movies on the device and that is a HUGE plus and one I am going to take advantage of, but I urge people to not take my word for it but check out the offering from Amazon and iTunes-no they don't offer EVERY movie and TV show ever produced, but their combined selection is far superior to any competition. Throw in NetFlix, and it's even better.

2) screen. The iPhone has the advantage outdoors, much easier to see. However, it ultimately loses because the Note 3 has much more enjoyable colors that translates to a better movie viewing experience, plus the sheer size makes doing EVERYTHING much more enjoyable. Bigger screen = easier to see and perform tasks.

3) speakers. The 5 wins, but not by much. The Note is a bit tinny sounding, but fact is they both suck at higher volumes. I solve that by using a Jam speaker box when I listen to music with either device. No it's not the best Bluetooth speaker in the world, but for a hundred bucks it's pretty darn good.

4) call quality: the 5 is better. Voices sound more realistic on the 5, the Note has sort of a "dull" sound to voices. But you can hear everyone fine, and vice versa, so it's not an actual problem, more a subjective preference.

Again no flaming. I'm not a fan boi for EITHER device. Both are great, and both suck. I love tech, and I love both devices. Neither is perfect, and I've discussed these same issues in Apple forums. Some people go mental and defend the iPhone to the point of being ridiculous, as some people do with the Note. I however see the genius and failures in both, and love both for what they offer.
 
After buying every new iPhone at its launch date, I've got years of experience with iOS. Prior to which I've been using Apple computers since 1991, for work & personal. My point? I like Apple and have nothing bad to say.

We all have our preferences & unique needs, therefore I celebrate having choices. After waiting patiently for years hoping that Apple would offer a larger display, not just an elongated narrow one like the 4.0" on my iPhone 5 & 5S, they finally pushed me towards Android.

In a word: WOW!

In a matter of two weeks I was so delighted with Android that I bought two phones for different uses and one tablet. Even though I have years of iTunes Content & Investment in iPhone, iPad & Mac Apps, that was not about to stop me from investing in Android. I'm very open minded, work in the tech sector, and never hesitant to make the kind of change that benefits me.

I'm fully enmeshed in my personal quest to ramp up my knowledge of Android, so as to fully implement it to my advantage. At this juncture I'm refreshed, excited, happy & moving forward at a rapid pace.

My MacBook Pro w/retina & MacBook Air are serving me well on the computer front, now I finally have an ideal solution with my Galaxy S4 & Note 3 as my smartphones of choice. My Nexus 7.2 is a stellar tablet. Best of all is they interface with my Macs ideally. Proving once again that anything can be accomplished with a positive attitude, patience & perseverance.
 
ctdog said:
I urge people to not take my word for it but check out the offering from Amazon and iTunes-no they don't offer EVERY movie and TV show ever produced, but their combined selection is far superior to any competition. Throw in NetFlix, and it's even better.
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I think what we have here is someone who has not browsed the Play Store Movies & TV section, or opened the Netflix app which was likely pre-installed on his Note 3. :confused: If it wasn't pre-installed, it's available for download, just as it was for his iPhone.

I could be mistaken, but I think it would probably require a bit of effort to find a Movie or TV show that was available on iTunes, but not available in the Play Store.
 
I've used the iPhone since the original version through the 5. I just got the Note 3 and I have never been wow'd so much by a phone before. The 1080p screen is absolutely incredible and I can't stop staring at it.

I would give the advantage to the iPhone 5 only in 1 area and that is ease of use for the more non-technical user. In addition, the junk Verizon loads up on the Note 3 means a lot of manual cleanup that many mainstream users may not even know how to do. Apple comes perfectly loaded with no spam apps etc. out of the box. Apple controls it's ecosystem very well indeed.
 
1) I too was disappointed that Apple kept the same size for the iPhone. Apple makes many great products, but they are losing ground badly to larger screen phones. They aren't stupid, so I'd hope they'd have some compelling reason for being so late to the bigger screen game.

2) I use NetFlix to watch Breaking Bad. Some of the shows I like that I can't find in the Play Store: The original TV series of Star Trek, Twilight Zone, The A-Team, Miami Vice, etc. And many movies, like Rambo, Predator, etc.

I reiterate; both phones are great, and both need a lot of work. People that like tech should really keep an open mind, there is a lot of great stuff out there. Example: I love my Note 3 and iPhone 5, but the HTC One is way better looking than either, plus the HTC's speakers are soooooo much better than either phones. I've zero interest in getting the HTC, but my point is, it can do some stuff that shames other phones, and I can appreciate that.
 
They'll go to a bigger screen eventually.

iphone10.jpg
 
ctdog said:
1)Some of the shows I like that I can't find in the Play Store: The original TV series of Star Trek, Twilight Zone, The A-Team, Miami Vice, etc. And many movies, like Rambo, Predator, etc.
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Most of these are in either the Play Store or Netflix, and of course anything on Netflix is available on all devices.

I started to link them all, but they're all over the place, not just on iTunes. Original series of Star Trek, Twilight Zone, A-Team, the old(er) movies etc.
 
Twilight Zone-Not available in Play Store, season 1 & 2 on NetFlix but not season 3. Amazon Instant has all 3 seasons. iTunes has all 5 seasons. Look, this doesn't have to turn into a who-has-what battle. I was very clear in all my posts that I love both phones, and I pointed out the shortcomings of both devices. Celebrate diversity!
 
ctdog said:
Twilight Zone-Not available in Play Store, season 1 & 2 on NetFlix but not season 3. Amazon Instant has all 3 seasons. iTunes has all 5 seasons. Look, this doesn't have to turn into a who-has-what battle. I was very clear in all my posts that I love both phones, and I pointed out the shortcomings of both devices. Celebrate diversity!
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Please don't get defensive, I wasn't, just simply addressing your concerns and the inaccuracy of "crushes the competition via an enormous variety of content".

I happen to love iTunes on my Apple TV, it's much faster than any other streaming media player I've used with my home theater.
 
My opinion of the two:

The Pros' that the iPhone 5s have

The 5's apps are generally more refined and plentiful.
The 5's speaker is loud and distortion free.
The OS is stable
iMessage
iTunes

iPhone 5s cons

Small Screen
Can't use talk and use data simultaneously (over network)
With fingerprint reader on can't swipe to access notifications on lockscreen
Extremely limited customization
When switching from speaker to ear few second delay for mic
Battery life
Ring Tones limited to $

The Pro's of the Note 3

The 5.7" Amoled Display
The S-Pen
Customization
WiFi speeds
Talk and use data simultaneously
Expandable memory
Outdoor visibility (unusually excellent for amoled)
Battery life

The Note 3 cons

Weak speaker
Damn BIG
 
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