I'll be returning mine for the following reasons:
Battery life is not that great.
Battery dies faster than expected on standby, especially compared to Note 10.1 and ipad.
The bezel is very large and I find that annoying. It makes the design seem very outdated.
Sent from my SM-P600 using xda app-developers app
dtziheucdavis said:
I'll be returning mine for the following reasons:
Sent from my SM-P600 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Quite Happy with mine
Battery life is not that great.
Battery dies faster than expected on standby, especially compared to Note 10.1 and ipad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1: Battery Life : It's fine now since last few updates: 1/2% per hour on standby with wi-fi and cell on (now BBM too)
1.2:. About 0.8% per hour when streaming audio from radio or home network. (screen off). I consider it very decent.
The bezel is very large and I find that annoying. It makes the design seem very outdated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2. Bezel I actually like it, it's not at all very large compared to many other similar sized tabs, makes for easier holding/reading for me with single hand operation, thumb over bezel. For me it makes the design well thought of, multiple use scenarios. Especially when you also bring the s-pen into the equation, bezel partly provides for very necessary palm/hand rest support.
Just bought one for my son. I think I'm gonna go get one for myself too. I like it. Battery life isn't bad at all.
intelliriffer said:
Quite Happy with mine
1: Battery Life : It's fine now since last few updates: 1/2% per hour on standby with wi-fi and cell on (now BBM too)
1.2:. About 0.8% per hour when streaming audio from radio or home network. (screen off). I consider it very decent.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How about gaming, intense heavy 3D gaming, how the battery life after update?
The bezel is not large. Its narrow and the right size to place your thumb without hitting the screen. I like my tablet FAR more than the ipad we own also.
I am very happy with this tablet, I don't game a lot, although the "Catapult King" game has been a little addicting to me.
I love the pen also.
EDIT: I just tried that 3d game for 15 minutes and it used 5%. The Nexus 7 uses the same amount. I don't have that game on the ipad to try because it costs money on ios.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using xda app-developers app
dewadewi said:
How about gaming, intense heavy 3D gaming, how the battery life after update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am not an intense heavy gamer (on tablet) as i use pc for most of that.
however, I do run drastic emulator (emulators usually run 100% cpu most of their time) for Nds games and few other games.
depending on game I would say about 10%-20% / hour but this can vary a lot on other factors.Also the discharge is not linear.
IMO this tablet is not so optimized as a gaming device as better alternatives exist at lesser costs, however, productivity wise (niche target market for note series) it is a very good device.
intelliriffer said:
I IMO this tablet is not so optimized as a gaming device as better alternatives exist at lesser costs, however, productivity wise (niche target market for note series) it is a very good device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True but for the price range it should be able to handle every general task like gaming normaly if it's not better.. I'm previously using GT 7+ and it's at least have a 3.5-4 hour screen time of nonstop 3D gaming, and I'm expecting the note behave not far from that.
FYI I've been try to downclock the CPU (1,2 and even I try at 800mhz max speed) and GPU (266 mhz) and manually set the screen brightness to little above minimum, use the screen powersaving but the battery consumption is still unpleasant in terms of gaming
rooted stock out of the box 4.1.2
and I also do notice the media scanning process especially when the first time the device turned on is triggered a CPU intensive task which turned on all core at full speed and keep running on and on... and drains battery heavily
dewadewi said:
True but for the price range it should be able to handle every general task like gaming normaly if it's not better.. I'm previously using GT 7+ and it's at least have a 3.5-4 hour screen time of nonstop 3D gaming, and I'm expecting the note behave not far from that.
FYI I've been try to downclock the CPU (1,2 and even I try at 800mhz max speed) and GPU (266 mhz) and manually set the screen brightness to little above minimum, use the screen powersaving but the battery consumption is still unpleasant in terms of gaming
rooted stock out of the box 4.1.2
and I also do notice the media scanning process especially when the first time the device turned on is triggered a CPU intensive task which turned on all core at full speed and keep running on and on... and drains battery heavily
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Intense 3D Gaming is not a general task by any means, though to hardcore gamers it might seem to be so as its a necessity for them.
Secondly high price point can be due to lot many other things than just gaming performance.
For example a pressure sensitive active wacom digitizer and whole lot of software developed around it including touchwiz.
If these things do not matter to you then then this is not the device to have because you are unnecessarily paying for things you dont need.
For media scanning make sure your tags in media files are not corrupt. I fixed my entire library using some tool on pc and that resolved the issue.
intelliriffer said:
Intense 3D Gaming is not a general task by any means, though to hardcore gamers it might seem to be so as its a necessity for them.
Secondly high price point can be due to lot many other things than just gaming performance.
For example a pressure sensitive active wacom digitizer and whole lot of software developed around it including touchwiz.
If these things do not matter to you then then this is not the device to have because you are unnecessarily paying for things you dont need.
For media scanning make sure your tags in media files are not corrupt. I fixed my entire library using some tool on pc and that resolved the issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do make use of the pen for noting and sketching (I'm a graphics designer) and it's being great
but the problem is, wether it's intense 3D or lite game like angry bird's, the battery drain is still huge... and lite gaming are by any means a general task for tablet these days..
as for the media scanning bug my work around is disable the media scanner on the application list, but might try your solution someday (as I have a 64gigs microsd I presume it would take a while)
i sold my note to get the 8, noting on the market for me is the same, note 10 is just to big and heavy, yes battery life isn't great but its not to bad, i just got a blackberry z10! now that has bad battery LOL
I love it. Battery life is fine. Bezel is just the right amount to hold. The design would look better with less bezel but I find that in use for reading it could actually do with a tiny bit more bezel to stop me from touching the screen. It is great for productivity and the few games I play on it run great - Dead Trigger 2 and Call of Duty Strike Team.
My two favourite features are the stylus which I use extensively in meetings to help me get rid of the paper mess on my desk and the IR remote I use around the house.
Sent from my GT-N5120 using xda app-developers app
dtziheucdavis said:
I'll be returning mine for the following reasons:
Battery life is not that great.
Battery dies faster than expected on standby, especially compared to Note 10.1 and ipad.
The bezel is very large and I find that annoying. It makes the design seem very outdated.
Sent from my SM-P600 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with all of the above, but I'm keeping mine because it's the only usable option for me, despite these disadvantages;
I had higher expectations based on the cost of this tablet. However, my primary use is taking digital notes. And as much as I dislike the design, battery life and low screen resolution, I still prefer it to any other option available at the moment (for work only- for play, no way!). But I will be upgrading the moment something better comes along! The iPad has better battery life, and now that it's lighter the size might also be OK. But writing with capacitive touch pen are like writing with a crayon, I cannot stand it! The Note 10 is just too big, too heavy. There may be some expensive windows options out there, but I suspect they are too big, too expensive, and have even worse battery. So that leaves the Note 8 with no real competition for people who need the s pen. But for those that do not need the pen, they are paying a premium for no benefit, so I can completely understand why they do not want to keep it.
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You made a lot of good points. I also have a note 8 and use my tablets for writing, annotating. That said, Op makes good points about how much the Note devices lag behind their ipad competitions in design and usability. The note 10.1 2014 for example, has noticeable lag and the ipad air will probably blow it out of the water. If Apple made a good fine point stylus with palm rejection that allows good pdf annotating, I will abandon the Note devices for sure. Ipad pdf handling visit already far superior to the Note devices, it just lacks a good stylus. The new Jot devices seem good, but not quite close to Spen yet.
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kisrita said:
I agree with all of the above, but I'm keeping mine because it's the only usable option for me, despite these disadvantages;
I had higher expectations based on the cost of this tablet. However, my primary use is taking digital notes. And as much as I dislike the design, battery life and low screen resolution, I still prefer it to any other option available at the moment (for work only- for play, no way!). But I will be upgrading the moment something better comes along! The iPad has better battery life, and now that it's lighter the size might also be OK. But writing with capacitive touch pen are like writing with a crayon, I cannot stand it! The Note 10 is just too big, too heavy. There may be some expensive windows options out there, but I suspect they are too big, too expensive, and have even worse battery. So that leaves the Note 8 with no real competition for people who need the s pen. But for those that do not need the pen, they are paying a premium for no benefit, so I can completely understand why they do not want to keep it.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very well said,
however people who don't need the S-Pen should not even by looking at the note series, as that is what primarily the note line is about, it does most of the other tasks but excels at nothing.
I too would get an overall better device when available, but I think we are still about an year or so from that (a device with high res, better battery, and pressure sensitive pen and optimized stock software to support the features.) and considering how samsung has been going about certain things lately, would like to see some competitor come up with similar products at competitive prices to topple up the monopoly a bit.
Now the ipad mini isnt a better product than the note 8. The ipad mini has serious issues with programs locking it up and crashing it. So then you have to turn it back on and redue what you were doing. The note 8 has never not once locked up and cut off. The ipad mini unfortunately does it often.
The ipad mini is being used in a restaurant for the servers to take an order. Its tough for them when it locks up. Now the ipad that is for the cash register and kitchen screen doesn't have issues. Only the minis do.
I like the note 8 and use it heavily every day.
With that said l cant wait for a 2014 edition of the 8
Sent from my GT-N5110 using xda app-developers app
I like it. About the only downside is the screen resolution, but that only affects me in one app...Teamviewer...and that's only because pretty much every computer I connect to has a higher resolution so I'm either scaling or scrolling, both of which suck. Otherwise it works great for everything I need.
I also think that the battery is not durable.
I also think that the battery is not durable
Sure I would have preferred a removable battery and a better camera and better resolution blah blah blah but it's the best and biggest tablet phone available with the spen and so I bought it... And I love it all the same!
Galaxy Note 8.0 Xposed Build N5120XXCMH2 / Baseband N5120XXBMD9 / Kernel CivZ-SpherEngine-Rev on Telstra LTE
Can't live without my note, I use it as phone, book(e-reader) white board, charger(with an otg cable I charge my e-cigarette), reference tool, organizer, video player, remote control, game console, alarm clock, music player, note pad, navigation, and now with my bullet proof tempered glass it even serves as a bullet proof vest!
Sent from my GT-N5100 using xda app-developers app
This has been a useful thread. I've been looking for a new device to replace my ageing original tab and whilst the Note 8 is far from perfect, the consensus seems to be it's still a very good device. A 3g model is now ordered. Thanks for everyone's comments.
Related
Ok, what is the hype with this device? Its still a huge competitor.. but why? I don't see huge hardware improvements from the SGSII, why are there loads of people who upgrade from the SGSII to the Note, they pretty much have the same internals.
Is it just the large display?
Sent from my HTC Desire S using xda premium
The note feature it has and from what I've heard it has wonderful battery life.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA
My friend got this phone a few weeks ago, It is AMAZING the display is just unbelievable and it runs very smoothly. I am deffinately thinking about getting it when my upgrade is available. It is the best I've seen out this year
I seen too many threads like this, you guys could at least watch or read reviews on it and find out. You don't have to be interested in it if you don't think its good.
Let's just say, with HD screen at that size, I don't even have to use the zoom function to view website, it can display the full site. The Wacom pen might be more for business users, but is pretty nifty.
I really like the idea of bigger screens, but I feel like this is just barely going over my threshold of what I would want. Looks gorgeous though ^^
Obviously the display and screen size. Untouchable
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
its i went from sgs2 to the note only becuase of the sheer screen size serves best for media related purposes
I bought one from Amazon, it was great for Draw Something and browsing. But for thumbtyping in landscape mode, it's just too big and started to hurt my hands.
Returned to Amazon.
For my liking, it is too big for a phone and too small for a tablet... although I do kinda understand the fascination.
Keep in mind that the galaxy note is also the second 'top tier' device that has the longest battery life(the first being the droid razr maxx). Keeping in perspective that the screen is responsible for 40% of a phone's battery consumption, that's quite a feat to pull off on a device this big.
Sent from my GT-S5360B using XDA
Moved to the proper section.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
The screen is amazing, the speaker is loud, the Yamaha DAC (Audio) is poor and worse than the Galaxy S1, The CPU and GPU are identical to the Galaxy S2 with the cpu been overclocked by 200Mhz (Gets hot), the GPU has 2.66 times the pixels to render because of the screen so its 2D and 3D slows considerably. The Battery life is amazing, the still lack of ICS and the poor software support from samsung is a big negative.
Its a mixed bag, I like it but it seriously needs better drivers and a clean ICS OS.
I love the huge screen since I watch a lot of YouTube on it, it's like the difference between watching a movie on a 22 inch television vs a 55 inch Samsung LED.
Using the Note had relegated my HP Touchpad to my kid who uses it a lot more now than me. In fact, I'm on a short vacation with my family right now. Before I would be taking a phone and a tablet with me and sometimes even a laptop. This time I only brought the Note, a charger, and a spare battery (which I probably won't even use anyways since the Note has excellent battery life). I also used it for GPS navigation, and it is by far the best smartphone with GPS capability I have ever used, locks fast and never loses signal. Truly flawless.
I also love the S-Pen, I never have to worry about carrying a paper and a pen. It's amazing all the things I use it for, from taking notes, to making a daily to-do list, to even writing out my daily gym work out routine.
Finally the battery life is probably the next best of all smartphones currently out, the best being the Droid Razr Maxxx. I can go easily 24 hours on a single charge with 3 hours screen time, and best I've done is 36 hours on a single charge with a couple of hours of on screen time.
Sent from my GT-N7000 Samsung Galaxy Note "Go big or go home"
The note is the best device I have had the pleasure of handling for sure.
The screen first and foremost is simply fantastic! No contest. Wonderful for multimedia. The size took a little while to get used to for me...about a week and a bit but once I did i have never looked back. So happy with it all.
The internals are also fantastic...dual core CPU...1 gig of ram...16 gig of rom. Its an awesome well rounded device. Its replaced both my phone and tablet...aka my nexus s and transformer. They have just been sitting on my desk mostly for the last 2 and a half months.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
MR4Y said:
Keep in mind that the galaxy note is also the second 'top tier' device that has the longest battery life(the first being the droid razr maxx). Keeping in perspective that the screen is responsible for 40% of a phone's battery consumption, that's quite a feat to pull off on a device this big.
Sent from my GT-S5360B using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i believe what you're quoting is the gsmarena chart, but that only refers to talk time, where the screen is off.
in web browsing on gingerbread, the note has one of the worst battery life ratings simply because rendering white on an amoled screen results in the screen using more than twice as much power as an lcd screen. this issue is fixed in ICS with the ability to invert colours though.
with movie testing, it also depends on the colour spectrum of the movie. movies using dark colour will use less battery. movies using light colours will use more batteries.
overall its not a bad phone. i just wish the GPU was a bit faster so it could handle more games at 60fps. ah well, s3 is just around the corner, that should bring something interesting to the table given that the leaked antutu benchmarks put it faster than the asus transformer prime and htc one x.
I have the Galaxy Note 10.1 and use it all the day with the s-pen.
I can not live without the s-pen now. I can draw lines that are so thin that it is amazing.
No dirt on my screen for the first time in my galaxy life.
Screen resolution is fine for me. The resolution on the Note is the same as 99% of all tablets. So guess what resolution android apps support? My eyes are not good enough to notice a better resolution then this one on a 10 inch screen. My 23 inch FullHD monitor has 96 ppi. My Note has 149 ppi!
Few people can notice differences above a ppi of 150.
The processor is faster then a Tegra 3 and the back of my Note 10.1 never gets hot!
My Tegra 3 tablet got very hot!
Battery life is amazing.
I have a original Samsung book cover on my Note 10.1. It is cool, it can be used as a stand. It is very thin, but protective! My Note 10.1 fell on the street yesterday. The cover has 3 small scratches, the Note 10.1 is still perfect!
Now there are many Samsung s-pen devices (N7000, N7100, N8000) so apps for the s-pen will grow.
About comparison with Nexus 10:
The Note 10.1 has 1 Million Pixel.
The Nexus 10 has a faster processor, but it has to move 4 Million Pixel! So the processor of the Nexus 10 would have to be 4 times faster then our processor to have the same fluidity.
Most android apps support a resolution of 1200x800 or less. So you may have a bigger resolution with a Nexus 10, but you will see the same resolution as everyone else, because your maximum possible resolution is supported by few apps.
The resolution of the Nexus 10 display is the maximum possible, but the processor and battery will suffer at this resolution.
I do not want the Nexus 10 because IT DOES NOT SUPPORT A S-PEN and does not have a sd card slot!
I could not live without sd card slot.
With sd card i have up to 64 GIGAbytes of additional memory for cheap.
I often change firmware. Without sd card slot I would lose everything every time I change/reset.
Good points except for one thing...lol. changing firmwares or roms won't mean you lose everything everytime. Meaning the data portion on /sdcard doesn't get wiped. That's why even after wiping cache, dalvik cache, and factory rest and flashing a new rom, my pictures and other things on internal memory or my download folder doesn't get erased. So roms will still be there even after flashing a new rom. Everything else gets wiped though like apps n their data. A stored rom to flash won't.
Just a f.y.I.
The note 10.1 has proved to be a very interesting device, here are my thoughts....
Interesting in that, the more you use it, the better it feels or the more you appreciate it. Things actually work quite well... I cannot believe how well the floating video player functionality works; how that doesn't slow everything down is beyond me. Can another tablet do that? Nope.
S-pen, I haven't even used this at all to its potential and its one of those things that if/when you do use it or need it, you walk away thinking oh man can I really get rid of this functionality if I switched to another tablet - it's just soooo convenient when you gotta jot something down.
Touchwiz - the more I use it, the more comfortable I am with it - I do wish the look and feel of touchwiz is different but ehh.. it works.
Screen - fine, as long as you don't look at a superior display like the ipad retina hahaha. But then you gotta realize, you're not getting a wacom active digitizer and retina quality for the price you paid. So which is more important to you. The colors are well represented, but the ppi is a bit of a downer, oh well. Also, some of the stock wallpapers are terrible and show pixels big time.
SD card - I found a 32gb sd card laying around. My 16gb note just magically jumped to 48gb of storage, and at a super cheap cost. I can see why so many people will not buy a tablet without sd support, and it's interesting how so few of the premium devices have them (ipad doesn't, nexii 7 and 10 doesn't).
It's one of few "gadgets" I've used where I was sort of let down by it at first, and then it grew on me. Contrast that to an ipad (especially the new mini) - I look at a retina ipad and I think this thing is gorgeous - I love the hardware design, the screen, the cleanliness of the UI, etc. But - after a week, I'm thinking that the amazement of those things would wear off and I'd be let down how the functionality is a bit more limited. If I were an ipad user (like some of the people who slammed this device in professional reviews) - I would probably think it was terrible. BUT if I really took the time to use it, and got past the display and plastic appearance/build quality, I would see that this is quite a different kind of tablet (in a good way), and I don't think its a niche tablet either -its very accessible to many groups.
Fact of the matter is that there is no recent tablet that exists that offers wacom display and sd card support - 2 very important things for certain people that can prove to be VERY useful functionality wise. Do I want to try an ipad just to play? Yeah I sorta do, that would be an interesting test.
sorry for hijackin the thread,
Just wondering, with regards to the battery life. Did you all set it to power saving mode to achieve the amazing battery life?
Mine seem to consume about 7% while watching a 30 minutes video in power saving mode... (about 20%~ish discharged overnight). TIA...
i really love my note its full of fun and smooth
and i played almost all top games on it like dead trigger and dark maedow with modern combact 3 and NFS most wanted
btw battery life is very good i guess 10H full of playing and wifi always open + watching movies and all of this without choosin power save mode :good:
Battery life is extremely good, I get at least 14 hours on battery saving, mostly browsing and reading.
Sent from my GT-N8010 using Tapatalk 2
utorz said:
sorry for hijackin the thread,
Just wondering, with regards to the battery life. Did you all set it to power saving mode to achieve the amazing battery life?
Mine seem to consume about 7% while watching a 30 minutes video in power saving mode... (about 20%~ish discharged overnight). TIA...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have had Power Saving turned off on my Note until I read your post. This is the first tablet I have owned where I actually find myself using it more a month after I got it than I did when I first got it. On my other tablets (Galaxy Tab 7 and Sony Tablet S) I used them a lot the first two weeks and then slowed down to 2-3 hours a day usage. With the Note, I find that I am using it throughout the whole day.
The battery at first was lasting 2.5 days of moderate-high use but it has gone down to about 1.25 days with the increased usage. We'll see what the Power Saving Mode does to help that.
To minimize battery consumption:
- put brightness as low as possible (the monitor is using almost all the energy)
- turn on power saving mode
- switch from umts 3g to gsm 2g
- turn off pen detection
- get setcpu app and set the cpu to the lowest possible clock speed
- turn off wifi/bt/gps/3g when not needed
- turn screen timeout to a very low value and enable smart stay
legion1911 said:
To minimize battery consumption:
- put brightness as low as possible (the monitor is using almost all the energy)
- turn on power saving mode
- switch from umts 3g to gsm 2g
- turn off pen detection
- get setcpu app and set the cpu to the lowest possible clock speed
- turn off wifi/bt/gps/3g when not needed
- turn screen timeout to a very low value and enable smart stay
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So pretty much take away a lot of features to benefit from an hour or so of extra battery life.
Sent from my GT-N8013 using XDA Premium HD app
Hello! I am seriously considering purchasing a Samsung Galaxy Note 2.
I'm coming from an Lg Optimus 4x Hd.
The question is:
This device has some kind of bug?
The camera is good?
The battery lasts about how long?
How is the performance of this device for gaming?
This unit heats up a lot?
The completion of this unit is painted or is it metal?
The function of the S-Pen is useful?
What do you think about this device?
Be honest, what you like and what you hate most on your Samsung Galaxy Note 2?
[EDIT]
Today got the Samsung Galaxy Note 2! I am very happy.
I hope that from now on everything runs as smoothly as possible with Samsung.
LG disappointed me a lot.
I had 3 devices (LG P500h), (LG P990) and (P880 LG).
All devices with critical defects, ranging in quality from the camera, touch screen and gaming performance.
I thank you all for the information provided, and support.
Team, we are now one more!
Thank you!
Sent from my MZ601 using xda premium
Ha ha... Don't think to much. Just go buy it. You will not regret it. If 5.5 inch n 720p is ok for u, then this phone is unbeatable
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda app-developers app
Hey OP that is the exact situation I was in, I had the crappy 4X HD and swapped it for a note 2. Honestly it was the best decision I have ever made re: mobile devices, it completely destroys the 4X and isn't locked down like the aforementioned LG atrocity. Do it.
Sent from my GT-N7105 using xda app-developers app
No big that I'm aware of. Except you cannot move apps to the sd card easily. Directory bind resolves this.
Personally for me the camera is very good. Maybe not the best on the market though?
I get all day of very heavy usage out of my battery and I've disowned my in car chargers now.
I play lots of games vice city, nfs, and they are all flawless.
It does not get hot at all.
The phone is plastic but I always use a case.
I don't really use the s pen but my kids love it.
I'm really glad I got this phone it is immense. The best phone I've ever owned. I couldn't go back to a smaller screen. The battery is a dream and it's so quick to use.
Buy it and let us know your thoughts
xavierleonelbr said:
Hello! I am seriously considering purchasing a Samsung Galaxy Note 2.
I'm coming from an Lg Optimus 4x Hd.
The question is:
This device has some kind of bug?
The camera is good?
The battery lasts about how long?
How is the performance of this device for gaming?
This unit heats up a lot?
The completion of this unit is painted or is it metal?
The function of the S-Pen is useful?
What do you think about this device?
Be honest, what you like and what you hate most on your Samsung Galaxy Note 2?
Sent from my MZ601 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bugs? No bugs that i notice.
Camera is pretty good, better than most phone camera's.
More than 14 hours battery life for me.
Gaming is awesome, will run nova 3, asphalt 7, and others perfectly.
Mine hasnt heated up at all, nice and cool unless i go mad flashing roms, then it gets warm.
Plastic, and i am enjoying the plastic.
Spen depends on what you use it for, most of samsungs functions seem a little gimmicky to me, however 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity with sketchbook pro for tablets makes this an awesome tool for an artist.
This is a very nice phone, i love it.
The only thing that might be considered bad is the lack of updates from samsung; but that can also be a good thing. I have a nexus 7 tablet, 4.1 was good, 4.1.2 was good, 4.2.1 ran poorly, 4.2.2 was good. The nice thing about slow updates is we will likely never see 4.2.1 for this phone, the bad thing is if we get a bad update we get stuck on it for a while.
Tl;dr awesome phone, you will probably love it.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using xda app-developers app
The only bad thing is, you will have the feeling of wanting to throw away other smaller phone...
Sent from my Galaxy Note II using xda premium
Guess what, there is a guy who used note 2 which came last year, bought s4 and sold it again to get note 2 again. Just shows how cool is this phone.
After using s1-s3, I was very hesitant to get this phone but honestly this has been my best ever experience since last 8 months with note 2. Just close your eyes and buy it.
What I loved most:
0% lag, thanks to quad core ad 2 gig ram.
battery is toooooo good for a smartphone, you will just love it.
Perfect size.
What I disliked:
Poor wifi signal reception, actually signals dropout/fluctuate very frequently.
Poor low light camera performance, just like other galaxy series phone.
Ooh, toughie. Will try to be as objective as possible. Mine:
Pros:
Absolute beast - no lags, runs anything that would run on it without any issues or stutters etc.
Wolfston Sound chip, which gives you excellent results with your high quality headphones if you use one.
Battery life - hands down the best battery life I've ever had in a smartphone. Can't seem to kill the battery even with super heavy usage.
Expandable storage - nuff said.
Gorgeous screen - in my personal opinion, it has the best SAMOLED screen of all other phones. Love the 5.5'' RGB amoled, calibrate and you get gorgeous contrast ratio and color reproduction with the screen.
S Pen - underrated, helps me to take notes, and browsing is far better with the S Pen out.
Those are the things I LOVE, there are plenty more I like a lot, which I can't even begin to list here.
Cons:
Camera is top notch, but if you're into taking pictures of moving objects, it's bit of a letdown.
Awkward to use one handed - you can use it, but it's still awkward. That should be obvious though, given how large the phone is. Amazing for two handed though, you'll struggle to type in tiny phones once you get used to it.
Relatively poor daylight visibility - much better than S3, but not on par with S4 or other LCD phones. I can see stuff on bright really bright daylight too, but it isn't terrific. If you're always using your mobile in the sun, that might be something to take into consideration though.
---------- Post added at 05:25 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:24 AM ----------
sohebq said:
Poor wifi signal reception, actually signals dropout/fluctuate very frequently.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine actually has excellent signal reception You sure that it's not just an issue with your device?
^^
Device is fine, I updated rom and it did help but no as much as expected. I am not the only one with this issue I guess. The problem is that even in a room where I have router, it frequently fluctuate signals.
sent from: The New S-Pen
i love everything of my note 2 but my note 2 got sds insane chip that drives me crazy all the time but you are good to go with a kernel+recovery patched for sds otherwise this is the best thing i have ever had
sohebq said:
^^
Device is fine, I updated rom and it did help but no as much as expected. I am not the only one with this issue I guess. The problem is that even in a room where I have router, it frequently fluctuate signals.
sent from: The New S-Pen
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, is it the router? I mean there must be some workaround surely, because mine has excellent wifi reception, better than my Nexus 7, actually.
I basically don't like the back cover, for me it's pretty slippery and I can feel myself losing grip on it when using it with one hand...and that's basically it
everything else I love about it!
tuxonhtc said:
Hmm, is it the router? I mean there must be some workaround surely, because mine has excellent wifi reception, better than my Nexus 7, actually.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have 2 routers and issue is same. Do check 1 thing for me, stay in the room where the router is and monitor the signal strength from the wifi icon. Does it remain stable, I mean stuck at 4 full bars or fluctuates between 3 and 4 bars.
What I don't like is that you can't move apps to sd card and that's the only issue I have with this phone. I know there is work around but not feeling very confident about using it. What I like best is a row of numbers above keyboard. Using omega Rom and it's fantastic. This phone is blazing fast, very good battery life doesn't heat up like my old sgs2. And it actually feels quicker than my wife Xperia Z for some reason
sohebq said:
I have 2 routers and issue is same. Do check 1 thing for me, stay in the room where the router is and monitor the signal strength from the wifi icon. Does it remain stable, I mean stuck at 4 full bars or fluctuates between 3 and 4 bars.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Checked for 1 minute, it seems stable, didn't seem to drop at all?
Anyways, regardless - if it was a noticeable issue, I would have experienced it surely?
tuxonhtc said:
Checked for 1 minute, it seems stable, didn't seem to drop at all?
Anyways, regardless - if it was a noticeable issue, I would have experienced it surely?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Consider yourself lucky then.
check these threads, wifi issue is addressed a lot of times.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1956155
-
- Device has no bug. There was this emmc chip bug and sds issue, but it's 'believed' to be fixed by Samsung.
- S Pen useful? Hell yes! I've mainly considered Note for it, and I'm very impressed. I'm not going back to Galaxy S lineup.
- Device heats up? Honestly I've been using Samsung smartphones for 3 years now and I just don't know what this heating up problem is. And I live in a place where real feel temp is 48°C at noon. People saying my device heats up a lot, no offense, but have no idea what is heating up actually.
- Camera? A lot of people will disagree with me I know, but I found the camera to be average, if not below. However I'm a SLR user. Still, iPhone cameras are way better than N2.
- Battery? At first, on 4.1.1, the battery life was awesome, unmatched in comparison to any other phone and unbeatable. Now with 4.1.2, it's not awesome, but still good, and better than any devices released so far. I don't know about S4 though.
- Gaming performance? I don't play games on mobile phone
- What do I think about the device? If you don't wanna wait for N3, and don't like S lineup then buy it eyes closed.
- What I hate most? Only one thing, PLASTIC.
'Swyped' from my GT-N7100
This device has some kind of bug?
The only thing that irritates me is that the Samsung sms app converts > 320 character sms messages into mms ones. Not really a bug, just an irritating feature which can easily be bypassed by using a third party sms app.
The camera is good?
Amazing. Only the s4 can really top it so far as phone cameras go, imo.
The battery lasts about how long?
Easily lasts a day of heavy use or as much as 2-3 days of light-moderate use. One day I was bored as all hell, used it for eight hours (screen on time) while connected to wifi and it still had 30% left when I plugged it in.
How is the performance of this device for gaming?
I'm not a heavy gamer but I doubt there is a single game on the play store which can make this thing lag.
This unit heats up a lot?
Gets warm if you're gaming or something, I'm ordinarily use like emails, Web, etc it is cool to the touch. Never felt it get uncomfortably warm.
The completion of this unit is painted or is it metal?
It's coloured polycarbonate with a painted silver plastic trim.
The function of the S-Pen is useful?
I use it to take quick notes all the time, in the same way I used to use a small notebook. Tbh the pen is just icing on the cake. Even if it had no pen it would be a great phone. The pen just sets it head and shoulders above all other phones on the market right now, even the gs4.
What do you think about this device?
I love it. At first I thought it might be too big, after 30 minutes of using it my Nexus 4 and gs3 just looked pathetically tiny - like toys in fact - and I knew I could never go back to a small phone like those ones. People still laugh at my phone because of its size. When I see them squinting to read emails on their lesser phones I laugh at them.
Be honest, what you like and what you hate most on your Samsung Galaxy Note 2?
I love everything about it - it's fast, big high quality, high res screen, good camera, good sound quality and volume, huge removable battery (becoming rare these days), micro sd slot, and even though it's big it's thin so the size isn't that much of an issue.
What I hate most is that I can't put the phone down. My Nexus 4 and 7, gs3, even my note 10.1 haven't been touched on the 6 weeks or so I've had this phone. In fact I'm selling all of them because this phone fulfils all my needs.
Sent from the mighty Note II
Like:
- Screen size!!
- Performance
- Battery
- Camera
- Smart Stay/Rotation
- Multiview
- More special Samsung features and gestures
- S Pen (I don't use it alot, but its nice..)
- Micro SD slot
Hate:
- Samsung not releasing whatever CM team needs (didn't really understand what they need..)
- AMOLED screen, I just don't really like it. You might will. Its personal
- Plastic build
Like:
- Screen size!!
- Performance
- Battery
- Multiview
- More special Samsung features and gestures
- Micro SD slot
Hate:
- Plastic build
- and the price..
Sent From My Galaxy Note II
Hello I created this thread to share each of our thoughts, opinions, and feelings about the device so far.
I'll start.
Pro's
So far I really like this device. The screen display is the best I've seen so far.
One of the best features is multi tasking. The screen size makes perfect sense for doing so compared smartphones.
The main reason I ordered this tablet is because of college. Reading articles and textbooks are great due to 1080p display and it's pixels per inch.
My magazine/flipboard is a great integration into touchwiz ui even thought it feels laggy at first.
Con's
Though this is branded as a high spec device, I did notice some minor lag which doesn't bother me to much. But for a high end device and it's asking price, it's unexceptional!
Missing certain note 3 features like nfc, usb3.0
Physical buttons personally isn't the best idea. When I use this device in portrait mode, my fingers sometimes might hit them.
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk
Anyone want to share your impressions and experience about the device so far?
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk
Pros
- SPen
- Multi Windows Feature
- Hardwarekeys
Cons
- very hot around the camera (in Potrait Mode its to warm for me, on the other side is the home button)
- lags are often (Chrome, Firefox extremly. other Browser ok but not for a tablet for this price)
Agree almost entirely with op. Hopefully custom toms get rid of lag.
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
I'm coming from the TF700, so I'm in heaven.
My pro's, beside not having extreme lag like my Infinity, are the screen and, also, the feel. The TF700 used to dig into my hands when I was holding it between my thumb and forefinger. This device is smoother on my fingers; when I hold the device in the same way, the device doesn't cut into my hands.
My cons are basically using Touchwiz (this is my first Sammy-d, so I have to become adjusted and figure out where to go to adjust settings and what-not. I also don't care for the physical buttons, because I'm constantly changing from portrait to landscape, and vice-verse.
But, overall...I'm very happy; I'll put up with the little things as long as I have a tablet that will do what I tell it to do, instead of waiting for an eternity.
:laugh:
Pros: screen is awesome. S pen seems better than original, stock video player does better job with media server
Con's: Listening to all the people who probably do not even own the device talk about lag!
I propose that you have to prove ownership of note 2014 to post a complaint about lag AND show video proof.
Oh yeah!? Well....... I say anybody NOT having lag should also prove it with video and at least two ghost apparition sightings. It IS nearing Halloween
Just to let you know the resolution is higher than 1080P.
I agree with Most of your list though
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk 4
Pros:
-Display (as everyone has already mentioned).
-Design is sleek and much more comfortable and easy to handle than the previous model. I love the hard buttons and it works well with me. One issue I have heard about though is that the main menu button isn't receded so sometimes when pressure is applied to a case around that area it will wake up the tablet. As I don't have a case yet I can't confirm that this is an issue, but I believe just be running my finger over the button.
-S Pen (for the most part)
-And despite what many have said this thing is generally very fast. It's only within some applications that it gets a little laggy and I'm hoping that this will improve with software updates.
Cons:
-Mainly the software. I hate the new S Note. So much in fact, that I purchased Lecture Notes without having received my galaxy perks (which I"m still waiting on actually). Also I was a little disappointed that the air command wasn't customizable as I had heard it would be (or maybe I just haven't figured out how to do that yet). Taking screen shots with the lasso and s-button seems slower than it was in the older model, but I love that there are more options to shape the outline more cleanly.I'd also really love to be able to uninstall or disable some of the bloatware, like mymagazines. I'm sure it's a great app, but I personally have no need for it.
-There are hardly any accessories out for this baby yet. I'd feel a lot more comfortable with a case.
-The back of the tablet gets a little warm, but not so warm to the point where I'd be concerned about it. I've had laptops that would get uncomfortably hot so maybe I've just been desensitized to this issue.
And the biggest problem I've had with this thing... the thing that has actually made me consider returning it is the customer service. I have not gotten my perks yet and contacted them several times only to get the run around. Each time I called back I found out that they had taken my information incorrectly and I honestly feel like they were toying with me. I spoke with one rep who seems more genuine than the others and said I should get them by Thursday so I'm holding out hope. There is no way I'll take this thing back, but if I dont' get my perks I may reach out to a friend who works for samsung in Korea. It'd be an awkward convo though cause I haven't spoken to the guy in years.... 대한민국!
May be off topic (I am not writing a review) but I think 'lag' in general on this device is unacceptable. If you're advertising a powerhouse piece of technology and it stutters in an internet browser then something is wrong. Using a different launcher to reduce 'lag' is also unacceptable as it shouldn't even be there in the first place! Hopefully new firmware irons out the kinks (I'm sure the lag isn't tablet-related as it just needs some optimization)
rushless said:
Oh yeah!? Well....... I say anybody NOT having lag should also prove it with video and at least two ghost apparition sightings. It IS nearing Halloween
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As someone with both the this device and an HTC one, I can say that the note certainly lags more. It's not something that's major, but it's certainly noticeable if your coming from something smoother.
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk 4
rushless said:
Oh yeah!? Well....... I say anybody NOT having lag should also prove it with video and at least two ghost apparition sightings. It IS nearing Halloween
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I recorded a video on my crappy iphone, but i can't transfer it and i refuse to install that memory hog of crap itunes to get to it. I should be getting a note 2 in the next couple of weeks so i'll take a video then. is there anything in particular that you wanted me to do on it?
I admittedly dont' do too much on it besides browsing and taking notes. The worst I've seen the lag is when I have a webbroswer open and I'm writing in lecture notes. the writing shows up a second after i've written something and that is a bit annoying. Over all though I think people are being too critical of the lag. It's not so bad that it's keeping me from working on it (with the exception of using split screen between lecture notes and the default browser.
Besides for this tablet it's all about the s pen. if it wasn't for that i wouldn't have bothered with a tablet at all. I think smart phones are good for when you're on the move and if i'm going to sit down to watch a movie or do some gaming... well that's what i've got my laptop for. I don't live in a big city with good public transportation, but i could easily see myself just using my phone to watch a movie on a train or bus. I wouldn't bring out a tablet for that even if I owned one.
Sitting next to my rooted S3 running AOSP 4.3 it's a bit laggier. That's undeniable, IMO, and I'd argue that it's because of Samsung's bloated OS additions. It's not a device problem, I don't think.
However... I could not possibly care less. It's attractive, feels AMAZING in the hands (why is everyone complaining about the back?? I don't even want a case!!), the speakers are burly, the screen is superb, the stylus with the art apps can make stuff that looks like it was tone with a Wacom tablet, the cameras are SURPRISINGLY solid, it multi-tasks more like a PC than any tablet I've ever seen, and it's just... a joy to use.
gina$zanboti said:
I recorded a video on my crappy iphone, but i can't transfer it and i refuse to install that memory hog of crap itunes to get to it. I should be getting a note 2 in the next couple of weeks so i'll take a video then. is there anything in particular that you wanted me to do on it?
I admittedly dont' do too much on it besides browsing and taking notes. The worst I've seen the lag is when I have a webbroswer open and I'm writing in lecture notes. the writing shows up a second after i've written something and that is a bit annoying. Over all though I think people are being too critical of the lag. It's not so bad that it's keeping me from working on it (with the exception of using split screen between lecture notes and the default browser.
Besides for this tablet it's all about the s pen. if it wasn't for that i wouldn't have bothered with a tablet at all. I think smart phones are good for when you're on the move and if i'm going to sit down to watch a movie or do some gaming... well that's what i've got my laptop for. I don't live in a big city with good public transportation, but i could easily see myself just using my phone to watch a movie on a train or bus. I wouldn't bring out a tablet for that even if I owned one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seems a lot of us sometimes forget the TRUE bottleneck of Android: The byte code Dalvik layer. This type of coding is not exactly multithread friendly and IMO seems amazing as good as the current passive cooled chipsets can do what they already do. Case in point, I never would have thought back in the G1 days emulators would be as efficient (MAME, PSX, PSP, N64). Then again, those apps are designed to not be multi-tasked.
IMO the issue is not as much the hardware or OE rom, but the platform itself as far as having global impact to software. iOS is not much better and ALSO lags. Such is the price of balance: Platform security (iOS andDalvik constraints), passive cooled devices, battery efficiency, etc.
Pros: Beautiful screen
feel and weight in your hand (compared to the previous version - which wasn't bad either)
S-Pen is less laggy and the finer screen allows for more precise writing/drawing
Cons: S-Note. I want the old version back.
Physical buttons. I really miss the natural "awareness" of where they are as compared to the old one where they were always at the
bottom of the screen.
Battery life isn't as nice as the first (alot more pixels to push I guess)
Lack of accessories (I'd really like a case)
Lack of root. I REALLY miss the 'add anything' multiwindow support'
I've waited a long time for a note 10.1 with this resolution but I'm considering returning it
I returned mine to BB. For a high end device and the associated high price I didn't find the performance acceptable. Hoping for this or that doesn't cut it for me. If it doesn't perform up to expectations out of the box, it goes back. I'll keep using my better performing Nexus 10 until version 2 of that device comes out.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using XDA Premium HD app
Count me among the disappointed... I got mine on launch day, and it's slower than last year's note 10.1.
New S Note is inexplicable.
Occasionally it hangs up and is unresponsive for at least a minute. (Happened in my beloved Lecturenotes as well as others)
Try this for a demo of the lag, I use LectureNotes with double tap zoom mode... open a note, double tap to enable zooming, pinch to zoom to 200%. Now double tap again to zoom back to 100% and watch it stutter. You can keep double tapping to switch between 100% and 200% and see the terrible lag. Do the same on last year's note 10.1 to compare.
It's not good enough. I expected this to be an upgrade!
I love the display, I love the more compact form factor, and I'll get used to the new buttons eventually.
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
BigStuart said:
Count me among the disappointed... I got mine on launch day, and it's slower than last year's note 10.1.
New S Note is inexplicable.
Occasionally it hangs up and is unresponsive for at least a minute. (Happened in my beloved Lecturenotes as well as others)
Try this for a demo of the lag, I use LectureNotes with double tap zoom mode... open a note, double tap to enable zooming, pinch to zoom to 200%. Now double tap again to zoom back to 100% and watch it stutter. You can keep double tapping to switch between 100% and 200% and see the terrible lag. Do the same on last year's note 10.1 to compare.
It's not good enough. I expected this to be an upgrade!
I love the display, I love the more compact form factor, and I'll get used to the new buttons eventually.
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Key words: launch day. I know it's ****ty that a new device gets rolled out with imperfect software, but that's what this is. An update or two and this will be perfect. The 10.1, by the time we all upgraded, had a lot of updates to it that ironed out its issues.
SomeGuyDude said:
Key words: launch day. I know it's ****ty that a new device gets rolled out with imperfect software, but that's what this is. An update or two and this will be perfect. The 10.1, by the time we all upgraded, had a lot of updates to it that ironed out its issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're probably right, but it's shameful that the new note is slower than the old one, launch day or not.
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
BigStuart said:
You're probably right, but it's shameful that the new note is slower than the old one, launch day or not.
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's a few culprits here.
1) Software just plain isn't optimized for all the cores. Think about the tech advances from the old G1 to now. Are our devices now as much faster, proportionally speaking, as they are more powerful? Not by a long shot.
2) Was the launch day 10.1 2012 faster? I don't think. But that goes back to what I said earlier.
3) I feel like the new OS is just bloated as all hell. The device isn't slower, the burly Touchwiz is. It's like getting a brand new laptop and it takes longer to start: the PC isn't the problem, it's the new Windows.
I'm going to save you a lot of trouble if you're considering this tablet and are unsure, as I just put this thing through a lot of testing.
First off I would like to say that I think this is a fantastic tablet. It is just the right size, has an excellent build quality, and runs pretty good all things considered. This has a decnet running/looking Samsng UI, especially considering that it's an older build running on a slower processor. If this tablet had a better processor and maybe stylus support it would be a killer tablet with no competition. It's sad that Samsung doesn't take this size range seriously any longer.
Now for the badish part. This tablet is great for gaming, perfect size, great screen, good enough speakers (mount them stereo next time Samsung!) However it just won't handle intensive gaming stuff, such as Order and Choas 2 or Rules of Survival with the settings turned up. It will certainly play them if you don't mind the low FPS though. Definitely playable FPS for sure, but it won't be butter.
I was curious to see if this was a Samsung processor optimization problem like it is with the Tab s3, so I did some testing to find out. I can confirm that flashing LOS 14.1 it did nothing for the gaming performance. The tablet was quicker and less laggy overall, but the gaming is still limited by the GPU. This tablet also is so good out of the box that it doesn't need the help of LOS anyway.
So there you have it. Great little tablet, just don't expect any sort of massive gaming performance and don't even think about voiding your warratny to try a custom rom because it won't help. In this size range it is really the ultimate for gaming, so I figured a lot of people would be buying it for that, and I wanted to give a heads up. The benchmark scores don't tell the whole story sometimes. I hope they refresh this tablet in 2018 with a better SOC and keep it alive.
Thanks for the info seh6183. :highfive:
You need to tell us what hardware you are testing as the 2015 is using Exynos and the 2016 is Snapdragon. From previous posts on here, the consensus is that the 2015 has the better GPU for gaming but the 2016 is faster.
I don't game on my tablet so I can't add anything to your observations.
I have the 2016 S2, and it is fine for light gaming. However, it heats up fairly quickly if you are doing anything graphically intense for long periods and throttles pretty noticeably. Even fairly simple apps, like Alto's Adventure, will eventually become unplayable if you don't take a break periodically to let the SoC cool down.
Masteryates said:
Thanks for the info seh6183. :highfive:
You need to tell us what hardware you are testing as the 2015 is using Exynos and the 2016 is Snapdragon. From previous posts on here, the consensus is that the 2015 has the better GPU for gaming but the 2016 is faster.
I don't game on my tablet so I can't add anything to your observations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Snapdragon 652.
I just bought a new 'open box' from BestBuy for $209.
I'm not a gamer or user of graphics, mainly a business user. I had the latest 9.7 iPad for a week, and I just kept feeling like one of my arms was tied behind my back.
So I returned it and bought the Samsung Tab S2.
seh6183 said:
Snapdragon 652.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the update seh6183. :highfive:
Are you able to update the title of your post or your initial post to reflect this? Others may find this useful.
Would be interested to hear from a 2015 owner on how it handles the games you mentioned.
I cant imagine buying thos for gaming... If you want to game on a tablet I would just go with the iPad. The new iPad 2017 is so much better than this, and you can get one new for 250 and a bigger screen. I went with tablet only because I can torrent and use my Micro USB to USB 2.0 adapter for music and videos on torrents. Thats literally the only upside to going with an Android tablet nowadays
JoRocker said:
I cant imagine buying thos for gaming... If you want to game on a tablet I would just go with the iPad. The new iPad 2017 is so much better than this, and you can get one new for 250 and a bigger screen. I went with tablet only because I can torrent and use my Micro USB to USB 2.0 adapter for music and videos on torrents. Thats literally the only upside to going with an Android tablet nowadays
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, not the ONLY one, but yeah - most of the best games come out for iOS first and then, if ever, for Android. On the flip side, Android lets you actually use your device like a computer and not merely a media consumption machine. I consider that a pretty big plus.
JoRocker said:
I cant imagine buying thos for gaming... If you want to game on a tablet I would just go with the iPad. The new iPad 2017 is so much better than this, and you can get one new for 250 and a bigger screen. I went with tablet only because I can torrent and use my Micro USB to USB 2.0 adapter for music and videos on torrents. Thats literally the only upside to going with an Android tablet nowadays
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me it has to be Android for little things like power toggles, screebl and the OLED screen.
seh6183 said:
I'm going to save you a lot of trouble if you're considering this tablet and are unsure, as I just put this thing through a lot of testing.
First off I would like to say that I think this is a fantastic tablet. It is just the right size, has an excellent build quality, and runs pretty good all things considered. This has a decnet running/looking Samsng UI, especially considering that it's an older build running on a slower processor. If this tablet had a better processor and maybe stylus support it would be a killer tablet with no competition. It's sad that Samsung doesn't take this size range seriously any longer.
Now for the badish part. This tablet is great for gaming, perfect size, great screen, good enough speakers (mount them stereo next time Samsung!) However it just won't handle intensive gaming stuff, such as Order and Choas 2 or Rules of Survival with the settings turned up. It will certainly play them if you don't mind the low FPS though. Definitely playable FPS for sure, but it won't be butter.
I was curious to see if this was a Samsung processor optimization problem like it is with the Tab s3, so I did some testing to find out. I can confirm that flashing LOS 14.1 it did nothing for the gaming performance. The tablet was quicker and less laggy overall, but the gaming is still limited by the GPU. This tablet also is so good out of the box that it doesn't need the help of LOS anyway.
So there you have it. Great little tablet, just don't expect any sort of massive gaming performance and don't even think about voiding your warratny to try a custom rom because it won't help. In this size range it is really the ultimate for gaming, so I figured a lot of people would be buying it for that, and I wanted to give a heads up. The benchmark scores don't tell the whole story sometimes. I hope they refresh this tablet in 2018 with a better SOC and keep it alive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far the only bad side of this tablet that I saw was mentioned the battery life (as they reduced it from S1) and the speakers.
My main concern is the speakers which are at the bottom - how do they behave when you hold the tablet in landscape for watching a video? Is all the sound on the right side? Can the speakers be accidentally covered off with the hand that's holding the tablet? How is the sound on this thing?
My Nexus 7 (2013) is seriously showing its age now and due for an upgrade.
I'm considering this (T713/715) or the Huawei Mediapad M3 (or lite) 8.0 which is not at all supported on XDA so I would be stuck with it's software and bloatware whether I like it or not.
atirage said:
I'm considering this (T713/715) or the Huawei Mediapad M3 (or lite) 8.0 which is not at all supported on XDA so I would be stuck with it's software and bloatware whether I like it or not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in the same boat, but it's vs the M5 and I'm more of a reader. It's a tough decision.
stoatbroker said:
I'm in the same boat, but it's vs the M5 and I'm more of a reader. It's a tough decision.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your a reader at night, it's all about the reduced eyestrain of the OLED screen. For me, the M5 is overpriced considering I picked up an M3 for only $180.
Surprise, it was known from the beginning that it has slow gpu, but also not the best cpu, they are continuing this with s3 and s4. They ar selling it for big money and yet, no wonder sales ar low
Extreemator said:
Surprise, it was known from the beginning that it has slow gpu, but also not the best cpu, they are continuing this with s3 and s4. They ar selling it for big money and yet, no wonder sales ar low
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me the S3 and S4 bring little new to the table.
The S2 (when first released,) had that awesome screen. Even though I never intended to own any Samsung product due to touchwiz, I was sold when that Samsung handed me the 8" version in a store. The combination of killer screen and stupidly low weight set this apart from all opposition. For the 8" version, it could be argued this is still the case.
As long as Samsung keep giving us security updates for the S2, I'm not that interested in the S3 and S4 as 9.7" is too big for me.
So, I bought the 8" wifi version (T713) and I'm severely disappointed with battery life: around 6h SOT!?
I keep reducing the brightness but battery percentages just melt away. I don't know, maybe the LineageOS battery life is better, or a custom kernel would help. (I'm still on stock)
Other things I dislike are the volume/speakers - they're easy to cover up and don't sound so great. Not to mention they're basically mono in landscape mode, I hate that on my phone!
The tablet has sharp edges, very uncomfortable to hold and it hurts my hand after a while, fortunately I can buy a silicone cover for this problem. The rest will stick with me
I come from the Nexus 7 2013, and this is definitely a side-grade. The only thing that I missed on the Nexus is that it struggled with hi-res 60fps video (couldn't even do higher than 720p60).
Oh well.
Not much choice in the Android tablet market currently, but I certainly wouldn't recommend this one.
No problem,in the future it will not be Android tablets anymore,so you will not have choises at all.
Google just removed tablets section from Android page,take a look at http://www.android.com/tablets/ .
Cheers
viasat said:
No problem,in the future it will not be Android tablets anymore,so you will not have choises at all.
Google just removed tablets section from Android page,take a look at http://www.android.com/tablets/ .
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are very few redeeming qualities left keeping me on the Android side of the fence anyway, and Google seems intent on killing them. The ease of data management, and the ability to run apps that wouldn't have a shot in the App Store (like Nova Launcher, Solid Explorer, etc.) are about the only things keeping me in the ecosystem. Otherwise, it seems like every time I look, the iPad Pro gets more and more attractive.
atirage said:
So, I bought the 8" wifi version (T713) and I'm severely disappointed with battery life: around 6h SOT!?
I keep reducing the brightness but battery percentages just melt away. I don't know, maybe the LineageOS battery life is better, or a custom kernel would help. (I'm still on stock)
Other things I dislike are the volume/speakers - they're easy to cover up and don't sound so great. Not to mention they're basically mono in landscape mode, I hate that on my phone!
The tablet has sharp edges, very uncomfortable to hold and it hurts my hand after a while, fortunately I can buy a silicone cover for this problem. The rest will stick with me
I come from the Nexus 7 2013, and this is definitely a side-grade. The only thing that I missed on the Nexus is that it struggled with hi-res 60fps video (couldn't even do higher than 720p60).
Oh well.
Not much choice in the Android tablet market currently, but I certainly wouldn't recommend this one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TBH atirage, 6h of SOT is very good for the 8" tablet. My T715 has only ever managed 5h. I doubt lineage will increase battery life by much. At the end of the day, that 4000Mah has to power a hell of a big screen.
I find the tablet the best I've ever held, (also had a Nexus 7 2013 in the past.) but I just hold it in the bottom corner, not attempting to get my hand the whole way around. Agreed about the poor quality speakers.
The thing I've liked about this tablet the most in the last 2 years is the solid, (not ever fantastic,) performance. I've suffered no bugs and everything just works as well as the day I've bought it. :angel:
Not to be all negative about this tablet: the performance is great, granted I didn't fill it up with apps and games yet but I'll see how it will hold up over time.
Even in battery saving mode (70% CPU) it's still blazing fast and a joy to use.
I got a silicon case on it so the handling became better.
And I got used to the sound - it's not good, but passable and loud enough to watch a few YouTube videos in a quiet environment.
I managed to install SABS on it (and make it work), so I got ad blocking now and the ability to disable apps I don't need/use (Samsung bloatware) so I'm hoping battery life will improve a little bit.
It's growing on me.
It was a weird transition from the Nexus 7 (2013), but that fellow got so sluggish that I wanted to chuck it at the wall. That's why I needed the upgrade and the ability to play qHD nicely, and the S2 tab does it oh-so-well.
Anybody can suggest a nice blue light filter app for it?
atirage said:
Not to be all negative about this tablet: the performance is great, granted I didn't fill it up with apps and games yet but I'll see how it will hold up over time.
Even in battery saving mode (70% CPU) it's still blazing fast and a joy to use.
I got a silicon case on it so the handling became better.
And I got used to the sound - it's not good, but passable and loud enough to watch a few YouTube videos in a quiet environment.
I managed to install SABS on it (and make it work), so I got ad blocking now and the ability to disable apps I don't need/use (Samsung bloatware) so I'm hoping battery life will improve a little bit.
It's growing on me.
It was a weird transition from the Nexus 7 (2013), but that fellow got so sluggish that I wanted to chuck it at the wall. That's why I needed the upgrade and the ability to play qHD nicely, and the S2 tab does it oh-so-well.
Anybody can suggest a nice blue light filter app for it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad your starting to see the advantages of this tab atirage: :victory:
You'll also notice the screen picks up far fewer fingerprints than the Nexus 7 2013. Don't know what Samsung have done with the glass but its much better. Even though the FP reader is very 1st gen, its still nice to have and better than a pin every time.
I find the sound to be much better if you put the tablet of a flat surface so the sound reflects off it.