Samsung Galaxy Note as a workhorse

When Android was just beginning to conquer the market of smartphones and models with it for sale there were no more than a dozen, I was just looking for a replacement for the then HTC MAX 4G. I looked for a long time in the direction of HTC HD 2 because of its large screen and the possibility even then to install a fairly stable android assembly. But then they gave me a Nexus One and the process of choosing a phone was over. Over time, N1 became some alternative to both work and home computers (when they are unavailable): personal and work mail, jabber, skype, rss, work vpn and sharepoint libraries, sometimes ssh and even some rdp, it all worked quite well even small screen. But there is no limit to perfection, you always want something faster, higher, stronger , more convenient, larger in size.


The most obvious alternative is the tablets, but this immediately means that you need to drag a rather large device with you, which will not fit in your pocket. Attempting to be like Nook Color, and then with eeePad only confirmed this opinion. Therefore, as soon as the information appeared that the new galaxy note would have a 5.3 inch screen, and the clove store began to pre-order them, I was already running after it, holding a pack of pounds (514 pounds with delivery of ~ 25,000 rubles) in the cam. 2 months of waiting for release, a few days for delivery and now Simka moves from N1 to Note.

At the moment, the network already has a large number of reviews with descriptions and technical specifications, so I will only describe my impressions of using Note as a working smartphone.
')

Appearance and size

Most Note reviews begin with a remark about how huge it is. It takes about 5 minutes to get used to the new dimensions, then just the rest of the phones start to seem small. Note perfectly fits into the front pockets of jeans and does not interfere with sitting.

There were no changes in the habit of holding the phone with one hand either: 4 fingers are held from below, and the thumb reaches to any point on the screen. The power button (from the right side) is somewhat unusual, but you can get used to it.

A lot of inconvenience brought retraining under the new location of hard buttons. I recommend for the first time to turn on a permanent backlight for them (Settings - Display - Touch key light duration), otherwise they will go out a second after clicking.

Otherwise, everything is standard: micro-usb below, volume rocker on the left above, 3.5 jack top right. Also, Note is clearly not intended for frequent changes of SIMs - the battery cover is not pulled up or down, like in most smartphones, but snaps into the case.

Update: At the request of comments I post a video of working with the phone with one hand. It is not very good quality and shakes, but, in general, gives a good idea of ​​the usability.

Screen

Such a large resolution really makes sense on such a relatively small screen: much less zoom and scrolling is required in most applications, on maps all the inscriptions become easily readable at any scale. It became much more convenient to look at office documents and print text.

Stylus

Despite the presence of a stylus, in my opinion, Note will not be able to compete with an ordinary paper notebook. There is a small but noticeable delay between the movements of the stylus and the appearance of what is written on the screen and it is difficult to get used to it. The built-in recognizer rather well recognizes the English uppercase text (although it often does not recognize the spaces), for the Russian it is necessary to write each letter separately.
On the other hand, as a tool for drawing on screenshots (the screenshot is made with a simple tap with the button pressed) the stylus is quite convenient. Another plus: now in the winter you don’t need to wear gloves to use the capacitive Note screen.

Events and Notifications

Most of all, N1 was pleased with the illumination of its trackball, which notifies in various colors about various events. Unfortunately, there is nothing like that on Note, so I had to put noLED. This application does not pull a full trackball replacement, but I could not find anything better yet.

Camera

I will not say anything special about the camera, I’ll just add a few examples of photos.

Battery and equipment

With Note comes a 2500 mAh battery. When fully charged, the Note pulls out about 16 hours of fairly intensive and varied use. Also, complete with Note is a headset, charging and a small set of waste paper, and the Clove store free of charge applies a notebook cover to each Note order.

Recovery, root and unofficial firmware

Immediately after the start of sales, CWM and root for Note appeared. As usual, everything you need for this process can be found in the topic on the XDA . Also, CyanogenMod has already started cutting there.

Summary

Perhaps I’ll show KO, but as long as the smartphone gets into the front pockets and does not interfere with the owner, as long as it is comfortable to hold it with one hand, I see no reason to limit the screen size. The more it is, the more convenient the work on the smartphone.