Next phone will be a Note - weary of Note 5

[ctychick]

I've been using the Note 10.1 2014 ed. since its release and use the S-Pen regularly. I'd like to have the S-Pen functionality on my phone as well and have been holding off upgrading from my current S4 to the Note 5. I'm disappointed, however, that the Note 5 is looking like it will not have replaceable battery and that's a dealbreaker for me. I def want to move up in screen size and my absolute top priorities are removable battery and camera quality (was disappointed with S4 camera despite te hype). Would the Note 4 still be a worthwhile option? I'm not fully married to having an S-Pen on my phone, as I wonder if I would appreciate/use it on a screen so much smaller than my 10.1 Note. Or should I forget the Note altogether and instead consider something else with a highly rated camera and replaceable battery? Suggestions? It just seems a shame to move to one of these "phablets" and not opt for the pen option. Any advice would be appreciated!

 

[ab304945]

Wait until the note 5 is revealed, before making a decision

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[clevin]

Note 4 is a great phone. It is a viable option anytime in the next 5 years, and much cheaper.

 

[smooth4lyfe]

I've been using the Note 10.1 2014 ed. since its release and use the S-Pen regularly. I'd like to have the S-Pen functionality on my phone as well and have been holding off upgrading from my current S4 to the Note 5. I'm disappointed, however, that the Note 5 is looking like it will not have replaceable battery and that's a dealbreaker for me. I def want to move up in screen size and my absolute top priorities are removable battery and camera quality (was disappointed with S4 camera despite te hype). Would the Note 4 still be a worthwhile option? I'm not fully married to having an S-Pen on my phone, as I wonder if I would appreciate/use it on a screen so much smaller than my 10.1 Note. Or should I forget the Note altogether and instead consider something else with a highly rated camera and replaceable battery? Suggestions? It just seems a shame to move to one of these "phablets" and not opt for the pen option. Any advice would be appreciated!

You pretty much answered your own question with this post
I think you should get the Note 4, it has a good camera and all those things that are your priority

 

[ctychick]

Thank you. Is there an optimal time to buy the Note 4 given the impending release of the 5?

 

[smooth4lyfe]

Thank you. Is there an optimal time to buy the Note 4 given the impending release of the 5?

They have the unlocked version on sale for $350 on eBay

 

[rushmore]

Thank you. Is there an optimal time to buy the Note 4 given the impending release of the 5?

Any time now really, but might want to be careful if wanting a new one. The N5 is 100% their own chips, so Samsung will want to quickly transition supply to all Note 5 (to also bolster Note 5 sales). The more chips Samsung uses of their own, the more economy of scale to pay for the billions in chip plants they invested Given the lack of features some previous Note owners want, there could be a supply/demand problem with Note 4 after a few months.

 

[rushmore]

They have the unlocked version on sale for $350 on eBay

Careful with those! One of our IT folks bought one at a similar price and was a Note 4 clone. Looks the same, but that is it.

 

[smooth4lyfe]

Careful with those! One of our IT folks bought one at a similar price and was a Note 4 clone. Looks the same, but that is it.

eBay has a policy against selling counterfeits. If a counterfeit is sold, the other person will be forced to give you a full refund
More likely than not it will be the real phone if its coming from an "eBay authorized seller" and not a single user

 

[ctychick]

Not sure what you mean here. Are you saying that should my new Note 4 need repair, I'll have a problem due to lack of parts?

Also....

Given the lack of features some previous Note owners want, there could be a supply/demand problem with Note 4 after a few months.

Can you clarify this as well? Are you saying I should buy the Note 4 now since there might be a run on them after a disappointing Note 5 reveal?

I guess I'm confused by the wording of your reply.

 

[beh]

From what I am seeing, the major carriers all have plenty of Note 4 stock and are starting to lower prices to move it out. An example is a $99 price tag with two year contract with Verizon. However, I agree with the person above that suggested you wait for the Note 5 to come out so you can see it in the "flesh" so to speak. The hardware will be the best available from anyone and the Samsung chips will run using 30% less power. With a 128 GB ultra fast internal memory there is no need for external SD cards that are much slower and therefore will slow down the phone in general and the camera in burst and video modes.
I personally have the Note 4, the Note 8 and the Note Pro 12.2 and find that I use the Note 4 and its S pen for everything where I don't need to work at pixel size operations.The bigger tablets are only turned on for about 5 ot 10 percent of my work now. Things like taking hand written notes are still easier on the bigger screens, and photo editing with advanced options like found in Photoshop. But for everything else the Note 4/5 screen size with split screen operation is everything I need.

 

[rushmore]

Not sure what you mean here. Are you saying that should my new Note 4 need repair, I'll have a problem due to lack of parts?

Also....



Can you clarify this as well? Are you saying I should buy the Note 4 now since there might be a run on them after a disappointing Note 5 reveal?

I guess I'm confused by the wording of your reply.

Saying Samsung will likely phase the Note 4 out sooner.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[rushmore]

The sd is almost exclusively used for media and there are no noticeable slowdowns in performance. Not having the space, paying $200 more and dealing with 32gb less total storage though is very noticeable to folks that value the storage.



Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[DETERMINOLOGY]

Thank you. Is there an optimal time to buy the Note 4 given the impending release of the 5?

At this moment and time with the note 5 being next week i would wait before making a decision as well. We are one week away from reveal

 

[russel5150]

I agree to wait until the note5 is announced. HOWEVER if you decide its not for you the note4 is an awesome phone and i recommend it.

Keep in mind though, last year when the note4 came out on shelves verizon pulled the note3 almost immediately in the store i go too, because they want you to buy the new one, not an older one at a cheaper price. You will be able to get one im sure, just giving you a heads up, dont know what carrier your on.

At this point the note5 is gonna have to be pretty darn fantastic to pull me away from the droid line. Of course i dont know that the new droid is yet. I bounce back and forth between droids and notes, i really like both, and they are my only current interests. However both motorola and samsung have me worried on the style of them this year. I dont want a glass back and smaller battery on the note, although i dont care if the battery is removable or not. And if the droid is going to be phablet size, then i might as well get the spen and software that comes w it.

Beats me, hopefully i dont have long before both are out in open to see what they are without the guessing

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[BlackZeppelin]

I've been using the Note 10.1 2014 ed. since its release and use the S-Pen regularly. I'd like to have the S-Pen functionality on my phone as well and have been holding off upgrading from my current S4 to the Note 5. I'm disappointed, however, that the Note 5 is looking like it will not have replaceable battery and that's a dealbreaker for me. I def want to move up in screen size and my absolute top priorities are removable battery and camera quality (was disappointed with S4 camera despite te hype). Would the Note 4 still be a worthwhile option? I'm not fully married to having an S-Pen on my phone, as I wonder if I would appreciate/use it on a screen so much smaller than my 10.1 Note. Or should I forget the Note altogether and instead consider something else with a highly rated camera and replaceable battery? Suggestions? It just seems a shame to move to one of these "phablets" and not opt for the pen option. Any advice would be appreciated!

You will have to face the fact that removable batteries are almost a thing of the past. I wouldn't be buying any phone, let alone one that is almost getting towards a year old, based on that alone. Don't get me wrong. The Note 4 is a top phone with a lot of critical reviews. Just don't get it for a removable battery on its own. Also remember this. You buy a Note 4 and Samsung will soon stop making batteries for it. More than a year later when you want another battery for it, you will not get fresh stock. You will get a battery made a long time ago sitting in a warehouse, or you will get an aftermarket one that has all its own issues.

For someone who has a Note 4, I wouldn't advise "upgrading" to a Note 5, considering all the controversy about how much of an upgrade it really is. For someone who hasn't either, I would always suggest getting the latest series phone, not one that is about to be stop being made with all its parts and accessories. In a couple of years, all phones will have non removable batteries so you need to just accept it.

 

[beh]

The sd is almost exclusively used for media and there are no noticeable slowdowns in performance. Not having the space, paying $200 more and dealing with 32gb less total storage though is very noticeable to folks that value the storage.



Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

My Note 4 will only record video to the internal storage (the SSD). While the still photos can be stored directly to an extSD card. Is yours different?

 

[adegbenroagoro]

My Note 4 will only record video to the internal storage (the SSD). While the still photos can be stored directly to an extSD card. Is yours different?

My Note 4 has the two options available under "storage location" in SETTINGS. I can store both photos and videos to either the internal or external memory. SNM910H

Adegbenro Agoro. Galaxy Note 4.