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To the owners, Is Note 10.1 worth buying?

To the owners, Is Note 10.1 worth buying?
Coming from SONY TABLET S !!!
Really didnt enjoyed good android experience on any of the tablets, do would u rate Note 10.1?
Why m hesitant is:
1. Nexus 7 price point
2. Love for Sony, Xperia Tablet coming
3. M'soft Surface, if priced well hell yeahh...
sent from seXperia S

xperiax10.awesome said:
To the owners, Is Note 10.1 worth buying?
Coming from SONY TABLET S !!!
Really didnt enjoyed good android experience on any of the tablets, do would u rate Note 10.1?
sent from seXperia S
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Since we bought it I would say we thought it was worth buying. I think the real question is do you think it is worth buying? That depends on what you plan to use it for.

Hell yes its worth buying to me. I would rate it a solid 8.75-9.0

I'm on a flight from Portland to Dallas writing this. I have the Note in portrait mode in multview connected to GoGo Wi-Fi. In the lower panel I have XDA open in a browser window and am watching a movie in the upper panel. No lag, no hiccups, pretty amazing.Try doing that on any other tablet. The guy sitting next to me (who's an ass) has an iPad and I can see him looking out of the corner of his eye in amazement. The more I use the Note the more impressed I am.

I am coming from TFP and it worth every penny.

Sony to Samsung
I was in the exact same boat as the OP. I had (still have) the Sony tablet and upgraded to the Samsung. Final verdict - Mixed bag.
The samsung is immediately and obviously faster than the Sony. The screen is of course slightly larger as is the tablet in general. The one thing you will be blown away by coming from the sony is the audio on the Note. The speakers are loud and placed directly on the front of the unit. I don't know if you are one of the people effected by the low audio problems with the Sony, but if you were you will be smiling from ear to ear.
As for all other aspects, the wifi signal strength is much improved, but the screen will be a mixed bag as well. While it is brighter, it will at first appear less crisp since it is essentially the same resolution of the Sony, but the Sony had those pixels squeezed into a smaller screen, so they were higher density. Does this cause any problems? Not in the least. The screen is still bright, crisp and easily viewed from a wide angle. I have read that Samsung "tweaked" the screen somehow so that it was not the same as every other screen out there in this resolution, and if so...it shows. Text is not as sharp as on the higher definition screens or the iPad, but it is sharper than it was on the Sony.
Web browsing is LEAGUES better than it was on the sony, and the apps that support the sPen are generally pretty decent. If you are using this for a multimedia device or games...look no further. The benchmarks for this tablet in those area are awesome. If you are a graphics artist or dabble in those things, the included photoshop is good, and I imagine will only get better with the first Samsung and Adobe updates.
Now the downsides...first, for the price, the screen really should have been better...but as I said, it's nowhere near being bad. The back of the unit is shiny plastic, so it's a fingerprint magnet...but it's upside is that since it's plastic, it has stronger wifi reception and gps. The pen that is included does NOT have the eraser you may have seen in some videos, but it does tuck away into the unit nicely and comes with several spare tips and a few varieties of them.
The biggest downside...and honestly for me it's 50/50. I started using my sony as a universal remote for every device in my home. The Samsung has such a remote, and in theory it should be FAR FAR better than the one on the sony....BUT...it only worked for the fist 30 minutes I set it up and never again. I searched online and only read more horror stories about that software (not the hardware...the note itself has no issues with its IR transmitter...only the included program). I updated the software and tried a thousand ways to fix this...but no joy. The built in software is supposed to not only control devices, but provide a visual guide of all the shows on TV, information about them, and learn your preferences much like a TIVO, but once it starts developing issues, they never seem to go away. But as with everything, YMMV, so take that with a grain of salt. I use ATT Uverse as my provider, so it may just be issues with them (although that would not seem to be the case online).
To sum it all up, I am happy with the purchase. At the moment, Amazon has a deal going on the 32GB version that is only $528 I believe, as opposed to the $549. The company providing it charges no taxes and only $8 shipping, so that's a HUGE savings. Would I purchase the unit again? Without hesitation. I picked mine up on the first day it was available, and only the 16gb version was available. I am planning on returning the 16gb and picking up the 32gb. So not only would I buy it again, but...I really am buying it again! LOL.
Hope that helped a little. If you have any questions, fire away

Totally
I had the tf300 and its not even close. The s pen is so useful and the software is much better than my last one. Highly recommended. I have not tried the tf700, but if outed like the tf300 this is the tab to beat.

As you already have a Sony tablet, I wouldn't buy the Note right now. Sony has their second attempt, Xperia Tablet, expected next month.
Wait and see how that plays out.

Hmmm, even the reviews are not very impressive considering the price tag..
sent from seXperia S

*Omnipresent* said:
Hell yes its worth buying to me. I would rate it a solid 8.75-9.0
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I really like my Note. IMO, If you're buying it for some reason other than the active digitzer + stylus combo, you've probably bought it for the wrong reason. If you buy this tablet, you're buying it for productivity.
I took mine with me to class today, was able to write some very solid looking notes quickly and easily, while simultaneously recording audio. It has a few cons, like the cameras occasionally being terrible, and the back being made of what feels like a cheap plastic, but as far as I'm concerned the pros (digitizer + stylus, side-by-side app viewing, quad-core Exynos beast + 2GB RAM for multitasking) outweigh the cons by far.
Hell, the only reason I ever bought either the iPad or iPad2 was that I had this hope that I could somehow find a good, accurate stylus that would let me take notes in class and ditch my paper-and-pen notebook. With the Note 10.1, I've found that tablet. I already love it more than I ever loved my iPad(s).
Did I mention it's great for note taking?! :silly:

Many of us bought this for the pen. In this aspect it's peerless. Combined with this, it's also very good in most other ways.
People are complaining that it should have a higher resolution screen, I disagree. Reason: My eyesight isn't all that great, and to me the difference is minimal, and I would rather have the quad horsepower dedicated to the pen, and other functions rather than screen real estate.
In a year or so, the higher resolution tablets will be standard, but until then i'd rather have it this way.
Whatever. :laugh: The point is: this tablet is fairly perfect for what I wanted: A pen interface, in the iPad/Galaxy format.

xperiax10.awesome said:
Hmmm, even the reviews are not very impressive considering the price tag..
sent from seXperia S
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I think it's really interesting how the "professional" reviews don't match up at all with the real world hands-on experiences of the people on the forums. The way I see it, I don't even bother with reading reviews anymore when you can get much more thorough and unbiased reviews from the good folks here on XDA.
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NessLookAlike said:
I really like my Note. IMO, If you're buying it for some reason other than the active digitzer + stylus combo, you've probably bought it for the wrong reason. If you buy this tablet, you're buying it for productivity.
I took mine with me to class today, was able to write some very solid looking notes quickly and easily, while simultaneously recording audio. It has a few cons, like the cameras occasionally being terrible, and the back being made of what feels like a cheap plastic, but as far as I'm concerned the pros (digitizer + stylus, side-by-side app viewing, quad-core Exynos beast + 2GB RAM for multitasking) outweigh the cons by far.
Hell, the only reason I ever bought either the iPad or iPad2 was that I had this hope that I could somehow find a good, accurate stylus that would let me take notes in class and ditch my paper-and-pen notebook. With the Note 10.1, I've found that tablet. I already love it more than I ever loved my iPad(s).
Did I mention it's great for note taking?! :silly:
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I'm considering the upgrade of my tab10.1 to the note to use it taking notes in my classes as well. How the palm rejection works when you touch the screen with the hand who is writing? And, maybe it is the response at the first question as well, can i disable all the touch input excepting the active digitalizer of the s-pen? It would be perfect to me in that case :cyclops:

aNard said:
I'm considering the upgrade of my tab10.1 to the note to use it taking notes in my classes as well. How the palm rejection works when you touch the screen with the hand who is writing? And, maybe it is the response at the first question as well, can i disable all the touch input excepting the active digitalizer of the s-pen? It would be perfect to me in that case :cyclops:
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Palm rejection is perfect, at least in the S Memo app that comes stock with the Note. Until other market apps are updated to support the Note, S Memi will probably be the one or two apps you'll want to use to take notes.. but it really is perfect. The app itself has a few quirks, but I'm sure they'll be ironed out over time. This morning when I was taking notes, it felt weird to leave my hand resting on the screen, and I was concerned my palm would get lots of grease on the screen -- but nope, everything was fine! It takes maybe 5 minutes to get used to. And yes, you can disable all touch input except the digitizer. There's a button for it in the note-taking app.
It really is that good for taking notes.

Thank you, I think you've settled the final word over my tablet upgrade with that post and your reassurances
Inviato dal mio Galaxy Nexus con Tapatalk 2

I didn't buy this for the pen.. I bought it cause it has the most powerful processor you can get in a tablet.
And that should last me quite awhile.

What is striking me as wierd is the mixture of reviews for the Note 10.1.
Gizmodo absolutely ripped into it and recommended against purchasing it while others seem to love it.

i the verge and gizmodo married they would make a new website called
ibiased.com
period.

It really comes down to what you want it for. I feel pretty sure they went with a less dense screen to improve speed, especially with the pen.
Browsing on this is as fast as with my laptop on Ethernet.
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habs101 said:
i the verge and gizmodo married they would make a new website called
ibiased.com
period.
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Agreed, cant they put their apple fanboy status aside.
Walt Mossberg I felt gave the note a very fair review. Given that he is an apple fanboy my opinion of him is even greater because the review was very objective.

Really Bad Review.

I was very impressed at the review posted on Android Police.
It's like they are reviewing a different tablet from the one I have.
It's a shame as people might be discouraged from buying a great product.
I personally wouldn't have bought it base on the article posted.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2012/0...iew-an-embarrassing-lazy-arrogant-money-grab/
My response (added to the comments on Android Police)
I do agree with some of the observations made by the reviewr.
However, I do like the tablet a lot, I really wasn't looking to buy a tablet when I drove to Bestbuy, but since my HTC flyer is not performing as it used to, and I love the pen, I decided to go with this one after testing it for a while.
And I have to say I like it, it's plenty fast, I do agree that the multi tasking is more a gimmick, but it's really not the reason why I bought it.
Something I do have to note, mine is not flexible at all, I was really amazed at your video. Mine will not flex or make any sounds. I does looks very plastic, but other than that I have nothing bad to say in regards to the built quality. I do miss the aluminum on my HTC flyer, but the overall construction of this device is really good.
I don't have misaligned issues or parts or corners that look out of place, it feels completely solid.
I guess that different people have different opinions and everyone has different needs or expectations for devices.
I do respect the point of view presented in this article, but also disagree with some of the observations.
I would recommend interested people to actually go and try it out yourself.
Also, something I did notice when I started playing with it, is that mine felt much more heavy compared to the one the Samsung representative had at Bestbuy.
The Samsung lady had a black one what felt surprisingly light, could it bee there is kind of a demo version?
Anyway, the only point I completely agree with reviewer is that the multitasking is only gimmick... other than that my experiences been completely different and I really love the tablet, its my first 10 inch, and my first Samsung tablet, before I had Dell, HTC, and I also own a Nexus 7.
I find the built of the Samsung to be vastly superior of that of the N7.

Read this one from GSMArena. Their very thorough as you'll see (it's 10 pages). I think a lot of reviewers are just assuming the Note's a standard G-Tab with a pen and not really spending the time to appreciate it how well it does the things tablets are primarily used for.
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_10_1-review-798.php

In all of those reviews I've been noticing that there are issues not present in retail models. I actually watched a 40min russian review on youtube and they found a lot of problems, including creaking, pen sensor not working correctly and so on. Otherwise, the review was very well done and I tend to trust the reviewer. My feeling is, some of these review units are dodgy, maybe preproduction units.

Yep I went on quite a rant in my response to the review on Android Police Google+ page. I really do not get all the negative reviews of this product.
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Thankful
I'm just thankful I bought this tablet before reading reviews.
It's fantastic, im thinking of selling my N7, which I also love.
And yes, I agree the are testing preproduction models.
I just hate that they are missleading people which might have bought it.
I haven't used my computer since I bought this beast, I'm having exactly the same internet experience as my pc.
Without the wait of coming up out if hibernation.

One thing that really annoys me about these reviews is their assumption that HD (Infinity) and QVGA (iPad) are the *norm* now. They aren't - the vast majority of tablets in the 10.1 inch size are still 1280x800.
The reviewer is also a bit confused on some key points.
1. The Note 10.1's battery life is actually not that great. It ranks in around 8.5hrs of continuous use on video loop at 50% brightness. The Prime gets 10.5hrs. It seems what that the Note 10.1 does get right is long standby times which is actually very useful since most of us tend to use tablets in 'bursty' ways - off most of the time, then use for a bit then off for a long time.
2. His complaint about the power cord must come from not realising that Galaxy Tabs (of which the Note is one) can use the same peripherals (mostly) including the synch cable. A little digging and he could find a 6' synch/charge cable.
3. I don't have my Note yet - should be here in a few days - but I've fondled a Tab 2 10.1 and the back felt pretty sturdy. As someone else noted, they may have gotten pre-release units. As for 'everyone using aluminum" not really true. Apple does. Asus does on the Prime and Infinity only - the TF300 doesn't. And aluminum on the Prime is why it sucked... it made the GPS unusable. As for the pen feeling like a hollow rod.. if they'd made it heavier - it would have made the tablet heavier.. and you know what his comment would have been then...
4. NFC. Seriously? The lack of NFC was one of his big buttons? I have NFC on my Galaxy Nexus and it's essentially useless. And not for trying. No one else has NFC, so 'bump' is pointless. I can't use it as a credit card replacement. I can't use it to replace my office ID card. I can't find TecTiles at any store - and no one carries any other kind of NFC tokens. I CAN use it to read my British passport, but that gets kind of dull after a while.
5. Camera. This is one of those 'no way to win' things. Yes, I'd be happier if the Note had a 8MP camera. Yet everyone seems to be happy with the Nexus 7 - which has NO back camera. The back camera for me will be mostly for quicky shots and barcoding. How good is it for that? Wellll.. the reviewer was so wrapped up in not looking bad that he couldn't bring himself to test the camera - which makes him a bad reviewer.
And gee - look - once again a reviewer forgets to test GPS, WiFi and BT.
Having come from the Asus Prime disaster - the fact that almost no one here so far has posted any serious issues with the Note 10 gives me confience that this will be a good tablet.

I couldn't stand reading THST android police article. I had to stop after a while. They don't know what the hell they talking about..lol. they seem very biased. I will admit the grey version doesn't look no where near as good as the white one. I agree with THST they likely received a prproduction unit. My plastic back doesn't flex or is wavy. Plus my device right out the box performed well. They went overboard on bashing this device.
I like ASUS and will say Samsung deserves more credit on this tablet. I'm glad I didn't read the reviews also. I just got it off of reading specs, Watching unboxing videos, and Samsung promo videos on it. Those were enough to catch my interest enough to try it out. A very pleasant experience being my first Samsung tablet I've ever used.
These reviewers are too stuck on ipad3 resolutions now. Now if a tablet doesn't have 1080P or better, they write the display off as subpar. 720P is good enough for me as this display isn't your run of the mill 1280x800 dpslay. They did something with it to make it look better than other tabs with same resolution. Maybe its the color reproduction or whatever but I know this display is one of the better ones I've seen. 720P movies and videos/you tube look great on it.

Going to post my response about this here.
crystalstylez said:
See this type of review makes me really angry. Its ok if a device really sucks but you can cleary tell this guy has a personal vendetta againsr samsung/Touchwiz. I feel if you dont like something then biased opinions should be left out ans they should not review the product. Samsung has been doing touchwiz for a while now ao what made him think that this tablet would come with stock ui. I don't agree with blogs using there popularity to trash a device. Seriously with the picture of the device in the trash. Go back to the laggy xoom.
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Hmmm.
None of samsung and apple devices disappointed me.
I want buy this because of bad review.
I want check it all by myself.

I seem to remember the Asus Transformer Prime getting excellent reviews when it first came out, go figure. One of the worst tablets I ever owned. :/
The Note 10.1 is the best performing Android tablet I've owned so far, no lag at all, everything is fluid.

When did 1080p on a tablet for android become normal?
acer and asus are there any more with that resolution? cause that article makes it seem that is the normal size lol what a boring read

jobryan26 said:
Yep I went on quite a rant in my response to the review on Android Police Google+ page. I really do not get all the negative reviews of this product.
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Haha, me too, I think I spent at least 4 hours today rebutting comments on the article, on Google+, and on reddit. Most reviews miss the point of the Note completely.
Honestly, I think we users of the Note should write our own reviews, especially focusing on how we find the S Pen useful. Like really, we should make an effort to write more balanced reviews of the device and post them on Google+, reddit, etc. and try to clear up some of the misconceptions.
Does anyone else's tablet creak, because mine certainly does not. And I have yet to experience any lag while writing whatsoever, it's as close to real time as I can discern. I also noticed that if you run javascript animations in the browser while multitasking with another app open, they continue in the browser, so it's not an illusion of multitasking by any means. I can even write, with no lag, in S Note, while animations run in the browser.
---------- Post added at 11:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:35 PM ----------
habs101 said:
When did 1080p on a tablet for android become normal?
acer and asus are there any more with that resolution? cause that article makes it seem that is the normal size lol
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To be fair, these are the only recent tablets that have come out for $500. I think the point is that at that price they expect a higher resolution, but it's like they expect the S Pen and digitizer to be free, which is incredibly naive.

I think it is good to have a bad review and a good one for the new buyers to find out whats really going on.
Re MSplit Screen
"It only works with the Browser, Polaris Office, S Note, Video Player, Gallery, Email, and that's it. None of those applications are really any good, and I would much rather use Chrome, Google Docs, YouTube, Google Talk, Twitter, and Gmail."
Its a shame to be honets.....it was the reason I wanted to but this tablet.
Do you think guys that custom Roms make it possible for Gmail, Chrome etc?

Same for this one from PC World Australia : (I cannot post direct links yet...)
pcworld.idg.com.au/article/434234/samsung_galaxy_note_10_1_android_tablet/
It seems that the guy who made this review didn't get ANY thing about this tab

qwerty1q said:
I think it is good to have a bad review and a good one for the new buyers to find out whats really going on.
Re MSplit Screen
"It only works with the Browser, Polaris Office, S Note, Video Player, Gallery, Email, and that's it. None of those applications are really any good, and I would much rather use Chrome, Google Docs, YouTube, Google Talk, Twitter, and Gmail."
Its a shame to be honets.....it was the reason I wanted to but this tablet.
Do you think guys that custom Roms make it possible for Gmail, Chrome etc?
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I think the point is that the review is bad in that it's incomplete and/or misguided and/or biased, not that it's a negative review. As in, the assessment is not accurate and thus should not be used as a recommendation for or against the device. That's how I feel, anyway.
It's currently not possible for other apps, and I doubt any implementation based on the Touchwiz implementation will happen (that's a crapton of smali hacking) but I have a feeling CM10 will actually incorporate some sort of multitasking, as Cyanogen himself stated that he wanted to incorporate Onskreen Cornerstone, or at least similar functionality, into CM9 way back in February.

qwerty1q said:
Do you think guys that custom Roms make it possible for Gmail, Chrome etc?
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Regarding split screen... just step back and think for a short moment... and you will understand that the custom rom developers would need to heavily modify Android itself.
The display of information on the screen is a core os function. Having more than one app simultanously using the screen requires changes in the Android core. Otherweise this featute will be limited to special versions of Android (like TouchWiz) and special app using it. These special version will delay Android updates as they need to be adapted to major Android releases until they work again.
Android was designed for small screens of smartphones controlled with fingers. Starting with HC on tablets, Google should have implemented this, but it obviously did not happen.
And the feature is rarely useable on a normal smartphone...

You mean the same guys who justified the 8GB in a Nexus7 WITHOUT micro-SD card slot:
http://www.androidpolice.com/2012/0...-expandable-storage-and-why-its-for-the-best/
Those guys are pure attention-grabbers. Just check the number of comments in that review and compare it against other reviews. They were also *****ing a lot about GS3 menu choice. This is like a bimbo threatening to run naked to grab your attention and get advertisement-clicks in his article.

As I recall the reviewers HATED the Note and it went on to record sales.
You have to undertstand that tech reviewers have a couple disadvantages. Quite often they are reviewing buggy pre-release hardware. Next they tend to be spec nerds. They focus more on pure specs than does the damn thing actually work for people.
Honestly who cares what they say? If I wanted an iPad I would have bought one. Face it, by this time next year everything that is awesome now will suck by comparison.
Sent from my awesome Note 10.1

The most shocking thing in those reviews is "oh, and it has an S Pen, you can take notes with it" like it was less important than for example number of megapixels in the rear camera. Even the positive reviews mostly ignore S Pen.

Actually, when reading the review - I didn't finish it though, too annoying - the picture of one of these little dogs that tend to bark at anybody and everything kept appearing in front of my inner eye ... this Amadeo guy must be one of these short people.
I couldn't care less for NFC. And resolution, oh my. Everything about this was already stated here. I care for the pen. And that works good enough

Why I chose the Galaxy Note... one mans journey

I had been in the market for a tablet for a few weeks, having not owned one before, I felt it was time to take the plunge. The main purpose was for evening internet browsing, maybe accompanied by a pint of beer. I'd previously purchased a galaxy Note phone for this very purpose, but I found even that was too much of a compromise screen wise, 5" just wasn't doing it for me, I had to go large. And if I had a tablet I could downgrade to a smaller size phone in future.
After extensive research on the net I narrowed the choice down. A 7” tab would be too small a leap in screen real estate for my needs, so the Nexus was ruled out, which left the front runner been the Transformer TF300, I though a keyboard would be nice for my very basic needs of Word and Excel, and of course it had the Tegra 3, which I had convinced myself I needed. I was aware the 300 could have a few ‘issues’ after reading the xda forums.
I resisted the urge to purchase as the Berlin IFA was about to commence, and Samsung and others would be releasing their latest tech there. Along comes the Note 10.1. And with that comes more frantic Googling for the latest internet reviews ( I ain’t gonna let go of £400 without knowing exactly what I’m buying!).
After reading the review at Android Police the Note seemed a pile of crap. A turd in the bath. A stink in a cesspool. However, my research goes further than that and I started reading user reviews and of course the review from Lisa Gade on youtube. All these seemed to counter what android Police had stated. With my head spinning I had to put some rational thought to my purchasing decision, and my thoughts were…
Do I need a keyboard – would be nice, but given my very limited use of work related stuff, and a large onscreen keyboard on tablets anyway, it would be possible to manage without, I shouldn’t compromise other factors just to have a keyboard.
Front facing stereo speakers – basic design principles tell me this is the way it should be done.
S pen – never really used it on my phone, but I was intrigued by the ‘hover’ function when viewing the web.
Charging cord – Another bummer mentioned at Android Police, its only 3 feet long, no way I could use the Note when its charging. Solution, charge it overnight.
Build quality – now that review at AP had a lot to say about flexing, squeaking and poor fitting. I saw the videos on that site and I agree with what the reviewer was showing us there. But I can only conclude that the unit he had must have been either pre production or had been subjected to some fairly vigorous tear downs.
I have my Note here and I must say it has very high build quality, absolutely no squeaking, all panels are flush fitting, and the only flex is right in the middle of the back panel, which incidentally is where I never hold it anyway. Also I’ve never had an issue with lightweight back panels, right from my first Samsung Galaxy phone. The technology is there to make things like that these days, it just makes sense, lightweight and no signal interference.
Tegra 3 – The reason I was after a Tegra device was so that I could ‘enter the tegra gaming zone’. It seems a nice place. But then again I don’t spend much of my life playing games and I can easily get my fix from whats available on Google Play.
Now that I have a Note I’m very happy in the knowledge that I have an even better processor, preloaded with masses of codec support and developed hand in hand with the Note to give a great browsing performance.
Cameras – I have no need for cameras on a tablet, waste of time. Oh hang on though, what have Samsung got here, this thing watches my eyes and doesn’t dim the screen unless I fall asleep, clever b******s.
GPS – I’ll only want this if I use Google Sky maps, I usually know where I am if I’m in my own house.
But it’s good to know that Glonass is included on the Note, another thumbs up in the high quality components list.
Audio quality. - Note has a Wolfson DAC. Nothing more to add here.
A note about resolution. One tablet I considered was the transformer Tf700 for its high res screen. Much talked about and much coveted. I wouldn’t turn it down. But when people are buying a tablet they need to consider what device they will be replacing. For me it will be primarily replacing my laptop, which has a 17” screen with a resolution of 1600 x 900. So just by downgrading to a 10” size screen with 1280 x 800 I’m getting higher res anyway, and given that it’s a PLS screen its higher quality to boot. So I’ve already gone ‘high res’ just by getting the note.
I’ve only wrote this review because I’m so impressed with my Note. I hope many others buy it and it gets the success it deserves.

Nice review, enjoyed reading it and hopefully teaches people not to be in haste at knocking a device without seeing real world usage user reports.
I think you have made a good choice and am happy that you are enjoying your note as it is out of the box, hopefully with the Jelly Bean update around the corner it will get even better.
Also love Lisa's reviews because her reviews do not seem to be biased unlike a number of other 'professional' reviewers.

same things i considered and bought note on its day of launch in india..
btw u forgot multiscreens and an extensive battery life
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Here's my bottom line. If I could have bought a 10.1 inch tablet with a 1920 x 1200 screen and a wacom digitizer and pen along with a 1.4 ghz quad core CPU and zero lag for $500 instead of this I would have.
Doesn't exist.
So I bought this.
** The problem I have with reviewers who have slammed this tablet is that they are comparing it either to tablets that do far less or simply do not and cannot exist at this price point. The lowest price for a pen based Windows RT tablet from Samsung will start at $150 more. And that will have worse dpi than this.
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mitchellvii said:
Here's my bottom line. If I could have bought a 10.1 inch tablet with a 1920 x 1200 screen and a wacom digitizer and pen along with a 1.4 ghz quad core CPU and zero lag for $500 instead of this I would have.
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Hehe, +1.
mitchellvii said:
Doesn't exist.
So I bought this.
** The problem I have with reviewers who have slammed this tablet is that they are comparing it either to tablets that do far less or simply do not and cannot exist at this price point. The lowest price for a pen based Windows RT tablet from Samsung will start at $150 more. And that will have worse dpi than this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get a sense that what the OP and I need is more like Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 with GN 10.1 specs less s pen + better screen / premium quality. I don't really care that much for the s pen. I do need everything else you mentioned out of the tab though. So, I feel that some of the low points of this tab, screen resolution and lack of premium build feel, could've been mitigated had Samsung saved the money on S Pen and associated hardware and software expenses.

SM05 said:
Hehe, +1.
I get a sense that what the OP and I need is more like Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 with GN 10.1 specs less s pen + better screen / premium quality. I don't really care that much for the s pen. I do need everything else you mentioned out of the tab though. So, I feel that some of the low points of this tab, screen resolution and lack of premium build feel, could've been mitigated had Samsung saved the money on S Pen and associated hardware and software expenses.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, yeah that crazy Samsung with their crazy s-pen.
It's simple, if you don't need or use pen input, why the hell are you buying this tablet? Buy an iPad or an Infinity that are pure consumption devices. The SGN 10.1 is for people that want to do WORK with their tablet.

mitchellvii said:
It's simple, if you don't need or use pen input, why the hell are you buying this tablet? Buy an iPad or an Infinity that are pure consumption devices. The SGN 10.1 is for people that want to do WORK with their tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it were that simple I wouldn't be replying on my GN 10.1. I posted this before but yeah, consumption device is what I mostly need. I don't plan on buying any Apple devices, don't wanna say ever but for a long time. That leaves android, which I prefer anyways (GS2 is my current phone). There aren't that many stable, fast and well built android tabs out there. Build quality + specs is why I went with GN. S pen is just an appendix as far ad I'm concerned. Lol
So, if you're listening Samsung, give us galaxy tab 10.1 with the same specs as GN, premium/better finish and improved screen dpi, if possible, and no s pen. All under 500 please. Lol

SM05 said:
If it were that simple I wouldn't be replying on my GN 10.1. I posted this before but yeah, consumption device is what I mostly need. I don't plan on buying any Apple devices, don't wanna say ever but for a long time. That leaves android, which I prefer anyways (GS2 is my current phone). There aren't that many stable, fast and well built android tabs out there. Build quality + specs is why I went with GN. S pen is just an appendix as far ad I'm concerned. Lol
So, if you're listening Samsung, give us galaxy tab 10.1 with the same specs as GN, premium/better finish and improved screen dpi, if possible, and no s pen. All under 500 please. Lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, they need 2 models. Consumer - $400, without the pen. Creator / Producer - $500 includes pen . Display on both needs to be the same (highest resolution and quality they can manage without slowing the system down.)

mitchellvii said:
Lol, yeah that crazy Samsung with their crazy s-pen.
It's simple, if you don't need or use pen input, why the hell are you buying this tablet? Buy an iPad or an Infinity that are pure consumption devices. The SGN 10.1 is for people that want to do WORK with their tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't say the infinity is a pure consumption device. I like my note a lot more then the prime I owned but with the keyboard dock it really does move it out of a pure consumption device.

nice review. exactly what i went thru lols

I mentioned it elsewhere, but the first review I read was from Lisa. Always unbias and as someone that knows about stylus's and wiacoms, she was very to the point about the device. Most if not all the others, reviewed the device as a competitor to the iPad, Transformer etc, when in reality those devices do not do what the Note does. After reading that stupid review from AndroidPolice, and I say stupid since no journalist/writer would make such a headline or put in stupid comments of the device giving them cancer, I went to the store to test it myself. It was nothing like what the reviews mentioned and right then and there I knew this was the tablet to get. A few days later I got it.
Haven't regretted it since.
is it the perfect device, No. nothing is, no matter what any one says, including Apple. Each and every device has its pro and cons, but this device runs circles around my previous Lenovo and overall, its one awesome device.
TS

As has been noted, I did not buy the Note for its pen, this was low on my list of needs as I had never found much use for it on my Galaxy Note phone (I found it just too cramped a space for my liking). I was instead drawn more by its quality and cutting edge components. However, given that the pen was there I’ve been giving it a go anyway, and I’ve found it a much better experience on this larger screen, infact I’m now beginning to use it all the time, it just seems easier and quicker for most things.
Websites are not designed to be prodded at with fingers, but to be used by a precise pointing device, so navigating using the pen feels quicker and more natural. When playing games (Air Attack HD) its easier to slide the pen around the screen and fingers are not blocking out the action.
Oh, I forgot about another reason that swayed me towards buying the Note, and that was to do my own little bit to support Samsung against the dark forces of crApple and its abuse of the (broken) patent system. Or as someone else on the net succinctly put it – the American patent system is a pile of ****, and Apple is sitting on top of that pile.
I’ve been listening to the sound quality of this thing, I’m going to put up a new post about it so its easier for people to find.

Note 10.1 (2014) Review by Engadget

Just came across this (I still need to read it tho).
engadget.com/2013/10/01/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1-review-2014-edition/
I'd expect others will be following suite over the week!
Ug.
Looks like you'll have to copy/paste the link since I'm too new here to hyperlink anything just yet...

Seems like all the commenters are apple fans

More reviews!
Holy cow...a ton of reviews were just unleashed! This is just from the first 2 pages of Google's search results...
reviews.cnet.com/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1/
theverge.com/2013/10/1/4788258/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1-review-2014-edition
androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-note-101-2014-edition-review
slashgear.com/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1-2014-edition-review-01299807/
pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2425004,00.asp
anandtech.com/show/7378/samsung-galaxy-note-101-2014-edition-review
gigaom.com/2013/10/01/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1-2014-edition-review-a-premium-android-tablet-for-a-premium-price/
ubergizmo.com/2013/10/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1-2014-edition-review-2/
reviews.cnet.com/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1/
androidpolice.com/2013/10/01/galaxy-note-10-1-2014-edition-review-far-from-perfect-but-still-probably-the-best-device-in-its-class/
techhive.com/article/2050350/galaxy-note-10-1-review-it-takes-more-than-high-end-specs-to-make-a-great-tablet.html
businessinsider.com/galaxy-note-10-1-review-2013-10
laptopmag.com/reviews/tablets/samsung-galaxy-note-101-2013.aspx
laptopmag.com/reviews/tablets/samsung-galaxy-note-101-2013.aspx
Post more if you got em.

So far both reviews i've seen complained of sluggish performance, c'mon samsung. I'm starting to wonder if i made a bad decision. I hope it's something software will fix and not a case a the GPU not performing well at this resolution. This tablet theoretically should be flying.

I suspect it's a touchwiz/s-apps issue.
The Nexus 10 with the exynos dual core was pretty snappy while I had it, this processor has plenty more beef.
I've read about half of them and overall they seem to indicate sluggish more so with the samsung apps than usage in general (except Engadget and I question their methods at times).
So hopefully a samsung update or custom roms would make an improvement. Though if you aren't using a tremendous amount of s-apps, you probably won't have an issue either.
I never noticed sluggishness in the original 10.1 or 8.0, though that was a common "negative"...

I almost never ever use the included apps anyways. Only trust anandtech reviews. Most other reviewers are biased, pieces of crap especially TheVerge. I didn't buy a Galaxy Note 10.1 last year because of their awful review but everything they said turned out to be absolutely wrong except for the poor resolution. Lots of these hipster tech review places love apple products to a fault. I say this as someone who loves his Apple Macbook Pro w/ Retina but who would never ever consider going back to an iOS tablet ever again.

Having owned the original Galaxy 10.1 and Note 10.1 I recall both had slight lag in the beginning but was fixed after an update or two. So I feel confident that it will be fixed shortly after launch. I'm digging all these reviews and have to piece them together to get the full picture.

Lag seems to be mentioned in a number of reviews so maybe waiting for a review of the qualcomm one will tell us if it is the processor or the s apps?
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 4

Engadget has a history of apple bias. The reviews from PC review, laptopmag and even cnet seem to be excellent.
Also keep in mind the performance now is only going to get better since only one of the 2 quad cores are working at any time straight out of the box.. With the next update from Samsung both cores will be working simultaneously. Also can't forget that with rooted ROMS and tweaked kernels for this device, the true potential will be unlocked.

jaztech said:
Engadget has a history of apple bias. The reviews from PC review, laptopmag and even cnet seem to be excellent.
Also keep in mind the performance now is only going to get better since only one of the 2 quad cores are working at any time straight out of the box.. With the next update from Samsung both cores will be working simultaneously. Also can't forget that with rooted ROMS and tweaked kernels for this device, the true potential will be unlocked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's this about an update empowering all 8 cores to work at once? I've read this a few times but no one ever cites a source.
As for me, a laggy tablet is a deal breaker. I'm buying the Note 3 and wanted a good companion tablet, but if it's not as smooth as iPad I think I will probably have to wait and see what November brings.
Sent from my Crapple iPhone 5

That zdnet review was great. The device is too expensive but prefers his ipad for daily usage.
I guess ipads became cheap....

Damn Samsung UI. I trust the Anandtech reviews also.

If the performance really is sluggy, I can't help but wonder does Samsung test their devices at all. How can they let a flagship tablet go into production if it is laggy is beyond me.
I am certainly not buying the Exynos model, and I am going to wait for user experiences from the Snapdragon version before I shell out any money for it.

Han Solo 1 said:
What's this about an update empowering all 8 cores to work at once? I've read this a few times but no one ever cites a source.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Source

most all touchwiz devices that have been reviewed have lag mentioned. strangely i've not had any lag possibly for two reasons.
1. i dont use touch wiz launcher
2. i don't spend all day swiping the home screen back and forth - which is where the reported lags usually come from.
i actually use the tablet instead of spending time swiping home screens. i've also always have better battery life too.

jankko said:
I am certainly not buying the Exynos model, and I am going to wait for user experiences from the Snapdragon version before I shell out any money for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you saying the quad core version is superior to the octa core one? interesting.

I read all these reviews about lag but I have yet to see video of it doing it. Just curious if anyone has actually seen on video anywhere...

All review units were the exynos variant "sluggish" , let's hope the sd800 isn't
Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 4

Diogenes5 said:
I almost never ever use the included apps anyways. Only trust anandtech reviews. Most other reviewers are biased, pieces of crap especially TheVerge. I didn't buy a Galaxy Note 10.1 last year because of their awful review but everything they said turned out to be absolutely wrong except for the poor resolution. Lots of these hipster tech review places love apple products to a fault. I say this as someone who loves his Apple Macbook Pro w/ Retina but who would never ever consider going back to an iOS tablet ever again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TheVerge is disgusting. Apple can take an iP5, put it in plastic, make it thicker w/o changing anything while selling it for as much as the normal 5 would cost if it wasnt discontinued and they c*m all over it, but when Sammy bumps the display size & resolution, battery, blabla and cramps it into a smaller package than S3 its herp derp disgusting Samsung plastic it looks same as S3. =/
On topic: I rad the AndroidPolice review and it kinda put me off. I rly want to buy a tablet (never owned one) for Univ but w/o stylus its utterly pointless, I also wont use Tw launcher so it should be fine but if im paying as much as i'd pay for an iPad I want a completely lag free experience with those ridiculous specs.
It just irks me to buy a "potentially" epic device counting on XDA to fix it for the OEM, especially a tablet, those have less dev support amirite.

It's the same as with my Note 10.1. Just download a different launcher and presto lag is gone! But I agree that Samsung should fix Touchwiz if they are going to continue to use it!

10.1.2014 versus Sony Xperia Tab Z

I've seen lots of discussion comparing with the various iPads, but not much discussion on the Sony Xperia. I was pretty much sold on the Note originally as I LOVE my S3 phone, but I must admit I do see the reason behind all the negative Samsung reactions in terms of bloatware. Man do they put a bunch of junk on there! Luckily I have my S3 rooted and have successfully turned off bunches of bloat, and the phone is now massively faster . . . . . even on the stock ROM.
The more I play with the Xperia and read the reviews, the more I like it. The biggest 2 drawbacks in comparison are (1) lower screen resolution and (2) no S-pen. Neither one of those are deal brakers for me, but they do factor into the overall decision.
So, I know I'll get lots of pro-Samsung comments given the forum I'm in, but I'd like some honest feedback. Has anyone had lots of time with both tabs that can give some user level insight as to which way they would recommend? I have no doubt both are quality devices. Just trying to make a smart spend with my hard earned $. :fingers-crossed:
Thanks in advance.
~Vol
P.S. The new Kindle HDX is sneaking into the discussion, too. It has a *whopper* of a set of specs at a great price point. Root and install a well-built custom ROM, and maybe it kills all of them??

Vol4Ever said:
I've seen lots of discussion comparing with the various iPads, but not much discussion on the Sony Xperia. I was pretty much sold on the Note originally as I LOVE my S3 phone, but I must admit I do see the reason behind all the negative Samsung reactions in terms of bloatware. Man do they put a bunch of junk on there! Luckily I have my S3 rooted and have successfully turned off bunches of bloat, and the phone is now massively faster . . . . . even on the stock ROM.
The more I play with the Xperia and read the reviews, the more I like it. The biggest 2 drawbacks in comparison are (1) lower screen resolution and (2) no S-pen. Neither one of those are deal brakers for me, but they do factor into the overall decision.
So, I know I'll get lots of pro-Samsung comments given the forum I'm in, but I'd like some honest feedback. Has anyone had lots of time with both tabs that can give some user level insight as to which way they would recommend? I have no doubt both are quality devices. Just trying to make a smart spend with my hard earned $. :fingers-crossed:
Thanks in advance.
~Vol
P.S. The new Kindle HDX is sneaking into the discussion, too. It has a *whopper* of a set of specs at a great price point. Root and install a well-built custom ROM, and maybe it kills all of them??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I love the resolution and feel of the 10.1 2014 but hate lack of root (0x0) and the physical button. S-Pen is a must for me or I would probably just go with the upcoming Nexus 10 refresh.
I really just wanted to say.....GO VOLS

Are you saying root and custom Roms won't be possible on the 2014? THAT would be a deal breaker for sure! Haven't looked much at the N10, but I guess I should. When is refresh product due out?
And on the Big Orange, I firmly believe Butch is the man to get it done. Our true freshmen have shown some "sparks" here and there. Just don't have the exp or conditioning to bring it for 60 solid minutes. I remain big time optimistic we are finally headed back up. Goodness knows we mist definitely bottomed out over the last few seasons. Wow.

ckelly33 said:
I love the resolution and feel of the 10.1 2014 but hate lack of root (0x0) and the physical button. S-Pen is a must for me or I would probably just go with the upcoming Nexus 10 refresh.
I really just wanted to say.....GO VOLS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what refresh? as far as i know nothing has been announced and rumors say there wont be another 10 inch nexus this year

The Xperia Tab Z was my first choice was as I have an Xperia Z1 phone, however I ended up returning the XTZ after a couple of days and getting the new Note 10.1.
The biggest issue with the XTZ for me was the video playback quality. When viewing 1080p movies it seemed to be dropping frames, and as well Netflix and Youtube playback was no where close to my iPad. I didn't want a situation where I was only able to use the tablet for some things and then had to go back to using my iPad for watching movies or reading ebooks. There is also the issue of the Bravia engine on the XTZ which seemed to be putting too much contrast and sharpening into all of the videos and images. I can understand why they are using Bravia as it does give the illusion of a slightly higher resolution display, but it's no where near iPad quality.
The XTZ is a great tablet though, and if the Note 10.1 didn't exist it would be the Android king without a doubt.
The best thing for me about the Note 10.1 is that it is capable of doing everything with pretty much state of the art quality. I've had a few jaw dropping moments with it where the display truly give the illusion of looking through a window. It's fantastic for video playback.
It's been a long time coming to finally get an Android tablet that matches or exceeds the iPad and I'm so far pretty thrilled with my 10.1.

30Seconds said:
It's been a long time coming to finally get an Android tablet that matches or exceeds the iPad and I'm so far pretty thrilled with my 10.1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What are your comments on the bloatware and all the built-in Samsung apps? Did you delete or disable a bunch of those? And I doubt I'll be doing much movie watching on the tab, but I do like to play some of the higher end games every now & then. Currently read a lot of e-books on a rooted Nook Tablet, but hoping the new device will ultimately replace that as well. And I agree that one of your obvious goals is one of mine. Use 1 tablet for pretty much everything outside of phone & texting with my S3.

I also remember now why I punted the Nexus . . . . . no SD card. That plus constantly changing connectors plus the "do it our way or not at all" mentaility is the main reason I moved away from Apple products. I used iPhones up through the 4 models, and then made the Android switch. Haven't looked back on that particular decision!

30Seconds said:
The best thing for me about the Note 10.1 is that it is capable of doing everything with pretty much state of the art quality. I've had a few jaw dropping moments with it where the display truly give the illusion of looking through a window. It's fantastic for video playback.
It's been a long time coming to finally get an Android tablet that matches or exceeds the iPad and I'm so far pretty thrilled with my 10.1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Truth. The display is the best I've ever seen on a tablet. At full brightness it's absolutely incredible. The functionality of the SPen was the main draw for me with this tablet though. If you're a student or work in a setting that demands a lot of note taking then this tablet is the way to go. If I didn't need these functions, I would have waited for the new Nexus 10, which I'm sure will be superb as well. The ability to use this tablet as a virtual notebook for all of my classes made this the right choice for me though, even though it was quite expensive.

I currently own both of these tablets Samsung better screen better speakers and its faster I would go with the Samsung myself but the Sony is a nice tablet I have it running pacman ROM and it is very smooth
I am going to China on the weekend and was actually thinking of returning my samsung taking the Sony with me and then trying to find the 10.1 LTE version in Hong Kong on my way home so on a side note does anyone know how much the LTE version will cost in Hong Kong and a good place to buy it thanks
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium HD app

I loved my Z while I had it. My only complaint was that bad boy was a fingerprint magnet. I haven't yet tried a Note 10.1 2014 because there is no development for it or the Note 3.

golfinggino said:
I currently own both of these tablets Samsung better screen better speakers and its faster I would go with the Samsung myself but the Sony is a nice tablet I have it running pacman ROM and it is very smooth
I am going to China on the weekend and was actually thinking of returning my samsung taking the Sony with me and then trying to find the 10.1 LTE version in Hong Kong on my way home so on a side note does anyone know how much the LTE version will cost in Hong Kong and a good place to buy it thanks
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I know, 10.1 2014 is not yet available in Hong Kong.

Vol4Ever said:
What are your comments on the bloatware and all the built-in Samsung apps? Did you delete or disable a bunch of those? And I doubt I'll be doing much movie watching on the tab, but I do like to play some of the higher end games every now & then. Currently read a lot of e-books on a rooted Nook Tablet, but hoping the new device will ultimately replace that as well. And I agree that one of your obvious goals is one of mine. Use 1 tablet for pretty much everything outside of phone & texting with my S3.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far all I have done is install Nova Launcher and turn down the animations to 0.5 in the developer settings. This makes it more than fast enough for me and I am not going to root or flash until we get a look at more finalized OTA firmwares. I know there are a lot of early reviewers that say this tablet lags, but since the first OTA update it has been running as quickly as one would expect it to.
I'm completely thrilled with this tablet, I can finally get rid of my IPad.

I've had the chance to own both for a while and there's pros and cons to each. The xperia was light, quick enough, NFC, DLNA, etc. Screen was good for movie watching. Expandable memory. Water proof. And it seemed less bloated although it really does have a crap load of Sony stuff on there. On the flipside, as one user said, it was a finger print magnet. It also felt extra long in portrait mode. Luckily it's a light tablet so it's not super uncomfortable but it does create a weird experience in portrait. Also, being a snapdragon s4 chipset, it's significantly slower during intense operations or even if you put a live wallpaper like ditalix live wallpaper on it.
The note has all the specs necessary, minus NFC. S pen is great just like my note 3. Screen in gorgeous. Relatively light in the hands. But again, as another user mentioned, the physical button is quite annoying in portrait mode and for a tablet so expensive, there should be no stuttering. Rooting is a fix for that though.
Although, neither was meant for portrait use, Web browsing feels more natural in portrait mode, much like the ipad. I still own both tablet, along side the ipad air. Note 10.1 2014 is my productivity beast at work and I travel with it. The xperia is my wife's favorite because she can read in the pool with it without a care, and takes it to the beach. The ipad is my favorite at home. Perfect for browsing the Web, chromecasting content, watching videos in bed, reading magazines, etc. Although, the note can do those things perfectly fine, it just doesn't have the same feel as the ipad for me when I'm in lazy mode.
Basically, if you u spend a lot of time outside with the tablet, xperia. If you need productivity first, note. If you want an all around great experience without all the bells and whistles, ipad.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using xda app-developers app

30Seconds said:
The Xperia Tab Z was my first choice was as I have an Xperia Z1 phone, however I ended up returning the XTZ after a couple of days and getting the new Note 10.1.
The biggest issue with the XTZ for me was the video playback quality. When viewing 1080p movies it seemed to be dropping frames, and as well Netflix and Youtube playback was no where close to my iPad. I didn't want a situation where I was only able to use the tablet for some things and then had to go back to using my iPad for watching movies or reading ebooks. There is also the issue of the Bravia engine on the XTZ which seemed to be putting too much contrast and sharpening into all of the videos and images. I can understand why they are using Bravia as it does give the illusion of a slightly higher resolution display, but it's no where near iPad quality.
The XTZ is a great tablet though, and if the Note 10.1 didn't exist it would be the Android king without a doubt.
The best thing for me about the Note 10.1 is that it is capable of doing everything with pretty much state of the art quality. I've had a few jaw dropping moments with it where the display truly give the illusion of looking through a window. It's fantastic for video playback.
It's been a long time coming to finally get an Android tablet that matches or exceeds the iPad and I'm so far pretty thrilled with my 10.1.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To echo this, I would go into Best Buy to play with the tablets all the time, coming closer and closer to pulling the trigger to purchasing but stopping. When I read the specs of this tablet, I had to bite and I've been rewarded immensely for my purchase. I've had those jaw dropping moments as well. I ask it to do so much and it's almost like it's mocking me, tackling everything I throw at it with ease.

Between the Note and the Xperia, it all comes down to the screen. The Note wins, hands down.
I do like the whole waterproof thing, and it's a touch lighter than the Note. But the large bezels really make it feel clunky and less weildy in landscape mode. Samsung's decision to trim the bezels really pays off in usability. It feels closer to the iPad in portrait mode even though it's still the same 16:10 screen.
BTW, another area where the Note wins hands down is reading comic books. It's the closest thing to the printed page. I am awed by how great comic books look on the Note, even though the pages are less resolution than the screen itself.

I was looking at buying the xperia but decided to wait for this to come out. I tried both of them in a shop and the xperia was too bezzly for me and the screen of the Note was unreal. Anyways I just got my Note about an hour ago and the screen alone makes this awesome.

I have had a Xperia Tablet Z since it was released and its very nice. My wife loves it as well. The thing that is nice is that its extremely fast and has no lag. I am very impressed with the build quality, and battery life as well. I am not a fan of the case I have on it because it is a el cheapo leather case that is not that impressive. That doesn't detract from how happy I am with this tablet.
I am going to get a Note 10.1 2014 through work in the next week or so. When that comes in, I will give my wife the Xperia since she loves it. I think the Note 10.1 is going to be better for what I do than the Xperia. I am most worried about lag or response time with this device. I am going to use Nova launcher for sure, and root the device if possible.

One area where the Note beats the Xperia hands down is remote desktop. The MS app defaults to 1280 x 800 on the Note and is very fast. It defaults to 1980 x 1200 on the Xperia and chugs along with lots of tiling with tiny touch targets. The SPen allows you to hit touch targets too small for your finger and allows you to hover over links and menus. It's a fantastic rdp implementation on the Note but almost unusable on the Xperia.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2464769