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Your Experiences So Far

J

JoeInCT

Newbie
I'm interested in everyone's experiences so far, especially those on Verizon Wireless. I previously had the Note 2, so my expectations were high.

In my opinion, this phone is NOT an upgrade (actually a downgrade) for the following reasons:

1) Call quality is VERY poor and I have problems hearing due to garbled and popping sound from the other end. I tried a factory new replacement but it seems even worse. It is not confined to any one location. It is bad.

2) The camera is no where near the quality of the Note 2, especially in low light situations.

I am hoping that a software upgrade will fix these problems. But for me, these two problems are major and I cannot recommend this phone.

What's your experiences so far?
 
JoeInCT said:
I'm interested in everyone's experiences so far, especially those on Verizon Wireless. I previously had the Note 2, so my expectations were high.

In my opinion, this phone is NOT an upgrade (actually a downgrade) for the following reasons:

1) Call quality is VERY poor and I have problems hearing due to garbled and popping sound from the other end. I tried a factory new replacement but it seems even worse. It is not confined to any one location. It is bad.

2) The camera is no where near the quality of the Note 2, especially in low light situations.

I am hoping that a software upgrade will fix these problems. But for me, these two problems are major and I cannot recommend this phone.

What's your experiences so far?
Click to expand...

I upgraded from a Verizon Note 2 to a Verizon Note 3, and do not have either of the issues you mention. Calls are clear, I use the phone daily for work and conference calls. I have no issues when using the handset, a headset, or speaker phone. I think the camera is great. In fact I took a picture this morning of my daughter and dog sleeping in a chair in almost complete darkness, and with flash it turned out great. I think it was worth the upgrade for sure. The screen is super clear, The phone is thinner and easier to hold, and everything runs super smooth. Not to mention the improved SPen functions. No issues here at all.
 
swartscough said:
I upgraded from a Verizon Note 2 to a Verizon Note 3, and do not have either of the issues you mention. Calls are clear, I use the phone daily for work and conference calls. I have no issues when using the handset, a headset, or speaker phone. I think the camera is great. In fact I took a picture this morning of my daughter and dog sleeping in a chair in almost complete darkness, and with flash it turned out great. I think it was worth the upgrade for sure. The screen is super clear, The phone is thinner and easier to hold, and everything runs super smooth. Not to mention the improved SPen functions. No issues here at all.
Click to expand...

Also a Note 2 to 3 upgrader and no issues also. I haven't used the camera a lot yet but what I've seen looks great. I had low volume issue's on the Note 2 and had to use volume booster apps but I don't need it on the 3 the sound is great and I am loving the S View case.
 
bjtcars said:
Also a Note 2 to 3 upgrader and no issues also. I haven't used the camera a lot yet but what I've seen looks great. I had low volume issue's on the Note 2 and had to use volume booster apps but I don't need it on the 3 the sound is great and I am loving the S View case.
Click to expand...

Same here, UK (Europe) version. Camera/video fantastic no problems with sound.
 
I did not come from the Note 2 so I cannot comment on a direct comparison. I can say that I find the camera to be very good quality when it comes to photos, although I have not really run it through it's paces since it's so new.

I do have the call quality issue mentioned by the OP and I am also on Verizon. For me it's really worse at home where I have a weak signal. In most other locations with decent signal I get acceptable call quality.

This is my second phone. I returned the first one in a hope to get better call quality at home and I do get a little better than the first one, but the issue is still there just to a lesser degree.

The good news about that is that it's a software issue that was really bad on Sprint and for which an OTA was just release that addresses it. So I'm hoping that one is in the works for us as well.

Make sure you call Verizon support and report the call quality issue. When I called at first the tech said there were no reports yet (the Verizon release day was literally days old) but then she checked an 'internal blog' and said that they were starting to get reports.

Overall I love this phone. I'm starting to get the lag that many others commented on (2-3 second start up from sleep) but that doesn't bother me like it does some. I've recently uploaded a boat load of photos so I might dump them off again to see if that is the culprit. I also just added a 64 gb SD card so maybe that has something to do with it as well.

The phone is a great improvement over my last phone in every respect (Razr Maxx HD) and I'm loving it. I'm finding I like the S-pen a little more than I thought I would, although I don't use it a ton. I had the moving home button issue on the first phone but it's much better on the second, although not perfect.
 
I bought my wife the Note 2 when it came out and she just loved it so when the Note 3 came out I jumped ship from BlackBerry to Android, it is so great being able to add apps without worrying (too much) that the device will start crashing, rebooting or even becoming inoperable. I have not had any significant issues with AT&T and I don't even notice the size any longer.
 
My first Note 3 was simply wonderful in all areas. AT&T has always been strong, with the phone producing excellent call quality. But then I lost it... to my wife :)

Immediately returned to AT&T, but they were sold out. Fortunately I also do business with T-Mobile who had a few in stock. After a week, this one's proven to be just as excellent as the first.

I'm enjoying this phone unlike any other. It gets used very heavily each and everyday. I use it for a wide variety of tasks both work and personal. SWYPE is my keyboard of choice, saving me lots of time since my daily email traffic approaches eighty.

Fast, fun and completely lag free, I'm very happy with my Note 3.
 
JoeInCT said:
I'm interested in everyone's experiences so far, especially those on Verizon Wireless. I previously had the Note 2, so my expectations were high.

In my opinion, this phone is NOT an upgrade (actually a downgrade) for the following reasons:

1) Call quality is VERY poor and I have problems hearing due to garbled and popping sound from the other end. I tried a factory new replacement but it seems even worse. It is not confined to any one location. It is bad.

2) The camera is no where near the quality of the Note 2, especially in low light situations.

I am hoping that a software upgrade will fix these problems. But for me, these two problems are major and I cannot recommend this phone.

What's your experiences so far?
Click to expand...

1) Wow, so I guess that wasn't exclusive to Sprint. The Sprint versions just recently got an update that fixed that issue. I'd report it to Verizon, just in case, so that they can work on a fix on their end. It just doesn't seem to be as widespread an issue on other providers as it was on Sprint.

2) That's odd. My experiences have been almost identical to what I experienced with the Note 2. I even like how they added a trigger button for either video or pics, so you don't have to toggle to one or the other.

Overall, I think it's definitely an upgrade (but maybe not a "huge" upgrade), in particular because of these things:

1) More internal storage. The 25gb usable internal storage vs. the 10.5 on the Note 2 has proved to be a day and night difference for my needs. I've been more cautious/careful with what I allocate to the internal storage, but one significant difference I've noticed is being able to put my alert sounds/ringtones on the internal, prevents them from not re-populating after connecting to the computer (in the past, when I've kept my ringtones and notifications on the SD, I've had issues of the phone not re-populating those until I soft re-set...and then, it removes the settings I had connected to those ringtones/alert sounds...this was on the Note 2 and the Photon).

2) 1GB more of RAM. I didn't realize how much RAM I use up, when multi-tasking, but having the 3GB vs. 2GB is a world of difference.

3) Slimmer form factor. I doubted it at first, but the Note 3 is even easier to hold than the Note 2 was. Since it's less thick and less wide, I'm much more at ease holding this phone with 1 hand. The Note 2 was at the very edge of my comfort level, as far as 1 handed use was concerned. The additional height is so minuscule that it's not really worth mentioning.

4) True international phone. The SIM card slot is exposed and from what I understand, the US versions (regardless of provider) are not region locked (e.g. one could bring the phone to another country and use a local SIM, to save money).

5) New S-Pen features. At first, when watching the videos, I thought that they might not be as useful as they seem to think. I was completely wrong. I used the S-pen a lot before. Now, I use it whenever I can.

Those are my main reasons for feeling that it's an upgrade, without a doubt. Now, there are some things that I really can't figure out why they changed also:

1) Hands Free Mode. What used to be "Driving Mode" on the Note 2, is now called Hands Free Mode. What I don't understand is why they took out the capability of text messages being automatically read outloud, when in Hands Free Mode. All it does now is mention who a text message is from, but it doesn't read out the text message like it used to. This was SO awesome on the Note 2 because, if I received an important text message, that I needed to reply to, I could just call the person right away or pull over to answer. In California, it truly did keep me "hands free."

2) S-Note. Why they completely changed S-note, to the point that my old S-note files all have to be "converted," is beyond me. There's really no point of the Sync option that they had with S-Note anymore. Before, I would write some notes in a meeting, using my Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet, it would SYNC through my Samsung account, and if I ever needed to reference it (while away from my tablet), it would already be available on my Note 2 S-Note app, perfectly sync'd, without any issue. I downloaded Evernote, so that I could access the notes online (if I ever needed), but Evernote doesn't really sync up the way that I was hoping it would.
 
I just got off the phone with a friend I haven't spoken to recently. The topic turned to smartphones, as he happens to be a ranking executive with Verizon. Upon asking him about the Note 3, he said it passed all their tests and those of the FCC with flying colors. In fact it's so well liked internally that he and many other execs are using them.

That said, like with other brands and models they have customers that complain, some rightfully so. Why? Because some live in areas where Verizon is not the strongest carrier, a fact that applies to all carriers. It's always been that way. Also it's important to remember that Samsung is no different than other manufacturers, their engineers are highly skilled and strive for the best possible phone performance.
 
zipred said:
Because some live in areas where Verizon is not the strongest carrier, a fact that applies to all carriers. It's always been that way. Also it's important to remember that Samsung is no different than other manufacturers, their engineers are highly skilled and strive for the best possible phone performance.
Click to expand...

My Note 3 is noticeably worse at acquiring or holding a phone signal in fringe areas than about half a dozen dumb phones I have around the place. Fact.

I'm told it's no worse than recent iPhones. I believe that. They are all lacking.
 
Simon_Gardner said:
My Note 3 is noticeably worse at acquiring or holding a phone signal in fringe areas than about half a dozen dumb phones I have around the place. Fact.

I'm told it's no worse than recent iPhones. I believe that. They are all lacking.
Click to expand...
Dumb phones by will always function better in weak fringe areas because they have but one antenna tuned to perform best for voice calls.
 
After 2 weeks with my phone, its as good as if not better than my bionic was at maintaining a data connection in my house. I've had no call issues at all either. My biggest "issue" if you will, is that I was hoping the speakerphone would have been a bit louder. Its size made it feel awkward at first to handle but now I'm used to it. Now the bionic feels tiny in comparison. Other than, that no real issues with the phone, but like I say, its only been 2 weeks. Knock on wood but, so far so good. Lovin it
 
dontpanicbobby said:
All's good on my t-mobile version.
Click to expand...
My first Note 3 was from AT&T, little did I realize my wife would like it so much that I'd get big points for giving it to her, to replace her iPhone 5S.

That same day I made a quick trip for another only to find AT&T sold out. Luckily being the smartphone addict I am, I also do business with T-Mobile. So I zipped over and bought myself one from them...

My point?

I am very happy to report these two are mirror images of each other and function perfectly. That speaks volumes for Samsung's consistency and the excellent quality of the Note 3.
 
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