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Samsung Galaxy NOTE 10.1 hands on

UPDATE: I had to take the videos down for the moment at Samsung's request. There is information that they are about to change some design features and specs, but I don't know when and what exactly. I'm sorry for the situation, but I assure you I'll post them back as soon as I get word of it! Thank you for your interest and patience
I've had the chance to play around with the Note 10.1, that's the tablet with the S Pen. The reason they've delayed the release is that they've changed it dramatically since the preview at the MWC. It now has a 1.4GHz quadcore processor (I think it's the Exynos on the SIII), a 5 MP camera (instead of the 3.15) and the back got a hyperglazed finish just as the SIII. I've had the pebble blue one and I'm not sure if there is a marble white one.
The S Pen is much bigger than the Note 5.3 (looks EXACTLY the same), but smaller than the model shown at the MWC and it now fits inside a vertical hole in the lower left side. An amazing software feature is the Photoshop Touch app which is brilliant (as you may see in my video).
Here are my videos:
Short hands on presentation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eueOIjW5cIo
S Pen and Photoshop Touch review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0b0SRT_D74
It's an astonishing device, clearly stepping way higher in the high end line and it works like a charm. If you have questions feel free to ask, but unfortunately I no longer have it to do extra demos.

Which is the resolution? Still stuck at that 1280x800??

Yes, but I had no problem with it. At 150 ppi it's quite ok in my opinion.

If the resolution will be the same it will not compete with the ipad and will not sell well and i will not buy it either.

Thanks for the videos! This is a first day purchase for me. Any news on the release date?

Even 1920x1080 are too low for a 10.1. To compete with ipad visual quality they can barely put this resolution into a 8.9, but for a 10.1... no way it's too low.
Omg, Samsung is fond of low ppi especially if fullRGB, yes it's cheaper to build but OMG!

Unfortunately I have no such info, but given the fact that *I* (not some hotshot official) had access to one, it can't be far.

zooster said:
Even 1920x1080 are too low for a 10.1. To compete with ipad visual quality they can barely put this resolution into a 8.9, but for a 10.1... no way it's too low.
Omg, Samsung is fond of low ppi especially if fullRGB, yes it's cheaper to build but OMG!
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BS.
1920x1080 is normal-sized monitor HD resolution, to say it's too low for a 10.1" screen is beyond ridiculous.
iPhone's "Retina" resolution is completely worthless on a useless 3.5", iPad's "Retina" display is overkill. The higher the resolution the better... up to a point.
Beyond that you are just paying a weight and power consumption (and also brightness in the case of the Ipad) penalty without getting your worth (the higher the resolutions the less your eye is able to see the difference).
Full HD resolution on a 10.1" would be ideal.
P.S. "Samsung is fond of low ppi"??
The Galaxy Tab 10.1's PPI is over 10% higher than the iPad2's.

Great. Thanks for the videos. I really look forward to a launch. Hopefully very soon. I aim for this to be my note-taken tool at work. I hope it will live up to that and be usefull. (Not hand click when using the pen etc.).

xdapao3 said:
BS.
1920x1080 is normal-sized monitor HD resolution, to say it's too low for a 10.1" screen is beyond ridiculous.
iPhone's "Retina" resolution is completely worthless on a useless 3.5", iPad's "Retina" display is overkill. The higher the resolution the better... up to a point.
Beyond that you are just paying a weight and power consumption (and also brightness in the case of the Ipad) penalty without getting your worth (the higher the resolutions the less your eye is able to see the difference).
Full HD resolution on a 10.1" would be ideal.
P.S. "Samsung is fond of low ppi"??
The Galaxy Tab 10.1's PPI is over 10% higher than the iPad2's.
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Normal sized monitor is not meant to be used as close as a tablet.
The closer a device is used the higher the ppi should be. For a smartphone pixels start beeing unnoticeable from 320-330ppi. Actually the best job is made by lg with 1280x720 on a 4.3" and 342ppi, higher than apple.
The tablet is meant to be used less close than a phone, so the ppi can be lower, around 250... the value adopted by apple in ipad3.
So for an optimal view the ppi has to be higher. 1280x800 on a 10.1 does mean a too low ppi (maybe not for a monitor, but surely for a tablet).
And yes, I confirm that samsung is fond of low ppi devices. You tell me the higest ppi of a fullRGB display of a Samsung device. FullRGB only, because the pentile matrix trash doesn't worth any talk, you know that at ppi being equal the visual quality of a pentile is much lower due to less subpixels, so i.e. the actual ppi of a 300ppi samoled hd is around 250, but this is something already well known.

Do you have any information about battery life?

i'm thinking about buying a tablet .. and i was comparing between this one and the galaxy tab 2 10.1 .. i'm going to buy it for college use .. to be honest .. i haven't had any tablet before .. it's my first .. and i want recommendations .. which one should i buy .. galaxy note 10.1 or tab 10.1 or go for an ipad 3 ?

AmrEl-Shazly said:
i'm thinking about buying a tablet .. and i was comparing between this one and the galaxy tab 2 10.1 .. i'm going to buy it for college use .. to be honest .. i haven't had any tablet before .. it's my first .. and i want recommendations .. which one should i buy .. galaxy note 10.1 or tab 10.1 or go for an ipad 3 ?
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The tab 2 10.1 is painfully slow. It's disappointing because it could have been a much better option if they had just put in a better processor (I know the tablet is supposed to be entry level, but the year-old exynos from the s2 would have been better). I'm not a huge gamer, but I do want a tablet that runs without much lag out of the box. I also want to play HD video files without frame skipping and the tab 2 10.1 isn't very good for this either.
As far as the other 2, it depends on you. The new ipad is nice. It's fast and has a fantastic display. My brother in law has one and absolutely loves it.
Personally, I usually gravitate towards android (and samsung). The note 10.1 doesn't have the PPI of the ipad, but it can fully display 720p hd video which is good enough for me. The screen is also a little bigger (than the ipad). Memory expansion is nice through microsd and the US version should have the IR blaster to use as a universal remote. The potential of using the s-pen for note taking and drawing is also a big plus for me. The quad core processor should also be able to handle just about whatever you throw at it (at least for a couple of years).

I wish the resolution was higher. I hate the display on my Tab 10.1, there's a distinct lack of clarity.

Probably gonna exchange my tab10.1 for the Note10.1
Hope it will launch soon, any rumours on that subject?
Sent from my GT-P3110 using xda premium

That ppi is still ridiculous. Either they increase it till around 250, or sammy will get only low end customers.
But since they still use that crappy ppi on high end smartphones, I guess they are not able to increase the ppi in a tablet.

How close do you hold a tablet? How far do you sit from a monitor? For me it's only a few inches difference in usage? i sit approx arms length away from my monitors and hold my tablet only a few inches closer than that (arms slightly bent)

jaaka78 said:
The tab 2 10.1 is painfully slow. It's disappointing because it could have been a much better option if they had just put in a better processor (I know the tablet is supposed to be entry level, but the year-old exynos from the s2 would have been better). I'm not a huge gamer, but I do want a tablet that runs without much lag out of the box. I also want to play HD video files without frame skipping and the tab 2 10.1 isn't very good for this either.
As far as the other 2, it depends on you. The new ipad is nice. It's fast and has a fantastic display. My brother in law has one and absolutely loves it.
Personally, I usually gravitate towards android (and samsung). The note 10.1 doesn't have the PPI of the ipad, but it can fully display 720p hd video which is good enough for me. The screen is also a little bigger (than the ipad). Memory expansion is nice through microsd and the US version should have the IR blaster to use as a universal remote. The potential of using the s-pen for note taking and drawing is also a big plus for me. The quad core processor should also be able to handle just about whatever you throw at it (at least for a couple of years).
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Click to collapse
well then the tab 2 10.1 is out of the race .. now the iPad 3 And The Note 10.1 .. so your recommendation is to have the note 10.1 right?

That's what I'm going with, but i don't think there's really a wrong choice
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium

I'm amused by all the comments linking the tablet to the low end of the market simply due to the low ppi. Clearly, everyone has different requirements out of a device. By putting a stylus on a 10" tablet, Samsung attained my personal "Shut up and take my money!" threshold. **** PPI, do you know how incredibly, mind blowingly useful a stylus is? As soon as I can figure out where to buy this thing, I'm buying it. I've been begging for a full sized tablet with a stylus ever since the original Note came out. This is my actual dream come true.

Consumer Reports scores GNote as high as iPad 3.

This post is not to start a pointless "GNote is better than iPad" flame war. For what it intends to do, the iPad is an excellent product. Until I got my GNote, I was jealous of my wife's iPad 3 (maybe that's partially because I had a Thinkpad Tablet... fellow TPT owners will understand, ha ha).
I'm offering this against the myriad of scathingly bad reviews of the GNote, many of them from arguably pro-Apple sites. Consumer Reports prides itself on being an independent consumer research agency. As most of you probably know, they accept no promotional considerations for any product they test. Each review is based upon a unit/item which their staff bought 'off the shelf' at a local or online retailer, not a free unit from the vendor. And they do not sell ads, again to avoid any influence on their ratings.
So, if you want to reference a very good review for your GNote from an organization which has good credibility, here your are...
In their review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1, Consumer Reports scores the GNote as an overall 83 points out of 100, the same as the iPad 3. It is the first tablet to equal the iPad in their reports.
In the overall scoring categories of portability, ease of use, versatility, touch response, and size, the GNote and iPad were rated equivalently as 'excellent' or 'very good' in each case. Only in display rating did the iPad best the GNote, with a mark of 'excellent' to the GNote's 'very good.'
The only con ("Low") they noted was that at $500, it is at the more expensive end of the scale.
Here is the URL for the review, but you may need to login as a subscriber to access the full review. I've pasted the text from the review below the link. I've also attached a screenshot of their side-by-side scoring of the GNote vs. the iPad.
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/...ung-galaxy-note-10-1-wi-fi-16-gb-99046807.htm
Consumer Reports members-restricted content said:
Reviews & Recommended - Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (Wi-Fi, 16 GB)
CR's Take
The Galaxy Note 10.1 is very innovative and fun to use. It comes with a stylus, recognizes handwriting, and can multitask, unlike other tablets. But because some of its most useful apps aren't very intuitive, expect to spend a good amount of time getting up to speed. Battery life was very long.
Highs
• 1.4 GHz 4-core processor
• Battery life longer than most
• Very good display quality
• Screen coating reduces fingerprints and makes cleaning easier.
• Voice-typing feature
• Keyboard can use "Swype" entry method
• Can be a remote control for TVs or other A-V devices
• GPS mapping
• 5-megapixel camera, higher resolution than most
• Screen uses high-durability "Gorilla glass"
• File manager preinstalled
• Full access to the Google app market
• Photos can fill entire screen height
Lows
• At $500, relatively expensive
Detailed test results
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (Wi-Fi, 16 GB) was easy to use for a wide variety of functions. It was easy to move from screen to screen using finger swipes, and to move app icons among screens. Samsung includes an enhanced user-interface. Home screens have useful custom widgets. The on-screen keyboard may be used in "Swype" mode to type by sliding between letters.
Photos can be displayed full height without interference from the navigation bar. Turning from portrait to landscape while reading a book worked well. A voice-typing feature lets you dictate emails and text documents. You can sync and transfer files to and from a PC using USB. A built-in file manager app makes it easy to transfer files from a memory card.
The display quality was very good overall. Colors were accurately reproduced, realistic, and natural-looking because they were undersaturated. The screen was among the brightest we've measured and readability in sunlight was good. Viewing angle was quite wide in landscape orientation, making it easy to view photos or video with another person. Viewing angle was quite wide in portrait orientation, making it easy to share the screen with another person.
Touch response was excellent. The capacitive touchscreen responds to a light finger touch, and allows multiple fingers to perform gesture actions. Moving objects and using finger gestures is easy and precise. Icons were easy to move and place precisely. A special coating on the screen resists fingerprints and makes cleaning easier.
This tablet has a very good set of useful features that make it convenient and versatile to use - see the "About" section for more details. There is full access to the Google app market, with a large and varied selection of apps. There is also access to a large media market through Google, for downloading movies, music and books. The tablet can send pictures, video and music to another "DLNA" (Digital Living Network Alliance) capable home entertainment device, such as a TV. You can program the tablet to act as a remote control for home entertainment products like TVs and receivers.
There are a variety of sensors to provide positional and environmental info to apps and games. These include a global positioning system (GPS) receiver to locate the user geographically and allow the use of navigation apps, an accelerometer to give motion feedback to apps, a gyroscope to give rotational feedback to apps, a magnetic compass to give directional feedback, and an ambient light sensor to reduce the screen brightness to extend battery time. There's a stylus included to enable handwriting, precise drawing, or using the tablet with gloves.
This is among the most portable tablets in the 9- to 12-inch category. Its battery life of 11.1 hours lets you use it all day without recharging. It's very slim and compact for its screen size, and at 1.3 pounds, it's a very lightweight tablet for its size.
About - Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (Wi-Fi, 16 GB)
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (Wi-Fi, 16 GB) is a larger tablet computer with a 10.1-inch screen. It has a screen resolution of 1280 x 800, which is typical for its size. The rectangular screen is a better shape for videos than for photos, and it utilizes toughened Gorilla Glass for durability.
The tablet has a 1.4 GHz Samsung Exynos processor with 4 cores. It runs on the Android 4 operating system. It has 2GB memory and is available with 16 or 32GB storage. You can add an Micro SD memory card for more storage.
There is a headphone jack with a volume control, a built-in microphone, and stereo speakers. Internet connectivity is via Wi-Fi. It has a 1.9-megapixel webcam, and a 5-megapixel camera with a flash.
The tablet measures 10.3 inches long by 7.1 inches wide by 0.37 inches thick, and weighs 1.3 pounds.
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jchammerpants said:
This post is not to start a pointless "GNote is better than iPad" flame war. For what it intends to do, the iPad is an excellent product. Until I got my GNote, I was jealous of my wife's iPad 3 (maybe that's partially because I had a Thinkpad Tablet... fellow TPT owners will understand, ha ha)....
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Click to collapse
Yes my dear fellow, I do understand you very well, me too .
Actually Samy should pay to Lenovo for encouraging us TPT owners (by bad Android implementation) to buy GNote 10.1. Or at least to make some "switch" advertising, would be very funny.

I love the SGN10.1 from a hardware standpoint; however, much of their software (S-Note I am looking at you), doesn't seem well-thought through and half-done. Hopefully the JB OTA will improve upon this.
I suppose my biggest issue is that the things which would make S-Note truly amazing are not revolutionary or dramatic. They simply need to implement features already found in competing products as well as a few new ideas.

jchammerpants said:
I'm offering this against the myriad of scathingly bad reviews of the GNote, many of them from arguably pro-Apple sites.
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Click to collapse
The difference is that CR views things from a populist perspective. The tech media are snobs and think the masses make decisions based on CPU, GPU, and benchmarks. You'll notice CR used adjectives rather than benchmarks to describe performance. The Note's an all-around great tablet and the S-features provide a lot of real-world benefits and improve usability. When talking to non-techie's about which tablet to buy I say many of the same things to them CR wrote. And while not FHD, the Note's display is the best I've ever seen on a 10' tablet when it comes to color reproduction and accuracy. And that includes the TF700's higher res display.

I'm really getting tired of the price/value double standard that gets used by reviewers.
The cheapest current generation iPad is 16GB for $499. You can get last year's model for $399 - but you can also get a Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 for $399...
The Note 10.1 is $549 ($499 in Canada) and has 32GB of storage, which would cost $599.
Yet, for some reason, if any tablet OTHER than the iPad comes in at $500... it's too expensive. You never hear anyone call the iPad 'too expensive'.
Retina display? Fair enough - Note has Wacom digitiser.
In every other way the Note meets or exceeds the iPad's specs.
Simply put, the Note 10.1 is a better VALUE at a comparablet price than the iPad.

wolfindersteppe said:
Yes my dear fellow, I do understand you very well, me too .
Actually Samy should pay to Lenovo for encouraging us TPT owners (by bad Android implementation) to buy GNote 10.1. Or at least to make some "switch" advertising, would be very funny.
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Click to collapse
:laugh: So true.

Really contemplating between Optimus G Pro and HTC One

Hi everyone,
I recently purchased the Optimus G Pro, and am really enjoying using it. The screen is gorgeous, with high PPI, and it's 5.5" in size, which makes my gaming experience that much greater. Having come from the Iphone 5, I am really happy with the screen, customizability etc... I also like the fact that you can install custom roms on Android devices, albeit not the G Pro.
Anyways, my dilemma is that I really want to get the HTC One, but can't justify spending an extra $2-300 to upgrade from my G Pro (In Korea, used G pro's are about $2-300 cheaper than HTC On'es).
In my opinion, the following are some pros and cons of moving to the One, can anyone add any other points?
PROS:
custom roms! (really big in my book)
higher PPI (I am all about HD)
really nice camera
awesome design, and not too big
CONS:
smaller screen
higher PPI, but lower megapixels (or ultrapixels i should say), resulting in lower HD video recording quality
phone gets hot under heavy use? Can someone provide more detail about this?
no physical home button (I like physical buttons, in my opinion they are MUCH less finicky than soft keys)
no DMB (DMB is a free TV broadcasting system in Korea, that is equipped with most cellphones)
Thanks!
John

Ok well it's up to what you really want in your smartphone. But the HD recording in the HTC is excellent, probably better than the g pro because they both capture 1080p video so same resolution but bigger pixels = more light, better night preformance, HDR video etc. make it superior.It does get hot, as it's aluminum body conducts heat but never worryingly so. Also any difference in ppi doesn't really matter as at that level it's just a placebo if you notice a big improvement. Sense vs LGs monstrosity is your call though. Also I don't know what the pros battery life is but take that into account too. Hope I helped
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app

I had a Pro for some time. I personally couldn't handle the damn thing. It was far to awkward to use and the LG software is hideous. The one surpasses it IMHO. Remember, it's what I felt but everyone will think differently.
Sent from my One using xda app-developers app

The higher PPi won't really make much of a difference. In my opinion the Optimus makes better use of the Full HD screen. On 4.7inches its hard to notice the difference between a 720 and a 1080p screen.
Sent from my HTC One using xda premium

Phone comparison threads are not allowed. Closed.

I can't believe people complain about the resolution

In the Note 10.1 (2014) forum as well as a few other 10" tablet forums people complain about the fact the resolution on the 12.2 is the same as on 10.1" devices. I hadn't really thought much about it until tonight. I was sitting at my desktop which is a dual monitor setup. Desktop is a 27" iMac with a resolution of 2560x1440 and a gorgeous 27" widescreen Samsung monitor at it's max resolution of 1920x1080.
A pair of 27" monitors, one which lets me do very detailed pixel peeping in photoshop (iMac), and another which is so crisp and stunning, and still with very easy to read text (The Sammy). Neither of these 27" beautiful screens has as many pixels as our lil' tablet. I don't want this to be a debate regarding PenTile as that is not the point. Just saying that the resolution on my Note Pro blows away every desktop and laptop (as well as other tablets) I own.
Sent from my SM-P900 using Tapatalk

wingdo said:
In the Note 10.1 (2014) forum as well as a few other 10" tablet forums people complain about the fact the resolution on the 12.2 is the same as on 10.1" devices. I hadn't really thought much about it until tonight. I was sitting at my desktop which is a dual monitor setup. Desktop is a 27" iMac with a resolution of 2560x1440 and a gorgeous 27" widescreen Samsung monitor at it's max resolution of 1920x1080.
A pair of 27" monitors, one which lets me do very detailed pixel peeping in photoshop (iMac), and another which is so crisp and stunning, and still with very easy to read text (The Sammy). Neither of these 27" beautiful screens has as many pixels as our lil' tablet. I don't want this to be a debate regarding PenTile as that is not the point. Just saying that the resolution on my Note Pro blows away every desktop and laptop (as well as other tablets) I own.
Sent from my SM-P900 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
People will complain about anything. Can't make everyone happy and some people think specs are more important then real world results. too bad for them. Love this tablet and couldn't imagine going back to a little 10 inch!

Yep. My beautiful full hd 60 inch tv is only 48 ppi and 1920x1080 pixels. Never complain
Sent from my SCH-I605 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Supposely, Apple will release a Macbook Air 12 inch with "Retina" display. When I checked the resolution, it's the same as our Note Pro 12.2.
Samsung marketing department should have named our tablet the Galaxy Note 12.2 Retina LOL.

My 12.5" 1920x1080 laptop looks much sharper. My 12.2 is noticeably jagged at closer viewing distances, even on straight lines like the light brown line surrounding this reply box on XDA.
PenTile is the reason. I would much prefer a 1920x1200 RGB stripe screen over a 2560x1600 PenTile screen.

I have note pro p-901 and my wife has note 2014 p-601. Both of them have great resolution which is better than any laptop I have used...
And of course better resolution than Ipad air with retina display (my ex-tab)....
I like sammy tablets and I think Tab-S has a brilliant sharper screen than Note Pro...

I used to be very very worrying about the resolutions before I purchased this device. After I bought it, I have been satisfied with the resolutions.

With people having 2k res smart phones it seems the world is about numbers rather then immersion any more. I don't get also. I love the screen on this bad boy. I never understood the rat race on numbers and packing as many pixels into a small screen as possible. When will it get to a point of crazy, as in you wont be able to see the difference with the human eye..
Well by that time we will have robotic eyes and then complain that the screen in our new robo eyes are are not as pixel dense as the ones the billionairs have. :cyclops:
Now I do like bright colors alot so I love the look of samsungs s5 screen.. Over saturated colors are great to look at imo. Though 2k Samoled screen vs 1080p Samoled screen I prob wont really see the hype.. I will focus on the colors.

same here. The resolution is already insane. Could it be better? Obviously. But no way I am going to ***** about this.

I ran a showing of The Hobbit 2 in 2K on both this tab and the newest iPad.
I have converted 14 long-time Apple fans in 4 minutes. Says it all, I believe.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk 2

ShadowLea said:
I ran a showing of The Hobbit 2 in 2K on both this tab and the newest iPad.
I have converted 14 long-time Apple fans in 4 minutes. Says it all, I believe.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4 mins? A 2k trailer or what? Link please, my dad has the air and I'd love to fully blow him away once and for all
Sent from my SM-G900T using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

ChironexFleckeri said:
I never understood the rat race on numbers and packing as many pixels into a small screen as possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would you be happy if the screen was 1280x800?
Put the Note 12.2's 2560x1600 screen next to a 12.5" laptop's 1920x1080 screen, display the same small text like on a website or document and see if you can tell the difference. It's not the resolution that's the problem, it's the pentile layout that makes it look jagged.
When will it get to a point of crazy, as in you wont be able to see the difference with the human eye..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You really can't see the pixelation caused by the pentile layout? I can clearly see it on smaller text at normal viewing distances.
Just because your eyes can't see them doesn't mean it doesn't exist.
You might find this research paper interesting too:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jsid.186/abstract

Master Ramy said:
4 mins? A 2k trailer or what? Link please, my dad has the air and I'd love to fully blow him away once and for all
Sent from my SM-G900T using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wasn't an online vid, I had the file on my SD. Sorry. But you can usually find the high-res trailers at (ironically) trailers.apple.com.

Nexus 6 vs The Competition

Great article on AA showing the differences between the Nexus 6 and other devices in the phablet category.
To sum it up:
- The Nexus 6 has a great display to body ratio. It's only (slightly) beat by the LG G3 and Huawei Ascend Mate 7.
- The Nexus 6, as you probably know by now, has the top-of-the-line specs. Nothing really compares with it except the Note 4, which has similar specs.
- The Nexus 6 is slightly bigger than the Note 4 (Differences in mm: 5.8 x 4.4 x 1.5) but manages to fit in a display that is .26 inches larger and front facing stereo speakers.
I would probably say that the Nexus 6's biggest competitor is the OnePlus One. It offers high-end specs, not quite as high-end as the Note 4 but the differences are negligible. Granted, the Nexus 6 has a more premium build (in my opinion), OIS and is launching with Android L as opposed to waiting more than three months until the OnePlus One receives the L update. Furthermore, the Nexus 6 is going to be on more carriers, will probably have much better customer service, is easily available (once it's actually released) and hopefully won't be riddled with the bugs.
However, the Nexus 6 is twice as much as the OPO - $350 as opposed to $700 for the same amount of storage. Money talks...
Now the real question: The other flagships that are being compared to the Nexus 6 all offer something additional. For example, the Note 4 has an SPen and the Mate 7 also has a fingerprint sensor. The LG G3 and Note 4 both have removable battery, microsd support and multi-window modes. Are you willing to compromise these extra features to have stock android?
Source: AndroidAuthority

No fingerprint scanner is a bummer. I use corporate email on my Nexus 5 and the compliance software makes me have a lockscreen password which is a PITA. No patterns are allowed. iPhone 6 and 5S users can use the fingerprint scanner to bypass the password.

I'm considering the N6 as an upgrade from my much beloved N5, but there's two things that I need to see from the N6 before making the purchase.
#1- The amoled display. Recent offerings from Motorola have had 'middle of the road' amoled screens when compared to Samsung's recent amoled displays (Comparing the Moto X 2014 to a SGS5 or Note 4). If that big amoled is sub-par, I will pass.
#2- The camera. Again, this is the track record of the Nexus line having a less than favorable camera when compared to competing phones. I'm also not sold on the dual ring led flash right around the sensor (it creates red eye if you are shooting people - seen on the Moto X 2014)
What's weird is that when compared to the Note 4 $100 more out of pocket ($649 for 32gb N6 and $749 for 32gb Note 4 - basing pricing from T-Mobile) really does get you quite a bit more.
(Perhaps) better display (more color accurate/brighter)
Better camera (16mp vs 13mp) and better ff (2.0mp vs 3.7mp) camera - I know, it's not all about the mp, but the Note 4's camera has received a lot of praise for shooting in all lighting conditions
S Pen
MicroSD/removable battery (extends device life)
IR blaster
Fingerprint scanner
The decision isn't as easy as it was with getting the N5. It's not the size, it's the price. I just can't stand Samsung and Touchwiz, and with the N6 getting Wifi Calling for T-Mobile... Ugh. If the display and or the camera turn out to be disappointing perhaps I will sit this round and wait for the first 64 bit nexus phone next year.

Poor Graphics on Nexus 6?
Hi, I recently read a troubling article from appleinsider that claims that Nexus 6 graphics performance is sub-par (and Note 4) compared to Apple iPhone 6 Plus.
Because of the source, I am taking this with a pinch of salt. I want to get a new device as my HTC Sensation XE is more than two years old, but, graphics (OpenGL 3) are an important point for me and I will probably get Nexus 9 + OPO/Xiaomi (which may have better graphics, due to smaller screen) if this is indeed the case. By graphics, I mean gaming, like, Modern Combat 5.
Can anyone elaborate on this?

Far_SighT said:
Hi, I recently read a troubling article from appleinsider that claims that Nexus 6 graphics performance is sub-par (and Note 4) compared to Apple iPhone 6 Plus.
Because of the source, I am taking this with a pinch of salt. I want to get a new device as my HTC Sensation XE is more than two years old, but, graphics (OpenGL 3) are an important point for me and I will probably get Nexus 9 + OPO/Xiaomi (which may have better graphics, due to smaller screen) if this is indeed the case. By graphics, I mean gaming, like, Modern Combat 5.
Can anyone elaborate on this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All appleinsider did there was read a benchmark result
Turns out from the note 4 reviews that it handles games beautifully

italia0101 said:
All appleinsider did there was read a benchmark result
Turns out from the note 4 reviews that it handles games beautifully
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you please add any benchmarks (FPS preferably) that corroborate this (I mean 30 fps is beautiful, but 50+ fps is what I would expect from a flagship)?

Far_SighT said:
Can you please add any benchmarks (FPS preferably) that corroborate this (I mean 30 fps is beautiful, but 50+ fps is what I would expect from a flagship)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well for example gfx benchmark (onscreen) manhatten , pre release benchmark
Nexus 6 :11.6 fps (2560x1440)
Note 4 :11.1 (2560x1440)
Iphone 6+: 18.4 fps (1920 x 1080)
Obviously these benchmarks are much more stressful than actual games... As I said from 3-4 note reviews I've seen they mention the gaming performance to be excellent with every game they threw at it

italia0101 said:
Well for example gfx benchmark (onscreen) manhatten , pre release benchmark
Nexus 6 :11.6 fps (2560x1440)
Note 4 :11.1 (2560x1440)
Iphone 6+: 18.4 fps (1920 x 1080)
Obviously these benchmarks are much more stressful than actual games... As I said from 3-4 note reviews I've seen they mention the gaming performance to be excellent with every game they threw at it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! I will wait for a more thorough review when Nexus 6 comes out. I will probably get a Nexus 9 now as I don't have any tablet, and the 192 core kepler is built for graphics!

italia0101 said:
Well for example gfx benchmark (onscreen) manhatten , pre release benchmark
Nexus 6 :11.6 fps (2560x1440)
Note 4 :11.1 (2560x1440)
Iphone 6+: 18.4 fps (1920 x 1080)
Obviously these benchmarks are much more stressful than actual games... As I said from 3-4 note reviews I've seen they mention the gaming performance to be excellent with every game they threw at it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note the difference in display resolution. If you've ever done PC benchmarking, you'll know that plays a huge difference....

Luxferro said:
Note the difference in display resolution. If you've ever done PC benchmarking, you'll know that plays a huge difference....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Without a doubt, that's why I thought I'd better list them, good thing a lot of Android games give us a resolution slider

Far_SighT said:
Hi, I recently read a troubling article from appleinsider that claims that Nexus 6 graphics performance is sub-par (and Note 4) compared to Apple iPhone 6 Plus.
Because of the source, I am taking this with a pinch of salt. I want to get a new device as my HTC Sensation XE is more than two years old, but, graphics (OpenGL 3) are an important point for me and I will probably get Nexus 9 + OPO/Xiaomi (which may have better graphics, due to smaller screen) if this is indeed the case. By graphics, I mean gaming, like, Modern Combat 5.
Can anyone elaborate on this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No Android phone can top the iPhone when it comes to gaming. That's the primary reason why I always have an iPhone as well as Android. Playing the same game on my iPhone 6 and my Nexus 5, they always look and run better on the iPhone. Take a benchmark game like MC5- on Android a lot of the effects are turned off and it still runs better on the iPhone. Even the 5s had better gaming/graphics performance than the N5. I'd imagine it'll be the same thing with the N6.
Sent from my iPhone 6 using Tapatalk

Far_SighT said:
Hi, I recently read a troubling article from appleinsider that claims that Nexus 6 graphics performance is sub-par (and Note 4) compared to Apple iPhone 6 Plus.
Because of the source, I am taking this with a pinch of salt. I want to get a new device as my HTC Sensation XE is more than two years old, but, graphics (OpenGL 3) are an important point for me and I will probably get Nexus 9 + OPO/Xiaomi (which may have better graphics, due to smaller screen) if this is indeed the case. By graphics, I mean gaming, like, Modern Combat 5.
Can anyone elaborate on this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apple's A7 SOC (iphone 5S) dominated most every benchmark. The A8 (so we are calling. We don't know the actual name) which is in iPhone 6 & 6+ is just the next generation of the same chip. It does very well and again dominates the benchmarks.
That doesn't mean a snapdragon 805 isn't good. It just means (in benchmarks at least) the A8 is better. However, we all know synthetics don't necessarily relate to real world use.
Apple is designing custom ARM chips for their own software in a closed system. Advantage Apple.
http://anandtech.com/show/8613/the-samsung-galaxy-note-4-review
http://anandtech.com/show/8554/the-iphone-6-review
If you aren't reading anandtech reviews, you need to.

Also note that the N6 camera sensor is NOT THE SAME as Moto X 2014 camera.
N6 camera sensor is IMX 214, source: http://www.motorola.com/us/Nexus-6/nexus-6-motorola-us.html
This is the same camera sensor as One Plus One, source: https://forums.oneplus.net/threads/...mx214-6-lenses-and-low-light-performance.456/
Moto X 2014 camera sensor is IMX 135, source: http://www.phonearena.com/news/Moto...MX135-sensor-and-more-daytime-samples_id60299
However, the Note 4 is using newer camera sensor IMX 240, source: http://www.sammobile.com/2014/08/21...es-16mp-side-touch-wide-selfie-and-much-more/
So, the Nexus 6 camera should perform better than the Moto X 2014, while it might not be as good as Note 4, from sensor model perspective.
Then the deciding factor would be the camera "software"

agroan05 said:
Apple's A7 SOC (iphone 5S) dominated most every benchmark. The A8 (so we are calling. We don't know the actual name) which is in iPhone 6 & 6+ is just the next generation of the same chip. It does very well and again dominates the benchmarks.
That doesn't mean a snapdragon 805 isn't good. It just means (in benchmarks at least) the A8 is better. However, we all know synthetics don't necessarily relate to real world use.
Apple is designing custom ARM chips for their own software in a closed system. Advantage Apple.
http://anandtech.com/show/8613/the-samsung-galaxy-note-4-review
http://anandtech.com/show/8554/the-iphone-6-review
If you aren't reading anandtech reviews, you need to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. It seems N9 is the way to go for media consumption, considering it's GPU performance is the best available (afa i know). Besides, N6 price seems overkill to me. They could have stuck with 1080p. At 6 inches, I doubt anyone has the eyes to see the difference.

1080P 6in a foot away from your face, you may be able to tell. But I'd agree that the resolution is over kill. A silly decision. It's just a waste of performance and battery life to run quadHD.
I have committed to nexus for obvious reasons. There are things I get with the Nexus line I can't get anywhere else. I don't want a 6" phone. But it's the current nexus.
I'll wait for reviews to hit (mainly anandtech) and see if there are any glaring issues.
I love my nexus 5 so much I could use it for another year or until Ara hits. Only complaint is battery size.

_MetalHead_ said:
No Android phone can top the iPhone when it comes to gaming. That's the primary reason why I always have an iPhone as well as Android. Playing the same game on my iPhone 6 and my Nexus 5, they always look and run better on the iPhone. Take a benchmark game like MC5- on Android a lot of the effects are turned off and it still runs better on the iPhone. Even the 5s had better gaming/graphics performance than the N5. I'd imagine it'll be the same thing with the N6.
Sent from my iPhone 6 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
agroan05 said:
Apple's A7 SOC (iphone 5S) dominated most every benchmark. The A8 (so we are calling. We don't know the actual name) which is in iPhone 6 & 6+ is just the next generation of the same chip. It does very well and again dominates the benchmarks.
That doesn't mean a snapdragon 805 isn't good. It just means (in benchmarks at least) the A8 is better. However, we all know synthetics don't necessarily relate to real world use.
Apple is designing custom ARM chips for their own software in a closed system. Advantage Apple.
http://anandtech.com/show/8613/the-samsung-galaxy-note-4-review
http://anandtech.com/show/8554/the-iphone-6-review
If you aren't reading anandtech reviews, you need to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't compare GPU benchmarks done at much different resolutions. It has a huge difference on FPS.
To quote one of your links:
Once again, the Galaxy Note 4's GPU performance line up quite closely with what we expect from the Adreno 420. However, due to the higher 1440p resolution the performance improvements from the Adreno 420 are relatively small or none at all unless the application renders at 1080p.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't say their SoC dominates the 805 unless you do an apples to apples comparison using the same resolution. If you want to say the iPhone 6 performs better, than X you can. But you should note differences in resolution.

msal said:
I would probably say that the Nexus 6's biggest competitor is the OnePlus One. It offers high-end specs, not quite as high-end as the Note 4 but the differences are negligible. Granted, the Nexus 6 has a more premium build (in my opinion), OIS and is launching with Android L as opposed to waiting more than three months until the OnePlus One receives the L update. Furthermore, the Nexus 6 is going to be on more carriers, will probably have much better customer service, is easily available (once it's actually released) and hopefully won't be riddled with the bugs.]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the OnePlus One and the Moto X 2014, which is what the Nexus 6 design is based on.
The primary reason why I sold both of my OnePlus are:
-Design
-Signal/call quality.
The phone wasn't comfortable to use due to it's design. The signal quality simply wasn't as good. It take a while for me to drive to work and I tend to stream YouTube podcasts over LTE while driving, I didn't get very good LTE signal with the OPO so I had to use 3G most of the time, even then it wasn't as smooth experience as the Moto X 2013 and 2014.
The OnePlus is a great device for the money no doubt, but Motorola design is my favorite at this point, it's wasn't that much smaller than the OPO but it's so much more comfortable to hold and use. The OnePlus have this somewhat "sharp" edges and it wasn't comfortable in the pocket.
The Nexus 6 uses the same Sony sensor as the OPO, while some people didn't think highly of it, I personally got amazing results from it, especially if you know how to tune your shutter speed and ISO level. I love the 4K DCI recording on it too, which unfortunately will not be available on the Nexus 6.
Also you have to deal with yellow screen issue which I got, I had to put the phone under UV light to fix it, but it didn't completely remove it. And if you have issues and need to do an RMA, I heard the experience wasn't very good. Motorola have some complains too, but not the at the same level as OPO.
I like what OnePlus have to offer so I'll look forward to their next phone. But honestly, I already know that most likely it will also be based off whatever the next Oppo flagship phone is, except with corner cuts, and it's probably going to be very big with capacitive buttons, which is not for me. The Nexus 6 is too big for me too, but I'm mainly interested in it to use as a tablet and back up phone, not as my daily driver.

italia0101 said:
Well for example gfx benchmark (onscreen) manhatten , pre release benchmark
Nexus 6 :11.6 fps (2560x1440)
Note 4 :11.1 (2560x1440)
Iphone 6+: 18.4 fps (1920 x 1080)
Obviously these benchmarks are much more stressful than actual games... As I said from 3-4 note reviews I've seen they mention the gaming performance to be excellent with every game they threw at it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The N4 and N6 are running over 50% of the iPhone at a huge increase in pixels pushed......
They need to show apples and apples. If they all ran at 1080 the N4 and N6 would run circles around the iPhone 6

Luxferro said:
You can't compare GPU benchmarks done at much different resolutions. It has a huge difference on FPS.
To quote one of your links:
You can't say their SoC dominates the 805 unless you do an apples to apples comparison using the same resolution. If you want to say the iPhone 6 performs better, than X you can. But you should note differences in resolution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually maybe half of those GPU benchmarks are "off screen". Which should remove any resolution handicap.
However, you are right. I discussed the SOC's themselves and then switched to device performance.
But the A8 is a serious chip. It competes with and possibly beats the 805 outright even when resolution is taken out of the equation.

No mention of Droid Turbo/Moto X Play?
This is looking like it will be the spec king of 2014.
Same specs as N6, but smaller screen (5.2), bigger battery (3900mah), and better camera (21mp)