I am about to pull the trigger on the note 4.

[kyrax12]

I been researching the Note 4 and even though the galaxy s6 is close to coming out in the U.S, I am not interested in that phone.

Not having a removable battery and no micro sd expansion slot is a deal breaker for me.

Not sure if I should upgrade now, since the note 4 looks really appealing to me.

I am also unsure of whether or not the note 5 will have a removable battery or micro sd card expansion slot. It seems that it is a general consensus that the galaxy note 4 is a good phone that have met or even exceeded expectations. I don't think I know anyone that hates the phone... Online or in real life.

 

[JohnAn2112]

If you want to get the Note 4 over the S6, then you should get it. The Note 5 won't be revealed until the fall so you still have half a year to wait for that one.

 

[Oyeve]

Get it. I love mine. You really can't go wrong.

 

[holden j caufield]

what's so great about the note 4 vs the note 3?

 

[Oyeve]

what's so great about the note 4 vs the note 3?

Faster, much better screen IMO, s-pen improved, if you are superficial the build quality is much improved over the 3, less bloatware, much better camera than the 3.

I have both the note 3 and the note 4 so I am not biased when I say the 4 is better in every way.

 

[rudeguy]

Faster, much better screen IMO, s-pen improved, if you are superficial the build quality is much improved over the 3, less bloatware, much better camera than the 3.

I have both the note 3 and the note 4 so I am not biased when I say the 4 is better in every way.

I chose the the 3 over the 4 because the 3 supported USB 3.0 and had the IR blaster. The fingerprint scanner, screen and small battery boost just weren't worth the trade off for me.

But I have not met anyone who has a Note 4 who was sorry they got it. Another small but cool thing is VR support. If you watch movies (yea even porn), I've heard its worth the extra couple bucks to play with.

I'm really not liking how Samsung is going away from removable batteries and storage. Those are 2 things that I absolutely can't live without. So if I were the OP, I'd buy a Note 4 today and forget about the Note 5.

 

[ControlD]

I chose the the 3 over the 4 because the 3 supported USB 3.0 and had the IR blaster. The fingerprint scanner, screen and small battery boost just weren't worth the trade off for me.

But I have not met anyone who has a Note 4 who was sorry they got it. Another small but cool thing is VR support. If you watch movies (yea even porn), I've heard its worth the extra couple bucks to play with.

I'm really not liking how Samsung is going away from removable batteries and storage. Those are 2 things that I absolutely can't live without. So if I were the OP, I'd buy a Note 4 today and forget about the Note 5.

Looks like the Note 4 just went back on my list.

 

[VashHT]

I chose the the 3 over the 4 because the 3 supported USB 3.0 and had the IR blaster. The fingerprint scanner, screen and small battery boost just weren't worth the trade off for me.

But I have not met anyone who has a Note 4 who was sorry they got it. Another small but cool thing is VR support. If you watch movies (yea even porn), I've heard its worth the extra couple bucks to play with.

I'm really not liking how Samsung is going away from removable batteries and storage. Those are 2 things that I absolutely can't live without. So if I were the OP, I'd buy a Note 4 today and forget about the Note 5.

Note 4 has an IR blaster, I do wish they had kept USB 3.0 though.

 

[rudeguy]

Note 4 has an IR blaster, I do wish they had kept USB 3.0 though.

I stand corrected.

USB 3.0 is huge for me. I have to transfer large files between multiple PCs and locations. I just tried finding my USB 3.0 drive and I lost it again. So I transferred the files I needed to copy to my phone, then to my other PC. Took seconds. I just wish this thing could support 128 gb cards. Then my life would be complete.

 

[dawheat]

Couple things:

- Be sure you're ok with the size of the Note 4, especially if you're coming from standard 5" phones. It's not for everyone
- If you're ok with the size, the Note 4 IMO is the best large phone by a good margin. Unlikely a phablet will dethrone it until the Note 5, which won't be available until October
- Whether the Note 4 is worth it over the Note 3 is up to you - the screen is better all-round (though not dramatically so), performance is better, camera in low light is MUCH better, build quality is much better with the metal frame. As a former Note 3 user, it was worth the upgrade for me, but I can easily understand others not feeling the same way.
- The fingerprint scanner can be a little finnicky, but after using it for almost 6 months now, I almost always get it on the first try and it's way more convenient than a PIN. However, expect that the Note 5 will be much improved here with the touch scanner.

 

[Dulanic]

Love mine, no complaints.

 

[kyrax12]

What is the likelyhood that the note 5 won't have a removable battery option?

 

[holden j caufield]

are the tmobile note 3/note 4 both easy to root, can the default kernel be undervolted. I'm specifically looking at tmobile because of the wifi calling, sometimes I'm in a datacenter with not much reception but good wifi.

 

[rudeguy]

What is the likelyhood that the note 5 won't have a removable battery option?

50/50

Samsung said it didn't go metal unibody on the Note 4 to prevent it from feeling "cold". From what I know, the unibody is what dictates the non-removable battery. So if the Note stays with the plastic construction, it should be removable. But if it goes metal, probably not. BUT Samsung has said that the textured battery cover is a feature they like on the Note series, so that leans towards a removable battery staying. But who knows what Samsung is planning?

My guess is they stay with the same body, improve the display, do some minor tweaks and do away with the expandable memory. Basically make it a big Note Edge but with a better display. But until some leaks come out, I'm just guessing.

 

[poofyhairguy]

Faster, much better screen IMO, s-pen improved, if you are superficial the build quality is much improved over the 3, less bloatware, much better camera than the 3.

I have both the note 3 and the note 4 so I am not biased when I say the 4 is better in every way.

Yeah the Note 4 screen is the first OLED screen that looks good in daylight. In comparison my S4 or your average Wear Watch like the G Watch R looks terribad.

 

[rudeguy]

are the tmobile note 3/note 4 both easy to root, can the default kernel be undervolted. I'm specifically looking at tmobile because of the wifi calling, sometimes I'm in a datacenter with not much reception but good wifi.

I'd have to tell you to visit XDA and ask. I haven't rooted my Note 3 and have no plans to. In the past it was pretty straight forward as long as you don't mind Odin and are comfortable with an occasional soft brick. Heck in the past I didn't consider a phone broken in until I had soft bricked at least once.

 

[GTRagnarok]

Loving my Note 4. Wished it had an even bigger screen If felt big at first, like when I upgraded from the iPhone 4 to the Galaxy S4, but after only a week it feels normal now and the S4 feels tiny. I want to say I'll be using this for quite a while, but I said the same thing about the S4... The only thing that would really make me consider upgrading to the Note 5 is if it has front facing speakers.

are the tmobile note 3/note 4 both easy to root, can the default kernel be undervolted. I'm specifically looking at tmobile because of the wifi calling, sometimes I'm in a datacenter with not much reception but good wifi.

Very easy to root. If nothing else, I need root to change apps' dpi setting. The default dpi is just absolutely unbearable to me on Dolphin Browser, for instance.

 

[kyrax12]

Well guess the note 4 it is! How is the snap dragon 805 though in your opinion?

 

[Dulanic]

Well guess the note 4 it is! How is the snap dragon 805 though in your opinion?

Never even really a slow down on my phone ever and I am using TW to keep some of the functionality that I would lose going /w a ASOP rom.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I really like the Note 4 (upgraded from a Note 3).

TouchWiz is so much better. This surprisingly was probably the one thing I liked best about the Note 4. The software is vastly improved over the Note 3. Looks better, much more intuitive and easier to use, feels less bloated. I actually don't hate TouchWiz now. Still has a bunch of extra crap, but the extra crap is easier to find and use.

The build quality is my second favorite thing. This phone looks and feels so much better. And while technically a tad bit heavier, to me it feels lighter, maybe better weight balance.

The screen and S-Pen are improved, but I didn't find either to be improved enough to really be noticeable in day to day usage.

The performance feels about the same. The Snapdragon 805 has a faster GPU, but also a higher resolution display, so those two things cancel each other out.

The fingerprint scanner was disappointing. Too often I would get invalid finger or placement errors more often than not. And on the invalid finger error it would make a pop-up window appear warning me that after 5 tries I'd be forced to use a password. This was super annoying because I could not swipe again until I tapped "OK" to dismiss the warning. I tried this for a few weeks, but recently gave up and turned off the fingerprint scanner and am using just a PIN. The Galaxy S6 reportedly has a much better button that doesn't require swiping.

For someone that has a Note 3, I probably wouldn't really upgrade to the Note 4. Just doesn't seem to be improved enough. And if Samsung ever updates the Note 3 with it's new version of TouchWiz, that will help the Note 3 a lot.

Not sure what you are upgrading from. But the Note 4 is very nice and if you need to upgrade, that seems like a very safe choice.

 

[Muadib]

The note 4 is the best phone I've ever had. My only complaint is how slow it is to bring up the last apps screen. Switching to art solved it, but brought in a different problem, so I'm back to Dalvik until 5.01 is out for at&t.

 

[gadgetprostitute]

I been researching the Note 4 and even though the galaxy s6 is close to coming out in the U.S, I am not interested in that phone.

Not having a removable battery and no micro sd expansion slot is a deal breaker for me.

Not sure if I should upgrade now, since the note 4 looks really appealing to me.

I am also unsure of whether or not the note 5 will have a removable battery or micro sd card expansion slot. It seems that it is a general consensus that the galaxy note 4 is a good phone that have met or even exceeded expectations. I don't think I know anyone that hates the phone... Online or in real life.

First off, don't let yourself overthink this.

Second, don't overvalue the removable battery feaure.

My previous two devices had removable batteries and I bought a spare battery for each so I could swap batteries on the go if I drained one of them. Over time and through usage, though, I found that swapping batteries OTG to be a hassle and later started carrying a battery backup and leaving the spare battery at home. Waste of money.

Also, don't think that a removable battery will prolong the life of your device because within a couple of years, you'll want a new device anyway.

Third, don't overvalue memory expansion.

My previous two devices had 32gb SDHC card compatibility and I used it, but I've found the act of transferring files onto those SD cards to be too time consuming, so much so that I just stopped doing it on not only those devices but I've stopped using my Sandisk MP3 player as well- I just hate shuttling files onto the onboard memory of any device, regardless of its capacity or type of storage.

Instead, I've been streaming music from my online music lockers, Google Play Music and Amazon Music, or I've been streaming audio through an online radio such as iHeartRadio (sp?).

Fourth... see the first point. This is not that big of a purchase- it's not like you're buying a house- and if you buy a device and later change your mind, just sell/trade it and get something else that you think you'll like... wash/rinse/repeat.

 

[kyrax12]

I really like the Note 4 (upgraded from a Note 3).

TouchWiz is so much better. This surprisingly was probably the one thing I liked best about the Note 4. The software is vastly improved over the Note 3. Looks better, much more intuitive and easier to use, feels less bloated. I actually don't hate TouchWiz now. Still has a bunch of extra crap, but the extra crap is easier to find and use.

The build quality is my second favorite thing. This phone looks and feels so much better. And while technically a tad bit heavier, to me it feels lighter, maybe better weight balance.

The screen and S-Pen are improved, but I didn't find either to be improved enough to really be noticeable in day to day usage.

The performance feels about the same. The Snapdragon 805 has a faster GPU, but also a higher resolution display, so those two things cancel each other out.

The fingerprint scanner was disappointing. Too often I would get invalid finger or placement errors more often than not. And on the invalid finger error it would make a pop-up window appear warning me that after 5 tries I'd be forced to use a password. This was super annoying because I could not swipe again until I tapped "OK" to dismiss the warning. I tried this for a few weeks, but recently gave up and turned off the fingerprint scanner and am using just a PIN. The Galaxy S6 reportedly has a much better button that doesn't require swiping.

For someone that has a Note 3, I probably wouldn't really upgrade to the Note 4. Just doesn't seem to be improved enough. And if Samsung ever updates the Note 3 with it's new version of TouchWiz, that will help the Note 3 a lot.

Not sure what you are upgrading from. But the Note 4 is very nice and if you need to upgrade, that seems like a very safe choice.

I am upgrading from a S4. would I feel a massive difference?

 

[Ravynmagi]

I am upgrading from a S4. would I feel a massive difference?

S4 is still pretty decent, so I'm hesitant to say "massive", but certainly a very good difference!

 

[dawheat]

I am upgrading from a S4. would I feel a massive difference?

Its always hard to say since people have very different expectations. It is measurably better in every respect? Absolutely. Does that equal massive? Up to you.

I've tried to call out the "instant" things you'll notice vs. things that take time:

- Screen size is going to be a huge difference
- Visibility in daylight will be much better, especially if you use auto brightness
- low light photos are much better
- front facing camera is much better
- If you go caseless, it feels much more premium
- When I had my S4, it was still on JB and had close to bad battery life when I use it normally (high accuracy location, everything on, etc). I've heard KK on the S4 has helped a lot, but battery life on the Note 4 will be much better