Note 5 or 6P

[kalookakoo]

"...still the clear winner..." doesn't and won't mean much to the vast majority of people. If you put them side by side, then maybe someone would notice. But I'd wager that most users, including us junkies here, won't noticed or be bothered one bit by the 6P screen. It's not going be so vast of a difference that it really, er, makes a difference.

I'm well aware. Just pointing out the fact that just because they use the same panel doesn't mean they will look identical.

 

[coolbreeze78]

I just picked up a 64gig Note 5 for $550 and have a 6P on order...seriously leaning towards keeping both as silly as that sounds.

They serve two different purposes but I have a feeling I'll gravitate towards the 6P for full time use. I'll sell the Note 5 when and if I arrive at that conclusion, providing the market isn't too low. If I can't re-sell the Note 5 for about what I bought it for (I got a great deal) I'll just hang on to it I guess.

 

[syspry]

About the display questions and statements, pretty much everyone acknowledges the Note 5's is better but not by a huge margin or anything and to be quite frank, why are we so concerned about a small difference on a tiny little phone screen? This isn't 60" HDTV's we're discussing here where small differences actually do matter...
About the only advantage the Note 5 has over the 6p is for people who really specifically want the S Pen features and a slightly better display and camera. I feel those 3 advantages are outweighed by the better fingerprint reader, no bloatware, aluminum vs glass, immediate updates, price. I think this is the best android phone ever made thus far and it actually surprised me that it came at the hands of a new - albeit very large and well established - company to the western phone market.

Everything I've said of course comes with the big disclaimer that we still have yet to see if any glaring production defects are going to rear their heads once this phone becomes available to the mass market. For that I'll be keeping my eyes peeled on XDA since they've always been awesome at spotting issues with previous Nexus devices before anyone else.

 

[Almeuit]

To be honest ... You can argue the technicalities of the screen on which is better but to the real world usage -- I doubt anyone would instantly be able to say "That is a Note 5!" and vice versa. From what I have head it is a pretty awesome screen regardless.

 

[sstephen17]

I have a Note 4 and will be trying out and possibly switching to the 6P. The Note 4 is a great phone with a couple of flaws.

Pros - Outstanding display, great camera, replaceable battery, expandable micro SD storage.
Cons - Lack of timely updates, much slower after a year of use, lots of gimmicky stuff I don't use very often, overheats.

Some people like the S-Pen. It's nice, but hardly a deal breaker for me. I really only use it when I crop images. Other stuff like split screen and IR blaster I don't even use. Even a screen the size of the Note 4 isn't big enough to really make a split screen effective IMO.

The Note 5 will not have a replaceable battery or micro SD card. That would be a deal breaker for me if I wanted to stay in the Note line of phones. Those were two major strengths that I really enjoyed.

 

[Saturn1217]

I just picked up a 64gig Note 5 for $550 and have a 6P on order...seriously leaning towards keeping both as silly as that sounds.

They serve two different purposes but I have a feeling I'll gravitate towards the 6P for full time use. I'll sell the Note 5 when and if I arrive at that conclusion, providing the market isn't too low. If I can't re-sell the Note 5 for about what I bought it for (I got a great deal) I'll just hang on to it I guess.

If you do end up keeping both can you post a comparison when your 6p arrives? I really wanted the note 5 basically since before it was announced but touchwiz and the price kind of held me back. I'm especially interested in how touchwiz performs for someone who has experience with stock android. I have come to realize I'm probably more sensitive than most to small hiccups in UI performance. Seriously even my iPad Air feels laggy to me sometimes and I returned the moto x pure because of performance even though most people think that phone runs fine.

Basically if you do have a chance to compare software performance that would be appreciated! Mine won't arrive until Nov 20th so I have all the time in the world...

Posted via Android Central App

 

[flychinook]

This is exactly where I'm at too... Note 5 vs Nexus 6P. Because of my phone plan, the Note will cost $120 less (and will be easier to finance). I don't see myself using the S-Pen very much, but wireless charging seems nice. But is that and $120 worth Touchwiz and being at the mercy of a carrier for updates?

 

[So Cold]

This is exactly where I'm at too... Note 5 vs Nexus 6P. Because of my phone plan, the Note will cost $120 less (and will be easier to finance). I don't see myself using the S-Pen very much, but wireless charging seems nice. But is that and $120 worth Touchwiz and being at the mercy of a carrier for updates?

Nope, go 6P all the way. There's a good(ish) thread on the lack of wireless charging on the N6P and there's plenty of people like myself who currently have it and are perfectly fine with giving it up.

 

[anon(596177)]

Nope, go 6P all the way. There's a good(ish) thread on the lack of wireless charging on the N6P and there's plenty of people like myself who currently have it and are perfectly fine with giving it up.

And to add to this I'll try to give you another objective look. Do you like touchwiz? Do you like samsung apps in general? Do you prefer them to stock android? Do you like the stylus option? Do you feel you need wireless charging?

How many of those did you answer yes to? If you answered yes to more than half, go with the note. Those phones work for some people. Personally, i would answer no to every single one of those questions. I know which I'm going for

 

[Wildo6882]

And to add to this I'll try to give you another objective look. Do you like touchwiz? Do you like samsung apps in general? Do you prefer them to stock android? Do you like the stylus option? Do you feel you need wireless charging?

How many of those did you answer yes to? If you answered yes to more than half, go with the note. Those phones work for some people. Personally, i would answer no to every single one of those questions. I know which I'm going for

No. No. No. Not really. Don't care.

Those are my answers. As I type this from my Note 5. Impatiently waiting for my 6P. Look for my Note 5 on Swappa once that 6P gets in my hands!

 

[flychinook]

And to add to this I'll try to give you another objective look. Do you like touchwiz? Do you like samsung apps in general? Do you prefer them to stock android? Do you like the stylus option? Do you feel you need wireless charging?

How many of those did you answer yes to? If you answered yes to more than half, go with the note. Those phones work for some people. Personally, i would answer no to every single one of those questions. I know which I'm going for

Touchwiz: Don't really care. I'm using a carrier-branded LG G2 right now, and there's plenty of people who say LG's skin is just as bad/laggy/ugly as Touchwiz, but I really don't mind it. Same with my previous phone, a Galaxy S3. If I decide it's just too ugly to bear, I toss Google Now Launcher on there. Problem largely solved. The larger issue, of course, is being at Samsung and Sprint's mercy for software updates.

Samsung Apps: Hate them, or at least I hated them on my S3. Disabled most of them. I'm "all in" with Google's apps and services. I've never used stock android for any significant amount of time, so I can't draw conclusions.

Stylus: Maybe I'll use it, maybe I won't. I do enjoy using my phone with a generic capacitive stylus, but rarely have one on me.

Wireless charging I do see myself using, I still miss it a bit from my Blackberry 8310. Of course the 6P offers the advantage of USB-C. Because of that, I call this one a draw.

I know, I'm being an indecisive putz. But it's just so damn close between the two. Both have spectacular cameras. The Nexus looks better, but I also like the smaller size of the Note. The Nexus will probably hold it's resale value better, but will be more expensive. The main thing I'm waiting on at this point is some longer-term reports of battery life on the Nexus.

 

[kupostic]

Scaling down screen size sucks it for me even though I'm a Nexus fanatic. I've looked again & again at my N6; can't see why I should change it..

Any oil baron here ready to send me N6p gratis? That'll more than convince me.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[nrfitchett4]

The other thing to consider is security. If you have access to your corporate email on your phone, or if you access sensitive personal info on your phone like bank or credit card info, security is becoming more of an issue. It seems weekly now we are getting reports of major malware being discovered for Android. I believe only Google has guaranteed monthly security patch releases. The only other Android manufacturer I would have any faith in at this point, from a security standpoint, is Samsung. However, I still doubt in their ability to get security updates out to multiple phones and through multiple carrier certifications as quickly as Google will be able to do for Nexus phones (which is why I will only buy Nexus from now on).

Honestly, if you are buying any other phone other than a Nexus, I would strongly urge you to look at some anti-virus app in the Play store.

AVG and Avast seem to have the best ratings (4.5 stars) and both have a free version. Paid version for Avast is $15 annually, no price shown for paid version of AVG. Having looked at both of these just now, they seem to have some neat options, making me consider trying them out just for the extra piece of mind.

Poppycock. All these security scares are purely speculative things that have never happened in the real world. For them to happen, more has to be in play besides just the hack.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[CincyGuy]

Poppycock. All these security scares are purely speculative things that have never happened in the real world. For them to happen, more has to be in play besides just the hack.

Posted via the Android Central App

Yep, such balderdash. That's why AC has a whole page dedicated to antivirus issues:
Android Antivirus, Malware, Spyware and Adware | Android Central

 

[johnlelan]

The Nexus 6P isn't exactly a budget phone, but when you factor in its impressive specs and high-end build quality, you could argue that it's a budget flagship. At full retail, it comes out to roughly US$200 cheaper than the entry-level Note 5

We'll have more on the Nexus 6P when it launches, but you can check out our full Galaxy Note 5 review for more on Samsung's phablet.

 

[nrfitchett4]

Yep, such balderdash. That's why AC has a whole page dedicated to antivirus issues:
Android Antivirus, Malware, Spyware and Adware | Android Central

Page is 8 months old.
Straight from Android central on why Stage fright is crock of crap.
The 'Stagefright' exploit: What you need to know http://www.androidcentral.com/stagefright

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[CincyGuy]

Page is 8 months old.
Straight from Android central on why Stage fright is crock of crap.
The 'Stagefright' exploit: What you need to know Android 'Stagefright' exploit: What you need to know | Android Central

Posted via the Android Central App

Oh look, a brand new fresh article from the Jerry himself on this topic. Huh.
When security matters, only a Nexus will do | Android Central

 

[trekk]

All I can say I have had S2 S3 S4 Note 2 Note 4 S6 and it's always the same thing the phone starts to slow down after a few month and everything just feels heavy. The thing with Galaxy devices Is they offer excellent hardware. The software though is just very weak.

TouchWiz adds some good functions can't disagree with that, but their devices just don't age well and every time their is a major software update they cripple the devices. They truly need to leave android alone or hire better developers.

My Nexus 5 is still running with no hiccups and I can't say the same about my Note 4 I sold it because it became horrible after lollipop.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Jerry Hildenbrand]

Page is 8 months old.
Straight from Android central on why Stage fright is crock of crap.
The 'Stagefright' exploit: What you need to know Android 'Stagefright' exploit: What you need to know | Android Central

Posted via the Android Central App

Oh look, a brand new fresh article from the Jerry himself on this topic. Huh.
When security matters, only a Nexus will do | Android Central

Remember, we each have different opinions even though we work for the same company

 

[FrogVomit]

The fingerprint reader is working much better for me on the 6P than it did on the Note 5. Actually, it hasn't failed me yet, while the Note had maybe an 80% success rate. When it did work on the Note, I was constantly hitting the home button because it's like 1mm from the reader button.

I will miss wireless charging, but that's about it.