EZ-Mobiles Blog- The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 First Impressions

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 was unveiled at IFA 2014 and is now available on pre-order globally gearing up for release this very week on the 17th! Samsung were the first company to venture and manufacture a large screened smartphone the Samsung Galaxy Note at 5.3 inches wasn’t a conventionally sized handset for its time (2011) and it wasn’t big enough to be a Tablet! Because it was so vastly sizeable and boldly different from anything else available the Samsung Galaxy Note terraformed the market place and someone, somehow, somewhere dubbed and coined the Note a ‘Phablet’ the phrase stuck and since then Samsung have continued the range with the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and more recently the Note 3. This month the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 finaly goes on sale but what’s really new about it, what puts it together and what innovations and improvements have Samsung made this time round?

Display

Starting first with the display. The screen size for the Note 4 remains the same as its predecessor at 5.7 inches making it arguably ‘Phablically’ superior to Apple’s new iPhone 6 + of 5.5 inches the Note 4 display outshines every other handset currently available rivalling itself not with Apple but with LG’s G3 QHD display boasting 1440 x 2560 pixels with over 500 pixels per inch. Compressed and added on top of all this is the sleek 2.5D Glass, the kind of glass an expensive watch would feature and possess. The Note 4 has one of the most impressive advanced display money can buy!

This is now only a disputed and debatable fact when compared to the LG G4 “Quantum” Quad HD display, available come May 28th also sharing the same resolution but spread across a 5.5 inch screen.(05/09/15)

Build

Following on from the Samsung Galaxy Alpha’s aluminium conception last month the Note 4 adapts the same new premium design language continuing with Samsung’s aluminium edging and frame. This adds a welcome weight and premium touch. Gone is the cheap false looking stitched leather which has been ditched in favour for a grippy foam leather backing which also helps in handling the handset. The headphone jack is still conspicuously in the top right corner, the heart beat sensor is found on the back instinctively easy to tap and the finger-print sensor is neatly embedded with the home button.

It’s like LG and Samsung are sparing, we have LG taking a comfortable natural approach with their new interchangeable leather case borrowed from Samsung and we have the heartbeat sensor in comfortable LG design territory. (05/09/15)

Stylus

The S-Pen is for professionals conveniently storing away at the bottom right of the phablet and comes with a few extra added features. Improving on the Note 3 with higher sensitivity means you can select different styles of ‘Virtual Pen’ the best new feature is the ability to hold down the pen’s button for selecting and copying text. This can be difficult and fiddly to do on some devices with just your fingers alone! Along with keeping the screen clean this has to be one of the only reasons to use the S-Pen!

Camera

The primary camera on the Note 4 is a 16 MP camera which finally comes with optical image stabilisation! There are numerous camera modes for you to pick from including selective focus and my personal favourite slow motion! The Note 4 camera joins the ranks of the Z3 and the S5 recording video in 4k! The secondary camera at 3.7 MP has an innovative wide selfie mode enabling you to take a selfie of you, your friends and family in panoramic tilt fashion.

Software

The Note 4 runs on Android KitKat 4.4.4 using TouchWiz as its user interface. TouchWiz is already excellent for monitoring multitasking but Samsung takes a further step with the Note 4. You’ll now be able to drag a window/app you have open from either of the top corners and minimalise or leave it floating around the UI like a fb messenger message ready to jump in and open. This could be a handy feature in some cases that don’t immidiatly spring to mind but I think its still easier to just scroll through all the windows and apps you have using the task menu swiping to close and touching to open. If your battery conscientious like me you won’t want to drag down the corners of a compatible app and keep it floating and processing in the background anyway!

Battery

At 3,220 mAh the removeable battery should last around 14 hrs under heavy hardcore use and 24 hrs when used moderately. Which is excellent when you consider its large illuminated canvas of a screen size; which although isn’t beautiful on the battery the Note 4 improves and sets a new charging record re-charging 50% in no less then 30 minutes. This is something no other device can currently match and probably something every Note 3 owner will covet and envy.

Hardware

With 32GB of internal memory and the standard 3GB of RAM it seems like all top of the line flagship models are powered by Qualcomm and the Note 4 is no exception. Wielding a Snapdragon 805 processor with a 2.7 Ghz Quad core CPU partnering the Adreno 420 as it’s GPU. I’ve taken a look around at benchmark tests on gsmarena where the Note 4 has squared off with the iPhone 6, the LG G3, the Xperia Z3 and the Samsung Galaxy S5. The Note 4 scored highly as you would expect the only drawback manifests as a double edged sword with the high resolution and ppi count compromising and demanding extra work nibbling away at the GPU. That being said The Note 4 is a multitasking beast and monster for smooth high graphical gaming flowing silky smooth with proformence!

Verdict

Spot on! The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is a worthy and highly awaited improved upgrade to the Note 3. With the new aluminium frame it finaly gets that premium feel and sparkling shine. It will handle gaming fluidly, it will multitask juggling more then any other Smartphone and offers that service in a new Innovative Samsung way. The S-Pen has been innovated too. The battery is strained under the power which the QHD display requires yet not to a fault and on the flipside the 30 minute rapid recharge more then marginally makes up for it. Let us not forget the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 will work in unison with the Oculus VR Gear headset which has to be the necessity for powering such a visually enhanced rich display. The Note 4 is worth the wait and worth its weight in gold. You can order the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 from EE today! With alternative tariffs below. Thank you so much for reading please share and tell all your friends about our blog, until next time! i=Mc2

Alternative Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Tariffs