Try The Tech - My Review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (N910F).
Firstly - as always a big THANK YOU to @Toby @Anonymous and the rest of the Community Team for giving me another opportunity to Try The Tech, especially with a flagship device! If you want to Try The Tech, send a Private Message (PM) to @Toby and he will let you know when the next round of devices are being made available.
Would I buy this phone? - HELL YES! Ok so I am biased. I like my Samsung devices having had an S2, S3, S4, Note 3 and now I have had the chance to play with the Note 4. This is by far the best device I have ever had the pleasure to use, and I would have absolutely no hesitation in recommending it. Compared to anything else on the market this handset is in a different league entirely and makes the Iphone 6+ look like a cheap chinese import.
My Thoughts:
Ok so I had a good idea of what to expect..............or so I thought. This device is fast. It is very, very fast.
Plus points - where do I start:
- Set up from existing android account unbelievably slick
- Large screen (5.7inch)
- Screen quality is nothing short of exceptional - more later
- 3gb RAM
- 2.7ghz quad processor
- 16mb camera delivered exceptionally crisp pictures
- Fast charger - 50% charge in less than 30 minutes
- Samsung S Pen
- Upgradeable memory up to a further 128gb on top of the 32gb the device held on my version
- Extremely well built with super amoled glass screen (although still a plastic back)
- Easy integration with all things Google & Android
- Volume up and down on left hand side easy to reach and responsive
- Power button instantly responsive
- Large battery, longer than usual battery life
- One hand operation setting / personalisation settings for each user
Negative Points:
- It is a big beast - only just fits in the hand and can be "awkward" to handle
- Network setting for 2g only does not include access to data networks
- Seriously there is virtually nothing this device doesnt excel at
- Toby says I have to give it back!
Setting Up
Setting up this device using my existing Android account took less than 15 minutes and required almost nil interaction from me after I had input my gmail account details.
The back cover took a little navigating to remove but is secure. The 3200amh battery slips out easily enough to allow insertion of the micro sim card which fits next to the battery. The SD memory card can be removed without removing the battery. Of course, if you dont have Google Account or Samsung Account already then set up will take a little longer. The Note 4 has a huge level of personalisation settings so it will likely take a while to work your way around them all!
Operating System
The device arrived with KitKat 4.4.4 pre-installed. As this phone appeared to be brand new, there was an update waiting (no - not lollipop) and this was easily downloaded and installed.
KitKat 4.4.4 is very different to the Note 3's 4.4.2, with the first obvious difference being that everything has a white / turquoise background instead of black. It can take a bit of getting used to and this is carried forward in 5.0 lollipop.
Battery
Samsung promised improved battery performance and they were not wrong. Based on heavy use I got a full day most days. Compared to my Note 3 I was getting about 20% more battery time on each charge.
Charging - Samsung have introduced fast charging, and it is. On average it would take just an hour to almost fully charge the Note 4, and a 30 minute charge would give in excess of 50% battery capacity.
In order to provide a fair assessment, I tried various levels of usage and found as follows:
- EXTREME use (i.e. 2.5 hours streaming on 3g, 2.5 hours on wifi, 1 hour on calls and 1 hour texting etc) battery lasted about 16 hours (Averaged about 8 hours on Note 3).
- HEAVY use (i.e. about 1 hour streaming on 3g, 3 hours online, 1 hour on calls and 1 hour using phone with screen on) battery lasted a working day (almost a working day on Note 3)
- MEDIUM use (i.e. 2 hours of calls / texting, 4 hours online), battery easily lasted a day without charge. (and with Note 3)
- AVERAGE use (i.e. 1 hour of calls / texting, 2 hours online), battery lasted 2 days (1 & 1/2 with Note 3)
The Screen
Samsung have excelled themselves with the Note 4. Exceptional Super Amoled Glass with a whopping 515 ppi has been used to stunning effect. I like to stream, and have BT Sport in HD. The picture quality was sharp, crisp and responsive. I could also watch it in daylight. The difference between the Note 4 & 3 is significant and is a huge step forward. Watching videos from YouTube were also much sharper than other devices I have used.
The Touch Screen is also incredibly responsive. The slightest touch and it did what I asked. The S Pen, which differentiates the Samsung Note range from any other phablet, was incredibly responsive and did everything I asked of it. Playing around with pictures & a presentation were a dream.
The Camera
With such a quality screen, you would expect a good snapper. 16mb of good snapper no less, one of the best in the market. Pictures taken with the Note 4 were sharp, crisp and vibrant in colour. Apparently the Note 4 is a phone..............it would give many digital cameras a good run for their money.
Internet
3gb of RAM, 2.7ghz processor. This device was expected to be quick and it is. Chrome comes as standard and there is also Internet however to be honest it didnt make much difference, the device handled both easily. Multi screen was a dream. Colours were vibrant. Touch screen was incredibly responsive.
Signal Strength
Some have reported elsewhere that the Note 4 delivers an enhanced wifi experience, holding wifi signal further away from the wifi point than other devices. I was not able to replicate this.
Wifi - in partnership with a BT Home Hub 5, no issues at all around the house / garden. Strong signal and Note 4 did everything asked of it.
GSM - Officially according to o2 I live in a 2g area. 2g works fine. I can see 4g upstairs but if I set the Note 4 to 4g/3g/2g then calls & texts fail as the 3g signal isnt there to back up the 4g.
GSM - one issue with the Note 4 is that if you set it to 2g GSM ONLY, it has no setting for data. This can be an issue when o2 tell customers to turn their devices to 2g if they live in signal deprived areas especially as 2g data should be sufficient for email and basic internet. This is a backward step and should be reviewed whilst we are 3 years away from completion of the Network Modernisation Programme.
Push services:
GMail, Facebook, Samsung all sync'd with no issues and was generally almost immediate with Facebook being the quickest generally.
TuGo
TuGo was not tested as part of this review.
Call Quality
Apparently the Note 4 is also a telephone! Remember those? Call quality was sharp & crisp, no issues with clarity and background noise was kept to a minimum.
Bluetooth
On the GiffGaff forum a user mentioned issues with Bluetooth and their car. I had no issues on this score. It took me less than 10 seconds to sync the two and it worked effortlessly from thereon.
Notifications
No issues here at all. When I asked Google to set up my Note 4, it did it so well it also brought across all my ringtone settings and I was good to go, I didnt have to change a thing. The LED lights can be personalised to a degree and were reliable.
Would I Recommend This Phone?
YES. Nothing more needs to be said.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is so far ahead of the game it almost feels untrue. The specs, especially compared to Apple devices, make the IPhone 6+ look like a cheap foreign import. This is not a device for the feint hearted. It delivers. It does everything exceptionally well.
Should you buy one? Well for starters it aint cheap. At the time of writing, a sim free UK version will set you back £529 from GiffGaff, £499 for the EU version (with a UK adapter) from Expansys and £599 from Carphone (UK version). On contract, with a free device, look at £38 upwards per month on 24 month contracts.
If this is within your price bracket, and you are seeking a larger "phablet" style device, what are you considering?
1. Note 4
2. Iphone 6+
3. LG G3
4. Nexus 6
Having not tried the other 3, it would be unfair to compare. However I would have ABSOLUTELY NO HESITATION in recommending the Note 4 to anyone who wants a device larger than 5.5 inch screen.
