Re: Note 4 vs. Note 5
OK, I'm new here. This week I am planning on getting a new phone. Currently I have the Galaxy S4. Like it, but at 16GB it's memory is just too small. I'm also finding that the screen is too small...or at least my eyes are getting too old for its screen.
I have decided that I want a Note...I like the screen size and based on my previous tablet experience I have decided that I want one with a stylus/S Pen.
Over the recent weeks I have been following rumors, articles, and posts about the new Note 5. I keep going back and forth, so I'm looking for help. Any thoughts between the two phones would be appreciated. The sealed battery, lack of microSD card is not a deal killer for me, so I would ask that we not make that the focus of the conversation here. I do like the S Pen menu (not sure what you actually call it) on the new Note 5. Not sure if that will be available on some upgrade to the Note 4. You honest assessments and thoughts would be greately appreciated.
PJ
I do not have the Note 5 (I hate when people comment on things they don't own, but in this case I think its relevent) I do have the Note 4... but only for the next few days.... (I did go to an att store and play with the demo unit)
I will be getting the Note 5, and as a Note 4 user, let me tell you why I decided to upgrade early and go Note 5. (not in any particular order)
- your right the air pen menu looks awesome, huge upgrade. I use that menu a ton. The Note 4 one is good, but I don't use many of the features on it. The Note 5 version adds the ability to put 3(?) extra shortcuts on it. And it looks great
- Samsung Pay.... this is an under rated killer feature of the Note 5 (and other new Samsung's) I work in retail, and used to be in investigations, and I can tell you that credit fraud sucks, and with all of these data breaches lately, wow... protect yourself. Samsung Pay will create a token credit card number that is only usable once... someone steals your info from the company, no big deal, the number they get will be worthless to them. IF it works, you will be able to use your phone to pay an nearly any location where you currently swipe your card. Pay at pump, and places where you hand your card to the clerk (drive thru's, restaurants, etc) will still need a real card, but nearly every single other place it SHOULD work in. The tech is built into the phone, not the store, so YOU control it. Not the retailer.
- Wireless charging... built in with BOTH standards... I didn't understand that a few days ago, but now that I know what that means it could be big. More places (still few) are providing wireless chargers, and the Note 5 will work with any of them right out of the box.
- Much smoother than the Note 4... I love my Note 4, don't get the wrong idea, but there are a couple of hickups, and they are at things that I really want to use everyday.... mainly the recent apps tab. I love the idea, but I can't use it for the lag. It seems faster to me to open the apps drawer and just click on the app I want, but most of mine are on my home screen, so I just push their shortcut faster... the Note 5 is 1000x faster on the recents button.
- Notes on the blank screen... You can remove the pen and write right on the black screen. You don't have to turn of the device, or unlock it, or anything. Just pop out the pen, and write. In order for a device to be a efficient note taker, it has to be faster than a post it... or even the palm of my hand. I carry a pen by the buttons of my polo shirt... if I can use it on my hand faster than getting out the phone and stylus, then the phone is worthless. (I take a lot of 5 second notes.... that I will never need again, so the quicker the note functions the better)
- Cheaper.... the Note 5 is reduced in price from the Note 4. At AT&T you will likely pay similar prices for either, once the note 4 gets discounted.
- Upgrades... the Note 5 does have a faster processor, vs the 4 depending on which version 4 you compare to. For me its octa core 5 vs quad core 4. The octa core is far more efficient on the battery since it uses the low power cores for basic functions. 4gb Ram vs 3bg ram... make multi tasking and going back to recent apps faster/smoother. 64 bit for the Note 5, vs 32 bit for the note 4. Some feel that is a big deal, it might be, don't know.
** Battery life... so far looks ok for the Note 5 (based on forum posts), BUT its a slightly smaller battery (-7%) But there is far more to battery life than the size of the battery. See my note about the processor above... or the architecture size on the chip (the Note 5 uses 14nm vs 20 nm on the note 4 (?) which is supposed to be a bunch more efficient on the battery. Also I have heard that 64 bit is more energy efficient than 32 bit. Also 5.1.1 is supposed to be more efficient than android 5.0.2.
What are the advantages of the Note 4... just the things you said you don't care about (removable battery, sd card, ir blaster). They are extremely similar phones, and for me, if cost wasn't an issue I would go with the 5, but if the 4 comes down a lot (I doubt it, it will come down some, but not a huge amount) then I would go with the cheaper option. You can't go wrong with either.
Will the Note 4 get the software feature updates that the Note 5 has... maybe, but the history of that happening is not there. Samsung is also VERY slow with their software updates. The Note 4 will most likely get the 5.1 update, and they have announced that it will get the Andorid M update.. but it took a long time to get L. The Note 5 will definitely get the M update, and may likely get the N update too somewhere down the line.
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