Software, Camera, Determination

Messaging

Google has strived to improve the standard text electronic messaging and email clients that ship with licensed Android phones, simply manufacturers tend to favor their own messaging clients along their devices. Samsung's acquire messaging has mixed results. For starters, on that point's the ChatON service that allows Android, Bada, BlackBerry, and iOS users to send free messages and media to to each one other. The app performs symptomless enough, but information technology lacks the standard footprint of iMessage or BBM, or even the cross-platform notoriety of GroupMe.

The SMS client uses the TouchWiz UI. It isn't the prettiest around but users can spend a penny small theme changes. IT also excels by having the power to schedule messages and get down calling someone aft placing the call to an ear patc a texting thread is open. When held in landscape, the messaging app switches to a two-pane view that shows a list of messages on the left pull and one actual conversation happening the right.

The Email app has a better color scheme that could benefit from some small optical improvements, but information technology makes the grade in other shipway. The app also supports a multi windowpane view in landscape that makes Reading email similar to what users would expect on a tablet. The split-screen view makes responding to emails incredibly fast, and the app benefits from having pinch-to-zoom and multiple accounts that can make up loaded individually or in a unified inbox. The email client supports POP3, IMAP, and Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync.

Apps / App Store

Samsung relies happening the S Pen to boost the usability of its software package, including the aforementioned S Mention application, but on that point's plenty to appreciate without the S Pen. The Gallery app features three different browsing modes that include standard thumbnails, stacked rows, or a winding whirligig.

Media capabilities are further extended with AllShare Play, which broadcasts photos, euphony, or video from the phone to a larger screen. Along-device media management includes music and video recording participant apps, a Media Hub put in, and the standard Google Play store and suite of apps.

Along with the standard Google Mobile apps, T-Mobile includes a number of carrier-branded apps on the Galaxy Promissory note Cardinal. These apps add more tools for news report management, caller ID, streaming TV, visual voicemail, and unveiling a roving hotspots Google Play too supplies more than 700,000 Android apps if users wish to have more apps, virtually of which do non choose reward of the S Pen.

Samsung has held multiple developer contests to encourage stylus-friendly apps, but those efforts have soh far produced alone a few drawing apps. The Galaxy Note II ships with the necessary basics, but a few ingenious fractional-company apps would minimal brain dysfunction the finishing touches to unlock the S Pen's plangent potential.

Browser

Just as it did with the Calendar and Contacts apps, Samsung makes the Internet app more about TouchWiz than Mechanical man. The browser greatly differs from the criterion Android web browser app, and there doesn't seem to be any perceivable do good to that change. It provides tabbed browsing, a tracking-free Incognito mode, a button save pages for offline reading, a desktop view switch, and settings to control navigation with gestures. Otherwise, if you want something else Chrome for Humanoid and opposite alternatives are available in Google Play.

Camera

The Samsung Galaxy Note Cardinal has an 8 megapixel camera with LED flash and a 1.9 megapixel front-facing camera, both of which can succinctly be described as fantastic. The front-lining camera records fluid video and lofty self-portraits, making it one of the improve front shooters available in a mobile device. The rear camera has auto focus that instantly adjusts to conditions, including low-light situations, and does a good job of applying the right settings to quickly capture a photograph. The tv camera software has pre-delimited shooting modes for soft-floodlighted conditions and panorama, but it's almost intriguing trick is the Best Face characteristic. The latter takes multiple group photos and and then looks at faces to determine when someone is proscribed of focus OR looking departed, and then creates a major photo by combination the superfine faces from multiple snapshots into one.

There are occasions when the Galaxy Note II's auto-settings detects too much light in a doomed area, like an open window operating room the sun shining at a certain angle, and then mistakenly applies the wrong focus or lighting settings. A bevy of blue-collar adjustments can localisation that problem, and the BSI lens and auto focus software typically superintend to garden truck high-quality photos. The camera software works best when using HDR fashion to blend highs and lows to find the right light and contrast balance, but HDR is most effectual with completely still subjects and may not ever be necessary.

Samsung did an every bit impressive chore with the video photographic camera settings. The Wandflower Eminence II can record 1080p HD videos that are mostly free of the jumpiness that plagues so many smartphone cameras. The rear camera cursorily refocuses on moving subjects Oregon changes in orientation, and the 1.9 megapixel front-facing camera records stable television that enables excellent TV calling.

Music

Music lovers should have atomic number 102 trouble finding ways to love music along the Galax urceolata Note 2, which ships with three different apps back-geared towards playing a substance abuser's favourite songs. Samsung includes its default euphony player that includes SoundAlive equalizer personal effects and a Euphony square have that can graph songs based on four key fruit traits: passionate, exciting, happy, calm. Google Act Music also plays tracks stored on the phone, but it has the added ability to flow up to 20,000 songs stored in the dapple. Samsung's Music Hub has: a cloud up locker for personal flowing; a radiocommunication app that provides recommendations, favorites, and personal stations; and an on-demand moving alternative with access to more than 19 one thousand thousand songs. Three apps may be two more most buyers require for euphony, but the Galaxy Mention II benefits by offering choices that speak to the needs of individual users.

Battery

While companies have advanced display technology and accelerated the processing power of their phones, they deliver likewise accelerated the order at which those phones eat their batteries. Zero on one has mastered the balance between all areas, but Samsung has done a laudable job of showcasing a powerful processor working in a tandem with a reasonable battery. The massive screen chow risen plenty of succus, and the 3,100 mAh battery manages to conserve for a three-dimensional day. Despite streaming high-quality songs on Pandora, observance YouTube, browse the web, and remaining on HSPA+ for most of the day, the phone still managed to fork out more 14 hours of perturbing use before powering down.

Final thoughts

The Samsung Coltsfoot Note II's above mediocre size is both a talent and a hindrance. The fact that a ring could be so magnanimous to be reasoned a tablet means that it has added benefits that most handsets lack, but it also has challenges unparalleled to this earpiece. The size of the phone makes unrivalled-handed habituate unrealistic, which gravely limits the pocket billiards of expected fans. There's also a chance that a user may search and spirit pathetic when holding the large phone busy their ear to place a call. Equally strange as it may feel at the start, buyers who are unforced to use two hands will find a phone ripe to aid fit many other challenges thrown at them.

In my fourth dimension with the Galaxy Note, I've recovered the phone to be absolutely capable of running my favourite games and apps, and I've loved the lozenge-like see of reading Pulse operating room Flipboard along a much larger screen. I also discovered that the S Pen is incredibly utilitarian for annotation photos, and marginally beneficial when navigating in media apps. Spell the unconventional Beetleweed Note may have had issues with system-spacious lag, the Wandflower Note II is a smooth and impulsive experience from teetotum to bottom. IT's likely too vauntingly as a call up or too small as a tablet for most, but many will find it's a comfortable via media between the cardinal human body factors.

Pros: Excellent camera and unique software capabilities because of S Pen and 5.5-inch screen.

Cons: Pregnant size English hawthorn be too so much for many users to overwhelm.