Editorials

The Galaxy Note 5 is a worthy upgrade over the Note 4

Now that the next big thing is here, consumers are ready to get their hands on it in retail stores and in the mail. One customer in particular has already received his Galaxy Note 5 and has started taking pictures with the latest from Samsung. But, along with the new smartphone, Galaxy Note 4 customers are asking the question, “Is the Galaxy Note 5 a worthy upgrade? Should I upgrade from last year’s phablet to this year’s phablet?”

The answer that anyone can give is subjective. What appeals to one customer may not appeal to all. Should someone offer a single reason as to why the Galaxy Note 5 is a worthy upgrade over the Galaxy Note 4, someone may not agree with that same answer. While everyone may not agree with the answers below, I believe there are at least three reasons why the Galaxy Note 5 is a worthy upgrade over the Galaxy Note 4.

Galaxy Note 5 has fast wireless charging, Note 4 only has fast charging

The Galaxy Note 5 is the first in the Note series to feature wireless charging. Samsung debuted its wireless charging implementation on the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge earlier this year, but the S line and the Note line are not the same – and the Galaxy Note 5 is the Korean manufacturer’s 2015 Note device. The Galaxy S line receives the latest tech updates before the Note line, so it’s not odd to see the Galaxy Note 5 finally get the wireless charging Samsung debuted in the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge.

The Note 4, however, has no in-built wireless charging at all, which means that Note 4 users will still need to wall charge their device(s) when the battery juice runs out. The Galaxy Note 5 user, however, has fast wireless charging. Samsung crafted the phrase “fast wireless charging” and created the concept by taking traditional wireless charging (the device being powered by a charging mat) and adding fast charging capabilities to it.

While it’s true that the traditional wall charging for the Note 4 will take 80-100 minutes, the new fast wireless charging in the Galaxy Note 5 will take no more than 120 minutes max (2 hours). In other words, you’ll likely charge 80% of your battery with the new fast wireless charging in the same amount of time as you wall charged your Galaxy Note 4. With Samsung’s new battery optimizations, you should get more out of the Galaxy Note 5’s 80% than you did out of the Note 4’s 100%.

Galaxy Note 5 features an improved S Pen

The Galaxy Note 5 does come with an improved S Pen over its predecessor, and with some interesting new changes at that.

First, the S Pen feels and looks like a traditional ballpoint pen, which changes how the S Pen has been viewed and used in the Note 4. Samsung’s S Pen is marvelous, with its pressure points and improved performance, but the one major problem with the S Pen (at least in my view) has been that it is too reminiscent of a kid’s coloring crayon. The height of the S Pen makes me think of it more as something a kid would write with than a business professional, college student, or adult.

This year’s S Pen in the Note 5 looks is more refined. It still isn’t tall enough for what I would expect of a ballpoint pen, and it still doesn’t have the size of a normal pen (the S Pen needs to gain a little weight), but it does have a “clicking” push-to-eject mechanism in-built into the top of the stylus that you can push out when grabbing the stylus. You can continue to click the top of the stylus when you have it in hand, reminiscent of the old ballpoint pens with “clicking” tops. Early tech reviewers say that the new Galaxy Note 5 stylus is addictive because of the new “clicking” eject mechanism.

Galaxy Note 5 has new software features

The Note series is not designed to be a second “S” line. No, Samsung designed it to be something different, something extra, something a little more innovative. With that being said, the Korean manufacturer is known for its feature-packed experience in the Galaxy Note line, and the Note 5 continues this trend.

The Note 4 was announced with new features last year, two of them being the Photo Note and Smart Select. Photo Note allows you to take a picture of writing on a classroom chalkboard or presentation display – which is then converts into printed text. Smart Select allows you to copy and paste images and text simultaneously. This year’s Galaxy Note 5 has three new features that will enhance the Note experience even more: 1) Off Screen Write, 2) Scroll Capture, and 3) Write on PDF.

Off Screen Write takes the familiar Screen Write found in the Galaxy Note 3, for example, and applies it to your display when the screen is off and your phone is locked: you can now write on your display even when the screen is black. Scroll Capture lets you capture long webpages and send them to your gallery, social media, or email without needing to take multiple screenshots of the same page. Write on PDF is designed to let you fill out and sign PDF forms when you download them.

These features enhance the Note line, making the Galaxy Note 5 the most productive smartphone on the market. As a result, you should know that yes, the Galaxy Note 5 is a worthy upgrade over the Note 4. The camera is also a fourth, legitimate reason, but we didn’t want to state the obvious.

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