Anyone have a Samsung Galaxy Note 3? (1 Viewer)

[chauncey]

I'm reading some reviews and apparently the Note doubles as an excellent TV Dinner stand if you place it in your lap. Plenty of room for plate and silverware, though fitting a beverage on there as well is a bit of a tight fit.

Goonsquad alias? Half the time I see these phones in the wild I am baffled by how ridiculous they look, maybe the case adds 20lbs. To their credit though everyone who owns one f'n loves them. The Galaxy S# may have put Samsung on the map but the Note is what puts them ahead of their competition.

 

[[icon]]

I'm reading some reviews and apparently the Note doubles as an excellent TV Dinner stand if you place it in your lap. Plenty of room for plate and silverware, though fitting a beverage on there as well is a bit of a tight fit.

Goonsquad alias? .

Naw... He was serious. I'm just trolling

 

[Mister CIA]

[icon] with the iPhone 6.

 

[AcerFC]

Any new note users today.

Many in here said the battery life is awesome. I'm not seeing it. Any tips for getting more juice

 

[Das Boot]

Any new note users today.

Many in here said the battery life is awesome. I'm not seeing it. Any tips for getting more juice

My battery lasts just about exactly a day with my normal usage.

Turning off gps and bluetooth are probably the 2 biggest ones, I like a bright screen so I keep my screen at fully brightness, but using the auto brightness setting is another help to battery life.

 

[John Bender]

Battery life is amazing.

Grab the widget called Active Apps which just let's you clear everything open with one press of a button.

 

[AcerFC]

Any new note users today.

Many in here said the battery life is awesome. I'm not seeing it. Any tips for getting more juice

My battery lasts just about exactly a day with my normal usage.

Turning off gps and bluetooth are probably the 2 biggest ones, I like a bright screen so I keep my screen at fully brightness, but using the auto brightness setting is another help to battery life.

pretty much the same as me. I have both of those things off. Looks like the people who get two days out of it use it differently

 

[AcerFC]

Battery life is amazing.

Grab the widget called Active Apps which just let's you clear everything open with one press of a button.

I have that. Only really run 2 apps. Chrome and handcent. Im at 42% right now after taking it off charger at 8:00 this morning. My iPhone would be around 60\65% for same use

 

[John Bender]

Trade back for the iPhone then? Some people like em, some don't. I personally love the Note line, but others just find the iPhone flat out better.

 

[AcerFC]

Trade back for the iPhone then? Some people like em, some don't. I personally love the Note line, but others just find the iPhone flat out better.

I have not decided what I'm doing yet. When I look at my iPhone now, it's almost unreadable. But you said the battery life was amazing. I was trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Looks like nothing,I just use the phone a lot. Looks like the iPhone battery is better for my use. Something to consider when I make my final decision

 

[RBM]

Trade back for the iPhone then? Some people like em, some don't. I personally love the Note line, but others just find the iPhone flat out better.

I have not decided what I'm doing yet. When I look at my iPhone now, it's almost unreadable. But you said the battery life was amazing. I was trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Looks like nothing,I just use the phone a lot. Looks like the iPhone battery is better for my use. Something to consider when I make my final decision

Besides the screen, anything you like about the phone?

 

[AcerFC]

Trade back for the iPhone then? Some people like em, some don't. I personally love the Note line, but others just find the iPhone flat out better.

I have not decided what I'm doing yet. When I look at my iPhone now, it's almost unreadable. But you said the battery life was amazing. I was trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Looks like nothing,I just use the phone a lot. Looks like the iPhone battery is better for my use. Something to consider when I make my final decision

Besides the screen, anything you like about the phone?

yes. I know it is not limited to the note, but I love Swype. I like other android things as well not limited to the note. All photos and videos backing up to picasa. The contact list having groups.

On the note itself, I am really liking the s pen scrapbook feature. Here is an example. I am going to new Orleans in a few weeks. Anything I find on nola, I put in my scrapbook. It beats saving 100 links in a folder. Scrapbook shows images and text. I also have a note 3 scrapbook.

I like some of the widgets like spotify and sportscenter. These things add a nice touch without having to open it up in an app. I also like having my calendar as a widget. One swipe and I'm looking at it.

The more time I spend with it, the more in find. I dont want to sound like a whiny ##### but I'm down to 11% now. I would never come close to this low on my iPhone.

I want to thank everyone in this thread for helping.

Eta: love the multi screen option. Text and surf our surf and watch a movie. Wish more apps could be multi screened.

 

[Otis]

Any new note users today.

Many in here said the battery life is awesome. I'm not seeing it. Any tips for getting more juice

My battery lasts just about exactly a day with my normal usage.

Turning off gps and bluetooth are probably the 2 biggest ones, I like a bright screen so I keep my screen at fully brightness, but using the auto brightness setting is another help to battery life.

pretty much the same as me. I have both of those things off. Looks like the people who get two days out of it use it differently

Two days is pretty unrealistic with heavy use, but I'm pretty sure that's true with any smartphone in the world. I get a day typically, but I charge my phones nightly so it doesn't matter so long as it gets me through a day. In any event, his isn't touted as the best battery life smartphone -- it's the biggest screen and one of the best performing. (It still is getting better battery life than my iPhone 5, but I'm sure that has something to do with different cellular networks, different Wifi searching, etc.)

 

[Abraham]

Not about android or iphone, but anyone wanting a scrap book and note taking app really should be using Evernote. It's unbelievably useful.

 

[John Bender]

The calendar widget rules.

 

[Otis]

Trade back for the iPhone then? Some people like em, some don't. I personally love the Note line, but others just find the iPhone flat out better.

I have not decided what I'm doing yet. When I look at my iPhone now, it's almost unreadable. But you said the battery life was amazing. I was trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Looks like nothing,I just use the phone a lot. Looks like the iPhone battery is better for my use. Something to consider when I make my final decision

Besides the screen, anything you like about the phone?

yes. I know it is not limited to the note, but I love Swype.I like other android things as well not limited to the note. All photos and videos backing up to picasa. The contact list having groups.

On the note itself, I am really liking the s pen scrapbook feature. Here is an example. I am going to new Orleans in a few weeks. Anything I find on nola, I put in my scrapbook. It beats saving 100 links in a folder. Scrapbook shows images and text. I also have a note 3 scrapbook.

I like some of the widgets like spotify and sportscenter. These things add a nice touch without having to open it up in an app. I also like having my calendar as a widget. One swipe and I'm looking at it.

The more time I spend with it, the more in find. I dont want to sound like a whiny ##### but I'm down to 11% now. I would never come close to this low on my iPhone.

I want to thank everyone in this thread for helping.

Accept the fact that you're going to have to charge it nightly. The trick is to ensure you are getting through to bedtime. I suspect you may also be using it more as a new phone than you would a phone you're already used to.

There are tons of battery tricks, battery saving apps, etc. You can turn off things like bluetooth if you don't use them. Leave the screen brightness on "auto," not full brightness. I've seen something in the settings somewhere that shows you exactly what on your phone is eating the most battery, and what percentage each thing contributes. Screen is always going to be highest, but see what's following that. Maybe you'll find a battery hog in there you don't need. I've read that some location/GPS apps are real battery hogs. I haven't had to turn off anything because of battery life, but it sounds like you can configure it however you like.

 

[Otis]

I discovered new functionality the other day that I love.

First off the Google Maps GPS function is great, but Waze is outstanding.

Secondly, I discovered the ZocDoc website and app this weekend. Needed to find a doc in my area. This thing recommended one, put me in touch, allowed me to input my insurance and make an appointment online. I was pretty pleased. But that's just a website/app thing generally, not a Note thing.

Third, this was the kicker for me. I get an e-mail from Zocdoc confirming my Dr. appointment. It asks me if I want to put in a calendar entry in Google calendar. I click yes. It populates a calendar entry with the address and everything. Then as my appointment time is approaching, about 27 minutes in advance, it hits me with a reminder and tells me that, based on where I am at the moment and local traffic conditions, I should leave in the next 5 minutes to make my appointment. Incredibly cool. Not only that, but it offered the option to navigate me to the appointment -- with a single click, I was in Waze getting turn by turn directions.

I'm sure iPhone has something like this, but this very much felt like a "it just works" Apple moment for me. I didn't set anything up, I wasn't trying to do something fancy, but the phone was a step ahead of me and helping me out and making life easier. This integration with all things Google is so fantastic.

Even the Google voice search (Go Google) is way better than Siri. It gets my spoken search right every time, and instead of the crap Siri results in that Apple land, it takes me to Google search results that are, well, actually helpful. Just a way better implementation of voice search.

Did I mention I love wireless charging? So awesome. I want to drop these little chargers all over the place. My next challenge is finding a place to mount one in the car, and I will figure out a cool way to do this.

Not to mention I go to those Android forums here and there and see some of the screen customizations and they're so awesome. The sky is the limit. So, so cool.

I won't go back.

 

[Card Trader]

I discovered new functionality the other day that I love.

First off the Google Maps GPS function is great, but Waze is outstanding.

Secondly, I discovered the ZocDoc website and app this weekend. Needed to find a doc in my area. This thing recommended one, put me in touch, allowed me to input my insurance and make an appointment online. I was pretty pleased. But that's just a website/app thing generally, not a Note thing.

Third, this was the kicker for me. I get an e-mail from Zocdoc confirming my Dr. appointment. It asks me if I want to put in a calendar entry in Google calendar. I click yes. It populates a calendar entry with the address and everything. Then as my appointment time is approaching, about 27 minutes in advance, it hits me with a reminder and tells me that, based on where I am at the moment and local traffic conditions, I should leave in the next 5 minutes to make my appointment. Incredibly cool. Not only that, but it offered the option to navigate me to the appointment -- with a single click, I was in Waze getting turn by turn directions.

I'm sure iPhone has something like this, but this very much felt like a "it just works" Apple moment for me. I didn't set anything up, I wasn't trying to do something fancy, but the phone was a step ahead of me and helping me out and making life easier. This integration with all things Google is so fantastic.

Even the Google voice search (Go Google) is way better than Siri. It gets my spoken search right every time, and instead of the crap Siri results in that Apple land, it takes me to Google search results that are, well, actually helpful. Just a way better implementation of voice search.

Did I mention I love wireless charging? So awesome. I want to drop these little chargers all over the place. My next challenge is finding a place to mount one in the car, and I will figure out a cool way to do this.

Not to mention I go to those Android forums here and there and see some of the screen customizations and they're so awesome. The sky is the limit. So, so cool.

I won't go back.

This doesn't even feel like FBG anymore...where am I?

 

[Otis]

I discovered new functionality the other day that I love.

First off the Google Maps GPS function is great, but Waze is outstanding.

Secondly, I discovered the ZocDoc website and app this weekend. Needed to find a doc in my area. This thing recommended one, put me in touch, allowed me to input my insurance and make an appointment online. I was pretty pleased. But that's just a website/app thing generally, not a Note thing.

Third, this was the kicker for me. I get an e-mail from Zocdoc confirming my Dr. appointment. It asks me if I want to put in a calendar entry in Google calendar. I click yes. It populates a calendar entry with the address and everything. Then as my appointment time is approaching, about 27 minutes in advance, it hits me with a reminder and tells me that, based on where I am at the moment and local traffic conditions, I should leave in the next 5 minutes to make my appointment. Incredibly cool. Not only that, but it offered the option to navigate me to the appointment -- with a single click, I was in Waze getting turn by turn directions.

I'm sure iPhone has something like this, but this very much felt like a "it just works" Apple moment for me. I didn't set anything up, I wasn't trying to do something fancy, but the phone was a step ahead of me and helping me out and making life easier. This integration with all things Google is so fantastic.

Even the Google voice search (Go Google) is way better than Siri. It gets my spoken search right every time, and instead of the crap Siri results in that Apple land, it takes me to Google search results that are, well, actually helpful. Just a way better implementation of voice search.

Did I mention I love wireless charging? So awesome. I want to drop these little chargers all over the place. My next challenge is finding a place to mount one in the car, and I will figure out a cool way to do this.

Not to mention I go to those Android forums here and there and see some of the screen customizations and they're so awesome. The sky is the limit. So, so cool.

I won't go back.

This doesn't even feel like FBG anymore...where am I?

Weird right?

I stand by my support of Apple in 2000-2010 or so. They did more innovating for mobile music, mobile phones, smartphones, and media consumption than anyone. Hell, they started the tablet segment (I know there were tablets before them, but it was never a serious segment -- now it's a whole new massive home appliance line). iPhone was light years ahead of everything when it first came out, and early Android phone implementations were ham-handed imitations that didn't work as well. But since Jobs left, they passed the baton. Apple is not innovating, they're doing incremental improvements. I love this Macbook Air I'm typing on now, but they're priced so high above the Chromebooks I love, I just don't see it worth the difference for the computing needs of 95% of people.

So, on the whole, Apple was king. Now it's not, and Samsung and Google have lept ahead. I really think the Google ecosystem is twice as good as Apple's right now, and the momentum is now pretty firmly in Google's favor. Apple needs to do something "big" to retake ground and be a player again, and without Jobs and his passion and direction I just don't see it happening. Hopefully I'm wrong, as that would be good for all.

 

[Abraham]

Interesting. I've gotten more attached to apple products in recent months, moving to safari instead of chrome and starting To use lots of apps on my air instead of just going to the website.

 

[Otis]

Interesting. I've gotten more attached to apple products in recent months, moving to safari instead of chrome and starting To use lots of apps on my air instead of just going to the website.

You're going the wrong way.

 

[Abraham]

Lol. I was all PC and google apps and gmail for five years.

 

[AcerFC]

Interesting. I've gotten more attached to apple products in recent months, moving to safari instead of chrome and starting To use lots of apps on my air instead of just going to the website.

this is actually an interesting point. I would be interested to see how many Mac book users have android phones and like it. I had an iPhone since iPhone 1 but never had a Mac computer. I use Google all the time and the integration between my phone and Google has been simple and smooth. I imagine if I had a Mac, I would have felt the same about my iPhone experience.

 

[Otis]

Interesting. I've gotten more attached to apple products in recent months, moving to safari instead of chrome and starting To use lots of apps on my air instead of just going to the website.

this is actually an interesting point. I would be interested to see how many Mac book users have android phones and like it. I had an iPhone since iPhone 1 but never had a Mac computer. I use Google all the time and the integration between my phone and Google has been simple and smooth. I imagine if I had a Mac, I would have felt the same about my iPhone experience.

I was a Mac and Macbook guy for years, and that was one of the nice things about the iPhone. I kept all my music in iTunes, had a bunch of iPods before that, so the whole move to iPhone made sense. But since I've unhitched myself from the Apple ecosystem by moving to other forms of music (Spotify), doc storage (Gmail/Google Drive), etc., all of which are better options that leave me with more choices, it doesn't matter what machine I use. Apple, Chromebook, whatever, I'm agnostic. Which is pretty great. And a Chrome browsing experience across all devices is fantastic.

 

[ILUVBEER99]

Interesting. I've gotten more attached to apple products in recent months, moving to safari instead of chrome and starting To use lots of apps on my air instead of just going to the website.

this is actually an interesting point. I would be interested to see how many Mac book users have android phones and like it. I had an iPhone since iPhone 1 but never had a Mac computer. I use Google all the time and the integration between my phone and Google has been simple and smooth. I imagine if I had a Mac, I would have felt the same about my iPhone experience.

i have a macbook/iphone and an android tablet, nexus 7.

Android has a lot of customization and i like it's open nature, but i can't get over that the touchscreen just isn't as smooth. i can precision touch tiny links on my iPhone and somehow it knows where i'm pointing almost 100% of the time. With Android it's hit and miss and the scrolling is somewhat stuttered.

It's not just my device it's every android one i've tried. Nothing major but annoying after being so used to a super smooth experience.

I don't have the link handy but i know on touchscreen testing iOS was quite a bit more responsive than Android. Shocking that the most important part of a touchscreen device hasn't been equalized yet. Once Android catches up on that basic but most important part of a touchscreen than i might switch over.

****Found a link about the touchscreen response time. Shocking the geniuses at google can't catch up to apple on the most important aspect of a touchscreen device.

http://venturebeat.com/2013/09/19/apples-iphone-5-touchscreen-is-2-5-times-faster-than-android-devices/

 

[AcerFC]

I agree with the touchscreen stuff, but I have found the note 3 to be the best I have used. With the exception of me hitting the period on the keyboard constantly. The kindle fire was awful for us. My wife won't even use it anymore

 

[ILUVBEER99]

I agree with the touchscreen stuff, but I have found the note 3 to be the best I have used. With the exception of me hitting the period on the keyboard constantly. The kindle fire was awful for us. My wife won't even use it anymore

once the touchscreen catches up on Android devices i'll likely switch as i hate being a slave to the apple ecosystem.

There are great Android devices but i get extremely annoyed with the touchscreen on my nexus 7. for those that don't mind that part of the experience than i completely understand going Android.

 

[Teef]

Otis is always blue skies when he has something new.

Now that the new has worn off I'm still happy with my switch to the Evo, then my swap to the S3, but I'll admit every once in a while I get the cheap vibe I never got with Apple products. With this, I'm referring to a some hardware and some software aspects. For software, the Android OS is great in a lot of it's own ways, but some of it's most basic functions like browsing/zooming pics, browsing the net and just basic navigation tasks act pretty kludgy at times compared to the polish of the iPhone. I may be in the minority, but I also like the look of the new iOS7 on my wife's iPhone 5s, mix that in with how smooth and fluid it runs, It's hard not to notice. Some apps and menus on Android look ameturish compared to their Apple counterparts. Since I'm a design guy, I can't help but be attracted to all the pretty little Apple bells & whistles. For hardware, my Evo was a joke how quickly it began falling apart. Started with the metal rim falling off, then led into the back always coming loose. S3 hardware has been better than the Evo, but I don't like to use cases and the plastic feel doesn't shake a stick to the solid metallic feel of an iPhone or HTC One.

I'm intrigued by the Note 3, but it's I'm not sure if I want to get used to something that big. Since I switched to larger screens, I can't imagine going back to something the size of an iPhone. I wonder if I went to the Note, will the S3 feel small? Can anybody chime in on this? Seems like a vicious cycle.

 

[Otis]

Otis is always blue skies when he has something new.

Now that the new has worn off I'm still happy with my switch to the Evo, then my swap to the S3, but I'll admit every once in a while I get the cheap vibe I never got with Apple products. With this, I'm referring to a some hardware and some software aspects. For software, the Android OS is great in a lot of it's own ways, but some of it's most basic functions like browsing/zooming pics, browsing the net and just basic navigation tasks act pretty kludgy at times compared to the polish of the iPhone. I may be in the minority, but I also like the look of the new iOS7 on my wife's iPhone 5s, mix that in with how smooth and fluid it runs, It's hard not to notice. Some apps and menus on Android look ameturish compared to their Apple counterparts. Since I'm a design guy, I can't help but be attracted to all the pretty little Apple bells & whistles. For hardware, my Evo was a joke how quickly it began falling apart. Started with the metal rim falling off, then led into the back always coming loose. S3 hardware has been better than the Evo, but I don't like to use cases and the plastic feel doesn't shake a stick to the solid metallic feel of an iPhone or HTC One.

I'm intrigued by the Note 3, but it's I'm not sure if I want to get used to something that big. Since I switched to larger screens, I can't imagine going back to something the size of an iPhone. I wonder if I went to the Note, will the S3 feel small? Can anybody chime in on this? Seems like a vicious cycle.

I don't disagree with all this. Apple still wins the industrial design and fit and finish on the hardware side, and has a little more polish.

 

[shader]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

 

[Quez]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Your complaints sound pretty petty. I have not had to do any extensive customization nor have I had trouble finding 3rd party apps. I was an iphone user and consider most of the android devices superior. Maybe you are just used to Apple.

 

[AcerFC]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Your complaints sound pretty petty. I have not had to do any extensive customization nor have I had trouble finding 3rd party apps. I was an iphone user and consider most of the android devices superior. Maybe you are just used to Apple.

notifications have been difficult for me to figure out as well. I can not figure out how to get a text from handcent to show up on my lock screen. I think iPhone notifications were better or like you said, maybe I was just used to it

 

[Abraham]

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

This describes my feeling on it as well.

 

[shader]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Your complaints sound pretty petty. I have not had to do any extensive customization nor have I had trouble finding 3rd party apps. I was an iphone user and consider most of the android devices superior. Maybe you are just used to Apple.

notifications have been difficult for me to figure out as well. I can not figure out how to get a text from handcent to show up on my lock screen. I think iPhone notifications were better or like you said, maybe I was just used to it

The lock screen messages were what finally tipped the scales. I spent a long time, bought apps, read forums, and could not figure out one simple thing:

I get a text, it shows up on my locked screen with the text, I swipe the text, and it takes me to my messaging app. Basically I want it to do like Apple does.

Actually overall, for me, the texting, voicemail and phone aspects of the Android were inferior by a wide margin. Everything else was fine. Twitter, netflix, internet browsing, etc.

 

[Brony]

Have my Nexus 5 for the last couple of days and it's my first Android device after years of iPhone. I have similar experience as others where the initial setup is a little more complicated, but ultimately do-able. One example: I use Yahoo email (just like it better than gmail and I have a gmail account)... on the iPhone, in 2 seconds it gave me the option to select if I wanted to sync mail, calendar, contacts and notes. on the android, I could set up the email just fine, but then to get my yahoo contacts, I had to look up the solution online which was to get the Yahoo email app, install it, and then go into settings and allow contacts to sync. Doable, just less intuitive.

Speed with the Nexus 5 is way better than iPhone, which is a big step up.

So, I looked in the Android apps thread and it's really dated on trying to figure out the must have apps. I see that I'll need to get Swiftkey or Swype. Any other must haves?

 

[Otis]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Notifications on my Note are SO, SO much better than on iPhone. It's not remotely close. The notifications panel I swipe down to get is awesome. Not sure where you're getting that from.

 

[Otis]

Have my Nexus 5 for the last couple of days and it's my first Android device after years of iPhone. I have similar experience as others where the initial setup is a little more complicated, but ultimately do-able. One example: I use Yahoo email (just like it better than gmail and I have a gmail account)... on the iPhone, in 2 seconds it gave me the option to select if I wanted to sync mail, calendar, contacts and notes. on the android, I could set up the email just fine, but then to get my yahoo contacts, I had to look up the solution online which was to get the Yahoo email app, install it, and then go into settings and allow contacts to sync. Doable, just less intuitive.

Speed with the Nexus 5 is way better than iPhone, which is a big step up.

So, I looked in the Android apps thread and it's really dated on trying to figure out the must have apps. I see that I'll need to get Swiftkey or Swype. Any other must haves?

For me it was just downloading all the apps I already used and loved on iPhone.

 

[Otis]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Your complaints sound pretty petty. I have not had to do any extensive customization nor have I had trouble finding 3rd party apps. I was an iphone user and consider most of the android devices superior. Maybe you are just used to Apple.

notifications have been difficult for me to figure out as well. I can not figure out how to get a text from handcent to show up on my lock screen. I think iPhone notifications were better or like you said, maybe I was just used to it

The lock screen messages were what finally tipped the scales. I spent a long time, bought apps, read forums, and could not figure out one simple thing:

I get a text, it shows up on my locked screen with the text, I swipe the text, and it takes me to my messaging app. Basically I want it to do like Apple does.

Actually overall, for me, the texting, voicemail and phone aspects of the Android were inferior by a wide margin. Everything else was fine. Twitter, netflix, internet browsing, etc.

The Phone interface on my iPhone was better. It was easier to get to my favorites and call my wife in a couple swipes. To be honest I so rarely use the phone functions that I haven't had a chance to really dig in and find a way to get more used to it. It may be that it's just as good but I haven't had reason to explore it yet. But at this point, I've found it's more work to call my wife than on my iPhone.

 

[Card Trader]

Yeah the notifications gripe is interesting, never heard anyone think the iOS notifications were better.

 

[Card Trader]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Your complaints sound pretty petty. I have not had to do any extensive customization nor have I had trouble finding 3rd party apps. I was an iphone user and consider most of the android devices superior. Maybe you are just used to Apple.

notifications have been difficult for me to figure out as well. I can not figure out how to get a text from handcent to show up on my lock screen. I think iPhone notifications were better or like you said, maybe I was just used to it

The lock screen messages were what finally tipped the scales. I spent a long time, bought apps, read forums, and could not figure out one simple thing:

I get a text, it shows up on my locked screen with the text, I swipe the text, and it takes me to my messaging app. Basically I want it to do like Apple does.

Actually overall, for me, the texting, voicemail and phone aspects of the Android were inferior by a wide margin. Everything else was fine. Twitter, netflix, internet browsing, etc.

The Phone interface on my iPhone was better. It was easier to get to my favorites and call my wife in a couple swipes. To be honest I so rarely use the phone functions that I haven't had a chance to really dig in and find a way to get more used to it. It may be that it's just as good but I haven't had reason to explore it yet. But at this point, I've found it's more work to call my wife than on my iPhone.

Set up a direct call widget (stock with Android) for your wife's contact, you just simply press that button on your homescreen.

 

[shader]

I disagree that Google is moving ahead of Apple. The problem with iPhones is that the phones are too small. They are woefully behind.

When they fix that and get a screen size that rivals that of the galaxy, they will be way ahead of the competition, imo.

That being said, going from a Note 3 to a IPhone 5S was a weird transition. Obviously, the loss of screen size stunk.

But the functionality of the iphone 5 minutes after I turn it on can't be topped.

I work in IT. I get my fill of "geek" stuff at work. I don't have any desire to claw through random forums to learn how to get my phone to make a certain sound when I take my pen out of my phone, and I don't want to spend 4 hours trying to make notifications work 90% as good as Iphone notifications. BUT, I fully recognize that many people love to get their "geek" on with their phones. I'm just not one of them.

But if you are, the Note 3 is an amazing device. I miss the screen badly.

Notifications on my Note are SO, SO much better than on iPhone. It's not remotely close. The notifications panel I swipe down to get is awesome. Not sure where you're getting that from.

I guess I should clarify as I did in a previous post...I was referring to text message notifications on the locked screen.

 

[JuniorNB]

I'm reading some reviews and apparently the Note doubles as an excellent TV Dinner stand if you place it in your lap. Plenty of room for plate and silverware, though fitting a beverage on there as well is a bit of a tight fit.

Are you still one of those 'stuck in the past' Apple guys? I hear their iPhone can be used a replacement domino if you should lose one.

 

[Quez]

Google+ photo is really cool. I love the Auto Awesome feature. I have it set to backup pics over wifi, and every once and a while I get a notification of a new auto awesome pic that was created. I have seen animated snow, christmas lights, other sparkly/shimmering things, animated pics out of several photos, and collages. It even made a few minute 2013 montage video with my pics, and some video. very cool.

 

[[icon]]

I'm reading some reviews and apparently the Note doubles as an excellent TV Dinner stand if you place it in your lap. Plenty of room for plate and silverware, though fitting a beverage on there as well is a bit of a tight fit.

Are you still one of those 'stuck in the past' Apple guys? I hear their iPhone can be used a replacement domino if you should lose one.

[icon] with the iPhone 6.

lol

 

[AcerFC]

Google+ photo is really cool. I love the Auto Awesome feature. I have it set to backup pics over wifi, and every once and a while I get a notification of a new auto awesome pic that was created. I have seen animated snow, christmas lights, other sparkly/shimmering things, animated pics out of several photos, and collages. It even made a few minute 2013 montage video with my pics, and some video. very cool.

I got an email last night about this. I deleted it. Next time I'll have to check it out.

 

[Otis]

Google+ photo is really cool. I love the Auto Awesome feature. I have it set to backup pics over wifi, and every once and a while I get a notification of a new auto awesome pic that was created. I have seen animated snow, christmas lights, other sparkly/shimmering things, animated pics out of several photos, and collages. It even made a few minute 2013 montage video with my pics, and some video. very cool.

I got a couple of these. My wife took a great picture of our daughter standing out in the snow, and Google autoawesomed it to animate snowfall on top. It was pretty cool.

 

[JuniorNB]

Google+ photo is really cool. I love the Auto Awesome feature. I have it set to backup pics over wifi, and every once and a while I get a notification of a new auto awesome pic that was created. I have seen animated snow, christmas lights, other sparkly/shimmering things, animated pics out of several photos, and collages. It even made a few minute 2013 montage video with my pics, and some video. very cool.

I got a couple of these. My wife took a great picture of our daughter standing out in the snow, and Google autoawesomed it to animate snowfall on top. It was pretty cool.

Is this an app you download?

 

[[icon]]

Google+ photo is really cool. I love the Auto Awesome feature. I have it set to backup pics over wifi, and every once and a while I get a notification of a new auto awesome pic that was created. I have seen animated snow, christmas lights, other sparkly/shimmering things, animated pics out of several photos, and collages. It even made a few minute 2013 montage video with my pics, and some video. very cool.

I got a couple of these. My wife took a great picture of our daughter standing out in the snow, and Google autoawesomed it to animate snowfall on top. It was pretty cool.

Jesus... 2013 Otis have these on the back of his minivan too?

 

[AcerFC]

Strange thing. Woke up this morning and for the first time I had a battery indicator with a 100% in the upper left tray. Had not had that any other morning despite charging all night. Now I am at 65% charge. I have not used it as much today but it seems to be a little better

Anyone know why I have not seen the 100% indicator before today. I did not change any settings

Eta: it also dawned on me that the espn app may have been draining juice so I got rid of that today too

 

[Otis]

wa2

Google+ photo is really cool. I love the Auto Awesome feature. I have it set to backup pics over wifi, and every once and a while I get a notification of a new auto awesome pic that was created. I have seen animated snow, christmas lights, other sparkly/shimmering things, animated pics out of several photos, and collages. It even made a few minute 2013 montage video with my pics, and some video. very cool.

I got a couple of these. My wife took a great picture of our daughter standing out in the snow, and Google autoawesomed it to animate snowfall on top. It was pretty cool.

Jesus... 2013 Otis have these on the back of his minivan too?

Only a matter of time...