Just a reminder, the trim ring area along the top and bottom are part of the antenna for the GPS (top) and radio (bottom) on the Note 4. The white dots in the trim are the breaks to prevent you from grounding the antennas when your hand is in contact with the sides of the phone. These antenna lines were likely needed as a result of the use of metal on/in the Note 4. At least they didn't put the breaks on the side like Apple did.
Allowing my bare hand to bridge across the entire bottom trim showed a drop on the signal indicator when not in a perfect coverage area and lowered speedtest results. If you're streaming video, you may not want to hold the radio side (bottom) of the phone with large hands. Encompassing the antenna could lower your speed and impact buffering/quality. I don't have any weak zones nearby with T-mobile, so I couldn't manufacture a drop that lost signal completely. Use of a non-metallic bumper/case should avoid any issues though.
Didn't care to play with the GPS antenna while driving to verify the same, but I imagine it could provide some interference as well when you don't have ideal line of sight.
Handing the phone off to the woman now to replace her Note 2, so I'll never see it again. Probably one more time once a good 9h oleo screen protector becomes available. The S Pen is so smooth on glass.
Last thought: Sad that Samsung doesn't include the wireless backplate stock. Spending over 800$ after tax for a phone you'd expect all the bells and whistles to be included. Makes me think the phone is not leading edge or flagship worthy when you nickle or dime additional features.
Allowing my bare hand to bridge across the entire bottom trim showed a drop on the signal indicator when not in a perfect coverage area and lowered speedtest results. If you're streaming video, you may not want to hold the radio side (bottom) of the phone with large hands. Encompassing the antenna could lower your speed and impact buffering/quality. I don't have any weak zones nearby with T-mobile, so I couldn't manufacture a drop that lost signal completely. Use of a non-metallic bumper/case should avoid any issues though.
Didn't care to play with the GPS antenna while driving to verify the same, but I imagine it could provide some interference as well when you don't have ideal line of sight.
Handing the phone off to the woman now to replace her Note 2, so I'll never see it again. Probably one more time once a good 9h oleo screen protector becomes available. The S Pen is so smooth on glass.
Last thought: Sad that Samsung doesn't include the wireless backplate stock. Spending over 800$ after tax for a phone you'd expect all the bells and whistles to be included. Makes me think the phone is not leading edge or flagship worthy when you nickle or dime additional features.
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