Alright, I went back to peruse some of the Verge's other review and see where the Note 5's score of 8.7, what I initially considered to be quite good, stood in comparison. A few things jump out at me to basically reduce any credibility their review staff has.
1) The iPhone 6 scores a 9 (highest ever), while the 6+ scores an 8.7. Except for size, the 6+ trumps the 6 in every measurable fashion--better camera, display and battery life top that list. The iPhone 6 also having the highest rating ever amongst smart phones? It's a good device but come on...review just screams 'thank God there's now a larger screened iPhone...'
2) The Moto X (2014) scored second highest rating ever...same as the Galaxy S6, at 8.8. Yet dig down into the ratings of individual aspects and it's considered to have mediocre battery life and camera. They also consider the Moto X display to be rated a 10 out of 10. It was better than the 2013 iteration of the Moto X but no where near as good as the equally rated S6, Note 5, or even iPhone 6+.
3) They scored the Galaxy Nexus...the Verizon version...at 8.7.
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'Nuff said.