Samsung Galaxy Note 5 N920i 32GB Gold, International Version

Samsung Galaxy Note 5 N920i 32GB Gold, International Version Review

By FrozenCloud 

For readers, my opinions on this device (ATT 64Gb version) is based off the experiences I had with this device for the passed few days since launch day (Aug 21, 2015). I will continue to update this review in the future. This review should be the similar to GalaxyNote 5 on other carriers such as Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile.

Pros:

No more plastics and cheap material. Samsung is finally giving us the hardware that we've long desired. By far, the best designed Galaxy phone to date imo. If you have played with the Galaxy S6, just imagine a larger verson of that with the S-pen.

- 5.7 in, QHD Super AMOLED screen.

- 16MP Camera with Smart OIS and 5MP front camera. This is the same camera as the one in the Galaxy S6. You will not have any buyer remorse when it come to this camera. IMO, it rivals those photos that are taken on the Iphone 6 and the LG G4. Of course, each have their own strengths and weaknesses.

- I notice that the front camera has a wide angle when taking picture. As in comparison to the iPhone 6, i feel that I can capture alot more and fit more ppl into my selfie without the extension of a selfie stick.

- Gorilla Glass 4 panels for front and back. Gorilla Glass are known to be tough and scratch resistance. But get ready for the fingerprint magnet. Being glass, I notice I constantly have to whip the screen (back and front). Not really a big issue, but it's a pain at time.

- Comes in various colors: White, black, gold, blue (US only get the white, black unfortunately). This really annoys me. I was actually looking forward for the gold or blue version. Yet, ATT only carry the white and black...so typical of them.

- Comes in 32, 64 of built-in memory. (I don't know why there are no 128gb version in the US)

- Less of the TouchWiz’s gimmicky features like the eye scroll, eye away from the screen pause. So we will not be experiencing the same slowdown or low storage as we did with earlier versions. If the GS4/5 were all about the features, this phone is all about the design. I do like the camera app and how they add a "close all" into the recent screen.

- There are some plus feature that they add that I absolutely love. How you are able to take notes without turning on your phone and unlocking it like the Surface pro is awesome. Just let you take quick notes and go on with your life. Another feature I love is the extended screenshot. There are time when 1 screenshot does not cover all the content you want, with extended screenshot, you can just screenshot a whole articles for offline view later which is a + for me.

- Rapid charging (this feature is available with wired or wireless but you need the correct product for this to work)

- Wireless charging - So if you have extra money that you want to drop for a wireless charging dock, you will be able to use it with this phone.

More Info Here

Cons (Not necessarily apply to everyone):

- No removable back panel.

- No removable battery. I’m a battery hog, so I’m always draining my battery by 3-4pm. Not being able to just swap out my battery will be a pain. I always felt that the Note line is for hardcore user that can make it through 2 days of usages. Not going to happen with this year iteration.

- Lower battery capacity - 3000mAh compared to the Note 4. With the new processor, battery usage should be more efficient so it should not be a big deal, but end-users would rather the capacity to increase than decrease. In my experience, you wont be able to make the 2nd day without a charge. So keep a charger handy.

- No waterproofing like the GS5, but I never used a smartphone that was waterproofed before, so not a big issue "to me"

- No ability to swap out memory card – Might bother some Galaxy Note fans, but with the higher memory options, I do not think this is a huge problem. I have read that there are international version out there that allow the 2nd SIM tray to be used as an SD slot, I do not know why it's not implemented in the US version.

- Still no on-screen navigation button – Might only be a problem for "pure" Android fan.

- Rear Camera and Flash sticks out a bit and not flush with the back panel.

- Front and back glass is a potential problem as we all experiences with iPhone 4 and Galaxy s6. Glass will break if you drop your phone at the right angle regardless how much stronger it is, so "case up".

- The 1 speaker at the bottom is louder, however when you turn it on max, you will get some distortions in the audio quality. You wont get the audio level of those Dual front facing stereo on the G4.

- I have been experiencing some weird stutters/lags while messing around the phone. The phone seems to have to reload the app when I do app switching. It's only takes a sec for it to reload when you switch app back and forth but with all that RAM, I do not know why they are doing that.

- The price is a little more expensive than I thought. With myself being on the ATT Next plan, you might have to purchased the phone outright for over $700 after tax. It's a bit to chew on, but Bestbuy is running this promotion that if you trade in a working smartphone, you can get a instant $200 rebate which is what I went with.

Overall, this feels like a this is a solid device. There are some things that Samsung removed from this year iteration like the removable battery and use of SD cards that might be an issue to some users. I do miss the leather back. However for the majority of typical smartphone users, it might not matter. If you can overcome these small issues, I’m confident that you will enjoy this smartphone. My wife love her new phone, especially being able to take notes without unlocking her phone. But I will gradually update this post if I see any other pros/cons.

Please visit your local carrier store to have some hand-on time with the actual phone as what listed here is my own personal opinions.