Galaxy Note 4

[MRU]

Further observations...

Memory management is still an issue with the device. Whilst it certainly out performs the S5, I just did a 10 app opening test against my Moto X 2014 and after 7-8 the Note 4 began having to refresh content in remaining and that then persisted cyclacly.

My Moto X managed to keep them all in memory without refreshing despite having 1gb less memory. When I opened

Apps i used in the test were

Chrome with only 1 tab open
Dialer on favorite contacts
Gallery
Gmail
Messages/Messenger
Google Play Music
Play Newsstand
Play Store
Calendar / S-Planner
YouTube.


I also have discovered a sleep wakelok issue on the Note 4 but think I have managed to get rid of that now although I'm still finding battery doesn't seem to be as good as my 6+ but it isn't bad by any means. I'm just not getting close to the 6 hours screen on time others reported.

Hopefully all this is fixed in lollipop... Whenever it does arrive.

Do like changes to little things like Action Memo now being integrated to S-Note rather than a separate needless application.

So far I'm liking the Note 4, but I'm not woowed or feeling passionate about it.

Also forgot how much having back button on the right hand side especially on a wide device is really unergonomic for left handed users.

Camera tests today......

 

[spriter]

Sound like you're going through the process most of us did.

S-Health on ART needs an Xposed module to fix (XSecure storage I think) and there's a certain method to get it back working that requires root and freezing/uninstalling.

A lot of messing around for something that I personally disabled - I found it over generous compared to my Vivosmart (I'd rather be under than over!) and the phone is too big to take running let alone cycling.

Interested to see what you make of the camera. I quite like it and it usually did well catching shots of my fast1p1p-moving son. Not used a 6 Plus to compare but I'm now using a Vivo XShot which has a killer camera (now my first point of consideration when buying).

Getting quite note of the Note 4 now. It's good at most things but 4 months is about when I start to look for a change.

 

[The Game 161]

So note users how do you feel about the note 5 having the same look as the S6? Guessing no removable battery. That's the only thing I will struggle to get used to

 

[GadgetSN]

Ive said it before. The Note 4 and the Note Edge were prototypes for the new direction for Samsung which can be seen in the S6 and S6 Egde.

They are much improved design wise so I welcome it for the Note 5 and Note Edge 2. The rear still need to be improved though.

Not too bothered about removable battery or sd slot providing they offer 128gb plus phones which they are.

Looking forward to the next Note and Note Edge. With Sony pulling away from mobile phones, Samsung represent the only viable alternative for Android users.

 

[Osamede]

The LG G4 is something I am quite curious as I think that is the only major flagship that will provide removable battery/micro-sd this year unless they decide to listen to folks whining about more metal rears. Hoping they follow the path of the G3 than the G2 which omitted those features. .

That's an excuse being used by manufacturers for making producs planned to be quickly obsolete. In fact a metal back is no barrier to a offering removable back cover with full access to battery, SIM, SD card etc.

Example - Nokia E61i:
https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Nokia+E61i+Teardown/5812

And that's a 7 year old smartphone. Of course they can do it today. But these companies all want to make throwaway junk in order to jack up their profits.

 

[jamezr]

That's an excuse being used by manufacturers for making producs planned to be quickly obsolete. In fact a metal back is no barrier to a offering removable back cover with full access to battery, SIM, SD card etc.

Example - Nokia E61i:
https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Nokia+E61i+Teardown/5812

And that's a 7 year old smartphone. Of course they can do it today. But these companies all want to make throwaway junk in order to jack up their profits.

True but it is a huge problem for wireless charging.

 

[Fernandez21]

That's an excuse being used by manufacturers for making producs planned to be quickly obsolete. In fact a metal back is no barrier to a offering removable back cover with full access to battery, SIM, SD card etc.

Example - Nokia E61i:
https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Nokia+E61i+Teardown/5812

And that's a 7 year old smartphone. Of course they can do it today. But these companies all want to make throwaway junk in order to jack up their profits.

The vivid was probably the last smartphone with a metal removable back, came out 4 years ago I think.

http://youtu.be/450KUEyQQLQ

Kinda surprised the design of the inspire was abandoned, it had the best of both worlds. An aluminum unibody design with removable end caps to get to the battery, Sim card, and SD card. Watch the video after the 4:20 min. mark to see what I mean.

http://youtu.be/PeCYsQ8LROI

 

[spinedoc77]

That's an excuse being used by manufacturers for making producs planned to be quickly obsolete. In fact a metal back is no barrier to a offering removable back cover with full access to battery, SIM, SD card etc.

Example - Nokia E61i:
https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Nokia+E61i+Teardown/5812

And that's a 7 year old smartphone. Of course they can do it today. But these companies all want to make throwaway junk in order to jack up their profits.

The vivid was probably the last smartphone with a metal removable back, came out 4 years ago I think.

http://youtu.be/450KUEyQQLQ

Kinda surprised the design of the inspire was abandoned, it had the best of both worlds. An aluminum unibody design with removable end caps to get to the battery, Sim card, and SD card. Watch the video after the 4:20 min. mark to see what I mean.

http://youtu.be/PeCYsQ8LROI

They look cheapie and thick compared to the ip6, I can't see how they could get those as thin as an iPhone even with today's technology. Heck I can slap on an aluminum cover onto my Note 4 and ignoring the antenna issue it looks like I just slapped an aluminum cover onto it.

 

[MRU]

Camera Comparison without any touching up. (Not sure why MR is showing them on their sides - click on the direct link to open in new window and view full res / correct orientation).

I think very close between them ... The iPhone 6+ in these instances takes better colour accuracy - the increase in resolution of the Note 4 is of benefit in others instances but sometimes marred by the fact that it seems to have lot of compression softness reducing image quality.

But overall I think the difference and end result between the two is only marginal either way. Both excellent cameras for smartphones.


Note 4

direct link http://easydesign.macmate.me/mru/note41.jpg

iphone 6+

direct link http://easydesign.macmate.me/mru/iphone61.jpg


Note 4

direct link http://easydesign.macmate.me/mru/note42.jpg

iphone 6+

direct link http://easydesign.macmate.me/mru/iphone62.jpg


Note 4

direct link http://easydesign.macmate.me/mru/note43.jpg

iphone 6+

direct link http://easydesign.macmate.me/mru/iphone63.jpg

 

[mattopotamus]

^ shadow detail looks better on the 6+ too.

 

[Kiezpirat80]

@MRU: You must consider that these pictures are taken at the strong side of the Note 4 (Daylight Pictures and no moving objects).

If you have kids or try to take pics when your dog moves the 6 Plus will be much better than Note 4.

This is the reason why i switched from Note 4 to IP 6+.

 

[MRU]

@MRU: You must consider that these pictures are taken at the strong side of the Note 4 (Daylight Pictures and no moving objects).

If you have kids or try to take pics when your dog moves the 6 Plus will be much better than Note 4.

This is the reason why i switched from Note 4 to IP 6+.

Yep I'll do some more challenging shots later to compare. It was very grey / cold & blustery this morning so I didn't spend too long on the beach

But yeah from video I've tried the OIS on the 6+ is definitely a lot better than the Note 4 - likewise the way it gradually adjusts to light and dark areas is a lot smoother on the 6+.

 

[Sensamic]

Switched over to ART and now memory is at 1.3/1.4 of 2.7 with nothing else open. A little improvement

Trying to decide whether to flash 5.0.1 DBT firmware via Odin, but part of me thinks there is a reason Samsung has put a hold on lollipop update and maybe I should wait ...

Remember lollipop has the RAM/memory leak issue, which won't be resolved until 5.1. Lollipop is great on my S5 but I do get some force closures and I feel 4.4 was better in performance.

I'd recommend waiting, but it could be a very long wait until 5.1.

With regard to the RAM, Touchwiz is still Touchwiz I guess. I don't see 3GB RAM being any better on the S6.

 

[AppleRobert]

Yep I'll do some more challenging shots later to compare. It was very grey / cold & blustery this morning so I didn't spend too long on the beach

But yeah from video I've tried the OIS on the 6+ is definitely a lot better than the Note 4 - likewise the way it gradually adjusts to light and dark areas is a lot smoother on the 6+.

I'd take cold and blustery over another snowstorm on the US east coast yet again. Guess I'll use a white smartphone today.

You gonna compare performance of the note 4 with the Alpha? I already know you did Alpha vs S5 comparison.

 

[MRU]

I'd take cold and blustery over another snowstorm on the US east coast yet again. Guess I'll use a white smartphone today.

You gonna compare performance of the note 4 with the Alpha? I already know you did Alpha vs S5 comparison.

Lol, yeah i'll do more comparisons when the inevitable MRU review is ready

On bright side my battery has stabilised and I got 3 hours screen on time yesterday after a full day and was down to around 45% battery left.

Now my 6+ would do the same but be left at around 55% when I plug it in charge, so not too different between the two now which I'm happy about.

My Moto X and Alpha on a full day would be down to around 15-20% by comparison.

 

[Fernandez21]

Lol, yeah i'll do more comparisons when the inevitable MRU review is ready

On bright side my battery has stabilised and I got 3 hours screen on time yesterday after a full day and was down to around 45% battery left.

Now my 6+ would do the same but be left at around 55% when I plug it in charge, so not too different between the two now which I'm happy about.

My Moto X and Alpha on a full day would be down to around 15-20% by comparison.

Yeah, you need to give a couple of days. It took about a week before my note settled down, before that it would stutter quite a bit and battery life was shorter. Not sure what it was doing in the background those first couple of days.

 

[MRU]

Is there anyone here running Samsung's lollipop on their Note 4 ?


Not sure I should flash the German 5.0.1 on my device or wait till it properly rolls out.

 

[The Game 161]

Is there anyone here running Samsung's lollipop on their Note 4 ?


Not sure I should flash the German 5.0.1 on my device or wait till it properly rolls out.

Nope..waiting on three uk

 

[MRU]

Feck it....

I did it.

 

[MRU]

5.0.1 impressions

So far so good - one little issue with wifi connecting and disconnecting but I think that's a new option in WiFi settings to switch between 2&5ghz bandwidths at will and my old airport extreme confusing it that it's constantly jumping from one to the other and being as annoying as hell.

Thankfully a quick untick seems to rectify it.

Stock apps are so much better at long last the dialer and messages app don't look like a dogs dinner and likewise the google apps now properly colourise the notification bar making them just like they appear on my moto x.

Yeah will keep experimenting, battery obviously taken hit today so will likely need some recalibration again.


- I wonder however why Samsung haven't sorted out their keyboard aesthetically ? Even from what I have seen on the S6 & S6 Edge the keyboard has remained the same. Samsung's predictive text is great compared to google, but God the keyboard is ugly as hell and really looks out of place against the now mostly material flat design.

 

[spinedoc77]

So far so good - one little issue with wifi connecting and disconnecting but I think that's a new option in WiFi settings to switch between 2&5ghz bandwidths at will and my old airport extreme confusing it that it's constantly jumping from one to the other and being as annoying as hell.

Thankfully a quick untick seems to rectify it.

Stock apps are so much better at long last the dialer and messages app don't look like a dogs dinner and likewise the google apps now properly colourise the notification bar making them just like they appear on my moto x.

Yeah will keep experimenting, battery obviously taken hit today so will likely need some recalibration again.


- I wonder however why Samsung haven't sorted out their keyboard aesthetically ? Even from what I have seen on the S6 & S6 Edge the keyboard has remained the same. Samsung's predictive text is great compared to google, but God the keyboard is ugly as hell and really looks out of place against the now mostly material flat design.

I kinda like the Samsung keyboard. Love that the number keys are on the top row and you don't have to flip the keyboard. The theme is nice and dark and subdued. I cringe when I know something's been updated to the Material design.

p

 

[gotluck]

did you trip knox updating?

cheers

 

[MRU]

did you trip knox updating?

cheers

Nope. I was flashing an official firmware which doesn't effect Knox at all. Added to the fact the firmware I flashed was for the model / region version of my device means it was just a case of putting the firmware that would have been available to me on Kies before they stopped its rollout.

So yeah still 100% official and no warranty issues.

----------

I kinda like the Samsung keyboard. Love that the number keys are on the top row and you don't have to flip the keyboard. The theme is nice and dark and subdued. I cringe when I know something's been updated to the Material design.

p

I just think it looks dated. Its not terrible but just stands ajar, especially when the rest of the apps are materialised.

 

[Fernandez21]

Good news for those of you on Sprint, lollipop rolling out now.

http://m.androidcentral.com/sprint-starts-rolling-out-android-50-lollipop-its-samsung-galaxy-note-4

 

[Technarchy]

Good news for those of you on Sprint, lollipop rolling out now.

http://m.androidcentral.com/sprint-starts-rolling-out-android-50-lollipop-its-samsung-galaxy-note-4

When is AT&T going to pull their head out? They are being way slow. Probably for the stupid services no one uses.