Is the note 5 right for me?

[imaposer]

I'm looking for input for my next phone. Current phone - note 2. Three years old. I bought it, rooted it, loaded jelly bean's build 4, turned off updates and have never done anything else to it since.
Memory isn't an issue. I don't even know if I have a memory card in my current phone. Battery, well, my phone tends to lock up if I use a crappy charger, and the only way to reset it is to pull the battery and restart it. Not sure how you would do that without a removable battery.
I've never been a fan of how bloated and always wanting to update crap I don't want on my phone anyway phones are when you get them, which is why I rooted and put in a custom rom. But, I'm not a tech junkie who continues to play with it. I just want streamlined and reliable service. My note 2 has been perfect as far as I'm concerned, and I may even just buy a new case and fresh battery and keep it. But, if I could do something similar with a new phone, I'm all for it. Or, are they better about not junking up the phones now, and I can just buy one and let it run with factory software and not have frustrating issues? Size wise, the bigger the better, so figure another note, but what version?

 

[plumcrazy]

there is a ton of info for you around here. If you like the N2, you will be ecstatic with the N5

 

[sydneycooper1979]

I agree. Note 5 all the way. It's a fantastic device!

 

[angrytentpole]

I went from the Note 3 to the Note 5, skipped 4 because I didn't like the speaker placement.

My main concern when switching was only the battery and the battery life, I had 2 spare batteries on my 3 and I didn't want to depend on a charger all day long.

Off the rip, immediately after opening it, I noticed how fast and 'snappy' it is compared to the 3.

It is beyond what I had thought it would be, I thought it would be a marginal upgrade with a nicer build, but it feels like what a note SHOULD be. Very responsive keys and app-opening speeds, no more running app list lag, extremely responsive fingerprint scanner. There is also no longer a power button lag when opening/closing the phone rapidly. On the 3, if I accidentally closed the phone and pressed the power button again to reopen, there would be a 2 second lag, it doesn't appear to be there any longer.

It's almost as if there isn't any bloatware holding the phone back, and if there was, it was as simple as a notification pinging me to register or update, in which case I just disable the app.

Battery life is stellar, I streamed ant-man from the playstore at 62% battery life, played it for 1 hr 40 mins and ended up with 51% battery remaining. It has great standby time and just great longevity overall no matter what I'm doing, whether it's browsing the web, playing a video game or watching streams on twitch.

Fast charge is RIDICULOUS, it charges to full in little over an hour, but it feels monstrously fast if I decide to turn the entire phone off and go shower for 20 minutes. I'm talking going from 30% to 65% in that span of time.

I'm ordering a 10,000 mAh small form factor power bank just to bring around if I ever needed it, but coming from a note 3 user who hated the thought of no removable battery, I've come to love this phone, and I haven't even gotten to the other improvements.

To summarize, it's responsive as all hell, the battery is stellar and the fast charge is a joy to use.

I hope this helps OP.

 

[pool_shark]

I switched to the Note 5 from my Note 2 Running N3bula ROM.
My Note 2 wasn't holding a charge very well and of course the ROM was no longer supported, it was time for a change.

While I miss root, I'm not hurting.

You can disable many of the apps from within the OS, and package disabler pro can disable the others.

There is a combination of buttons to simulate a battery pull.

I had a 64GB card in my Note 2 and transferred nearly every 8 from it to my Note 5 minus the various ROM zips, TWRP backups, and South Park episodes they I never really watched, so space isn't an issue for me either.

 

[imaposer]

Good to hear. Thanks all.