Re: If not the Note 5then what?
IOS is a totally different and closed ecosystem and that is incredibly sticky.
I've talked to a lot of early Note adopters and the biggest reasons we went with the earlier Notes was:
-Biggest screen available
-Power features like SD card and Removable batteries
Now Samsung is saying 5.7'' screen is as big as they go and they will focus on shrinking the physical foot print.
And battery is "big enough" due to more efficient processors and hardware.
Huge disappointment.
ZeroLemon battery on Note 4 plus Qualcomm's Battery Gugu optimization app meant 7 day battery life.
Samsung is telling me "shut the hell up and be happy with 1 day, its all you need".
If I were content to get a phone that was just about my basic needs I'd get a Moto G.
If I'm paying $800+ for a phone it had damned well have features I value and Samsung took that from me in a Steve Jobs like "Forget what you think you want, we'll tell you what you want".
Problem is that while IOS is a super optimized OS Touchwiz is a laggy collection of crapware that can't be removed without rooting.
Samsung is acting incredibly arrogantly.
I'll also remind you that Note 3 had USB 3.1 which was great for faster charging and data transfer. They took that away in Note 4.
IR blaster which is super useful for watching movies on a SAMSUNG TV is now gone too.
Each Note gets less and less useful and less and less unique.
Android has 1300 manufacturers and with specs now good enough for most people's needs even in a super cheap $200 phone, manufacturers need to stand out and differentiate themselves.
Note used to be Samsung's super flagship, better camera, processor, battery, screen than S6.
Now its just a big S 6 with an S pen that has just few new features this year and that most users don't utilize on a frequent basis.
Meanwhile LG stands out as the last bastion of removable batteries and Moto is killing it with front facing speakers, SD cards, and the best user experience bar none. Stock android (super fast and lag free experience, and the fastest updates outside of Nexus) no bloatware, and Moto assist features that are such a light touch that its not even fair to call it a skin.
Oh and lest I forget the 64 GB Moto X Pure with premium back (leather or wood) is $527 while top spec Note 5 is $900-$1000 (for 128 GB version available on some carriers).
With Verizon signalling the end of phone subsidies Sammy couldn't have chosen a worse time to underwhelm with a redesign and over charge for more memory.
Lets all hope and pray that sales drop so that Samsung is forced to actually listen to its customers and bring back the features that made Note special.
1. Removable battery (which should be at least 3500 mAh)
2. SD card that accepts 256 GB
3. IR blaster (Note makes a kick *** remote)
4. Bigger Screen, shrink the bezels and give us a 6'' screen, (once you experience the magic of a 6'' screen on Nexus 6 you never want to go back to a smaller screen).
Screen resolution wise I'd love it if Sammy had 4K but allowed us to change the resolution anywhere between 720, 1080, 2K, and 4K.
I would be fine with a 720 display and with a 11,500 mAh ZeroLemon battery case and Battery Guru (Qualcomm's proprietary battery optimization app that runs in background and learns how you use phone and boosts battery life 25%-50%) you'd be able to get 10 day battery life.
Want to use Note for VR? 4K is your setting, watch a movie? 1080.
Anyway, in terms of what can replace the Note 5:
1. Note 4 is still great hardware.
Throw in 128 SD card, ZeroLemon battery case, Battery Guru, and flash a stock android rom and you eliminate the bloatware, lag and future proof one of the most powerful phones on earth.
Plus you can get one cheap now.
2. LG G4
Last phone with both SD card and removable battery. ZeroLemon supports it with a 9,000 mAh case (or will soon).
3. LG G4 Pro
Rumored Note fighter with a stylus, 5.8'' 2K screen, possible removable battery and SD card support, and SD 820 processor, 4GB ram and a superb 27 MP camera with 1.8'' F stop, 2 Axis OIS, and laser auto focus.
LG has promised it will come out this year as the "more premium" flagship which of course scares me because "premium" now means sealed and less functional.
4. Huawei Nexus
Rumored to have 5.7'' 2K screen, SD 820 or Kirin 950 processor (Huawei's home grown chips are actually pretty comparable to Qualcomm's but can't use battery guru) 4 GB ram, and front facing speakers. Oh and 21 MP camera.
I'm super excited about this one but I wish the screen wasn't smaller than Nexus 6.
5. Nexus 6 (my current phone)
Much cheaper now, you can get 64 GB version for $500-$550 and I'm sure that clearance sales will bump that down another $50 or $100.
6'' 2K screen is stupendous for surfing net or watching media.
Front facing speakers are loud enough to listen to podcasts from across the room.
Some water resistance so if you splash water on it or drop it in a toilet it should survive.
6. Rumored Sony Xperia Z5+
The successor to the Z Ultra
Note sure about screen size, but 4K screen, SD 820 processor, front facing speakers and SD card support, oh and IP 67 water proofing in case you want to watch tv in the shower.