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Reviews Thread

As I think I said earlier the rocking is caused by the camera lens which juts out a couple of millimetres. It is cured by buying a cheap TPU case, which I have done.
 
So, now that I've had some time with the device, I wanted to take a little 'bit of time to write my review based on my standard operational needs of my cell phone.

Pros
1) Multi-tasking update right out of the box
There are certain things that are absolutely essential for my day to day needs with my cell phone. With work emails set to push automatically to my phone 5 days a week, along with text messaging that I use all the time, as well as consistent research that I do both for work and personal, multi-tasking was an absolute "Must Have" when I first found out about the capability. I was ecstatic that Sprint and Samsung made that update available so quickly after launch. Even without the ability (out of the box) to add any app to multi-tasking, it's still a function that I've already used so often, just because it includes apps that I use the most.
2) Jelly Bean
Coming from Gingerbread, it's obviously going to be night and day, but I never really experienced ICS..and I'm glad they went straight to Jelly Bean. Project Butter is what Android has lacked for all these years. I'm just curious to see how smooth it stays after a full year.
3) Samsung has improved their support 10-fold from 2-3 years ago.
When the Instinct was released, I had purchased that phone for one of my family members, thinking it truly would be a competitor to the iPhone, especially since Sprint didn't have the iPhone. The support for that device was practically non-existent. At first, I thought maybe it was just Samsung software, so I had no problem upgrading the same family member to an Epic (Sprint's Galaxy offering). Because it was Android, I thought it would give no problems and be fantastic. Problem was, the 1st generation of Galaxy phones (while popular worldwide) had GPS issues. This was a common issue that I saw across different US providers. On top of that, US support was practically non-existent still (just like the Instinct). By the time the Epic was updated to Froyo, most phones were being upgraded to Gingerbread (or had talks/rumors when the update would happen in the near future). Now, for the majority of the people on here, that would be no issues due to Rooting capabilities, but for someone like the family member that isn't really technologically savvy enough to do that, this was absolutely frustrating. It wasn't until last year that I truly started to pay attention to Samsung's improvement. The success of the Galaxy S II definitely improved Samsung's need to become a leader in the industry. With the SIII popularity this year, as well as the release of the Note 2 (and the immediate update to include multi-tasking capabilities), I'm convinced Samsung has made a turn for the better, as far as US support is concerned.
4) Battery Life
I never ever thought that I'd consider using my Nav/Music in the car without ever charging my phone at the same time. The 3100mah battery has eliminated my fear of using my phone "too much," for fear that I won't have enough battery life to make emergency calls when needed. Over the years, I've purchased many stop gaps, just to prevent my phone from ever dying on me whenever I wasn't near a charger. Having been able to purchase OEM accessories with the 50% off discount, made enjoying the extra 3100mah battery even more (since I have 4 of them between the batteries that came in the box, as well as with the dock kit)
5) Accessories
Aside from not having a vehicle specific car dock (I'll be addressing this in the cons), the OEM accessories are great! The battery charging kit is exactly what I wanted for work and home. The S-Pen with eraser is amazing for use at work, especially taking notes from phone calls. The NFC tags, I"m still waiting to use, but will find great use of those without a doubt. The allshare wireless hub, I'm sure I'll be using much more of, once I have more time to sit down and figure out what it'd be best used for (in my daily life).
6) Screen Size
I didn't think I'd love having such a huge screen so much, but it is amazing watching media, reading/writing emails, text messages, browsing through the forum and on the internet...pinch to zoom is great.
7) Option for Screen to stay on while looking at phone/stay oriented to how it identifies face orientation.
I didn't think I'd use this or that it would be effective, but it's amazing! I keep this on all the time and when reading the forums or the internet, I don't worry about having to keep touch the screen every couple minutes, so that it doesn't automatically turn off (w/ the 3 min. timeframe I have set to automatically turn off the screen).
8) Notification toggles
Even though I had widgetlocker for this before, I love the quick toggle notifications that Samsung integrated (unless this was a jelly bean add-on).
9) Camera response
It's just way more responsive than anything else I've ever experienced with a phone camera. I don't mind it being only 8mp. Shots are perfect for my needs. Haven't tested my no/little light pic settings yet, which is one of my biggest pet peeves about camera phones, but from other pictures I've seen, they aren't that bad.

Cons
1) Screen-on for all incoming Text messages
I absolutely hate that they didn't make this an option that can be turned off right away. Luckily, I was able to track down an app (by searching through the forums) that will allow me to turn this off, but I receive so many text messages that I hated the thought of my phone staying on for 3 minutes at a time, when I receive a text message while my phone is in my pocket. Talk about a built in way to waste battery life. Because of this option, there's no real reason to change the "screen on" time to anything more than 30 seconds. Otherwise, the battery usage will show screen on as one of the biggest battery drains.
2) Sunlight Viewing
I see, now, what people have commented on with regards to viewing a Super Amoled screens in sunlight. Since I live in LA, there are way more sunny days than cloudy/rainy. The Photon was the aboslute best phone I've ever had, as far as viewing the phone screen in sunlight. Not to say that it's "horrible," but I do keep the phone on Auto and have attempted using the brightest setting in sunlight...and it's still not even close to how easy it was to view the Photon Screen. Not a deal breaker by any means, but a slight annoyance.
3) Screen Stay on while charging
This is something that would normally be available via Developers/Development options (which it is on the Note 2), but the security encryption through the Note 2 doesn't allow this to happen. I found an app that'll override that, but this is only slightly annoying (as I'd rather my phone be extra secure, rather than have options that would/could add vulerabilities).
4) Physical Size
While, I've gotten used to the Physical size of the Note 2, if they could somehow manage to make this phone even thinner/less long, it'd probably be 100% perfect. I see what reviewers are saying about the size getting a little uncomfortable after using for a while. I have gotten crazy used to it and have made necessary adjustments to the size, but there are certain one handed functions that I'm a lot more cautious with due to the size of the phone. I also find it more cumbersome having a physical home button vs. a soft key home button. If the home button were a soft key, I think it'd be even easier for 1 handed operation w/o being extra cautious. Of course, this is just for me (since I don't necessarily have "big" hands).
5) Calendars don't save settings after power down and battery swap
For whatever reason, my phone doesn't save the notifications for my Google and Samsung Calendar (e.g. S-Planner) apps. It also doesn't save the fact that I don't want a pop-up window to wake up my phone and show full screen for whatever event reminders I have set (just as annoying as text message wake-up).
6) No Note 2 specific vehicle dock
I've seen conflicting info about the Note 1 dock working/not working with the Note 2 and I've been hesitant to pull the trigger on trying that without seeing pictures. That said, hopefully we'll see previews from iBolt this week on the Note 2 specific dock. The option through ProClip is not really a good option for my needs.

These are just the most important points I've noticed, both Pros and Cons. The Pros by far outweigh the cons and I'm sure there are even more that are awesome for me that I hadn't mentioned. Majority of the cons are just minor annoyances in my eyes...but overall, I truly love all that this phone offers for my life and needs.
 
I don't regard the physical size as a "con" despite (or maybe because of) having it for 2 months now.Many reviewers said they felt uncomfortable using it as a phone and holding it up to their ears, but I don't find that and I am no Dumbo.
The only time the size pops up is when someone sees it and asks "is that a phone or a tablet?". An interesting conversation ensues and they go away with little stars in their eyes, and I know they want to get one. :D
 
Ballymoss said:
I don't regard the physical size as a "con" despite (or maybe because of) having it for 2 months now.Many reviewers said they felt uncomfortable using it as a phone and holding it up to their ears, but I don't find that and I am no Dumbo.
The only time the size pops up is when someone sees it and asks "is that a phone or a tablet?". An interesting conversation ensues and they go away with little stars in their eyes, and I know they want to get one. :D
Click to expand...

I only marked it as a "con" for me, just because it's just on the edge of uncomfortable 1 handed use. As I said, I made adjustments that are just fine for my tastes, but I can see why reviewers mentioned this. I've seen tiny girls with this phone, so obviously the phone's size isn't a bother for those even with smaller hands.
 
While not as thorough or detailed as drex's post above, I also did a mini observation/review of my Note II. I posted it over in S4GRU and don't feel like retyping the whole thing over here. :)


But I will do a more detailed review over here later on after I get to use the device a bit more. So far I only touched a fraction of what it can do.

TS
 
Not a bad write up, but the writer lost points with me when they complained about the multi-app window and said they couldn't even be bothered to find a way to disable it using Samsung's confusing menus...when the button to disable it is in the pull-down menu from the status bar.
 
Easy on the eyes doesn't do her justice. Smart, the best and most thorough review I've seen and before I forget, beautiful. I would have watched her review just to look at her, but the review was great. I'm off to get this phablet based on her review.
 
whitecollar said:
Wired review
Bigger, But Not Better

Rating: 5/10


Review: Samsung Galaxy Note II Smartphone
Click to expand...
Wow, That review really ticks me off on how some things are totally inaccurate.

here is my response, in case it doesn't get published over there.


OK, for starters, the review is basically a writers personal opinion of the device, lets not jump on the bandwagon that its a paid Apple advertisement, etc. It is his choice to write what he feels and his editors are free to post it for all to see. But, there are a few points that I see that are totally incorrect or not even touched upon in the write up. Therefore...

The appetite for these types of devices, particularly in Asia, is not totally true. it may seem like that but that is only because the 1st & 2nd Notes were distributed overseas first and thus would have a much bigger bottom line of sales. Domestically, the 1st Note was only on AT&T, the second are now being offered on all major carriers.

The device is a phone first, tablet second (some may disagree and reverse that), but a phone nonetheless. No one really cares if you hold it up to your face to make a call and complain "oh it's too big", "oh, I can't see your face", unless you are in high school. IF anyone is concerned what others might think about holding the device to your head, then I suggest using headphones, Bluetooth etc. I rather have the microphone closer to my mouth than near my nose.

Also to Note (pun intended), Samsung has not once, previously, now and probably in the future, call these devices phablets. That was a word created by the online, bloggers, reviewers, etc. And as much as I hate to admit it, that word will be part of the lexicon of our vocabulary since everyone has taken it to describe these devices instead of what they really are, hybrids. Phablets sound cooler than hybrids, or intermediate devices.

I also find it amusing that the buying public (as well as the media at large) that is complaining about the size of these type of devices, do not mind carrying around a 8, 9, 10 inch tablet and not complain about having to use two hands. At least with the Notes I & II, it is more compact yet gives you the necessary screen size without having to make it truly unbearable to use as a phone, camera, recorder, digitizer, note taker, etc. Basically its a all-in-one device that can still be pocketable.

With devices as large as these, folks need to start retraining themselves from the one hand approach so many have accustomed themselves. I for one wouldn't feel safe using one hand without dropping it. (That goes for any device, regardless of size). Granted, one can use it one handed. It takes practice and knowing your limitations of how far your fingers can go or do on such a big screen. Then there are aftermarket add-ons that perform dual role by adding a cover or gripper to insert their fingers and allow your thumbs to reach all points of the screen. But the device is really made for two handed use mainly because of the inclusion of the S-Pen.

Call it what you will, it is not a stylus. A stylus is a dumb down pointer, which as much as I would hate to admit, Steve Jobs of Apple was correct. If it has a stylus, then they are doing it wrong. But the difference here is it is not a stylus, it's a S-Pen. Is the S for Samsung, no, S for Super. It allows you to do much ,much more than a regular stylus. Cut and paste, multiple levels of pressure, hover notifications, etc. This alone helps viewing websites that have sub-levels of menus, which can't be accessed using your finger or a traditional non-smart stylus. Some find it gimmicky but many find it quite useful.

It also has a Wiacom digitizer, which for all intent and purposes, is phenomenal for those that take notes, paint, etc. Granted there are those that complain about the screen resolution not being on par as the Apple retina ones. But find me a Wiacom digitizer screen with a higher resolution and that can fit in the current Notes size that would not increase the price of the device by hundreds and I'll pay you your Note.

The statement of "The Note II largely runs the same software as the S III" is incorrect. The Note II has the latest Android OS. SIII is just getting it. The Note II has hover view, multi-view apps, etc which the SIII does not. The Touchwiz UI is the best I've seen yet, and certainly the best out of Motorolas' Blur, and HTCs' Sense. Granted there are pure android enthusiasts that prefer Stock Android, and that's fine. But one can easily download a launcher of their choice if need be.

As for S-Voice, it is just like Siri. Siri is okay, but it chokes on some questions, and lets not get into the part of dialects or having an accent, then it really gets all hay-wired The same goes for S-Voice. it is the start of the technology which in time will greatly improve both Apple and Android wise. But for simple questions, they both do the job well.

Is the device perfect, no. Quite a few things can be improved and probably will be both software wise (with a few updates) and hardware wise (in the next Note 3). But compared to what is out there, the Note II is a phenomenal device that really will be hard to match in terms of features, design and productivity. I for one would have not given it a 5, but closer to a 8.5 - 9.

TS
 
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