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Samsung Galaxy Note II (new flagship Android phone from Samsung)

Bboy AJ

My dog was murdered by a 3.5mm audio port and I will not rest until the standard is dead
Whoops, I didn't even see this question!

Hmm..now that I've had some time with II, I can probably give my opinion:

- As for it being a worthy upgrade, I'd say you need to look at the most important aspects:
A. Size: it's a bit thinner - and that may not seem like much, but it makes a world of difference. it's easier to hold, pull out of pocket, and (if you're like me) fits into a cupholder while driving. The 16:9 ratio is better for media, but you do lose pixels since it isn't 16:10 anymore.
B. S-Pen: the pen is easier to hold, more accurate, more durable, and is simply better than the first. No contest. However, if you don't use the Pen, it won't really matter.
C. Speed: Come on son. With Jellybean, the II is miles faster than the I. However, since the I was already a speedy device the difference (and it IS big) may not matter much to you. Does to me though.
D. Camera: II. No contest. I still have a good camera, but its lacking in features.
E. Radio: I think the II has a stronger radio, or at least better programmed. I've managed to pull down 8+ on ATT's HSPA+.

Honestly, I'd say it's a worth upgrade. It's also depends on how satisfied you are with the Note 1. At least until you pick up a Note II, that is.

Thanks for this. It sounds like a worthwhile upgrade but not a necessary one. I'll be sticking to my I for now, since I am not much of an upgrade fiend, so as long as I get software updates via xda.
 
I thought it was November for all the US carriers except TMo.

If it is in peoples' hands on October 25, I don't understand why I have to wait just because I am on Verizon. Shouldn't this all have been coordinated behind the scenes, as part of the run up to the release?
 

RurouniZel

Asks questions so Ezalc doesn't have to
The pressure sensitive S-Pen has my attention, but is it a practical idea to, for example, draw something on my phone during lunch, take it home and export to my PC and use photoshop to continue? I did look at the Note 10.1 for the size but the resolution is too low.
 

SRG01

Member
Anyone know when the multi window update will come to the 10.1? I'm trying to decide on whether to buy the Note 2 or 10.1...

Also, is the pen better than the tablet?
 

DrFunk

not licensed in your state
Yeah, you can but the international version and have it shipped overnight from Europe and still save $250 bucks

lol $900
 
The only thing I miss going from the iPhone 4 to this is a physical silent button. It also surprised me that setting silent mode in android didn't silence everything on the phone. Had to download a widget that helps with that.
 

dejay

Banned
The only thing I miss going from the iPhone 4 to this is a physical silent button. It also surprised me that setting silent mode in android didn't silence everything on the phone. Had to download a widget that helps with that.

Have you tried turn over to mute? It might be useful to you, although I don't know if it mutes everything.
 

KillGore

Member
I have a few questions

Does the headphones the Note 2 bring on the box the same ones as the Galaxy S2? they were a bit uncomfortable for me, unless it was just the ones I had??


I have a pair of Klipsch S4 and I found out they made ones specifically for android phones, but I'm wondering if I can control the phone the same way the headphones the Note 2 has? I believe those headphones can pick up/end calls, skip to the next song and other things??

These are the ones I'm talking about

s4a.jpg


Or should I go with bluetooth headphones? they work for music, right?
 
The pressure sensitive S-Pen has my attention, but is it a practical idea to, for example, draw something on my phone during lunch, take it home and export to my PC and use photoshop to continue? I did look at the Note 10.1 for the size but the resolution is too low.

Maybe DrFunk can let us know what image format is used to save those S-Note drawings. If it's something simple like PNG it should be trivial to sync it to the cloud with something like Dropbox, and then you can resume on PC from there.
 

DrFunk

not licensed in your state
Maybe DrFunk can let us know what image format is used to save those S-Note drawings. If it's something simple like PNG it should be trivial to sync it to the cloud with something like Dropbox, and then you can resume on PC from there.

If you're sharing it (sending it to someone or something else), you can save as a .jpg, .pdf, plain text, or S-Note file
 

dejay

Banned
If you're sharing it (sending it to someone or something else), you can save as a .jpg, .pdf, plain text, or S-Note file
As far as I can tell the lines on the paper are saved as well. I don't know if there are other apps yet that are made specifically for the note 2's pen.
 

dejay

Banned
Have any of you guys tried Sketchbook Mobile with the S-Pen?

Just gave it a try - the full version definitely supports pressure sensitivity on the S-pen, whereas SketchBook Mobile Express does not. I'm not sure to what degree it's supported - the Note 2 has more levels than the Note 1 as I understand it.

(edit) Below - samples of the same brushes being applied with different pressures. Quoted for size.
 
Really disappointed to see the price change massively on the o2 website for this.
Not sure if there 'fixing' an error or its now an error.

Originally I was looking at £199.99 and £13.50 for 24 months for their lowest end contract.
Now its £399.99 and £13.50 for 24 months :/

Pay and go is just £479.99 though so am sure its an error...not knowing much about smart phone pricing, but that pricing is pretty off (its 100mb data usage btw); originally was looking at around £523 on contract over 24 months now its £723

Quite a hike to what I was originally pricing it as if not an error :(
Oh well.
 

Yaboosh

Super Sleuth
The main thing keeping me away from this phone now is the Exynos processor. Cm devs hate the Exynos processor because they think Samsung are being too tight with the info surrounding it. As it stands, CM will seemingly not work on the phone. I am addicted to Paranoid Android at this point, so when I see possible problems with CM support, I start to second guess the purchase.

With the S3, the US got the Snapdragon which the CM devs seem fine with.
 

Angst

Member
The main thing keeping me away from this phone now is the Exynos processor. Cm devs hate the Exynos processor because they think Samsung are being too tight with the info surrounding it. As it stands, CM will seemingly not work on the phone. I am addicted to Paranoid Android at this point, so when I see possible problems with CM support, I start to second guess the purchase.

With the S3, the US got the Snapdragon which the CM devs seem fine with.

That's what holding me back too. And I'm unsure how much use the S-pen will get with CM10?
 

kage

Member
Just gave it a try - the full version definitely supports pressure sensitivity on the S-pen, whereas SketchBook Mobile Express does not. I'm not sure to what degree it's supported - the Note 2 has more levels than the Note 1 as I understand it.

(edit) Below - samples of the same brushes being applied with different pressures. Quoted for size.

THANK YOU.
 

Radec

Member
The main thing keeping me away from this phone now is the Exynos processor. Cm devs hate the Exynos processor because they think Samsung are being too tight with the info surrounding it. As it stands, CM will seemingly not work on the phone. I am addicted to Paranoid Android at this point, so when I see possible problems with CM support, I start to second guess the purchase.

With the S3, the US got the Snapdragon which the CM devs seem fine with.

Is CM a big deal?

Id rather use TW with all SPen apps and shit than CM with less support on those apps/features.
 

Angst

Member
Is CM a big deal?

Id rather use TW with all SPen apps and shit than CM with less support on those apps/features.

I really like CM. My SGS II with CM "feels" faster and snappier than a SGS III with Touchwiz. But as you say, if you have to lose out on the Note-specific apps and functionality it's probably not very much use on the Note II.
 
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