Although I could write this review on a laptop keyboard I have decided that it would be more of a test to write a lot of it, by hand, on the Note 3. I am using the stylus and EverNote as it would demonstrate its capabilities as a notebook replacement.
Let’s start with the obvious: the size of the Note3. It is surprisingly quite nice and not thick. Some will find it too big as a phone and they'd be right, it is. However, as a PDA this is the pinnacle of the PDA evolution. The leather-feel back is better than described so if you get a chance to hold one, try it for yourself to judge but if you get a case, rather pointless to whine about it! The device itself is thin but sturdy and feels like it will last the course. I'm impressed with the screen and what I have noticed is that fingerprints are not distracting.
Call quality is excellent even though live in a poor area for signal consistency; calls are clear as is the speakerphone. TuGo works as expected and doesn't suffer from the bizarre volume levels that I experience on my Nexus 4 i.e. it stays the same whether it is GSM or Wi-Fi.
The handwriting recognition is excellent and works even if you write cursive and a little messy! In fact, EverNote really comes into its own when making notes. Those who had a Palm Pilot/V will find themselves fondly remembering graffiti and will execute the odd graffiti movement. Inadvertently I discovered it does do the graffiti delete movement! On the subject of the stylus, it does feel too lightweight and l personally would like to see a metal version.
Battery life is excellent even with Wi-Fi, GPS, NFC and Bluetooth on. Expect to get a full 24hours out of it though your usage may vary compared to mine. I’m quite confident of taking it out in the morning with 50% to make it through a day.
One of the unique features you will joyfully discover is the multiple windows. For example, I am currently writing part of this review in EverNote whilst watching the text updates of the football updates on the BBC website in the upper window using the floating keyboard to handwrite the text. As an encore, l am also playing a video in a pop-up window. There is no slowdown! You can multitask on this device so for example, you could make a quick note about a particular YouTube video or even copy & paste section of text from a website into EverNote without pressing the home key and switching windows. Sending a text message by handwriting is certainly feels better!
This brings me nicely to the ability of the built in apps like scrapbook. I won't go into detail so summarising, you can more or less take an image of anything on the screen, manipulate it then share it to any account you have set up. Once you have your workflow sorted it becomes easy use.
Downsides? Well there is a getting used to the S-pen factor and you do find yourself pressing the button on the S-pen when you don't want to. Expect to configure all the default sounds as they a little intrusive. Why they are all set to have a sound by default is an annoyance of mine with all manufacturers out of the box. My own phone is a Nexus 4 which is plain old basic Android so I compare against that. I do find certain things annoying on that and find the setup by Samsung better. Personally, I found that you don’t need to configure everything with the Note 3 as I’m still discovering many things already setup. A big plus for me is that unlike the Nexus 4, it has a direct access to the Settings menu that can be found easily.
On the other hand, I do miss the ‘swipe up’ of Google now and I am not sure of the physical home key being that useful unless you want to kill an app or view the RAM usage.
I should also mention the infrared remote controller. You access it via the WatchOn app and really does make this device standout. Although I have a Samsung TV, it works seamlessly and the visual channel guide is great but obviously you need an internet connection to view the info. Sadly, I haven’t managed a trip to Currys and test it out in the field against multiple sets.
There is really a lot to the Note 3, I haven’t touched on the adapt sound when playing music nor the camera functions. Cynically put, the former is a way of telling you how bad your hearing has got over the years! It does improve the sound depending on your environment. Briefly, the camera is good and is easily set up for various shots. I’ll post a couple of photos later on as I’ve been too enamored with the handwriting ability. Loving the calendar (S-planner) with the ability to have a mini weather icon for the next 7 days displayed!
So to finish off with the question of would I buy it? Yes without a doubt and Note 3 is the perfect device with the ability to take handwritten notes. It is the device to replace all portable devices. Would I get this on a 24 month contract? Probably not until 4G arrives in my area as then I’ll be able to use the data package in full. If you do live in a good area and willing to live with the size, I do recommend the Note 3.
