Note 5, V10, or Droid?

[MittenSportsFan]

I have been a happy Note 2 owner for 3 years but now it's time to get a new phone. It began to become very slow, not hold a charge as long and restart on it's own.
My Note 2 got worse and started to freeze and required battery pulls to restart. I worked with Verizon tech support and we decided to back everything up and wipe the phone clean with a factory reset. that helped for a couple of days but the problems returned and ultimately the Note 2 froze on a restart and would freeze at the same point in a re-boot or battery pull.
My Note 2 was declared dead by Verizon.
My first thought was a Note 5!
But now I see that it is limited to 64 gb with no additional storage. My Note came with only 16gb but I had a 128gb card that was over half full.
The sealed battery is not that big of a deal but I just experienced a tired battery that would hold maybe half the charge of it's out of the box performance.
The Note 5 is a far better looking phone but I have always protected my phones with a case and would have to on this one as well with all the shiny glass and metal begging to be scratched or broken.
I liked the S-Pen but if I used it once a week it was unusual. I think I would use the new S-pen more than the Note 2 version but how much? Is it a must?
The V10 comes with 64gb plus an sd slot for up to 2 TB's of additional storage? All I will ever need.
It also comes with a shock resistant body that I could possibly carry naked.
The new Droids (Turbo 2 & Maxx 2) are pretty much shatterproof, endless battery with 15 minute quick charge, and comes in a 64gb version with expandable memory, but lack the size of the other two (5.4" and 5.5" screens).
I'm waiting to actually get my hands on the Droids and V10 this weekend to really get a feel for the differences in the phones.

I know they all will be significant improvements over my beloved Note 2 but can you Note 5 users give advice or feedback on my decision?
Do you really make use of the S-Pen on a regular basis?
How is using the cloud or external storage working for those that carried a lot of data onboard their previous notes (2,3, or 4)?
Is the sexy new appearance worth it since you need to take extra measures (case or increased caution) to protect it?
Sorry for the long post and thanks for the comments.

 

[BIG CAT 7]

If you liked the Note line then why change now? I was on the fence about the whole storage thing and always thought I needed more than I actually used. I picked up the 64GB Black Sapphire and haven't looked back. One of the best phones and most beautiful phones I have used (and yes I use a case on it too). And the battery life is phenomenal. I thought for a split second about waiting for the Turbo 2 to be announced but couldn't wait any longer.

I switch phones quite frequently but I can honestly say that this Note 5 might be the first time I keep a phone for longer than the normal 3-6 months. I might be able to actually stretch it out until the Note 6 drops and then decide where to go from there. Good luck with your decision.

 

[debdroid1a]

A lot of things I put on storage is just that, storage. I rarely look at it again. I have unlimited data on t-mobile, so I don't need extra storage as much as I think I do. I also got the 64GB Black Sapphire and I love it. I rarely pulled a battery unless, like you, I was having trouble with the phone. My Droid 4 had a non-replaceable battery and at the end of the life and my contract, I exchanged it twice before moving to the S5. Droid's do seem to have a great build. I didn't care for the screen. Even my dad's S2 was better then my Droid 4 screen and that was one reason I changed.

There are extras you can use for storage, such as a cord that will attach to your phone. I have this 3-in-1 Extension cord and my S5 card attached perfectly and I could get a few things off it that I wanted. There are also USB thumb drives that have both a regular USB and a micro USB that's easy enough to carry around.

Portable chargers can be as small as a spare battery. Yes you have to wait for them to charge a little before use, fully if you don't want to carry around the portable charger. But they work.

I use the Spen a little. Not as much as I thought, but I like it. It works great for a few games, especially my spider solitaire word search game which are hard to do with a finger. I also use it for notes as well. Grabbing a part of a screen so I don't have to do the entire screen, go into gallery, then edit and crop it down seems like a bonus feature, and I love it.

I guess it depends on what you personally need and want. Try out the others and see which you prefer.

 

[kj11]

I love the look and feel of the Note 5. As with all my phones, I use it without a case and with no need to exhibit any additional degree of caution. I'm generally careful with my phones and don't drop them.

The improvements to touchwiz will make your head spin. I love the SPen and use it a few times a day. Smart select is probably my favorite feature, I often send pictures, or something see on a website to friends, and just selecting the portion I want and sharing it quick, without ever needing to save it, is real nice. I'm also a big fan of scrolling screen shots. Often times I'll share the details from a run in SHealth, and being able to send the whole thing in one image is great. I laugh to myself when friends send me two or three screen shots so I can see the whole thing they want me to.

Storage was a concern for me as well... Or so I thought. I previously had a 32GB LG G3, with a 32GB SD card. I never concerned myself with how much storage I used because I knew I could always pop in another card if needed. Well after over a year with the G3, I had about 1,000 songs and several thousand pictures and videos, and the card was only about 2/3 full. I went with the 64GB and it should be more than enough for my needs.

If you loved your Note 2 I see no reason why you shouldn't go with the Note 5. You will not regret it.

 

[MittenSportsFan]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm leaning towards the Note 5 but I have to check out the VA & Droid and V10 are strong in the areas that Samsung abandoned. The new S-Pen features you mention do sound useful. I will report my impressions of the three phones this weekend.

 

[crazyralph90]

I'd suggest asking this in neutral forum. Asking this in a Note 5 forum you will get Note 5 answers. Ask it in a V10 forum you will get that as an answer, and so on.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[aximtreo]

I also would not rule out the Note 4. It will get Marshmellow and has all the things your S2 had and then some. I just got a used on in Mint condition and have had it for a few days. I'm a big Windows Phone fan but alas, being on Verizon and watching Verizon and MS fight over who has the biggest one tired me out.

You can't go wrong with either of the phones on your list. Good luck on your decision.

 

[Rumblee1]

Im going to make a real suggestion. Get the note 4. A tremendous upgrade from your note 2 (I had the 2 and I also loved it) . Pluse you'll get your expandable memory and replaceable, not to mention bigger battery. I can't remember what site I was in, but I just read an article entitled, the galaxy note 4, samsungs last great smartphone. So far how true. By the way, if you get the note 4,you'll save some money without sacrificing much at all over the 5.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[MDMcAtee]

Get the Note 5 and be happy.

Storage is storage and you can easily get a Dash micro SD card adapter and have just as much storage as you want or need.

The battery is awesome on this and I was just about adamant against what Samsung did until I actually got to use one.

While the v10 looks interesting and so too does the Droid, I won't give up the functionality of the spen to have either.

The glass back is a glass back and I have mine in a leather backed case with a Zagg glass on and don't worry about it.

The camera is fantastic and so is the screen so.. Pick your poison..

Posted from my AT&T 64 gig Black Sapphire leather wrapped Note 5

 

[me23brown]

Like what everyone else said, coming from a Note 2 you are going to be happy with whatever you get. I had the Note 3, Note 4, G4 and now I'm on a Note 5. I only got the 32 GB option so I do miss the extra storage but I've made it work. If the V10 was out sooner I would have probably gotten that but so far I'm really happy with the Note 5. As far as the Droids they look good but I don't trust Motorola too much right now so they wouldn't be my first choice.