God version ruin the back of the Note 5 with all that clutter.
How's the white fingerprint wise?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Review of Samsung Ultimate Test Drive
- Thread starter Cam Johnson
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
How's the white fingerprint wise?
I threw my SIM in with Verizon and have zero issues. Just have to reboot and go!
Received mine today, AT&T version, 32gb, Sapphire Blue Note 5.
First thing I did was reset/restore the phone to original so I can get to "setup" my phone the way I wanted as when I powered it on, it was already setup and to homescreen which I wasn't expecting. Though with a reset, that deleted the Ultimate Test Drive app and other preinstalled apps they did before shipping out the phones.
In the hands, the phone feels really nice and solid, it is about the same in terms of how slippery it is compared to an iPhone without a case in my opinion. I'm surprise how the Galaxy Note 5 has a bigger screen, yet overall dimension is smaller than the iPhone. The camera front and back seems better than the iPhone 6 Plus. A lot more features also. The other thing I did after resetting the phone was disabling most of the bloatware (AT&T bloatware). The screen is really nice for sure and love it.
Quick charge is also awesome, went from 25% to 46% within 20 minutes or less (wasn't really keeping track). I'm just using this phone as a secondary phone. Probably will return the phone in 21 days or so, just because if I was to actually buy this phone, I would want the international version, where there is no bloatware. At least Android phones allow you to disable or hide the apps you don't want.. unlike iPhone, where you just toss them into a folder.
First thing I did was reset/restore the phone to original so I can get to "setup" my phone the way I wanted as when I powered it on, it was already setup and to homescreen which I wasn't expecting. Though with a reset, that deleted the Ultimate Test Drive app and other preinstalled apps they did before shipping out the phones.
In the hands, the phone feels really nice and solid, it is about the same in terms of how slippery it is compared to an iPhone without a case in my opinion. I'm surprise how the Galaxy Note 5 has a bigger screen, yet overall dimension is smaller than the iPhone. The camera front and back seems better than the iPhone 6 Plus. A lot more features also. The other thing I did after resetting the phone was disabling most of the bloatware (AT&T bloatware). The screen is really nice for sure and love it.
Quick charge is also awesome, went from 25% to 46% within 20 minutes or less (wasn't really keeping track). I'm just using this phone as a secondary phone. Probably will return the phone in 21 days or so, just because if I was to actually buy this phone, I would want the international version, where there is no bloatware. At least Android phones allow you to disable or hide the apps you don't want.. unlike iPhone, where you just toss them into a folder.
A bit difficult to take a picture... Just look at the website about the measurements.
http://www.gizmag.com/iphone-6-plus-vs-galaxy-note-5-comparison/39008/
Width, not too noticeable.. But for sure shorter.
Big difference in the thickness, note 5=7mm thicker, didn't notice that in other photos. But 5mm shorter. That 7mm would be noticeable with a case like the UAG i amusing on my 6 plus.
The Note 5 is .5mm thicker, totalling 7% more thickness compared to the iPhone 6 Plus.
Not sure where you got the 7mm figure....
It's interesting when long time iphone users give current Android models a test drive with an open mind. A lot of positive feedback in here so far. Like I've said before, once you get even more used to it you'll miss that smaller in hand feel (smaller bezels) and interface maneuverability (accessing most things from the bottom of the phone).
Hopefully Apple can go back to creatively stealing and improve these aspects of the iphone in the near future. If not by iphone 7 I might just give up on them.
Hopefully Apple can go back to creatively stealing and improve these aspects of the iphone in the near future. If not by iphone 7 I might just give up on them.
Here is a great side by side comparison based on size...
http://mobiledevicesize.com/compare/#578,474;1
you're obsessed with this bloat situation fella, give it up. all bloat a) can be disabled and b) the icon hidden from the app drawer, so it's using no power and is invisible.. so tell us again what your problem is...
i think if anyone is going to test drive the new note5 they need to force themselves to start using the spen. that is what the note is all about and what sets it apart from any other phone, but we sometimes are stuck in our old ways of doing things and forget we even have an spen. another thing you should try with your test drive is to try to do things you couldn't with your iphone i think you will be plesently surprised when you find out you can now do thoes things. with android things just work
i think if anyone is going to test drive the new note5 they need to force themselves to start using the spen. that is what the note is all about and what sets it apart from any other phone, but we sometimes are stuck in our old ways of doing things and forget we even have an spen. another thing you should try with your test drive is to try to do things you couldn't with your iphone i think you will be plesently surprised when you find out you can now do thoes things. with android things just work
I actually think the amount of Note users who actively use the stylus is quite low. Maybe 10% ... Many here for example use it first few days and then its forgot about forever. The stylus for me would be a reason to choose the note, but I think for most its a a negligible addition (nice to have but rarely used - like the heart rate sensor).
I'm not defending anything or anyone except the truth, you are spouting BS propaganda for some weird reason.. are you on the payroll of Apple to spout rubbish about the competition.. if not, can I ask what s the reason for it?
I really dont want to get into this but latest touchwiz ram utilization by the system is ~1.3gb (or higher?) from what I've seen, while stock android system hovers around~300-400mb. You arent going to trim that part of touchwiz without rooting and advanced tinkering. I dont even care about disable-able bloat, I hear you, well I do, but at least it can be disabled. But you can only easily disable apps, not aspects of the core framework, that are always running.
It all depends on how one defines bloat
Last edited:
Just curious but did you guys get an email with your tracking number?
I ordered at 7am on Friday and received the "receipt." The charge actually posted on my account (not a pending) but no tracking number. Trying to figure out whether they got overzealous and charged me when they might ran out of phones.
I ordered at 7am on Friday and received the "receipt." The charge actually posted on my account (not a pending) but no tracking number. Trying to figure out whether they got overzealous and charged me when they might ran out of phones.
Same here. I got the confirmation but not the shipping. I also placed the order on Friday. I am looking for ways to contact Samsung for status but I haven't found anything yet.
My two cents. Trying to not be biased. Only about 36 hours in. Wish I had reset the phone yesterday before getting her set up. I may do that tonight.
Here is my review thus far. Subject to change!
Feel- The iPhone 6 feels nice to grip compared to the Note 5. The both feel high quality to hold. I love the edges of the Note 5 as it's more comfortable to feel in the hand. However the glass makes it slippery to hold, especially one handed. If the materials were a little different then I would prefer it over the iPhone. A case may solve this problem, but without a case I’d say it's a tie.
I love the dedicated buttons on the Note. The back and app buttons are awesome. I love that double clicking home button brings up the camera. I know the iPhone is made for simplicity, but these functions should be a given, or at very least a back button. Usually iPhone back button on the screen is at the top which makes it a pain when one handing things, even with Reachability.
The note has LED notifications which I wish the iPhone had. Note obviously wins with that.
Cameras- the note has an amazing front facing camera and great software to go along with it. The back is good too and has vibrant colors, but I feel that they are too extreme and not realistic. The iPhone stays truer to life, but is lower quality. I'd say the iPhone wins for the back camera but overall I'd say the note wins.
Bloatware-. I also felt there was too much bloatware from both my carrier and samsung. I couldn't get all of them off without rooting the device. They could be hidden on the last page but it's still annoying. IOS does the same thing but it's not as bad. Less apps and they are easier to hide. To me iPhone wins here.
Software:
Customization-The Note offers a ton of customization which some people may love. I may grow into it, but as of right now I prefer the interface of iOS. Clean and simple. There are so many settings and things to change on the Note that I feel lost at times of where I should be going to do something. Good thing there is a search function. *Personal opinion is the iPhone.
Apps- Google Play store has a TON of apps and so many that are free. Both this and the Apple App Store are great and gave a lot to offer. I would call this a tie as both are insanely good and have practically anything you could be looking for at a decent price.
Phone App- I make and receive a lot of calls. Though it is different to me, I love the phone ann on the Note and how it’s so easy to look at a number and call them back or text them just from a swipe. It takes a few more steps if you want to message someone back on an iPhone. I also love that the number pad is right there at all times. Note wins this for me.
Texting- I’ve noticed that if you receive pictures on the Note they are pixelated due to them being compressed. I read that it’s because it is MMS, but I’ve received plenty of MMS messages on the iPhone and they came through in great quality. With iMessage they aren’t scaled. I’ve read you can get around this using a different app such as Hangouts. I don’t want to have to use separate apps for doing one task. iPhone wins this.
Multitasking- much better on the Note. You can have way more open. Switching between them is more fluid. There is a “close all” button which is nice. Apple could do well with even adding another GB of RAM. Note wins this.
Power- Note has a lot more power with all of the CPU and GPU cores. It’s great while it lasts, but it kills the battery very quickly. To me this is like getting a super powerful laptop to be portable but not matching the battery. A device needs both to be great. iPhone wins this with a lot of power and great battery.
Performance overall- with lots of the power under the hood I expected better performance from this phone. When typing on the keyboard the keys still lag. When booting the phone it turns on and then searches for a network. I feel like it's too much downtime. Is this because all of the background processes? Touchwiz? Not sure but it's obnoxious. iPhone wins here.
Software conclusion- I’m sure there are apps and tweaks that fix a few of the downsides I’ve found, but they should be fixed out of the box, not with extra apps for simple things. iOS wins here.
Screen. Hands down the note wins here with the high PPI and overly vivid screen colors. It's bright and gorgeous. It’s easier to see the Note while outside due to the AMOLED display. Really makes the colors pop no matter where you are. I see the iPhone screen is brighter, but that doesn’t always mean easier to see. No matter how bright the iPhone is harder to see outside.
Battery life- the note battery compared to a 6+ is honestly quite pathetic. Even with power mode on the note seemed to drop much faster doing the same things I did on the iphone. Texting, playing a few games, facebook, and playing around. I could do all that and finish my day at 60%+ in normal battery mode on thee 6+. I get to the end of the day and have to plug in the note. iOS with its optimized software and hardware wins here.
Overall- I stand by what I said before. Neither phone is “better” than the other per se in this case. They are both amazing phones with great options. It comes down to preference. If you want to customize the crap out of your phone, the Note is the way to go, if you want something simple then get an iPhone. Both phones work great. Both make calls, play games, send texts, let me browse the web and more.
Here is my review thus far. Subject to change!
Feel- The iPhone 6 feels nice to grip compared to the Note 5. The both feel high quality to hold. I love the edges of the Note 5 as it's more comfortable to feel in the hand. However the glass makes it slippery to hold, especially one handed. If the materials were a little different then I would prefer it over the iPhone. A case may solve this problem, but without a case I’d say it's a tie.
I love the dedicated buttons on the Note. The back and app buttons are awesome. I love that double clicking home button brings up the camera. I know the iPhone is made for simplicity, but these functions should be a given, or at very least a back button. Usually iPhone back button on the screen is at the top which makes it a pain when one handing things, even with Reachability.
The note has LED notifications which I wish the iPhone had. Note obviously wins with that.
Cameras- the note has an amazing front facing camera and great software to go along with it. The back is good too and has vibrant colors, but I feel that they are too extreme and not realistic. The iPhone stays truer to life, but is lower quality. I'd say the iPhone wins for the back camera but overall I'd say the note wins.
Bloatware-. I also felt there was too much bloatware from both my carrier and samsung. I couldn't get all of them off without rooting the device. They could be hidden on the last page but it's still annoying. IOS does the same thing but it's not as bad. Less apps and they are easier to hide. To me iPhone wins here.
Software:
Customization-The Note offers a ton of customization which some people may love. I may grow into it, but as of right now I prefer the interface of iOS. Clean and simple. There are so many settings and things to change on the Note that I feel lost at times of where I should be going to do something. Good thing there is a search function. *Personal opinion is the iPhone.
Apps- Google Play store has a TON of apps and so many that are free. Both this and the Apple App Store are great and gave a lot to offer. I would call this a tie as both are insanely good and have practically anything you could be looking for at a decent price.
Phone App- I make and receive a lot of calls. Though it is different to me, I love the phone ann on the Note and how it’s so easy to look at a number and call them back or text them just from a swipe. It takes a few more steps if you want to message someone back on an iPhone. I also love that the number pad is right there at all times. Note wins this for me.
Texting- I’ve noticed that if you receive pictures on the Note they are pixelated due to them being compressed. I read that it’s because it is MMS, but I’ve received plenty of MMS messages on the iPhone and they came through in great quality. With iMessage they aren’t scaled. I’ve read you can get around this using a different app such as Hangouts. I don’t want to have to use separate apps for doing one task. iPhone wins this.
Multitasking- much better on the Note. You can have way more open. Switching between them is more fluid. There is a “close all” button which is nice. Apple could do well with even adding another GB of RAM. Note wins this.
Power- Note has a lot more power with all of the CPU and GPU cores. It’s great while it lasts, but it kills the battery very quickly. To me this is like getting a super powerful laptop to be portable but not matching the battery. A device needs both to be great. iPhone wins this with a lot of power and great battery.
Performance overall- with lots of the power under the hood I expected better performance from this phone. When typing on the keyboard the keys still lag. When booting the phone it turns on and then searches for a network. I feel like it's too much downtime. Is this because all of the background processes? Touchwiz? Not sure but it's obnoxious. iPhone wins here.
Software conclusion- I’m sure there are apps and tweaks that fix a few of the downsides I’ve found, but they should be fixed out of the box, not with extra apps for simple things. iOS wins here.
Screen. Hands down the note wins here with the high PPI and overly vivid screen colors. It's bright and gorgeous. It’s easier to see the Note while outside due to the AMOLED display. Really makes the colors pop no matter where you are. I see the iPhone screen is brighter, but that doesn’t always mean easier to see. No matter how bright the iPhone is harder to see outside.
Battery life- the note battery compared to a 6+ is honestly quite pathetic. Even with power mode on the note seemed to drop much faster doing the same things I did on the iphone. Texting, playing a few games, facebook, and playing around. I could do all that and finish my day at 60%+ in normal battery mode on thee 6+. I get to the end of the day and have to plug in the note. iOS with its optimized software and hardware wins here.
Overall- I stand by what I said before. Neither phone is “better” than the other per se in this case. They are both amazing phones with great options. It comes down to preference. If you want to customize the crap out of your phone, the Note is the way to go, if you want something simple then get an iPhone. Both phones work great. Both make calls, play games, send texts, let me browse the web and more.
We also ordered Friday morning. Also just got confirmation email. Still no shipment email. It doesn't come with an order number or anything so I don't know how to contact them. Anyone besides the OP get their phone?