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Pros
Massive high-definition screen. Fast quad-core processor. Includes a pressure-sensitive stylus and well-designed note-taking and drawing software. Runs Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" out of the box. Fast LTE, if you can get it. Good call quality.
- Cons Very large. A few minor hiccups in gaming performance. Sprint's 4G LTE coverage map is still very thin.
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Bottom Line
With a fast quad-core processor, a big, gorgeous display, and features galore, the Samsung Galaxy Note II delivers everything a huge-screen smartphone should, but Sprint really needs to build out its LTE network.
The Galaxy Note II for Sprint ($299.99 direct) is many things, but above all, it's the most phone there is. It gives you more screen, more processor, and more OS than just about any other phone out there. It's also a significant improvement over the first Galaxy Note , thanks to a faster quad-core processor and the Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" OS, not to mention a host of Samsung-developed note-taking software improvements. If you think other phones are too small, and prefer something big enough to double as a miniature tablet that (barely) fits in your pocket, the Galaxy Note II reigns supreme. It's the first recipient of our new Editors' Choice award for phablets (phones with screen sizes ranging from 5.0 to 6.9 inches). That said, Sprint's lack of LTE coverage continues to be a problem.
Editors' Note: The Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile versions of the Samsung Galaxy Note II are all very similar, so we're sharing a lot of material between our reviews. That said, we're testing each device separately, so read the review for your carrier of choice. The slideshow below is for the T-Mobile version, which is visually identical aside from the carrier name in the notification bar, and the logo on the plastic back panel.
Design and Screen
Visually, there's almost no difference between the various versions, aside from a Samsung logo (not Sprint, oddly enough) on the back panel instead of a carrier name. The Galaxy Note II measures 5.95 by 3.17 by 0.37 inches (HWD) and weighs 6.34 ounces. That's roughly an inch taller and half an inch wider than even big smartphones with 4.5-inch and greater screens. It's just as thin as those, though, which helps a lot. It's made entirely of plastic with the exception of the glass screen. But unlike some other Samsung handsets, the Galaxy Note II looks and feels refined, thanks to the classy, faux-anodized silver finish and a smoked chrome accent ring around the sides. You can get one in either gray or white.
The star of the show is the 5.5-inch, 1,280-by-720-pixel, Super AMOLED capacitive touch screen. The aspect ratio is 16:9 this time, instead of 16:10 like the first Galaxy Note, which had a slightly higher 1,280-by-800-pixel resolution. Either way, the new display is stunning. It's super-bright, with vivid colors and deep blacks, and viewing angles are uniformly excellent. I suppose you could argue that at 267ppi, pixel depth isn't quite as impressive as it is on smaller phones with the same 720p resolution. But rest assured: This screen looks fantastic.
As you can imagine, the screen is large enough for easy typing in both portrait and landscape modes. You even get an extra row of number keys, so you don't have to switch the keyboard mode to enter in digits. There's a hardware Home button below the screen, flanked by Menu and Back capacitive touch buttons. A Wacom-designed stylus is tucked into a slot under the bottom right edge. The stylus supports 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivityâ€"four times what the stylus in the Galaxy Note supports.
Given its gargantuan size, the Galaxy Note II is difficult to use one-handedâ€"except that, fortunately, Samsung has already thought of this. To that end, it provides a series of toggles in Settings > One-Handed Operation. You can move the dial buttons to the left or right, for example, and position the keyboard and unlock pattern for easier access.
Connectivity and Voice Calls
The Galaxy Note II on Sprint is a dual-band EV-DO Rev. A (850/1900 MHz) and 4G LTE device with 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi support on both 2.4 and 5GHz bands. I had no problem connecting to a 5GHz, WPA2-encrypted hotspot in the PCMag Lab. We're rating the Sprint version of the Galaxy Note II down half a point compared with the other carrier models, thanks to the lack of Sprint LTE coverage in most U.S. major cities. Without LTE, the phone works as a 3G device, but Sprint's 3G network is the slowest of the major U.S. carriers; download speeds struggled to break just 200Kbps, which puts it closer to 2G than 3G, and many attempts at reaching the Internet timed out altogether in our midtown Manhattan test location.
Voice calls sounded as good as I've ever heard on a cell phone, and essentially matched what I heard with the T-Mobile version, at least through the earpiece; it sounded full, warm, and loud, with no background hiss. I could move my ear quite a bit against the handset and still hear the other party easily, which wasn't possible with the LG Intuition. Transmissions through the microphone were clear, although a little thinner-sounding than on other carriers. I tested the phone on an extremely noisy street, which the noise cancelling algorithms reduced to a low, steady drone (which was entirely absent in quieter environments).
Calls also sounded clear through a Jawbone Era Bluetooth headset. Pairing was simple; tap the Bluetooth icon in the notification bar and the phone immediately looks for new Bluetooth devices. The rear-mounted mono speakerphone sounded clear and loud, and should be fine for use outdoors. We expect good things out of the oversize 3100mAh battery; we're still testing battery life and will update this review as soon as we have a result.
Voice dialing deserves special mention. Samsung's S Voice lets you control the Note by voice. You can wake it up by saying Hi Galaxy, double-tapping the Home button, or by choosing your own phrase. You can also enable or disable handwriting mode, which activates when you pull the pen from the device. In addition to voice dialingâ€"which worked fine over Bluetooth in my testsâ€"you can also text, search contacts, navigate, schedule something on your calendar, add a task, start a music playlist, and update Twitter, all with your voice.
Hardware, OS, and Apps
Under the hood is a 1.6GHz quad-core A9 Samsung Exynos processor and 2GB of RAM. Android fans can rejoice, as the Galaxy Note II is the first Sprint handset to ship with Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" out of the box. Benchmark results were at the top of the class almost entirely across the board; combine Jelly Bean with a quad-core processor and you get one fast phone. The exception was some gaming frame rate tests, the results of which lagged next to the Qualcomm-powered LG Optimus G, the only other quad-core phone available in America right now. But three separate Optimus G review units overheated repeatedly in our tests, and automatically dialed back the screen brightness to cool down, whereas the Galaxy Note II stayed cool to the touch, no matter how hard I made it work.
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