Samsung Galaxy Note Review

Is Samsung Galaxy Note the ultimate offspring of thetablet and the phone, or a 5.3 inch pain for whichever pocket you keep it in? Let’s find out.

In the papers, Galaxy Note comes out as a screamer. It boasts of a 1.4GHz dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel camera and 16GB of internal storage, along with 4G capabilities which, as of now, is of no use in India. With a huge 5.3 inches screen the Note is closer to the tablet than the phone. It dwarfs the iPhone and Android beats around it.

I will start with the positives about the phone –

Samsung has modelled the Note on its highly successful Galaxy S II platform. Though it did the same with the Nexus, the Korean giant has added some noteworthy upgrades. The Galaxy Note has a greater battery, a higher-resolution display, and a cool S Pen stylus, thus, making it a lot more versatile than a simple oversized handset.

Playing games, watching videos and reading ebooks is quite a pleasure on the device. The HD Super AMOLED screen, which is large and bright, requires more power to run. However, since the Note is a lot bigger than regular phones, it could easily slip in a 2,500mAh battery. On one run of battery, you can watch more than 4.5 hours of videos, which is very good by any smartphone standard.

S- Memo Lite

One of my favorite features on the device is memo lite. Just double tap on the screen with the stylus and a small note app opens (good for using that stylus to scribble “date tonight at 8PM”).

Drawing or sketching

Now this was a feature which Samsung literally harped on, pushing in advertisements and developer’s kits. I was honestly let down by the feature as it was slow and kind of dragging. Lines and designs were unable to match up with my strokes and to add to that, it still lacks good sketching apps. The best one is Skitch by Evernote where the stylus and sketching features do come in handy if, by profession, you are an artist or a boss who loves to make those red circles.

Switch back to reality

Pretty girl who I met the other night and whose number I scribbled down on my Note – called me up. It was one long phone call which made me realize two “big” problems about the phone. First, it’s too big to hold in your palm and be on a call, not to forget it just looks funny that half of your face is covered by your phone. Secondly, like all the other smartphones, even the Note heats up when you go on a long phone call. So basically, it just heats half of you face (not a 'positive' warm feeling).

The phone call was followed by exchanging some messages with the pretty lady and that is when problem of typing with one hand occurred, you have to use two hands on the Note to type. Most of us will not prefer that considering the number of things we juggle are too many, and only two hands to manage them.

I did like the stylus on the phone, but one drawback is that the buttons on the phone are not mated to stylus, which means you have to use your fingers in between if you need those keys to go back in a browser or home screen.

I would have said “Happy Noting” but for the final nail in the coffin – Size. I can keep the phone in my shirt pocket but it won’t fit in completely and there will always be the danger of it falling off or being flicked out. Slipping it into your jeans or trouser pocket will make you uncomfortable while walking. Hence, unless you wear jackets all the time or you are ok with the idea of holding your phone in your hand like your girl holds that clutch (purse), the Note is not for you. Thank you Samsung for a wonderful device, but I will still buy an Ice-cream sandwich loaded Galaxy Nexus or Tab instead of the Note.