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Upgrading from Captivate to Note or GS3? Help please..my requirements inside...

Hello!
So I have been using my Captivate for a long time...tweaked and overclocked to its max...just a great phone (except for lame GPS). Of course time passes and you want more. 4" is not enough for me any more (and I am speaking about my phone screen!!! LOL).
So I was set on the GS3 BUT a few things have made me think about the Note.
First , I dont care about silly things like looks..come on now. Or the camera....more megapixels on a a freakin small phone sensor? Some people need to learn about real cameras before commenting.
Anyways, the thing is....the GS3 is great the way it is Internationally with the Quad and nice GPU BUT after seeing the 5.3" Note I was like WOW this is BIG.
I use my phone mainly for watching youtube, streaming MST3K , SouthPark etc.
Also for playing emulators, FPSE , MAME etc.
So the bigger display would , in my opinion, be something I can really use.
So in that regards the high resolution big Note screen is awesome as long as it at least looks as good as the one in my Captivate.
The bad thing about the Note...well, some benchmarks, specifically Nenamark2 , I have seen low scores. I mean my Captivate, I hold (I think I still do) the record of 33.5 for that phone and normally score around 30-32 which is VERY close to what I have seen for the Note so that makes me feel like its not a huge upgrade but maybe those were an older Rom or something.
On the other hand I am sure dual core and specially 1GB Ram should give the phone a very smooth feeling compared to my OCed phone.
Another bad thing about the Note is, I got the impression Dev is not huge for it not overclocking.
So on the GS3 end...well the hardware is faster and better overall but the screen is smaller and there is a change the USA ends up with a dual core as well instead of quad. So right I am like...wait for the USA release or just get the Note and enjoy it now.
Its a tough decision.
Any feedback is appreciated specially if anyone is running emulators, specially the new Mame one that plays .139 roms as I would like to know how afterburner runs on dual core.
Regards

Are talking about ATT Note or the Int. Note? Confused, you said that ur waiting for the US release, I'm assuming your talking about the ATT versions of both phones?

Yes both will be the ATT version.

decision is still yours
well i am using my note for like 4 months now, and i am very happy with it, because of its magnificient screen for browsing and my ebooks. I am a surgical resident and this galaxy note saved me from carrying my laptop to the hospital. Here i am sharing my experience abt the note. Its easy to carry my hybrids in the rounds while taking overs during rounds. capture HD videos and pics related to the clinical findings. sometimes i even take it to the OR during cases when i am not assisting or scrubbed. I have all my books for references on my note. The good thing is being loaded with my work stuff, i have plenty of space to have my entertainment part on it. So right now i would say that i have never used a device like the galaxy note.
As far as S3 is concerned. Its an upcoming device with enhanced processor and a few more sensors. So its also charming.
Now as note prices have fall down, if u want to be on the saving path get a note, if u want to be on the top notch in competition, get an S3 as it will be the king till 2013.

I got my Note about 3 months ago and I really will not use anything smaller than the Note.
Before I got this I was tossing a coin between GS2 and Note. I mean literally
The coin landed for the GS2 and I got the Note hehe
I just couldn't resist this phablet.
In comparison to other Android phones I cant say much on that as this is my first ever Android phone and everything on it is great. From watching movies to browsing and even just looking at the thing will make you
Sure it is a bit bulky but I really like it that way. Also it depends on how much you call on it. I spend about 95% doing everything else than calling people. So holding it to my ear is a rare thing. It's better for people with big hands.
I guess everything else can be found on review sites.
I have read a lot about the S3 so far and I gotta say it's not that much better than what the Note is right now. Sure it has an updated touchwiz (in the end both are running ICS so no biggie) with better hardware performance and added apps and features but overall I would not give up my Note for an S3.
But given your situation and if I was in the same situation I would struggle to choose between the two. I would most likely lean towards the Note. About a 60-40 ratio towards the Note.

lets face it QUAD CORE !! (what for) nothing uses that much power and yet its a muscle show for companies over each other. HTC did it sammy said (ME 2).
i love my note and by far the description you wrote means your device acts as a multimedia tool not for a normal usage phone, the note matches your requests fully well it has many ROM to speed it up and give you a great battery life (BTW i dunno about battery on SG3) so stick with note, cutsom version some guys say the ICS official has a bug well dunno i'am using it and its fine but you can wait i guess one week everything will cool down now and problems will be fixed.
NOTE advantages:
Screen HD 5.3"
1 GB RAM
2500 mAH
big phone with great images and brightness
8Mp cam
1.4 Dual Core enough for nowa days
that it by far if you try it you'l never regret or even change it XD unless another comes out !
BTW i hate to say so but i think it's not right to upgrade to an SG3 its about almost the same specs nothing serious for a daily use except for Camera and ICS !
happy buying the phone....

Yesterday i sold my sgs2 . It was a great device, but had some hardware problems. I am thinking too ''should i go for white note '' or ''should i wait for sgs3'' one thing for sure if i'll buy note now, i will lose some money for selling it latter after sgs3 official release.
Please give me some advices.
Things i like about note:
1. huge hd screen
2. better res and ppi than on sgs2
3. normal sim card (not micro)
4. same specs as sgs2
Things i hate about note:
1. damn stylus ! - what is it for ? 2012 and we are still using stylus ?
2. stupid look while making a call
3. i am not sure if it is possible to write a text message with one hand
4. mobile phone with big screen in my pocket - much easier to damage a screen!
Things i like about sgs3:
1. even better resolution and ppi. MUCH BRIGHTER SCREN
2. quad core (not sure if i can feel a difference on apps i am using now) but must be significant difference in battery life.
3. nfc, bt4, few more tweaks with camera & sensors
4. wireless charging
Things i hate about sgs3:
1. rounded look (egg shape)
2. not a big improvement in camera or rams
3. micro sim card
4. PRICE

benzas said:
Yesterday i sold my sgs2 . It was a great device, but had some hardware problems. I am thinking too ''should i go for white note '' or ''should i wait for sgs3'' one thing for sure if i'll buy note now, i will lose some money for selling it latter after sgs3 official release.
Please give me some advices.
Things i like about note:
1. huge hd screen
2. better res and ppi than on sgs2
3. normal sim card (not micro)
4. same specs as sgs2
Things i hate about note:
1. damn stylus ! - what is it for ? 2012 and we are still using stylus ?
2. stupid look while making a call
3. i am not sure if it is possible to write a text message with one hand
4. mobile phone with big screen in my pocket - much easier to damage a screen!
Things i like about sgs3:
1. even better resolution and ppi. MUCH BRIGHTER SCREN
2. quad core (not sure if i can feel a difference on apps i am using now) but must be significant difference in battery life.
3. nfc, bt4, few more tweaks with camera & sensors
4. wireless charging
Things i hate about sgs3:
1. rounded look (egg shape)
2. not a big improvement in camera or rams
3. micro sim card
4. PRICE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are wrong in the brightness department of s3!!
note is about 100cd/m2 brighter than the s3 and could be easily said that its one of the brightest amoled screens around.
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s_iii_vs_htc_one_x-review-759p2.php

pikulu said:
You are wrong in the brightness department of s3!!
note is about 100cd/m2 brighter than the s3 and could be easily said that its one of the brightest amoled screens around.
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s_iii_vs_htc_one_x-review-759p2.php
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdnI9s-GD5w have a look here when compared. s3 looks so brighter, might it be just a dimmed settings ?

Just get the Galaxy Note,I have been using it for over 5 months now its one great piece of device,as for SGSIII I would have considered it or the HTC ONE X for that matter only if the GNote did not exist.

shaolin95 said:
Hello!
So I have been using my Captivate for a long time...tweaked and overclocked to its max...just a great phone (except for lame GPS). Of course time passes and you want more. 4" is not enough for me any more (and I am speaking about my phone screen!!! LOL).
So I was set on the GS3 BUT a few things have made me think about the Note.
First , I dont care about silly things like looks..come on now. Or the camera....more megapixels on a a freakin small phone sensor? Some people need to learn about real cameras before commenting.
Anyways, the thing is....the GS3 is great the way it is Internationally with the Quad and nice GPU BUT after seeing the 5.3" Note I was like WOW this is BIG.
I use my phone mainly for watching youtube, streaming MST3K , SouthPark etc.
Also for playing emulators, FPSE , MAME etc.
So the bigger display would , in my opinion, be something I can really use.
So in that regards the high resolution big Note screen is awesome as long as it at least looks as good as the one in my Captivate.
The bad thing about the Note...well, some benchmarks, specifically Nenamark2 , I have seen low scores. I mean my Captivate, I hold (I think I still do) the record of 33.5 for that phone and normally score around 30-32 which is VERY close to what I have seen for the Note so that makes me feel like its not a huge upgrade but maybe those were an older Rom or something.
On the other hand I am sure dual core and specially 1GB Ram should give the phone a very smooth feeling compared to my OCed phone.
Another bad thing about the Note is, I got the impression Dev is not huge for it not overclocking.
So on the GS3 end...well the hardware is faster and better overall but the screen is smaller and there is a change the USA ends up with a dual core as well instead of quad. So right I am like...wait for the USA release or just get the Note and enjoy it now.
Its a tough decision.
Any feedback is appreciated specially if anyone is running emulators, specially the new Mame one that plays .139 roms as I would like to know how afterburner runs on dual core.
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly dude.. i would go out and hold a phone that's 4.8in and hold the Note and see which one you'd feel comfy handling 12 hours a day x 2 years.
Boiled down, they're almost the same phone. Quad doesn't necessarily > Dual. Just better if you're a heavy heavy multi-tasker. I multi-task like i'm on crack when i'm on the Note and don't feel any bit of fatigue.
Benchmarks don't mean SH
They're like college degrees. Nice on paper, but the important thing is being able to apply that knowledge in real-life situations.
anyways. i love my note. first week: it's too big (TWSS)
now when i handle an iphone it feels like a little kid's toy in my hand. like someone else said, can't go back to anything smaller.
Although i DO wish i had this on the Note (that the SGS3 has)
-That amazing screen
-That amazing camera (i take over 50 photos a day and that would be my fav feature of all)
-Software features they included (eye tracking, etc)
Still think it's lame how they didn't increase the ram though. I'd never have to close anything if I had 2gb
Also, since there's no LTE in Hawaii.. (yet)... I'd still go with international version. Exynos is king. Snapdragon will probably be what's in the AT&T version. bleh.

benzas said:
Yesterday i sold my sgs2 . It was a great device, but had some hardware problems. I am thinking too ''should i go for white note '' or ''should i wait for sgs3'' one thing for sure if i'll buy note now, i will lose some money for selling it latter after sgs3 official release.
Please give me some advices.
Things i like about note:
1. huge hd screen
2. better res and ppi than on sgs2
3. normal sim card (not micro)
4. same specs as sgs2
Things i hate about note:
1. damn stylus ! - what is it for ? 2012 and we are still using stylus ?
2. stupid look while making a call
3. i am not sure if it is possible to write a text message with one hand
4. mobile phone with big screen in my pocket - much easier to damage a screen!
Things i like about sgs3:
1. even better resolution and ppi. MUCH BRIGHTER SCREN
2. quad core (not sure if i can feel a difference on apps i am using now) but must be significant difference in battery life.
3. nfc, bt4, few more tweaks with camera & sensors
4. wireless charging
Things i hate about sgs3:
1. rounded look (egg shape)
2. not a big improvement in camera or rams
3. micro sim card
4. PRICE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really don't understand it when people say "damn stylus ! - what is it for ? 2012 and we are still using stylus ?". This is very narrow minded.
First of all that is like saying, "pens, pencils? What the hell are they for?" The stylus is used for taking notes, it's excellent for that. It is used for drawing, have a look at some of the threads on here where people post their artwork, some pretty amazing stuff. Fingers just aren't accurate enough to do all that. So, fingers are just used for navigating through the phone and selecting things, the stylus is used for so much more than that.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using XDA

ngocdao said:
Honestly dude.. i would go out and hold a phone that's 4.8in and hold the Note and see which one you'd feel comfy handling 12 hours a day x 2 years.
Boiled down, they're almost the same phone. Quad doesn't necessarily > Dual. Just better if you're a heavy heavy multi-tasker. I multi-task like i'm on crack when i'm on the Note and don't feel any bit of fatigue.
Benchmarks don't mean SH
They're like college degrees. Nice on paper, but the important thing is being able to apply that knowledge in real-life situations.
anyways. i love my note. first week: it's too big (TWSS)
now when i handle an iphone it feels like a little kid's toy in my hand. like someone else said, can't go back to anything smaller.
Although i DO wish i had this on the Note (that the SGS3 has)
-That amazing screen
-That amazing camera (i take over 50 photos a day and that would be my fav feature of all)
-Software features they included (eye tracking, etc)
Still think it's lame how they didn't increase the ram though. I'd never have to close anything if I had 2gb
Also, since there's no LTE in Hawaii.. (yet)... I'd still go with international version. Exynos is king. Snapdragon will probably be what's in the AT&T version. bleh.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Size is not a problem with the phone for me.
My reason for wanting a quad was mostly for emulators as some are not super efficient so the more power I can provide the better although that MAME one I mentioned seems to be done for duals.
Yes benchmarks are not the last word but they do give an idea of relative performance.
Well one thing I wanted to have was a Tegra 3 chipset. Not because it is the fastest but because the lame market thing with Tegra game having extra features etc. I hope the trend does not continue.
As for Exynos vs Snapdragon, I thought there was not much different between the ATT and international version but I guess I can always sell it then by the international version or something.
Not sure if there is LTE and I dont really care for it except that with my BS "Unlimited" plan if I had a LTE phone my limit before they slow me down to unusable speeds will be 5GB instead of 3.
Thanks
Markhypnosis said:
I really don't understand it when people say "damn stylus ! - what is it for ? 2012 and we are still using stylus ?". This is very narrow minded.
First of all that is like saying, "pens, pencils? What the hell are they for?" The stylus is used for taking notes, it's excellent for that. It is used for drawing, have a look at some of the threads on here where people post their artwork, some pretty amazing stuff. Fingers just aren't accurate enough to do all that. So, fingers are just used for navigating through the phone and selecting things, the stylus is used for so much more than that.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually the styles us something I like for taking notes for sure...would be very nice.
qazibasit said:
well i am using my note for like 4 months now, and i am very happy with it, because of its magnificient screen for browsing and my ebooks. I am a surgical resident and this galaxy note saved me from carrying my laptop to the hospital. Here i am sharing my experience abt the note. Its easy to carry my hybrids in the rounds while taking overs during rounds. capture HD videos and pics related to the clinical findings. sometimes i even take it to the OR during cases when i am not assisting or scrubbed. I have all my books for references on my note. The good thing is being loaded with my work stuff, i have plenty of space to have my entertainment part on it. So right now i would say that i have never used a device like the galaxy note.
As far as S3 is concerned. Its an upcoming device with enhanced processor and a few more sensors. So its also charming.
Now as note prices have fall down, if u want to be on the saving path get a note, if u want to be on the top notch in competition, get an S3 as it will be the king till 2013.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My concern with the S3 is , how much enhanced is going to be if the USA cripples it to dual core..then it would feel more like a small note since not even the RAM changed.
NutZInTheHead said:
I got my Note about 3 months ago and I really will not use anything smaller than the Note.
Before I got this I was tossing a coin between GS2 and Note. I mean literally
The coin landed for the GS2 and I got the Note hehe
I just couldn't resist this phablet.
In comparison to other Android phones I cant say much on that as this is my first ever Android phone and everything on it is great. From watching movies to browsing and even just looking at the thing will make you
Sure it is a bit bulky but I really like it that way. Also it depends on how much you call on it. I spend about 95% doing everything else than calling people. So holding it to my ear is a rare thing. It's better for people with big hands.
I guess everything else can be found on review sites.
I have read a lot about the S3 so far and I gotta say it's not that much better than what the Note is right now. Sure it has an updated touchwiz (in the end both are running ICS so no biggie) with better hardware performance and added apps and features but overall I would not give up my Note for an S3.
But given your situation and if I was in the same situation I would struggle to choose between the two. I would most likely lean towards the Note. About a 60-40 ratio towards the Note.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am hoping I can have AOKP with it and hopefully some Overclocked kernel. That should make me happy.
As for calling, I dont use my phone to call, always use a headset so no problem there.
REVERSiN said:
lets face it QUAD CORE !! (what for) nothing uses that much power and yet its a muscle show for companies over each other. HTC did it sammy said (ME 2).
i love my note and by far the description you wrote means your device acts as a multimedia tool not for a normal usage phone, the note matches your requests fully well it has many ROM to speed it up and give you a great battery life (BTW i dunno about battery on SG3) so stick with note, cutsom version some guys say the ICS official has a bug well dunno i'am using it and its fine but you can wait i guess one week everything will cool down now and problems will be fixed.
NOTE advantages:
Screen HD 5.3"
1 GB RAM
2500 mAH
big phone with great images and brightness
8Mp cam
1.4 Dual Core enough for nowa days
that it by far if you try it you'l never regret or even change it XD unless another comes out !
BTW i hate to say so but i think it's not right to upgrade to an SG3 its about almost the same specs nothing serious for a daily use except for Camera and ICS !
happy buying the phone....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree...that is what my usage of the phone looks like and since camera is not important to me as I have real cameras when a shot matters, then I keep leaning towards the Note right now
benzas said:
Yesterday i sold my sgs2 . It was a great device, but had some hardware problems. I am thinking too ''should i go for white note '' or ''should i wait for sgs3'' one thing for sure if i'll buy note now, i will lose some money for selling it latter after sgs3 official release.
Please give me some advices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Labas benzas
As truputi suprantu lietuviskai
Its better to create your own post to get more responses.
I hate when I cannot make a clear cut decision. LOL
ate

Benchmark results aren't relative at all.. that's the problem
Its like the quote goes "you can't rate a goldfish's intelligence based on its ability to climb"
There is a significant difference on exynos / snapdragon. (Stock) I've tried both notes.
Another prime example is AT&T S2 w/ exynos and TMO S2 on snapdragon. The latter is horrible on stock.
I still hate writing on the stylus, since i cant write as fast on it as i do with a reg. Pen and professor talks too fast. I do all my mock up sketches though on it/annotations.
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium

shaolin95 said:
Labas benzas
As truputi suprantu lietuviskai
Its better to create your own post to get more responses.
I hate when I cannot make a clear cut decision. LOL
ate
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hahah . Labas! Nice to see some native language in here
went to some phone shops today to hold NOTE ... also compared it to nexus (as nexus is the same size as s3) and i easily made my mind. BOUGHT NOTE FROM EBAY TODAY. £359 so that's about $577 , brand new n7000 , factory unlocked - WHITE
s3 in uk going to be part of Olympics (official olimpics phone) so i presume price is gonna stay high for a long time. I'll hold note for some time now , and decide if it is worth to go for s3 latter when it is cheaper.

benzas said:
hahah . Labas! Nice to see some native language in here
went to some phone shops today to hold NOTE ... also compared it to nexus (as nexus is the same size as s3) and i easily made my mind. BOUGHT NOTE FROM EBAY TODAY. £359 so that's about $577 , brand new n7000 , factory unlocked - WHITE
s3 in uk going to be part of Olympics (official olimpics phone) so i presume price is gonna stay high for a long time. I'll hold note for some time now , and decide if it is worth to go for s3 latter when it is cheaper.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ah good idea! I will do the same to see how much different the size will be. I wish I could just get the international version but then again, I guess I can always sell it and get the international one.
Are you in Vilnius? I am planning to visit in late June.
Aciu

shaolin95 said:
ah good idea! I will do the same to see how much different the size will be. I wish I could just get the international version but then again, I guess I can always sell it and get the international one.
Are you in Vilnius? I am planning to visit in late June.
Aciu
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No bro. I live in United Kingdom for last 7 yrs. but originally i am not far away from Vilnius.
My advice for you would be : - go for note and if you'll be very disappointed go for s3 in autumn or so. (maybe even NOTE 2 )
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR DECISION

Based on what I use it for I think the big screen will be the choice for sure. I will go by the store today.
Yeah many of my friends are moving to the UK as well so I hope to see them before they leave.
malonu

benzas said:
Things i hate about note:
1. damn stylus ! - what is it for ? 2012 and we are still using stylus ?
2. stupid look while making a call
3. i am not sure if it is possible to write a text message with one hand
4. mobile phone with big screen in my pocket - much easier to damage a screen!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1.- Really, hey if you dont like it you dont HAVE to use it, i love it couse its great to making some postcards out of picture of me and my gf just for fun, also its great for playing drawsomthing, but you dont have to use it.
2.- I dont think how you look should matter in this case you want something useful you are not modelling right?
3.- With ICS you can write with one hand, it has a special one hand handling feature
4.- Sure, but after 6 months no problem with my phone, and i broke 2 other small ones so i gues it depends how you take care of your stuff
Bottom Line, i Love my Note, im not planning on any change unless Note 2 is out there and yet, it has to be a great update, cause this phone has it all

I would say go for the note.
-- Although the ATT version doesn't have the same power as the international version. overclocking to 1704hmz is certainly a plus for the note, and some roms can go higher. If you are going for the Note do the international version.
As apps get more complicated (and they will) more cores will be needed. Currently thats not the case, but it will happen. I remember 20 years ago when people were saying 52mb was all you would even need in a hard drive!
Thats basically what it comes down to. For me its the bigger screen as apps don't need 4 cores at the moment, and im loving the Note. The next note will be quad core so that will be my next purchase...
I'm never going for a smaller phone than the note...

Any reasons to NOT buy this phone?

My heart says yes but my mind is a bit cautious!
Can you convince me to NOT buy this phone?

Sectoras said:
My heart says yes but my mind is a bit cautious!
Can you convince me to NOT buy this phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It took me about a month of deciding to get one (updating from HTC One m7).
Just say "F it" and buy one. There's no point being the richest man in the graveyard :laugh:

Not really. It has its flaws such as Touchwiz but it's still one of if not the best Android phone around today. I guess in a few months the Note 5 will be released.

0-0-0 said:
It took me about a month of deciding to get one (updating from HTC One m7).
Just say "F it" and buy one. There's no point being the richest man in the graveyard :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True! I'm just a click before the purchase! I was thinking to get the exynos version but i guess the snapdragon ROMs are better than the exynos right? However is the difference noticeable?

Just my opinion though... If i were you I would probably wait for Note 5, but if you can't wait and you are eager? then try to stay away from the Korean versions (no offense - for Koreans) and buy the phone. I personally own the Korean Version which is a pain for me due to the "Olleh Logo and apps" and little to no custom rom available. All this was my fault since i was in a hurry in getting the less expensive deal. But yet i lived with it and now loving the Phone, I also own the non edge S6 which i used for two days and eventually giving it to my wife, Since i am not used to a bit smaller phone compared to note 4. But yes try to wait a bit more for the note 5.

archer201977 said:
Just my opinion though... If i were you I would probably wait for Note 5, but if you can't wait and you are eager? then try to stay away from the Korean versions (no offense - for Koreans) and buy the phone. I personally own the Korean Version which is a pain for me due to the "Olleh Logo and apps" and little to no custom rom available. All this was my fault since i was in a hurry in getting the less expensive deal. But yet i lived with it and now loving the Phone, I also own the non edge S6 which i used for two days and eventually giving it to my wife, Since i am not used to a bit smaller phone compared to note 4. But yes try to wait a bit more for the note 5.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there an official ETA for the note 5? I could wait a month or two.. Also i'm not willing to spend more than 500€ .. so i guess i should go for the Note 4

Sectoras said:
Is there an official ETA for the note 5? I could wait a month or two..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As of now there's no specific Release Date, But i assume somewhere August. Google search yielded sprouting links, rumors etc. about note 5, But there is no actual Date. Anyways when there's A "1, 2 & 3" series, then there will always be "4, 5 and so on..." So it will come...

Buy the note edge instead. ...
One of a kind.

Lags like crazy, camera is not good in low light especially with moving objects. That's all I got. But at least for me, I'm doubting whether I'll get another Samsung device purely because of the lag.
Supposedly the S6 has a stripped down touchwiz as well, but it still lags.
Sent from my SM-N910P using XDA Free mobile app

Small hands. Don't buy this phone if you have small hands :b
Seriously, no flags at all. Kitkat is the most flawless, fastest and optimized firmware to the date. Lollipop is getting better with BOE2 build and it WILL be better with 5.1.1. Also you have interchangeable batteries and microSD support. Go, grab one, you'll never regret.

I see as though the note 5 will come with an irreplaceable battery and memory. That's very very discouraging to be me, unless s6 sales cause them to rethink their strategy am not going to be upgrading to note 5 from my current note 4.
beezar said:
Lags like crazy, camera is not good in low light especially with moving objects. That's all I got. But at least for me, I'm doubting whether I'll get another Samsung device purely because of the lag.
Supposedly the S6 has a stripped down touchwiz as well, but it still lags.
Sent from my SM-N910P using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My experience with the international snapdragon version says completely otherwise! I think your is clogged with bloatware hence the lag! Plus also quality control is different for different countries. Like I know the SM-N910S version to be not so good and someone here has posted on the same. I went out of my way to get the International Snapdragon version because I had heard wonders about it and now that I have it, it is also doing wonders. Just visit the Note 4 battery thread and you will see what I am talking about.

Kernel ranger said:
I see as though the note 5 will come with an irreplaceable battery and memory. That's very very discouraging to be me, unless s6 sales cause them to rethink their strategy am not going to be upgrading to note 5 from my current note 4.
My experience with the international snapdragon version says completely otherwise! I think your is clogged with bloatware hence the lag! Plus also quality control is different for different countries. Like I know the SM-N910S version to be not so good and someone here has posted on the same. I went out of my way to get the International Snapdragon version because I had heard wonders about it and now that I have it, it is also doing wonders. Just visit the Note 4 battery thread and you will see what I am talking about.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's strange that people's experiences with this (and other) phones vary so much. I believe it all comes down to subjectiveness, perception and what you're expecting from your device. Sometimes when I read a thread on someone's perception of a phone on XDA I think "what?!, you've got to be kidding!".
Personally speaking, after owning most of the current and past flagships, the Note 4 stands amongst the best. It takes some work to freeze apps and get battery performance to a good level but it's allround performance, camera quality, build quality, QHD screen taken into account etc, it's easily one of the best around at this moment in time and with a custom kernel, it's very snappy. Is it the perfect phone? no, not by far but then no others are today and the N4 is close to the top of the pile.

i think it's bigger than others, but i like it

beezar said:
Lags like crazy, camera is not good in low light especially with moving objects. That's all I got. But at least for me, I'm doubting whether I'll get another Samsung device purely because of the lag.
Supposedly the S6 has a stripped down touchwiz as well, but it still lags.
Sent from my SM-N910P using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm aware of this lag issue, but i hope for a good, tweaked & clean XDA ROM.

Sectoras said:
My heart says yes but my mind is a bit cautious!
Can you convince me to NOT buy this phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it lags! On both UI and games!
And also, it takes extremely long for uldates to get released! But whatever you do dont get 910H! Check which version gets updates first!
And its funny, my note n7000 and this note are voth full of scratches! Luckily scratches on my note 4 are barely seen on normal conditions but my N7000 was awful! But my nexus 4 and sensation didnt have scratches! (After i droped my sensation there was one on the screen and back of my nexus 4 was full of scratch but only on back)
and also the chrome on the edges gets worn off with case! Otherwise great phone! You could also wait for note 5! But its gonna be expensive as hell, atmeast for a few months!
But the screen, if you don't care about purple smudges its AMAZING! When i compare it to my monutor its like watching 2 diffrent movies but it might be because my momitor is terrible

Batfink33 said:
It's strange that people's experiences with this (and other) phones vary so much. I believe it all comes down to subjectiveness, perception and what you're expecting from your device. Sometimes when I read a thread on someone's perception of a phone on XDA I think "what?!, you've got to be kidding!".
Personally speaking, after owning most of the current and past flagships, the Note 4 stands amongst the best. It takes some work to freeze apps and get battery performance to a good level but it's allround performance, camera quality, build quality, QHD screen taken into account etc, it's easily one of the best around at this moment in time and with a custom kernel, it's very snappy. Is it the perfect phone? no, not by far but then no others are today and the N4 is close to the top of the pile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hear you and what you are saying makes perfect sense, I can't argue with that. Not everyone uses their phones alike which accounts for the differences we experience. But I tell you this Note 4 I have is really God sent, the only other phone that could do what it's currently doing was my first Nokia phone ever or maybe it's because I am in a region with superb signal reception, I realized the Note 4 is extremely sensitive to the mobile network signal power and impacts greatly on battery life. I can't wait to install a custom rom into it and really see it's potential.

Well I kinda agree about the sluggishness partially but not totally to the extent that i ended up complaining about how note 4 lags. Mine does not lag like crazy but some rare occurrence of what i call the "stutter Effect" other than that it is fast (btw mine is the exynos Korean n910k model) handles pretty well with all apps. I guess it's down to every user's taste which varies. I have put both side by side the S6 (non-edge model) and the note 4 and found that s6 is slightly faster but that i think was because of the striped down TW and probably the latest hardware etc... Anyways it's just my thought.

archer201977 said:
As of now there's no specific Release Date, But i assume somewhere August. Google search yielded sprouting links, rumors etc. about note 5, But there is no actual Date. Anyways when there's A "1, 2 & 3" series, then there will always be "4, 5 and so on..." So it will come...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note 5 will be announced at IFA 2015 in September and released in October like every note before it

Fuzzi99, If that's the case? then i might probably give my note 4 to my wife and get the "5!" Seriously speaking, I will keep my note and maybe if "Mr. Temptation" will try to get in my way, then i might be tempted to break my piggy bank and purchase the Note 5... Interesting News by the way.

Better than a Note 4?

I love my AT&T Note 4...it's a great thing! It is! But root is *still* not possible. I know people are working feverishly at it and I don't necessarily think it won't happen but I really miss it. Sure, I am one of those rare dudes that use the stylus multiple times a day, as well as all the multitasking/splitscreen stuff, but I can't run some apps that I used to rely on heavily when I took the leap of faith to the Note. One MAJOR thing that bugs the every loving piss out of me is the fact that I can't flash a custom ROM! I know temporary root has been achieved but, from what I understand, that's not good enough to flash a custom recovery and ROM, AND I can't use my root apps like SSHTunnel.
Anyway...blah blah...Seeing this phone makes me want to toss the Note 4 on eBay. Yes, the screen is lame but the CPU is epic and it's much more open.
I might be down to let the 4 go but there are a few hangups: That invite system. How the HELL am I supposed to get an invite? Another hangup is that screen...it's "only" 1080p...how does it look? Is it a good piece of hardware? I'm sure I'll miss the 4's screen but if the 1080 screen looks good overall, I might be able to deal due to the hackability and the CPU.
Overall, I'm just looking for some feedback and overall impressions of the phone when it becomes more widely available. Think it's a worthy upgrade from the Note 4?

I had used Samsung Galaxy Phones starting from the S2 > S3 > Note 2 > Note 3 and then moved to the Oneplus One.
Here are the key differences :
1. If you have a taste for the saturation of the AMOLED display, you will miss it. The Deep Blacks are spectacular on the Samsung Flagships (Ive seen the note 4 too) However i was pleasently surprised by the Clarity of the Oneplus One. The pentile matrix of the AMOLED displays on the galaxy range does leave room for more clarity and the Oneplus Display though not as saturated was as bright and it was more crisp/clear. Today after 8 months of using the OPO i will not go back to an AMOLED unless they do away with the Pentile matrix (I am yet to sample a QHD AMOLED display though)
2. OPO ran CM 11/12 vs Touchiwiz /custom roms on The Note 3. Although i liked some features of Touchwiz , the overall look was not to my taste. Custom Roms though available come with thier own bugs. Having used the OPO and also having liked CM early on i was happy for the native support. I am a tinkerer, run a lot of root apps, Hence i loved the OPO where i dont lose my warranty on rooting/unlocking. Also CM/Oxygen are far less bloated than other ROMs hence I enjoyed snappier performance and better battery life compared to the Note 3.
3. I did like the oneplus one in terms of its looks but the note 4 looked better. i chose the oneplus because i could just trade my one year old Note 3 and get the OPO at no extra cost. the OP2 looks better, has a metal frame and better styleswap covers. I personally really liked the sandstone black back though, but that is a matter of taste. At less than half Price of the Note 4 the OPO was a steal.
4. The OP2 has 4gb of DDR4 Ram, so i expect better performance than anything else out there. I however do not game much, or use too many apps simultaneously so i dont forsee a heating issue for me using the SD810.
5. The Note 4 Camera is most likely better than the OP2. But this is just speculation at this point.
To sum up : The OP2 is newer hardware, root friendly, bloat free, will likely have good developer support. It does lack MicroSD expansion, NFC,quick charge. If you want to experiment with a new device offering near pure android, at a very reasonable price - i would vote for the OP2.

rmp5s said:
I love my AT&T Note 4...it's a great thing! It is! But root is *still* not possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is not the fault of Samsung or your Note 4, but your carrier. Get a phone through Verizon or AT&T and be prepared to be punished with a locked bootloader.

Im also in a fix.Im also using Note 4 sd variant but I haven't rooted it due to knox crap.Confused coz i love the Note 4 screen but I see full hd screen with sd810 as an advantage.
Sent from my SM-N910G using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

jack_frost said:
To sum up : The OP2 is newer hardware, root friendly, bloat free, will likely have good developer support. It does lack MicroSD expansion, NFC,quick charge. If you want to experiment with a new device offering near pure android, at a very reasonable price - i would vote for the OP2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome reply. Thanks for the feedback!
I'm still a bit on the fence about it...good to hear the screen is good, though. That's one thing I am COMPLETELY spoiled with...the Note 4's screen is simply unparalleled.
There is nothing about the Note 4 that I hate and I'd truly miss the SmartPen...I'm one of the few that actually use the thing every day. I also love the multitasking functionality and use it all the time.
But, the "don't listen too loud" nanny every time I plug headphones in, the "how to clear app defaults" every damn time I set one, the COMPLETELY random battery life (some days, after my 12hr shift, it'll be at 40-45%...other days it'll be at 5%...you never know...) and, obviously, the lack of root and the EPIC OP2 amongst other things all add up to me considering making the switch. The fact that the Note 4 goes for 400-450 on eBay doesn't hurt things, either. My Note 4 is pristine. I even have all the original box/papers/etc that it came with.
I'm going to think about it for a little while and we'll see. Right now I'm thinking I'm going to do it.
Oh...and...how does one go about getting a OP2 invite?

CafeKampuchia said:
This is not the fault of Samsung or your Note 4, but your carrier. Get a phone through Verizon or AT&T and be prepared to be punished with a locked bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sprint version had root almost a year ago . It's a shame they do that in 2015 but when your at the top at&t and verizon you can do whatever you want. Highly doubt it get root at this point most people probably got another device. Hope im wrong tho

rmp5s said:
Oh...and...how does one go about getting a OP2 invite?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not begging or entering any stupid contests to get a 1+2 invite. I'm the customer and OnePlus wants my business, not the other way around. If an invite doesn't fall in my lap, I'll get something else from a company ready to do business with me.

Agreed. I definitely don't like the business model. I'm not JUST holding out of a OP2...I'm VERY intrigued by the upcoming Nexus...I adored my Nexus 4. Had that thing for a long ass time. The OP2 is very Nexus-ish...I just don't get why they don't just sell the stupid things...why be difficult about it?

rmp5s said:
I love my AT&T Note 4...it's a great thing! It is! But root is *still* not possible. I know people are working feverishly at it and I don't necessarily think it won't happen but I really miss it. Sure, I am one of those rare dudes that use the stylus multiple times a day, as well as all the multitasking/splitscreen stuff, but I can't run some apps that I used to rely on heavily when I took the leap of faith to the Note. One MAJOR thing that bugs the every loving piss out of me is the fact that I can't flash a custom ROM! I know temporary root has been achieved but, from what I understand, that's not good enough to flash a custom recovery and ROM, AND I can't use my root apps like SSHTunnel.
Anyway...blah blah...Seeing this phone makes me want to toss the Note 4 on eBay. Yes, the screen is lame but the CPU is epic and it's much more open.
I might be down to let the 4 go but there are a few hangups: That invite system. How the HELL am I supposed to get an invite? Another hangup is that screen...it's "only" 1080p...how does it look? Is it a good piece of hardware? I'm sure I'll miss the 4's screen but if the 1080 screen looks good overall, I might be able to deal due to the hackability and the CPU.
Overall, I'm just looking for some feedback and overall impressions of the phone when it becomes more widely available. Think it's a worthy upgrade from the Note 4?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the best phone is the one with the best final user experience which is much more about software than hardware. hence your question is almost answered LOL, a phone which is either impossible or difficult to root and unlock is never ever better than a perfectly set up phone rom, kernel. launcher and root app wise. having said that the only remaining criteria are: display size to footprint ratio, weight, design ( should not be ugly ) and basic specs like camera memory cpu ram and battery life. those depend of course on personal preference as well as personal usage patterns.
so if you do not need 128GB or more memory and if you do not need the pen under all circustance etc. etc. the OP2 is far better because it's customizable to the edge and the hardware specs are in parts better, in parts equal and in parts not available, so what counts is what are your priorities.

Op if you rely on the stylus pen like me, as I do a lot of typing. Then just stay with the n4. The n5 is also around the corner and am sure it will blow away the oneplus no doubt.

Applsung note 5 - no thank you
I know the Oneplus 2 has not removable battery or sd support but it's going to be at least half the price possibly more looking at pricing of s6 etc
64gb is just about enough for my needs and my note 4 stylus is a redundant piece for myself of course

Wow the ATT Note 4 still doesn't have official root yet, almost one year later ? WTF F. you ATT and Scamsung for allowing ATT to control you like that.
Just on principle alone, I'd ditch that Note 4 and pick up the OnePlus Two and the freedom to do what you want with your phone. Plus Oxygen OS will be way lighter and smoother than the god awful Windows 95 inspired Touchwizz.

Best phone to upgrade to after note 4 ? ( Discussion )

Hi fellows !
So I had my n910c for more than 2.5 years now and my worst problem is that I am bored of it .
The phone is still perfect for what I need : big screen, ok battery (I got a new one in 2017), ok sound (very loud), S pen is cool and all so I can't find any legit reason to upgrade for now .
But next year I will definitely replace it (if not for any good reason, just to have something new lol) so I was looking at this year end phablets and don't like the new trends at all . Pretty much every phone out there is 18:9 or worse (I hate 18:9 cause it's bad for youtube, many games(read hearthstone) and twitch - my favorite 3 activities), lost the removable battery and get exponentially more expensive than 2-3 years ago . The only 2 phones I like are mate 10 (regular version) and razer phone (pretty much the only ones that still have big screen with proper aspect ratio and acceptable price tag) .
Let's discuss: What are your thoughts about current smartphones ? Did you recently upgrade or plan to ?

I never got rid of my Note 4.
It's the best phone I've ever had.
I bought a Mate 9 which was excellent... No pen.
Bought Xiaomi Mi6 - VERY sexy, too small.
OnePlus 3T - very fast, rapid software updates completely different approach
Htc U11 - Marvelous device, great technology, good camera, again very different approach.
The Note 4 stand out in all aspects. Though it's old, I still use it everyday. I bought multiple batteries so really, I'm keeping it as long as I can.
Not worth selling, just keep it and buy another phone. The Note 8 I think it's too expensive for now.... And a little too safe, as are the Mate 10 & 10 pro, so I'm going to wait a year and see.
Good luck.

r33fd said:
Hi fellows !
So I had my n910c for more than 2.5 years now and my worst problem is that I am bored of it .
The phone is still perfect for what I need : big screen, ok battery (I got a new one in 2017), ok sound (very loud), S pen is cool and all so I can't find any legit reason to upgrade for now .
But next year I will definitely replace it (if not for any good reason, just to have something new lol) so I was looking at this year end phablets and don't like the new trends at all . Pretty much every phone out there is 18:9 or worse (I hate 18:9 cause it's bad for youtube, many games(read hearthstone) and twitch - my favorite 3 activities), lost the removable battery and get exponentially more expensive than 2-3 years ago . The only 2 phones I like are mate 10 (regular version) and razer phone (pretty much the only ones that still have big screen with proper aspect ratio and acceptable price tag) .
Let's discuss: What are your thoughts about current smartphones ? Did you recently upgrade or plan to ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you don't miss the pen, get the V20. It's an upgrade in terms of everything, and the software is better. Sure the screen isn't as saturated, but it's great otherwise. And it does have KCAL-enabled kernels.
I personally will still keep my N910S though. Extremely smooth with PRIME-Kernel, stock ROMs and proper kernel settings.

Razor... hands down.

I'd get the Note 8 as I am a AMOLED fanboy.

Bruce lee roy said:
Razor... hands down.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was really hyped about it too .
But then I read reviews and the display quality and battery life are terrible, most likely worse than note 4 even . (Actually very few new phones can claim a better display quality than note 4 anyway, only new Samsung are really better - in brightness mostly)
This year there really isn't any device to rule them all .
The best phone this year imo is probably mate 10 pro . cause it has the best battery on any flagship and really nice features (ir blaster, stereo speakers etc) . But even this has some disadvantages compared to our beloved note (smaller screen real estate in most important apps right now, no S pen obviously, no 3.5 jack! , no SD card, no removable battery (this is beyond hope at this point) .
For me if I'm not going to buy a note next (which I probably won't cause the price/quality is not great) I might as well get anything cause they all do the same thing more or less . (Nothing compares to S pen .)
Will probably wait for a nice budget offering to appear till next year . Fingers crossed for oneplus 5t and Honor v10 to be good phones and low on price .

Hi!
I just was asking myself the same question, since sadly my Note 4 broke down.
A smartphone without pen is no alternative for me, since I have long fingernails and can’t really use today’s standard touchscreens.
I first wanted to just buy the Note 4 again. When I looked up the prices on Amazon.de, the black one (new) was at ~350€, the white one at ~400€. Wow, and that for a three year old model? I looked at the Note 8 and it was 850€ then. Holy sh**t.
My Note 4 started working again for a week, so I thought I might be safe. Then it died again, maybe forever (yeah, I checked the forum, nothing works, just plain dead).
So I went to Amazon again… and the black Note 4 was at ~400€ now, the white (my original one) at ~550€! Wtf happened? Maybe Samsung bought all the old models to push the Note 8?
Note 8 had dropped to 800€ so I thought I’d give it a try without really reading anything about it.
I have it since yesterday and my first ten minutes were like “who the hell designed this”.
You need to push in the pen before you then can pull it out.
The finger print reader is hidden on the back, next to the camera, I need five times to find it.
SIM card / SD card in some tiny tray not designed for clumsy people (you need an extra metal pin thingy, pretty sure easy to loose)
With the pen it is a bit tricky to move around items on the homescreen due to the edges of the screen.
Slippery back surface.
Built in battery.
Ridiculous size.
On the plus side:
the biometrical recognition is cool (while unsafe-ish),
it’s waterproof,
excellent (!) screen.
For its size it is very light.
The new OS is really nice.
Battery life is good.
And it has a pen again.
After using it for a few days I got used to it and kinda could warm up to the device… the fingerprint reader is driving me nuts, but the size is really convenient after a while.
However "I can get used to it" is not something I pay 800€ for.
I ordered a used Note 4 for 300€ and will send the Note 8 back once it arrives. Then I will watch the price and may buy it at around ~500€.
tl;dr:
If you don’t care for money and just love new stuff, I can recommend checking the Note 8 out.
If you just want a decent phone, stick to your Note 4 and be happy with it.
Regards
cherryfish

If there was a better phone, I would have bought it, but unfortunately I can't find one.
Oneplus 5T looks nice, but it's bigger than Note, I won't buy any phone that's even one mm larger than note 4.
Note 8 is way too tall and narrow. And expensive.
LG V30 looks the best alternative, but it's not widely available and has no S-pen, as nearly every other phone.
Note 4 is getting old and I would surely like to make a change, but I can't find a proper replacement. I really don't know!

r33fd said:
I was really hyped about it too .
But then I read reviews and the display quality and battery life are terrible, most likely worse than note 4 even . (Actually very few new phones can claim a better display quality than note 4 anyway, only new Samsung are really better - in brightness mostly)
This year there really isn't any device to rule them all .
The best phone this year imo is probably mate 10 pro . cause it has the best battery on any flagship and really nice features (ir blaster, stereo speakers etc) . But even this has some disadvantages compared to our beloved note (smaller screen real estate in most important apps right now, no S pen obviously, no 3.5 jack! , no SD card, no removable battery (this is beyond hope at this point) .
For me if I'm not going to buy a note next (which I probably won't cause the price/quality is not great) I might as well get anything cause they all do the same thing more or less . (Nothing compares to S pen .)
Will probably wait for a nice budget offering to appear till next year . Fingers crossed for oneplus 5t and Honor v10 to be good phones and low on price .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a device built for gaming first, then smartphone... and software is built to take full advantage of hardware. Battery size is very good and display is built with only techno that can take advantage of high refresh rate. With all that said software adjustment are built in to extend battery when not gaming. I love this phone. More notably, I love the idea of this phone.

phamanhvu01 said:
If you don't miss the pen, get the V20. It's an upgrade in terms of everything, and the software is better. Sure the screen isn't as saturated, but it's great otherwise. And it does have KCAL-enabled kernels.
I personally will still keep my N910S though. Extremely smooth with PRIME-Kernel, stock ROMs and proper kernel settings.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this. if i didn't have the note 4, the V20 would have been my choice. last flagship phone with removable battery . the hifi dac is a plus too.

I recently moved from Note 3 to Note 4 ... not because my Note 3 was having any issue... just because I figured there aren't go to be many gently used Note 4's up for sale in the next couple years, so grabbed a nearly new one while I could!
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but:
- excellent build quality and repairability
- removable battery
- headphone jack
- pen
- able to install Lineage ROM
I've been hoping consumer backlash would force vendors to return to a removable batter and headphone jack, but no... lemmings will be lemmings.

It's a problem. I still love my Note 4 but, like the OP, am ready to try something new. I've ordered the Mate 10 (regular), as it seemed to check the most boxes I care about: IR blaster, expandable storage, super-long battery life, front-facing fingerprint sensor that can double as a touchpad, splash-resistant, 3.1 Type C USB, dual-sim, and same size (but 10 grams heavier) as the Note 4. Excellent sound and excellent camera (Leica). And comes with Oreo. But no S-pen and no replaceable battery. So we'll see. Not putting the Note 4 on ebay yet!

canada_dry said:
I recently moved from Note 3 to Note 4 ... not because my Note 3 was having any issue... just because I figured there aren't go to be many gently used Note 4's up for sale in the next couple years, so grabbed a nearly new one while I could!
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but:
- excellent build quality and repairability
- removable battery
- headphone jack
- pen
- able to install Lineage ROM
I've been hoping consumer backlash would force vendors to return to a removable batter and headphone jack, but no... lemmings will be lemmings.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately, Many of those lemmings reside right here on XDA now days. It was extremely sad to see members vehemently defend Samsung's decision to remove the battery, lR sensor, and SD card in the note 5... Then later defend the decision to lock the bootloader on later Samsung devices.
Wake TF up people!

I'm still loving the Note 4. Rooted, audio boosted, Titanium Backup installed, 256gb SD card and of course a spare battery in my wallet to go back to 100% charge in less than a minute.
I have noticed many of the 8 series Samsungs are getting really bad screen burn, no such issue with the Note 4 AMOLED panel.
I have a brand new one sitting in a cupboard in case anything happens to this one.
Everyone wants a bigger (or removable) battery and literally no-one wants waterproofing but all the manufacturers follow trends so that's where we're at. The Note 8 is truly horrible.

kradcliffe said:
Everyone wants a bigger (or removable) battery and literally no-one wants waterproofing but all the manufacturers follow trends so that's where we're at. The Note 8 is truly horrible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
waterproofing is for latin america (or america in general), as theres lots of humidity and heavy rains over there. In europe we don't need it much, except for those that tend to drop their devices in a bath.

canada_dry said:
I recently moved from Note 3 to Note 4 ... not because my Note 3 was having any issue... just because I figured there aren't go to be many gently used Note 4's up for sale in the next couple years, so grabbed a nearly new one while I could!
I know I'm preaching to the choir, but:
- excellent build quality and repairability
- removable battery
- headphone jack
- pen
- able to install Lineage ROM
I've been hoping consumer backlash would force vendors to return to a removable batter and headphone jack, but no... lemmings will be lemmings.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here! I still haven't gotten rid of my Note 3 though. It's running a custom ROM (Note 7 port) and my Note 4 is running stock for now.
My Note 3 is brand new and my Note 4 I bought used.
Both have their pro's and con's

The Note 4 has a lot of flaws... poor battery life (probably common to android) and poor build quality, but there's nothing else like it on the market.
There is a big gap in the market for a smartphone with a stylus and a 16:9 flat screen. Now that Samsung is curving all of its screens another manufacturer will have to take over.

CSMR said:
The Note 4 has a lot of flaws... poor battery life (probably common to android) and poor build quality, but there's nothing else like it on the market.
There is a big gap in the market for a smartphone with a stylus and a 16:9 flat screen. Now that Samsung is curving all of its screens another manufacturer will have to take over.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't agree about the battery life .
It might be because you have an old battery but I have one from 2017 and it lasts pretty well . For example today I was at 45 percent with over 3.5 h SoT and 2 days of usage . I think that is more than decent even if not the best out there . Also if I just use the stylus to write in the note app the battery lasts forever .
The build quality is just fine, never had a problem with it in more than 2,5 years . Definitely better than the glass we see everywhere . As long as you don't drop it into water it should be fine .
That's why I can't justify spending money to buy a new phone yet : there just isn't anything I can complain much about the note . I wish I had the newest SoC and camera sure, but the ones on the note are still more than well suited for what I need . Other than that this phone is still perfect for me: the display is one of the best in the market still (don't need that 18/9 gimmick) , the speaker still one of the loudest and clearest (better than the latest samsungs for sure) , and with root the software can do pretty much anything I can think of .
I might just keep this phone until it dies or something exceptional appears. Really hope the s9 comes with loud (stereo) speakers (poor audio is a deal breaker for me) and maybe a more solid material (glass is so fragile - it's a shame to spend a bucket of money on a luxurious smartphone only to hide it into a case , that's just stupid , I never used a case on note 4 and it's still in great shape) .

r33fd said:
I don't agree about the battery life .
It might be because you have an old battery but I have one from 2017 and it lasts pretty well . For example today I was at 45 percent with over 3.5 h SoT and 2 days of usage . I think that is more than decent even if not the best out there . Also if I just use the stylus to write in the note app the battery lasts forever .
The build quality is just fine, never had a problem with it in more than 2,5 years . Definitely better than the glass we see everywhere . As long as you don't drop it into water it should be fine .
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Click to collapse
I migrated from a Lumia 1520, even older than the Note 4 and from defunct Windows Mobile platform. Battery life of the Note 4 is less than half even with a new battery, gets hot from easy tasks, and it feels much cheaper. It does have a stylus, and all the apps though. I think the market is just not that great for power users at the moment so we stay on old phones.

CSMR said:
I migrated from a Lumia 1520, even older than the Note 4 and from defunct Windows Mobile platform. Battery life of the Note 4 is less than half even with a new battery, gets hot from easy tasks, and it feels much cheaper. It does have a stylus, and all the apps though. I think the market is just not that great for power users at the moment so we stay on old phones.
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You are right . The lumia has an outstanding battery . I saw on GSM arena it had a score over 105h endurance . You just can't get that with android . Even something like a mate 10 pro scores over 10h less due to the power hungry os .
Hopefully next your will be better for power users .

S10+ vs. Note 9 which will last longer?

Which phone will be more long lasting in terms that it will not slow down after Android or Interface (Samsung Experience, One UI) upgrades?
I'm looking between these 2 phones for the one that will have a better CHANCE for lasting 5 years being as quick and as “battery life good” AS POSSIBLE.
I think all of us know that the OEMs make our phones slower by patches, upgrades with attached algorithms to slowly month after month (so we couldn’t notice) shorten the battery life, slower the speed and make battery consumption bigger with sole intention for us to buy a new model next year or in the next 2 years.
BTW I don’t need the Pen and I don’t play any games and I don’t need a super good cam. EDIT: no rooting and no custom romming for me on that device for ever.
If I don't need the Pen why to bother with Note you may ask?
Well, I hope that Note being the business phone is going to be treated better by Samsung in the above terms than a Galaxy S phone, but maybe it’s the other way around?
What do You think?

No Android phone will last you 5 years without feeling crippled.
Besides that, you don't sound like you need a Note at all and the Note doesn't get any specific treatment from Samsung, it has older components, it is less popular, it is worse in literally everything by being a generation behind.
I don't know your prices, but if price is not an issue then get the S10+ and stop worrying for at least 3 years, I'm easily getting 12-14h SoT whenever I want to, the battery is great and we still have to get plenty of updates.

Corv0 said:
No Android phone will last you 5 years without feeling crippled.
Besides that, you don't sound like you need a Note at all and the Note doesn't get any specific treatment from Samsung, it has older components, it is less popular, it is worse in literally everything by being a generation behind.
I don't know your prices, but if price is not an issue then get the S10+ and stop worrying for at least 3 years, I'm easily getting 12-14h SoT whenever I want to, the battery is great and we still have to get plenty of updates.
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Thank You
I value Your opinion but during years I saw plenty of comments and sellers claiming that Note is better cause aimed for business. The comparison was always like this :Galaxy S(gen) with Note(gen-1)
From the beginning till Note8 it the above scenario Note was always more expensive on premiere day.
But this year S10+ prices was 26 USD more than Note's 9 on premiere day - sad to say (for Note fans) maybe somethings wrong is about to go down like no more busyness phone treatment for Note series.
But I still do believe that Note is somehow treated better but after that price reversal I wanted toread what You think.
What do You think about that dangerous Pie+oneUI update (dangerous because look what it did to my S8)? - that's in Note 9 case.
PLEASE USERS tell me what You think of all of this???

androidbadboy said:
Thank You
I value Your opinion but during years I saw plenty of comments and sellers claiming that Note is better cause aimed for business. The comparison was always like this :Galaxy S(gen) with Note(gen-1)
From the beginning till Note8 it the above scenario Note was always more expensive on premiere day.
But this year S10+ prices was 26 USD more than Note's 9 on premiere day - sad to say (for Note fans) maybe somethings wrong is about to go down like no more busyness phone treatment for Note series.
But I still do believe that Note is somehow treated better but after that price reversal I wanted toread what You think.
What do You think about that dangerous Pie+oneUI update (dangerous because look what it did to my S8)? - that's in Note 9 case.
PLEASE USERS tell me what You think of all of this???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What happened to your S8?

Corv0 said:
What happened to your S8?
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When I updated trough OTA from Android 8.0 with Samsung Exp. to Android 9 Pie + One UI the pros: battery consumption went at least 3 times(!!!) the cons: S8 started lagging, microfreezing, isntt as smooth and speedy as its used to be, despite:
- very low amount of foreign apps that I installed since buying
- frequent restarts of phone as recommended
- phone has never been rooter or custom rommed

I use a phone as a main work tool, replaced a lap top a long time ago.
The note has one advantage, in meetings you are writing on your phone and no one bats an eye lid, use an S9 and use your finger to tap on it you are stared at horribly, like you are the devil
As for this deliberate slowing down of phones, well it's massively exaggerated imo and it's obvious older phones with less memory and slower CPUs will struggle with large updates. This is now a myth imo, relevant at some point but you are still using an Iphone3 are you? You move on and with 8gb memory and fast CPU it will still be going strong before you can say S15 yes please
Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk

Davey Dual Sim said:
I use a phone as a main work tool, replaced a lap top a long time ago.
The not has one advantage, in meetings you are writing on your phone and no one bats an eye lid, use an S9 and use your finger to tap on it you are stared at horribly, like you are the devil
As for this deliberate slowing down of phones, well it's massively exaggerated imo and it's obvious older phones with less memory and slower CPUs will struggle with large updates. This is now a myth imo, relevant at some point but you are still using an Iphone3 are you? You move on and with 8gb memory and fast CPU it will still be going strong before you can say S15 yes please
Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk
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+! thanks points! for You!
The info about Note and S9 and eye-stare will be helpful.
How about when I use a S9 with a stylus pen instead of a finger?
As for deliberate slowing down pf phones..... I like Your attitude although I don't agree with your point of view cause when You really look at the bigger picture not only from Samsung's stand point but other brands, Google as Android manufactuer, the early 1900's story of bulbs, modern cars, everything and you return later form this wide picture to Samsung''s perspective with all that's been happening everywhere a person that is well oriented in mobile stuff and can even do some tests by himself can CLEARly see that phones are deliberately being slown down. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge for instance could handle Android Pie with ease as well much more next ones if it weren't for that sad practice - of course AS LONG AS there would be no new hardware required new software feature(s) without which the Android future release would loose it's main event special funcionality.
However. I would like to hear what You and other have to say about it, cause I can see that people here make very interesting points and not often a major myth is being discovered thanks to our conversations.
Please enjoy and come in everyone

BTW is norma S10 without PLUS even a contender for Note9?

Kind people of XDA hellp me make a decision please. Write what you think

Ohh I forgot to mention this will be a snack for these users that want 2 phones S10+ and Note9, here it is:
due to debut of S10 and finished preorder selling (mainly due to that) and perhaps the Huawei danger of P30/P30 Pro Samsung decided to:
- lower the price of Note 9,
- sell it with payback in some areas and/or other bonuses
- all color versions are acceptable
- the normal model with 128 GB of internal storage is 100% under the obove rules I don't know if the special ones are.
Can You help me pick up a winner in this fight. Every reply is welcome. Every argument is needed! Please respond!

I have both devices. Battery better on the S10+. Screen better. Speed faster. Unlocks quicker and easier for me, lighter, thinner, sound is much louder , camera gas the wife mode, selfie is better. The only thing I am [not] missing is the s pen.

I had the note 9, and just got my s10 plus yesterday. There is absolutely no comparison camera wise. My note 9 was horrendous, and in any sunny out door setting it would blow out the highlights and over expose. The hdr function was **** too. S10 plus is the best phone I've ever used

I have both also but Ive only had the S10 plus for a few days so I cant make a detailed comparison yet.
What I will say is the ultrasonic fingerprint scanner on the S10 needs more development..its terrible.
Hardly ever unlocks the first try and is slow when it does unlock. My Note 9 unlocks the first time every time and is instant.
Im sure sammy will improve the function with software updates but even after a few days the S10 plus is annoying me due to this.
I also miss being able to use face unlock on the S10 due to having to wear surgical gloves at work it is handy at tines, they really should have left the retina scanner on the device.
Unlocking your phone is a basic function and should work flawlessly, its just not there yet on the S10 IMO.

@ekerbuddyeker @sstanton86 @force70
You folks literaly came from thy sky for me with your outstanding answers (You all get +1 T of course).
I am now in a serious peril: S10+ costs the same from the day of pre-order, Note9's price is still significant but it dropped to 90% of it's launch price plus it has a payback promotion making the price drop to the 80% of Note9's premiere price.
I also found a shop with the last new Note8s for 51% launch price of Note9.
I'm so confused now, what would you advice me in this situation?

androidbadboy said:
@[email protected]@force70
You folks literaly came from thy sky for me with your outstanding answers (You all get +1 T of course).
I am now in a serious peril: S10+ costs the same from the day of pre-order, Note9's price is still significant but it dropped to 90% of it's launch price plus it has a payback promotion making the price drop to the 80% of Note9's premiere price.
I also found a shop with the last new Note8s for 51% launch price of Note9.
I'm so confused now, what would you advice me in this situation?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Id rule out the the note 8, i had an S8 plus but the fingerprint scanner was in an absolutely idiotic place beside the camera, Note 8 isn't much better. Also it does not have stereo speakers.
For me at the moment I prefer my Note 9 still to the S10 plus and if in a few weeks I'm still not liking the S10 plus ill get rid of it.
In favour of the S10 plus is the camera set up, louder speakers and it is more comfortable in hand. Newer hardware as well of course.
I mean you really cannot go wrong with either and Im nitpicking the S10 plus really lol.

force70 said:
Id rule out the the note 8, i had an S8 plus but the fingerprint scanner was in an absolutely idiotic place beside the camera, Note 8 isn't much better. Also it does not have stereo speakers.
For me at the moment I prefer my Note 9 still to the S10 plus and if in a few weeks I'm still not liking the S10 plus ill get rid of it.
In favour of the S10 plus is the camera set up, louder speakers and it is more comfortable in hand. Newer hardware as well of course.
I mean you really cannot go wrong with either and Im nitpicking the S10 plus really lol.
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Click to collapse
"nitpicking" - maybe you thought of not picking.
The reason I mentioned Note8 is that I just want to expriance that phone for a while and probably sell it after 3 months or who knows, everyone claims that I could get addicted to Note and never buy anything else....
I will test a bunch of flagships from many brands like Huawei, Samsung, LG, Xiaomi, OnePlus, Oppo and then decide which is the one for me. I bet it could be a Note vs. S10+ vs. a ..... Xiaomi (!!!!)

androidbadboy said:
Ohh I forgot to mention this will be a snack for these users that want 2 phones S10+ and Note9, here it is:
due to debut of S10 and finished preorder selling (mainly due to that) and perhaps the Huawei danger of P30/P30 Pro Samsung decided to:
- lower the price of Note 9,
- sell it with payback in some areas and/or other bonuses
- all color versions are acceptable
- the normal model with 128 GB of internal storage is 100% under the obove rules I don't know if the special ones are.
Can You help me pick up a winner in this fight. Every reply is welcome. Every argument is needed! Please respond!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well man the Note 9 is now 7 months old and it is about £300 cheaper than the S10+
I don't think any 2018 Exynos device is good for that price, the SoC was just badly made, they tried to fix it with Pie but there's not much left to be done.
If we rule out the Note 9 for it being an older device and overall a worse deal, the S10+ wins for:
Thinner
Better cameras
Better power management
Better thermals
Subjectively better design
Superior panel and HDR+
SoC that isn't bad at all, and has plenty of software improvement room
More RAM on base models
Will soon get dedicated night mode and 25W charging if you care about that
Could be one of the last flagships with a headphone jack
AI implementation to adapt the phone to your usage
Gorilla Glass 6
Safer fingerprint authentication that can't be physically hacked with glue
You can get it for £800 as a student
I was very tempted to buy the Note 9 when it came out, right now it feels like a stupid choice, I'd feel bad for owning it knowing I gave up on all those improvements from the next generation.
Mobile phones can be seen as a remote extension of our nervous system due to all the things they allow us to do better and faster, I would never cheap out on such day to day element, the Note 9 isn't bad but it feels wrong to me.

Corv0 said:
Well man the Note 9 is now 7 months old and it is about £300 cheaper than the S10+
I don't think any 2018 Exynos device is good for that price, the SoC was just badly made, they tried to fix it with Pie but there's not much left to be done.
If we rule out the Note 9 for it being an older device and overall a worse deal, the S10+ wins for:
Thinner
Better cameras
Better power management
Better thermals
Subjectively better design
Superior panel and HDR+
SoC that isn't bad at all, and has plenty of software improvement room
More RAM on base models
Will soon get dedicated night mode and 25W charging if you care about that
Could be one of the last flagships with a headphone jack
AI implementation to adapt the phone to your usage
Gorilla Glass 6
Safer fingerprint authentication that can't be physically hacked with glue
You can get it for £800 as a student
I was very tempted to buy the Note 9 when it came out, right now it feels like a stupid choice, I'd feel bad for owning it knowing I gave up on all those improvements from the next generation.
Mobile phones can be seen as a remote extension of our nervous system due to all the things they allow us to do better and faster, I would never cheap out on such day to day element, the Note 9 isn't bad but it feels wrong to me.
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Click to collapse
+ 1 Thanks!
1. It's amazing how we agree on the importance of a smartphone. I always tell the people who don't want to "waste" their money for a flagship that the phone is like a third hand, you need to have it as good as possible.
2. I feel being now really drawn more and more after each reply in this S10+ Forum.
3. So You think that Note9 has a bad Exynos?
4. How about Note8 that I could have for 51% of the launch prize of Note9?

androidbadboy said:
+ 1 Thanks!
1. It's amazing how we agree on the importance of a smartphone. I always tell the people who don't want to "waste" their money for a flagship that the phone is like a third hand, you need to have it as good as possible.
2. I feel being now really drawn more and more after each reply in this S10+ Forum.
3. So You think that Note9 has a bad Exynos?
4. How about Note8 that I could have for 51% of the launch prize of Note9?
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Click to collapse
That Exynos is quite bad, yeah.
The Note 8 on the other hand is not just slower than that Exynos, sure it's cheaper but they easily get burn-in, I saw many S8 and Note 8 screens having burned notification and nav bars, sometimes the whole facebook interface was there :laugh: it's also reaching end of life regarding major software updates, Pie is its last stop.

Corv0 said:
That Exynos is quite bad, yeah.
The Note 8 on the other hand is not just slower than that Exynos, sure it's cheaper but they easily get burn-in, I saw many S8 and Note 8 screens having burned notification and nav bars, sometimes the whole facebook interface was there :laugh: it's also reaching end of life regarding major software updates, Pie is its last stop.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Since Note's are business phones I think Samsung will give them longer time for security patches and probably +1 more Android update in compare with the Galaxy S series.
2. Note's are for businessman and You might think that they will change it every September for a new one cause they can simply afford it but I strangely enough they somehow get used to one and stay on him. I witnessed a guy that came down to the mall's electronic shop with the best Samsung device ever (Note 4) and with sad face told the sellers that he thinks it's time to change his Note4 for a newer Note because ........ damn I can't remember that cause I was so shocked.
3. Business man don't really care about having the best or latest phone. The don't have the teens or women's addiction to shopping and having everything new.
4. Businessman have a lot more on their heads than worry about a phone and I think that Samsung realizes it and that's why a Note would win in terms of longevity with a Galaxy S.
5. I am the kind of man that will not get screen burned out - too long story. Just believe me that this argument is not for me.
6.. Now it's up to which Note shall I buy. Cause S10+ will be bought eventually during 12to24 months.
7. Note8 is so cheap that I could make my dreams come true and test every brand like I mentioned a couple of posts before.
8. Please don't give up and try to fight for Note9 or Note8 or against them., cause if I don't buy any of them I could quicker roll over the competition phones by saving the money that I have for Note8/Note9.