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r122925
Joined: 02 Jun 2011
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 4:45 pm Post subject: Galaxy S2 HD LTE vs Galaxy Note |
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I'm interested in upgrading to a new phone. I had a chance to play around with both of these phones in a shop yesterday, and I'm having trouble deciding between the two.
Here are some of the differences I noticed.
Obviously the Note has a bigger screen (5.3 inch) compared to the S2HDLTE (4.5 inch). 0.8 inches doesn't seem like much on paper, but when you hold it in your hand... wow... the note is massive. I'm not sure if a phone that big would be comfortable for everyday use. I also noticed the Note is not only larger, but also significantly heavier.
The other big difference is that the Note has a stylus and the S2HDLTE does not. The TV commercials show a lot of cool things you can do with it... like write some notes on a map and then immiediately email it to a friend. But I wonder how often this gets used from day to day, especially considering that 99.9% of Android apps are not designed with a stylus in mind.
They both have the same camera and the same amount of RAM. The Note has a 1.4ghz dual core CPU and the S2HDLTE is 1.5ghz dual core. In theory the S2HDLTE should be slightly faster, although I didn't notice any significant difference.
The Note has a larger, higher-capacity battery than the S2HDLTE, but I'm sure the larger screen also drains it more quickly. I can't find a comparison for battery life online anywhere.
It also seems that the S2HDLTE supports NFC payments, but the Note does not.
On a 2-year contract the S2HDLTE costs about 5,000 won per month less than the Note. Over 2 years that's a difference of 120,000 won.
I walked into the shop leaning toward the Note but walked out leaning toward the S2HDLTE. I'm curious if anyone out there owns the Note yet? What do you think of it? Is it too big? Do you use the stylus often? If so, for what?
If you had to choose between these two phones which one would you buy? |
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eamo

Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 4:54 pm Post subject: |
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If you had to choose between these two phones which one would you buy? |
The Galaxy S3!
Probably will be released this Spring. Early reports are exciting. Maybe the perfect smartphone. This will be the phone that Samsung will have to compete with the iPhone 5, so it has to be good.
I'll certainly be getting one. |
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r122925
Joined: 02 Jun 2011
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 5:01 pm Post subject: |
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eamo wrote: |
Quote: |
If you had to choose between these two phones which one would you buy? |
The Galaxy S3!
Probably will be released this Spring. Early reports are exciting. Maybe the perfect smartphone. This will be the phone that Samsung will have to compete with the iPhone 5, so it has to be good.
I'll certainly be getting one. |
That's an option for sure, but I could really use a new phone now rather than waiting 4 months. And who knows if that release date will be delayed or not. I also know that playing the tech waiting game is a game that never ends. |
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eamo

Joined: 08 Mar 2003 Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 5:10 pm Post subject: |
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r122925 wrote: |
eamo wrote: |
Quote: |
If you had to choose between these two phones which one would you buy? |
The Galaxy S3!
Probably will be released this Spring. Early reports are exciting. Maybe the perfect smartphone. This will be the phone that Samsung will have to compete with the iPhone 5, so it has to be good.
I'll certainly be getting one. |
That's an option for sure, but I could really use a new phone now rather than waiting 4 months. And who knows if that release date will be delayed or not. I also know that playing the tech waiting game is a game that never ends. |
Yeah. Waiting for the next big thing is not the way to play the game. Buying what suits your needs is better.
I already have a Galaxy S, so I'm happy enough for now to wait for the S3.
If I was going to spend a lot of time watching video or using GPS in my car, then I'd buy the Note. The bigger screen would be nice for those uses.
You have to imagine how you'll use your device. Then choose. |
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bilbo202
Joined: 10 Nov 2004 Location: Seoul
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 5:50 pm Post subject: |
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I've got an LTE - and while the larger screen is fantastic it's still a phone screen, not large enough to do tablet type things well. If you plan on using it more as a quasi-tablet then definitely go for the Note. |
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soulofseoul
Joined: 23 Mar 2010 Location: Seoul
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 8:40 pm Post subject: |
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Do you know if the Galaxy Note comes "unlocked" ?
I read in a forum that they dont :cry: |
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shutterbug
Joined: 02 Jan 2012
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 10:14 pm Post subject: Re: Galaxy S2 HD LTE vs Galaxy Note |
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r122925 wrote: |
I'm interested in upgrading to a new phone. I had a chance to play around with both of these phones in a shop yesterday, and I'm having trouble deciding between the two.
...
If you had to choose between these two phones which one would you buy? |
My opinion.. neither... wait for the S3 or see what HTC has in store... I was asking myself the same question
My Dell Streak broke about 2 months ago (it was dropped A LOT). Using my wife's old Nexus One to this day. The S2 has had a few refreshes, but it's still an S2, which is already old news. I loved having a 5" screen, but not fond of the Note's build.
About the Streak, I loved the beautiful 5" screen. I found it the perfect size and the upper limit of what fits in your pocket. Takes a while to get used to against your ear, but for all other things, big screen = comfy cozy. Daughter loved watching videos on it. My wife liked using it to browse web sites. Text input is awesome with bigger "buttons", especially if you use T9. Battery life wasn't so great, but from what I've read, it's better with the Note.. not super fantastic, but better.. Samsung put a beefier battery into the Note to make up for the larger screen (common sense that Dell skipped out on).
S3 is coming out soon enough... nothing really appealing to me at the moment... if you don't mind an older phone, by the time the S3 is out, maybe you can get the S2 for free?  |
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singerdude
Joined: 18 Jul 2009
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 6:03 am Post subject: |
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I have the Note, and I think it's great. The reasons I bought it were for the high resolution, and mainly, the screen size. Now that I'm used to it, the Galaxy S seems so tiny. I don't think I could ever go back to a phone smaller than 5". I love being able to see an entire web page in landscape mode. Sure it's small, but still legible. I still double tap to zoom in, but it's really nice to have a bird's eye view of the whole page. I downloaded Miren browser and set it to desktop mode, so I never get mobile versions of web pages. I can play YouTube 720p videos directly on the site(not the app). There is an occasional stutter in 720p, but not enough to be distracting. Otherwise, it's quite smooth. Videos and games look great on this phone. Much better than my old Galaxy S. The CPU is 1.5Ghz, not 1.4 like the international version. The international version doesn't have LTE, but the Korean version does. This is why it has a different CPU, because the Qualcomm 1.5 Ghz supports both LTE and 3G.
I don't use the pen all that much, but from what I hear, Ice Cream Sandwich is supposed to have pen support. If having a large screen and high resolution is important to you, there is nothing better right now IMHO. |
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Beeyee

Joined: 29 May 2007
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Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 11:34 pm Post subject: |
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I have the Galaxy SII HD LTE and I absolutely love it.
I was deciding between that and the Note but for me, the HD LTE was significantly lighter and seemed sleeker. 720p movies look outstanding. |
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shutterbug
Joined: 02 Jan 2012
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Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2012 11:43 am Post subject: Re: Galaxy S2 HD LTE vs Galaxy Note |
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One other point.. methinks it's also a better idea to wait is that rumour has it that the Note II may be out soon enough as well...
Just my opinion, I think the Note was an open beta/test-market kind of product to be refined later on if there was enough demand to prove such effort is worthy. Samsung was smart cause the phones with 5" screens weren't very well known or popular.. hence, not much competition or need to "try" hard... I only know of 2 other phones with 5" screens. The Dell Streak (of course) and the Vega No5, which I don't think is sold outside of Korea? Dell also announced they're bailing on Android devices..
Dropped by one of those phone store/agent things in Hi-Mart with my wife last night, wasn't really interested in locking myself into another contract with a phone which I know will be "updated" soon enough. So, in a few months.. I may deciding between the Note II, S3 or something from HTC. I may end up getting the Note by then if the specs aren't too far off from the S3. No turning back after experiencing a 5" screen. It's as big as it can get while still fitting in most pockets. |
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cj1976
Joined: 26 Oct 2005
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Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2012 3:31 pm Post subject: |
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Whichever phone you buy, rest assured that it will be superseded by a better, faster model within 6 months of purchase making your 2 year contract seem like a real rip-off! After signing a 2 year contract to buy the Galaxy S, I am never signing another contract again. I'm going to keep this phone until it dies. |
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The Cosmic Hum

Joined: 09 May 2003 Location: Sonic Space
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Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2012 11:35 pm Post subject: Re: Galaxy S2 HD LTE vs Galaxy Note |
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shutterbug wrote: |
One other point.. methinks it's also a better idea to wait is that rumour has it that the Note II may be out soon enough as well...
Just my opinion, I think the Note was an open beta/test-market kind of product to be refined later on if there was enough demand to prove such effort is worthy. Samsung was smart cause the phones with 5" screens weren't very well known or popular.. hence, not much competition or need to "try" hard... I only know of 2 other phones with 5" screens. The Dell Streak (of course) and the Vega No5, which I don't think is sold outside of Korea? Dell also announced they're bailing on Android devices..
Dropped by one of those phone store/agent things in Hi-Mart with my wife last night, wasn't really interested in locking myself into another contract with a phone which I know will be "updated" soon enough. So, in a few months.. I may deciding between the Note II, S3 or something from HTC. I may end up getting the Note by then if the specs aren't too far off from the S3. No turning back after experiencing a 5" screen. It's as big as it can get while still fitting in most pockets. |
considering the Note just got released in Korea this past month...not much of a chance that Note II will be coming any time soon.
The Galaxy Tab 7.7 ...was supposed to be released in Nov of 2011...now it looks like Feb of 2012.
I talked with a manager at the local Samsung store...he said they are releasing the Korea versions late to incorporate more advanced technology.
That is true with the Galaxy Note...the Korean released one has better technology in it.
As cj says though...something new will always come along...but when...is it worth waiting for?
Time will tell.  |
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singerdude
Joined: 18 Jul 2009
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Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 1:24 am Post subject: |
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Those two year contracts are easy to get out of though. Not like in the states, where you have to pay an early termination fee. The only thing you have to pay for is the remaining amount due on the phone, without their subsidy. In my case, I was a year and a few months into my Galaxy S contract. I canceled it, sold the phone for 230,000, and had to pay the remaining 130,000. For me, upgrading to the Note was worth paying the 130,000.
This was with KT, but I imagine it is the same with the other companies. |
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Yaya

Joined: 25 Feb 2003 Location: Seoul
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Posted: Sun Jan 15, 2012 11:25 pm Post subject: |
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Beeyee wrote: |
I have the Galaxy SII HD LTE and I absolutely love it.
I was deciding between that and the Note but for me, the HD LTE was significantly lighter and seemed sleeker. 720p movies look outstanding. |
I second this though I don't use the phone for watching movies. Most of the people around me said iPhone, iPhone, iPhone but I'm glad I got the Galaxy instead of the overrated, underpowered and extremely fragile iPhone.
I would've gotten the Note had I waited but perhaps I did good by getting the Galaxy S2 LTE HD since it is lighter and such. |
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