Sams World: Samsung Galaxy Note review (AT&T)

Friday, February 24, 2012

Samsung Galaxy Note review (AT&T)

Samsung Galaxy Note

In regards to this AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note review, we, the writers, editors and readers of Android Central, hereby stipulate the following:

It is a BIG smartphone. Anyone who says differently is just wrong.
Not everybody's sold on using a stylus; nor will everyone ever be - and that's OK.
If we never see another Galaxy Note press release, it'll be too soon. (Unless it's the one saying it's being updated to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.)
Anyone who calls the Galaxy Note a "phablet" in an un-ironic manner should be unmercilessly ridiculed even more than they likely already are.

Seriously. It's BIG. We know it. We get it. Nothing we say will change that fact.

So what it is about the Galaxy Note that's made it so popular? Samsung's shipped more than 1 million so far. That's different than "sold," but a million is not a small number. And will that popularity translate over to the North American markets? Will Samsung's aggressive marketing win out? Will it just be too darn BIG for our American sensibilities?

It's a smartphone. A BIG smartphone. With a stylus. Not so hard to wrap your head around. But wrapping your hand around it? That's another matter.

A BIG, beautiful display. Fast processor. Great software tweaks. The optional stylus is nicely hidden away when not in use. Has access to AT&T's new 4G LTE network.	It's friggin' HUGE for a phone. Not quite comically so, but it's certainly a handful. Launches with Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread instead of the newer Ice Cream Sandwich. Does not have NFC.

If the 5.3-inch display isn't too BIG for you, and if you don't have to have NFC, and if you're willing to wait for an update to the latest version of Android, the Galaxy Note is a great OVERSIZED smartphone. That sounds more negative than it should. But save for the stylus and SUPER SIZE, at its core it's a very solid Samsung Android smartphone.