iPhone 5 vs Galaxy Note II

[jh2586]

Just bought an iPhone 5 and debating whether or not I should return it and try out the Galaxy Note II which I hear great things about. What are your thoughts?

Nothing wrong with iPhone 5 but wondering if Note II is better.. that is all.

Leaning towards returning and getting Note II

***UPDATE***

Returned iPhone 5 for full refund from Apple store and purchased Samsung Galaxy Note II Verizon edition (SCH-I605), rooted and flashed route66 stock firmware. Now to just wait for more ROMs & Kernels from xda

Verdict: Very happy with purchase, much more features and lightning fast. Not complaining about iPhone 5 at all.. it's also a great phone, but too simple for my taste and such a small screen it's hard for me to type. I much prefer Swype or I guess in my case, Swiftkey 3. Clear winner (in my eyes) is Galaxy Note II.

Ladies and gentlemen.. I present to you an unbiased review!

 

[MikeyRocks]

Have you actually held a Note II? They're huge. Not as big as the first Note, but still too big of a phone for a man to carry in his pocket. Unless you plan on investing in a fanny pack, I'd go for the iPhone, or another phone, maybe the Galaxy S3?

 

[aszrael1266]

It fits fine in my pocket. On the other hand I don't wear skinny jeans. I love the note 2 and am planning on picking one up also.
As for should you get one its all up to personal preference. Go check one out to make sure its not to big for you. I primarily do web surfing browsing and texting with my phone so the note 2 is awesome for media consumption and web due to its size. If you are heavily invested in apple with attachments and things like that, that is going to be another factor to consider.

 

[jh2586]

Have you actually held a Note II? They're huge. Not as big as the first Note, but still too big of a phone for a man to carry in his pocket. Unless you plan on investing in a fanny pack, I'd go for the iPhone, or another phone, maybe the Galaxy S3?

I actually had a GS3 (just sold on CL) to get iPhone 5. I will say that the iPhone 5 is much faster than the GS3 in terms of speed, but I still miss the capabilities of the Android OS.

A few of my friends told me that the Galaxy Note II is WAY better than the GS3 and better than the iPhone 5. I am a little skeptical about the size, but my buddy told me it's not "THAT" big lol. I think I'm gonna go to a Verizon store and hold one in my hand to be the judge of that.

 

[mikev]

The Note 2 is huge, but in reality if you had an Otterbox case or something like that on your SGS3, it's almost the same size as that.

The battery on the Note 2 is (allegedly) fantastic, no need to recharge during the day.

 

[aszrael1266]

I actually had a GS3 (just sold on CL) to get iPhone 5. I will say that the iPhone 5 is much faster than the GS3 in terms of speed, but I still miss the capabilities of the Android OS.

A few of my friends told me that the Galaxy Note II is WAY better than the GS3 and better than the iPhone 5. I am a little skeptical about the size, but my buddy told me it's not "THAT" big lol. I think I'm gonna go to a Verizon store and hold one in my hand to be the judge of that.

the phone is thinner and more narrow then the note 1. It pretty much is a super sized GS3. It is snappier and noticeably faster then the GS3 thanks to its quad core cpu vs the GS3 dual core. It has a huge battery standard so it should get the same life as the GS3 thanks to the big battery. With androids you can always get a spare battery if you find you need an extra.

 

[Dr. Evil]

The battery on the Note 2 is (allegedly) fantastic, no need to recharge during the day.

I would not rate that as fantastic, I'd rate that as absolute minimum. That having been said, I have been very strongly eyeballing the Note 2 because of the handwriting aspect. I have a tablet laptop and it was a lifesaver back in college. But a Note 2 is not fiduciarily feasible right now.

 

[Entoptic]

As a long time iPhone guy I would gladly turn over my iPhone for a galaxy note 2. That thing is freaking epic sauce with a my little pony riding over a rainbow of love that ends at a chocolate dirt bike challenge.

 

[mikev]

I would not rate that as fantastic, I'd rate that as absolute minimum. That having been said, I have been very strongly eyeballing the Note 2 because of the handwriting aspect. I have a tablet laptop and it was a lifesaver back in college. But a Note 2 is not fiduciarily feasible right now.

with a 5" display, quad core processor, and basically the computing power of a couple generation old laptop, being able to unplug it in the morning and not plug it back in until you go to bed is pretty fantastic.

 

[jh2586]

I would not rate that as fantastic, I'd rate that as absolute minimum. That having been said, I have been very strongly eyeballing the Note 2 because of the handwriting aspect. I have a tablet laptop and it was a lifesaver back in college. But a Note 2 is not fiduciarily feasible right now.

I'm trying to think of it as a "Phablet" which is more geared towards being a hybrid between a phone and tablet. Obviously there are benefits but also the idea of putting a big tablet up against your ear when you have to answer a call seems silly.

Nevertheless, if the hardware and specs hold true (2x faster than the GS3), then maybe it's worth a shot. I was a little frustrated earlier with my iPhone because of how small the screen is. I still really like the smoothness of the iOS though.

 

[aszrael1266]

how long till zerox shows up?

 

[Dr. Evil]

with a 5" display, quad core processor, and basically the computing power of a couple generation old laptop, being able to unplug it in the morning and not plug it back in until you go to bed is pretty fantastic.

I am in TOTAL agreement that what we are talking about is probably one of the most amazing pieces of technology IN HISTORY, no irony there, but I worry that the forces of MORE! BIGGER! are rapidly pushing it out of the realm of practicality, viz: eventually having to recharge your phone every half hour. I agree that all-day battery life is a very impressive feat given its feature set, but I was merely trying to say that any phone that DOESN'T last all day is one that I can't see as being practical and won't buy.

I'm trying to think of it as a "Phablet" which is more geared towards being a hybrid between a phone and tablet. Obviously there are benefits but also the idea of putting a big tablet up against your ear when you have to answer a call seems silly.

I have a bluetooth headset that goes nearly everywhere with my phone, it's so damned practical, so holding to my head something that looks as if it ought to be inscribed with the entire legal code of a pre-urban civilisation is not an issue for me.

Nevertheless, if the hardware and specs hold true (2x faster than the GS3), then maybe it's worth a shot. I was a little frustrated earlier with my iPhone because of how small the screen is. I still really like the smoothness of the iOS though.

A: Android, and in particular, Samsung, has been catching up.

B: I have an android phone and an iPad, and I don't really notice much of a difference between them. If anything, I have had fewer app crashes on my Droid 4.

 

[aszrael1266]

if you are a really heavy user it might not last all but but would last your work day. If you are an average user then it shouldn't have any problem lasting all day.

 

[jh2586]

I am in TOTAL agreement that what we are talking about is probably one of the most amazing pieces of technology IN HISTORY, no irony there, but I worry that the forces of MORE! BIGGER! are rapidly pushing it out of the realm of practicality, viz: eventually having to recharge your phone every half hour. I agree that all-day battery life is a very impressive feat given its feature set, but I was merely trying to say that any phone that DOESN'T last all day is one that I can't see as being practical and won't buy.



I have a bluetooth headset that goes nearly everywhere with my phone, it's so damned practical, so holding to my head something that looks as if it ought to be inscribed with the entire legal code of a pre-urban civilisation is not an issue for me.



A: Android, and in particular, Samsung, has been catching up.

B: I have an android phone and an iPad, and I don't really notice much of a difference between them. If anything, I have had fewer app crashes on my Droid 4.

I have an issue with bluetooth ear pieces. First off, they are uncomfortable for my ears and I hate having them on for more than an hour or two at a time.. and secondly, I am in the U.S. Army and my unit (in particular) does not allow bluetooth headsets while on duty. It supposedly looks unprofessional. I'd have to lug the thing around in my pockets, which is fine in my ACUs, but when I'm in my IPFUs (physical training uniform), I can't put it in those small sweatpant pockets and use for music.

With the iPhone I can.. HOWEVER, I have a separate device that I use for that anyhow.. it's just so hard to choose between the two. Apparently, the Note II is technically "better" in specs than the iPhone..

I just wish it was a little bit smaller.. like if it was the size of the GS3.. I would have gotten it in a heartbeat.

 

[aszrael1266]

If you don't mind waiting word going around is the GS4 will be out in April. CPU wise it will leave the note 2 in the dust. They are saying it will be running a quad core A15 chip. So far a lot of rummors are going around. Nothing set in stone but the most likely things are the phone being 5 inches and supporting a 1080p display. Most high end phones this year will be 1080p.
As much as I want a note 2 the prospect of the GS4 is pretty tempting.

 

[mikev]

I am in TOTAL agreement that what we are talking about is probably one of the most amazing pieces of technology IN HISTORY, no irony there, but I worry that the forces of MORE! BIGGER! are rapidly pushing it out of the realm of practicality, viz: eventually having to recharge your phone every half hour. I agree that all-day battery life is a very impressive feat given its feature set, but I was merely trying to say that any phone that DOESN'T last all day is one that I can't see as being practical and won't buy.

Yeah I agree. IMO the 4.3" form factor is perfect. Even the 4.8" SGS3 is slightly too big of a screen.

if I had my way they should take the S3 and leave everything exactly the same except shrink it 1/2"

 

[jh2586]

Ok, just got back from the Verizon Wireless store in Pleasanton. So, I guess the Galaxy Note II is not as big as I thought. It is big, yes, but it's also VERY slim which gives it a relatively smaller "feel".

I do like how the power button is on the side rather than on top like the iPhone. I was watching videos on both devices and what a HUGE difference. The AMOLED technology in the Samsung really bring out the color vibrance but does not bring out the whites as much as the iPhone's LCD. In terms of speed, the iPhone 5 is still SLIGHTLY faster in loading things like Facebook, Instagram, web pages etc.. but the margin is very slight (10-30ms) which I can live with.

I am still very skeptical about the "glitchy" Android OS vs the iOS which is smooth like butter.. but it's not as bad as previous Android machines. I think I am just about set on returning the iPhone and getting the Note II

Now, the deciding factor... so, at my job for whatever reason (in my cubicle in particular) there is hardly any reception.. making web browsing and apps like Facebook and Instagram operate VERY slow.. even on 4G. The iPhone 5 seems to not have that issue. I don't know if it's a better antenna or something else.. but it's very impressive. My old GS3 lacked a lot of reception quality where I work. I hope that it is not the same for the Note II. With that being said.. any more last-minute oppinions before I jump the gun?

 

[Dr. Evil]

iOS gives up a lot of processor cycles to create that smoothness. The only reason that the iPhones are as fast as they are and have the battery life that they do is because they don't keep adding features at the same rate as Android phone manufacturers. The last big feature added to the iPhone/iOS was multitasking, and it's not even true multitasking except with music apps. Androids are a hell of a lot more impressive under the hood than the iX.

 

[rodr]

The Note 2's size sounds perfect to me. Would easily fit in a shirt pocket, and a bigger screen is ALWAYS better, in particular for web browsing.

 

[mikev]

Android's UI and "smooth" factor have gone up significantly since the release of ICS, ie Android 4, and even moreso with Jellybean. The implementation of what they called Project Butter with Android version 4.1 was a concerted effort to make everything smoother.