The Galaxy Note II: I get it now
Sunday, January 20, 2013 at 3:15AM My local Three store let me play with a Samsung Galaxy Note II for an hour yesterday and I came away enlightened, surprised and feeling a little ignorant.
The S Pen stunned me and I was surprised at how quickly I got to grips with it and how natural it felt. It has been said in the past that if you use a stylus, you have failed. This is not just a stylus though, it is much more than that and greatly adds to the potential uses for the Note II.
The screen size, which I have often criticised in the past, brings something new to Android that I did not expect. I have always found the Android interface to feel cramped and overly complex, even on the Galaxy S III, but it seems that the Note II screen makes Android feel as free and natural as the iPhone 5 to me. It’s hard to explain why this particular size offers that particular sensation when the other large Android phones do not, but for me it made a big difference.
The sheer power on offer, the quality of video playback and everything else I tried took me back to a time I had forgotten. It was like playing with a powerful new PDA again, it felt like a leap forward which the iPhone 5 doesn’t. Of course I have waxed lyrical about the iPhone 5 and it will remain my daily smartphone, but I can now see why so many of you are so impressed with the Note II.
I won’t be buying a Note II anytime soon, mainly because it is just too big for me, but I can recognise that it is a more impressive product that the iPhone. It is more powerful, more original and much more flexible. I get it now.
Reader Comments (29)
I still don't get it, but I have to concede they are selling well. Rumours say the Note III will have a 7" screen - it's already ridiculously big, when will it end??? Anecdotally more women seem to have them, probably because it just so happens having a massive handbag is in fashion...
The Note 10.1 is even better. It does take time to see how to extract the best from these devices. Not for the average user who just wants basic functions to work well.
Glad you get it, Shaun! Your point about PDA's kind of nails it. It's everything we wished the PDA had been back in the day. I never expected to be quite as taken with mine as I am, but I am declaring it the best PDA phone I've ever owned.
I had mine since launch in october and it is just incredible to use. And after some weeks the size feels normal and you just dont think about it. One week ago I sold mine, had the 3G version (GT-N7100) and bought the LTE version (GT-N7105) and it just got better. I rarely use my iMac or Air och iPad anymore, most of the things is the Note able to do for me.
David the Note 3 is rumoured to be a 6.3 inch screen. I would imagine the bezel will be thinner & features all capacitive buttons. That way actual size will not much bigger.
I'm waiting for the next iPhone and iOS 7 before I change. My 5 fits really well in my Apple Eco system. However, I loved the first Note. So the Note 3 might be the one but it needs to lose the home button.
...a more impressive product than the iPhone
As always, horses for courses, but personally I think it's like comparing chalk with cheese. Impressive no doubt though.
Here's a recent article saying much the same as we've been saying for a while, e.g. why the obesession with the phone bit: http://www.trustedreviews.com/opinions/size-matters-big-screen-phones-are-the-future
I still wish there was a choice of a compact superphone other than the iPhone. I like a bigger screen but people should have choices.
Roll-on roll-out screens...
"I won’t be buying a Note II anytime soon, mainly because it is just too big for me, but I can recognise that it is a more impressive product that the iPhone. It is more powerful, more original and much more flexible. I get"
That's a bit of a contradiction. You're not buying it, but its better etc
Shaun, what it is, is different. It's big & has a Wacom stylus. And runs android. And has some clever samsung software tweaks. And when going from the iPhone it's feels vastly different, like what a PDA always should have been.
But it is not practical for everyday use for some or most people as its too big. For others the size is ok.
"That's a bit of a contradiction. You're not buying it, but its better etc"
No it's not. I don't buy everything that is better that what I have. If I did, I would be broke. As I said, "I won’t be buying a Note II anytime soon, mainly because it is just too big for me, but I can recognise that it is a more impressive product that the iPhone." It is too big for me, but the article is quite clear in stating how I now realise why others are excited and impressed with it.
Agreed; it's a little too big for me too (or my pockets are too small, or my thighs are too large), which is why I've stuck with the S3 despite really wanting a Note II. I reckon the Note III is going to tempt the hell out of me though.
In use I find the Note II to be a very good size, it's just a bit uncomfortable in my trousers (ahem). And I agree with David; I think more women have them as they fit fine in most handbags.
Shaun did you try the hover functionality? That's pretty handy, especially with emails (in the notification area for example; hovering brings up a preview) and in Samsung's calendar app (hovering brings up the appointment details). And how about the multi-window? Not something you're likely to use every day, but for certain tasks it's a real time-saver.
It'd be great if the S4 came with a stylus, but that doesn't seem likely.
Might be time for Apple to copy a few ideas from Samsung but put them in a smaller form-factor.
"Shaun did you try the hover functionality? That's pretty handy, especially with emails (in the notification area for example; hovering brings up a preview) and in Samsung's calendar app (hovering brings up the appointment details). And how about the multi-window? Not something you're likely to use every day, but for certain tasks it's a real time-saver."
It was those two functions that hooked me above all else. The hover function in particular is what I view as innovation.
I think the range of supporting S Pen software is what makes this so good as well.
Reminds me of Apple. I tight integration of hardware and software. That is why this brick works so well.
That's why I mentioned the innovation thing- seems Samsung is pushing ahead in some areas and not just for the sake of it anymore. Genuinely useful features.
The multi-window thing started on their tablets, and in the latest update you can have multiple resizeable repositionable windows.
They've already done that a little bit on the Note II (pop-up video window and pop-up browser) but there probably aren't as many uses for it on the smaller screen.
As for the hover, it's a whole new way of interacting with the device. We haven't had one of those for a while (unless you count speech recognition, which is starttng to work well enough to use). Samsung's done a great job of adding support for hover, but it'd be even better if other developers did it too. For that we need more stylii, say in an S4...
My next tablet will have a stylus; hopefully with hover.
Maybe it's because I'm a big guy with big hands, but the Note II does not in any way feel to big for me. And since I normally wear shirts with pockets, that's usually where I stash mine when out and about. But even so, it fits fine in my pants pockets (although I should note that I do not now nor have I ever worn jeans).
You have to use the hover function to really appreciate how nice it is. You can navigate all over the device without ever touching the screen, and the preview with hover function is especially handy in those apps that support the function (Sammy's built in apps mainly. I've only recall a couple 3rd party apps that support it).
I've become so enamored with the S-Pen and its functionality that I've pretty much determined that my next tablet will be a Galaxy Note tablet. I'm anxiously awaiting the release of the Galaxy Note 8 because if it's all it's cracked up to be, the Nexus 7 is outta here to be replaced with it.
Oddly, though, I don't really use the multi-window functionality. That to me is something that seems it would make more sense on a tablet sized device. But the primary problem for me is that only a handful of apps can use it and they're not the really the ones I want to use it with. I'd really like to see this functionality extended system wide so all apps would be able to use it. Then it'd be more useful.
For those who think it's too big to fit in your pockets - well, there's always a man bag! :-)
Donald on my S3 I have a custom ROM which includes something called unlimited multiwindow. This allow me to use any app in multiwindow.
As it's part of the ROM I don't know whether it's available as a standalone mod. XDA Devs would be the place to look.
Bug, I assume you're using CleanRom either 3.3 or 3.5. I actually had that installed for a while and you're absolutely correct. I've just decided that I prefer stock installs and unrooted and went back to the stock ROM on my GN2, which of course means I gave up the ability to use any app in multi window.
Donald, why not running stock but rooted? You can ad just the all apps in multiview as a mod. I am running stock but rooted and installed Legend95´s Simplistic Framework and his MultiWindow mod and this makes a very good smartphone even better but keeping everything else stock
I'm using InsertCoin on the S3, which has the unlimited multi-window stuff built in.
My gf doesn't want to root her Note II so it'll stay as stock. To be honest there's very little she'd like to do that it can't do unrooted; the unlimited multi-window is the only one that comes to mind as all the apps she'd like to use with it don't work with it.
There are several things I need root for on my S3 of course.
@Bug "Might be time for Apple to copy a few ideas from Samsung but put them in a smaller form-factor." - I'm certain Apple will get into the stylus trend. If they refine the stylus usage it can be a fantastic item.
Time goes by, but I still think the old Palm devices were fantastic with the stylus and always said it would be great to have a modern device with such feature. It has happened with Samsung (Note) and it has proved to be right. It just needs development now.
BTW, Jah, I managed to sell the TH-55 (remember?) to some guy in America and I had to fire it up to reset. It was a joy to use the device again! Very very good device. Still works to perfection with a lovely Organizer software to hand write and drag & drop. Maybe someday soon Samsung/Apple can come up with such feature again - reverting to 2005? :-)
... and I'm probably getting my Note II next Friday... fingers crossed (Vodafone in Portugal is out of stock of free Notes II)
Please nobody get another Note 2. It's driving me insane :)
You may just have given me the excuse I needed... ;op
Beep Beep Beep. Grrrrr :)
Hold on tight Gavin... the 4.8" Math is just around the corner! :-) Just imagine... one more line of icons in the homescreen... wow... and NFC! :-) and retina display!... what else do you need? ah yes,... a case.
Lol but Rui just imagine the 4.8 inch does exist. It will sell like hot cakes. It will reinvent the stylus ;) and have apps ;) but the knock on effect will be everyone ditching their 5 inch plus androids and the value of the devices will plummet :D
Rui, Gavin will not need one case, he must at least have five :)
Now if you are going to quote stats don't get the figures wrong ;)
5 cases is so inaccurate. More like minimum of 30.
Bug, the only advantage running stock but rooted would give is the ability to run Titanium Backup (speaking for myself). Back in the days when I changed ROMs as often as my underwear, that made sense. But these days I just want to USE my devices and not tinker with them, so I prefer to stay stock, because as soon as I root I'll get back into my old "ROM of the Day" habits. :-)
Don't forget the ability to use any app in multi-window.
My gf was interested to see if I could use the Contacts app in multi-window; I tried it and it worked. She'd find that very useful for, say, entering the details of a contact which are in an email. She's not comfortable with the idea of rooting though.
There are other things root's needed for, but they may not matter to you. They include the ability to change the aGPS server (which speeds up GPS fixes) and the ability to run Sixaxis and therefore use a PS3 controller wirelessly. Oh, and Samba is pretty useful for accessing my phone from Windows over wifi, as is Wifi Explorer Pro..
I also like to use custom ROMs and apply mods of course, which is the main reason I root.