Samsung Galaxy Note - Oversized Phone?

The Bigger the Better?

Before the arrival of the Samsung Galaxy Note, the Dell Streak had the honor of having the largest display (5-inches) on a smartphone. It was certainly an oddball among the emerging group of smartphones that begun sporting screen sizes ranging from 3.7 to 4.3 inches. Unfortunately, the Dell Streak failed to garner the interest of mainstream consumers and was subsequently discontinued earlier this year. One likely reason for its failure to gain traction in the market include its "neither here nor there" identity, bouncing between the likes of a smartphone and a tablet.

A look back at the past 11 months of 2011 will tell us one thing - consumers are increasingly receptive to owning super phones, which are smartphones with display sizes of at least 4-inches and processors with minimum clock speeds of 1GHz. The Samsung Galaxy S II is one good example, with all units selling out after its first weekend retail launch. Phone makers are also not shy about increasing their screen sizes on their mobile devices, with the HTC Sensation XL leading the charge into the market first with its 4.7-inch display. So the crucial question is: will the Samsung Galaxy Note be more successful than the Dell Streak considering a different market mindset today? To start off, here's a quick look at the key highlights of the Galaxy Note: 

Key highlights of the Samsung Galaxy Note Google Android Gingerbread 2.3.5 1.4GHz dual-core processor 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED 1GB RAM Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n + Bluetooth 3.0 + HS 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash+ 2.0-megapixel front facing camera 16/32GB + microSD (up to 32GB) 2500mAh battery 178g 146.85 x 82.95 x 9.65mm Price and Availability: S$998 inclusive of GST (without contract) at all three telcos

Jumbo Phone

The Samsung Galaxy Note is obviously not your ordinary smartphone and we would not blame anyone if they mistook the Galaxy Note for a tablet. Never has a smartphone come so close to matching a tablet in terms of physical dimensions, especially the seven-inch tablets. 

Handling - A Very Tricky Situation 

As phone makers continue to unveil devices with larger screen sizes (and bigger form factors), it is inevitable that the usability (and the handling) aspect will be a major factor for consumers to consider. Here's a table comparing the dimensions, screen sizes and weight of the current crop of top smartphones:  

Starting from the far left picture to the far right:

• If you have smaller hands, you are more likely to avoid the Samsung Galaxy Note. Even with our medium-built hands, we felt that the Galaxy Note was a little overwhelming.
• Due to the massive screen, it is impossible for us to stretch our thumb across the screen to access the last column of apps.
• We attempted to reach for the app on the top right corner and failed too.
• The bottom row corner and task bar shortcuts eluded our fingers as well. 

From the practical tests above, the Samsung Galaxy Note is destined to be used with two hands unless you have a pair of really huge hands (or long thumbs) to span across the wide screen. For the average consumer, the usability and handling aspects of the Galaxy Note will get demerit points. When you take into consideration Apple's decision to retain the 3.5-inch display on the iPhone 4S, it makes some, if not total sense. According to designer Dustin Curtis, the 3.5-inch display of the Apple iPhone is the most ideal size for an optimal touchscreen experience. The HTC Sensation XL on the other hand, was manageable as we could stretch our fingers across the screen. Due to the Note's sleek 9.7mm profile, we had no problems slipping it into the forward and rear jeans pockets.

No Ice Cream Sandwich for Now ...

What chances will there be of the Samsung Galaxy Note running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) out of the box? Close to none. The only smartphone today that ships with ICS is the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, which is expected to be available in Singapore by January 2012. Do not despair as the Galaxy Note will be getting the ICS update together with the Galaxy S II next year. For now, the Galaxy Note runs on the latest Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread platform. You will also see the familiar Samsung TouchWiz user interface. 

Return of the Stylus (or S Pen)

Remember the days of personal digital assistants (PDAs) that came with styluses? Well, the advent of the Apple iPhone and its full touch screen user interface in 2007 made the stylus nearly obsolete. Since then, styluses are rarely seen on mobile devices. However, this year alone, we have seen them reappearing on tablets such as the HTC Flyer and the Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet. The Samsung Galaxy Note is the latest device to be using the stylus, or in its own marketing terms, S Pen.

Not only does the S Pen allows to you to doodle, it servers four main functions, such as:

• Pen button + double tap = activate the S Memo
• Pen button + scroll up = bring up the menu settings
• Pen button + scroll left = cancel the last task
• Pen button + long press = screen capture

During our time reviewing the S Pen and its capabilities, we found the experience to better than that of the HTC Pen (on the Flyer) and the Tablet Pen (on the ThinkPad Tablet). It is naturally better as the S Pen is designed for use with a smartphone (the Galaxy Note). It is much lighter and less bulky compared to the HTC Pen and Tablet Pen. Writing with the S Pen was a fairly good experience, registering our writing style with accuracy for the better part of our time with it. You can expect more apps to utilize the S Pen since Samsung has released the Pen SDK to developers. 

The S Pen is available as part of the Samsung Galaxy Note retail package. Should you misplace the S Pen, you are unable to purchase it separately at this point in time. We've checked with Samsung Singapore and they mentioned that the S Pen and a range of other accessories will be available as separate purchases in the near future. The pricing and exact timeline are not available at the moment and we will update this section when we get more information. 

Benchmark Monster

Not only does Samsung want the Galaxy Note to dominate in terms of physical size, the company also has plans for it to be the leader among the dual-core Android smartphones. It packs the same Exynos processor and 1GB of RAM as the Galaxy S II, with the clock speed slightly higher at 1.4GHz. We believe that you're as eager as us to find out how the Galaxy Note would fare in the performance benchmarks and of course, against its competitors.

Even though the HTC Sensation XL is powered by a single-core processor, we've shortlisted it as it's the only phone that can come close to the Galaxy Note in terms of screen size. We're certain that It would be of interest to consumers who are considering between the two devices. The Samsung Galaxy S II is thrown in to determine if the slight difference in clock speed will have any impact on the performance. Lastly, the Motorola Razr is included as well. 

We have adopted two specific benchmarks, both of which are downloadable via the Android Market. The benchmarks are conducted on these devices from a fresh reboot on their respective stock firmwares. 

• Quadrant: It tests the CPU, memory, I/O and 3D graphics performance of a mobile device, giving you a general idea of how the device performs. 
  
   
• Neocore: It assesses the graphics performance of a mobile device. 

The superior performance of the Galaxy Note in the Quadrant benchmark was no surprise to us. Running the same processor and having the same amount of RAM as the Galaxy S II, we had expected the Galaxy Note to perform as well or even better than the Galaxy S II. The race wasn't even close, with the Motorola Razr and HTC Sensation XL trailing behind by a huge margin. For some unknown reasons, the Galaxy Note took a slight dive in performance at the NeoCore benchmark. While it is miles ahead of Motorola Razr, the Galaxy Note trails behind the HTC Sensation XL and the Galaxy S II. 

During our day-to-day usage of the Samsung Galaxy Note, we found the user experience to be a very pleasant experience. Page scrolling was a breeze and the user interface was smooth and fluid in its operation. Apps loaded quickly and multitasking was effortless. 

Multimedia King

Superior multimedia performance has always been in the DNA of Samsung top-end smartphones and the Galaxy Note is no exception. In fact, the Samsung Galaxy Note is probably the pinnacle of mobile entertainment. 

Unless you are long-sighted, you simply can't miss the huge 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED display of the Galaxy Note. While we have repeated this claim numerous times in this review, we will say it one more time - you are looking at the largest display ever on a smartphone. Coupled with one of the best mobile screen technologies in the market, you will be treated to a spectacular viewing experience on the Samsung Galaxy Note. Typical of AMOLED displays, the Galaxy Note exhibits lively colors that pop out of the screen, although some people may not like the intensely saturated colors. Trust us when we say that you have to see the screen for yourself to know what we are trying to convey here. We really enjoyed browsing the Internet and watching movies on the Galaxy Note.

The onboard 16GB flash memory storage is more than enough for the mainstream consumers to store their videos, music and files on the Galaxy Note. If you need more storage capacity, there is a microSD card slot that can accommodate up to 32GB. However, as noted earlier on, the microSD memory card slot is not hot-swappable. This means that you have to remove the battery in order to access the memory card slot.

Similar to most of its competitors in the market, the Samsung Galaxy Note comes with an 8-megapixel rear camera that utilizes 28mm wide-angle lens. It also has a secondary 2-megapixel front facing camera for video conferencing. Let's check out if the Galaxy Note's imaging capabilities with its rear camera and see if it can match up with some of the best phones in the market.

While the camera performance is good, we couldn't say the same for the photo-taking experience. Due to its wide dimensions and lack of shutter button, you may need two hands to steady the Galaxy Note before taking a picture especially in landscape mode. You also should be mindful of your left hand when holding the Galaxy Note in landscape mode as your finger(s) may accidentally block the camera lens. 

Despite having the biggest battery capacity  (2500mAh) of all the phones, the Samsung Galaxy Note managed to clock a timing of 473 minutes, which is 8 minutes shy of 8 hours. Considering the Galaxy Note's 5.3-inch display and slightly higher clock speed, we considered its battery mileage to be reasonably good. It is almost on par with the Motorola Razr and Samsung Galaxy S II, which is acceptable as both phones have smaller screen sizes and relatively large battery capacities. The HTC Sensation XL is certainly out of the picture as it lasted less than four hours in our video looping battery test; it has the smallest battery capacity (1600mAh) and the second largest display (4.7-inch) of the lot. Although the Galaxy Note has a larger display and should consume more power than the smaller 4.7-inch HTC Sensation XL, we attributed its better showing to its power-efficient AMOLED screen. 

The next benchmark is the Portability Index, where we assess mobile devices on their abilities to balance battery performance with their physical sizes and portability. The ratio of each mobile device is calculated from dividing the battery life (in hours) to its weight (in kg) multiplied by the volume (in m³). The ratio of a higher battery life, coupled with a lower weight and volume, would indicate a better portability index.

Portability Index = Ratio of Battery Life to (Weight x Volume)

Without a doubt, the Samsung Galaxy Note naturally fared badly here due to its massive dimensions. It stopped short of being the last, thanks to its superior battery performance and thin profile of 9.65mm (for a phone with such big display).

So far, the above battery related benchmarks were conducted with a more strenuous battery sapping test of looping a video clip continuously till the device conked out. So what about more typical mixed usage patterns of a typical day? We found the battery life of the Samsung Galaxy Note to be good when compared to other smartphones during normal day-to-day usage. While most smartphones barely made it through a day, the Samsung Galaxy Note surprised us by giving us close to a day and a half of moderate usage (occasional web surfing, playing games and text messaging). It is however, important to note that actual battery performance will vary under different usage conditions.

Not for Everyone

Our impressions of the Samsung Galaxy Note did not change much from the hands-on experience at its World Tour in Southeast Asia a month ago. It is, and will remain, a phone that either you love or hate. 

Pros

For people who are likely to own the Samsung Galaxy Note, the biggest draw factor should be the beautiful 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED display. Having the largest display ever on a smartphone, the level of multimedia viewing experience has no equal. You could almost be mistaken for having a portable media player device instead of a smartphone. Additionally, users have more real screen estate to work with. Thanks to its split screen operation capability, you can maximize your work on the Galaxy Note without going through the hassle of switching between applications. 

The S Pen is a neat addition to the overall package of the Galaxy Note. Although the stylus concept is considered dated in the era of touchscreen devices, the S Pen offers some degree of functionality that warrants its existence. For example, you can take screenshot when pressing and hold the S Pen on the screen. Another handy use of the S Pen is activating the S Memo on any screen or app you are on to take down some quick notes. Using the S Pen to jot down quick notes is definitely faster than typing on the virtual keyboard. 

The hardware specs of the Samsung Galaxy Note are easily one of the best among Android smartphones today. The lightning fast 1.4 GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM offers an almost flawless user experience on the Galaxy Note, as evident with no signs of slowdown or processing lag on most occasions. Its 2500mAh battery is able to provide you with plenty of juice to get through at least a day and a half without breaking a sweat. 

Cons

Ironically, the same draw from its massive screen is a double-edged sword, which serves to turn people away with its wide dimensions. Unless you place a privacy screen film, it is highly likely that prying eyes will be drawn in to see what you are doing on the Galaxy Note, even if it is only an accidental glance while checking out the gorgeous screen. Screen size aside, the Galaxy Note is a tough device to handle, especially if you have smaller hands. It is not entirely impossible to hold the Galaxy Note in one hand but you will not be able to use the phone comfortably. Having said that, the Galaxy Note is best used with two hands and it is designed to be done so. The annoyance will arise in tricky situations such as answering a call on the phone when your other hand is occupied. As such, practicality to handle this large smartphone is yet another trait one should consider before splurging.

Pricing and Availability 

The Samsung Galaxy Note is available now at a recommended retail price of S$998. Compared to the HTC Sensation XL (S$908), you definitely get a better deal with the Galaxy Note when you consider how it performs much better against the Sensation XL. A bigger (and better) screen along with superior battery performance are more than sufficient reasons to woo prospective buyers over to Samsung's camp (unless of course the physical size difference becomes the limiting factor). Performance-wise, both phones offer similar user experience although you can better future-proof your purchase with the dual-core Galaxy Note.

What about its smaller rivals like the Motorola Razr and Samsung Galaxy S II? Well, if you are looking for a portable and sturdy smartphone, you can't go wrong with the S$888 Motorola Razr although you have to live with its sluggish user interface. The S$998 Samsung Galaxy S II is a reasonable alternative if you are looking for all-rounded performance on a smartphone but do not require the extra screen estate and S Pen. Moreover, you can easily get the Samsung Galaxy S II at a lower price now since it is already available in the market for a few months.

The main question on everyone's mind, is whether the Samsung Galaxy Note can replace a tablet. Theoretically, the Galaxy Note matches most of the hardware aspects of tablets - a dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and big battery capacity. In reality however, the Galaxy Note isn't a tablet replacement.

The lack of a tablet-optimized operating system gives you the feeling that you are using an oversized phone, which is a serious flaw in the original Galaxy Tab. The promised Android 4.0 update for the Samsung Galaxy Note may change things for the better, but we shall reserve our comments till then. In addition, the 5.3-inch display of the Galaxy Note is still unable to replicate the same user experience of a tablet in areas such as e-reading and watching movies. Put simply, you are looking at a device that performs extremely well in the areas expected of smartphones today like web browsing and indulging in some gaming apps.

Will the Samsung Galaxy Note fare better than the Dell Streak? We certainly think so. The solid performance and beautiful display won us over. The phone also seems to have a growing list of followers on our forums. To find out what other Galaxy Note users feel about the phone, check out its thread here.

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