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AndroidPIT Hands-On With The Samsung Galaxy Note 2

AndroidPIT Hands-On With The Samsung Galaxy Note 2

It's here, and it's awesome. I just walked out of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 event at IFA in Berlin, and I have to admit one thing: I am DAMN impressed. Although I've always liked the concept, I was never a huge fan of the orignal Note. It looked a bit too square and too much like the Galaxy S2 (which I also am not a huge fan of due to the design). That's all changed now. The Galaxy Note 2 is sleek, sexy, curvy, running Android Jelly Bean, and is currently the most powerful Android device in the world. I had a few minutes at IFA to get a quick hands on with the Note 2, and although it's pretty short, I wanted to share it with you guys to give you a closer look at it and some first impressions.

I won't talk too much about specs, as we already listed more detailed specs in the previous article here (and I mention them in the video). I can tell you that the device feels amazing in the hands, and although it's bigger than the original Note, it doesn't feel nearly as bulky or wide. Jelly Bean on the device was also a nice treat, and although I ran into very occasional lag, I'm sure you will be more than impressed with the Note 2 in terms of performance (I am sure an update will also come before its release. But trust me..it's FAST). 

You can do some VERY cool stuff with the new S-Pen, and the way you can hover over the screen with the S-Pen to interact with the phone is so much fun (and surprisingly useful). The multitasking has been revamped (like what's found in the Note 10.1), and the processor is currently the most powerful out there (as of right now). I was pretty confident that I would be holding on to my Galaxy Nexus until the release of the next Nexus phone, but now I'm honestly not sure if I can wait that long. Samsung has honestly hit it out of the park with the Note 2, and it could very well be the next smartphone (phablet) that I buy. 

Here is a short hands on video I made at the IFA. It was pretty loud with lots of people fighting for space, but I managed to get a little over 3 minutes for you guys. We will naturally do a more extensive video when we get a Note 2 in our office, but this will give you a general idea of how it looks and the hardware it's packing. 

The video can be viewed below (Youtube link here (I made a mistake in the video when I said that the S-Pen isn't included. It naturally is included, but was just laying beside the test device I was using. I also failed to mention that it has 2GB RAM). 

So what do you guys think of the Note 2? Is this another winner for Samsung?

Let me know what you think in the comments below, and stay tuned for more IFA coverage!

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  • 3
    Kenneth Storm Mar 19, 2013 Link to comment

    I have had the Note 2 for about 2 months and it has exceeded everything I had hope for. Being an older user, it has proven to be very easy to used.


  • 31
    Eric McBride Sep 3, 2012 Link to comment

    Yeah man..it's a great device...I think you'll really like it.

    @Chinu - 640 Euros.


  • Dvoraak 14
    Dvoraak Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    Should have clarified..... in my experience with Android the lag has been more than "occasional" but I have high hopes for the Note 2. It's a done deal that I'm gonna buy one so yeah.... my hopes are high.


  • chinu 12
    chinu Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    wts d expected price there??


  • 31
    Eric McBride Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    @ Sayyah - ?

    @Dvoraak - Shortly after the event, some of the Notes starting receiving OTA updates, meaning that the software wasn't the final version. And believe me, the lag I saw was once or twice for a split second, and then NONE. A very fast and very smooth device, and the performance will blow your mind. Trust me :-D

    @Chinu - It is bro. I'm really debating on picking one of these up. Not quite yet though. Will depend on the price.

    @Jesus - Unfortunately, Samsung didn't give release dates or pricing yet.

    @Patrick R. +100000 - Exactly this. The iPhone 4 I had from my job last year also had occasional lag, and no phone is completely lag free.

    And I agree completely with what you said about Touchwiz. Stock Android is SO much fast than Touchwiz skinned Android. Touchwiz is moving in an interesting direction, and I also think I could live with stock (for a few weeks :-D) on the Note 2 as well. I am really surprised how much I liked it.


  • Patrick R. 12
    Patrick R. Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    Introduce me to a person who says his phone doesn't lag, and I'll introduce you to a fanboy. I think lag is a reality smart phone users have to deal with.

    Well in Samsung's case, the lag is probably aggravated by TouchWiz. However, after seeing the launch last night, I might be willing to keep it stock, and put up with ugly icons, for a bit until i figure out if I'm actually gonna use the features.


  • 8
    jesus corona Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    when i can buy one in usa


  • chinu 12
    chinu Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    its simply stunnning....
    getting ur piece eric?


  • Dvoraak 14
    Dvoraak Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    Nice job on the video but sorry to see the comment about occasional lag. That's always been one of my big problems with Android. Hope you're right about an update and I hope it fixes the issue. When an Android tablet disappoints me it's not that big a deal. When an Android phone disappoints.... I'm stuck with it.... but man this phone looks AWESOME.


  • 1
    sayyah alhamada Aug 30, 2012 Link to comment

    ممتاز

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