Gadgetory

the newest addition to the galaxy note line brings a new look and feature but is that a compelling enough Edition to alter the note curve it's Josh of agar from Android authority what's going on everybody and this is the Samsung Galaxy Note edge this is basically a samsung galaxy note 4 in design except it also isn't the curve on the right portion of the screen obviously changes a lot but in all other respects this is definitely a note device it's as if someone took a blowtorch to the right side of the screen and melted it down that curve is where the new handling experience will be found inside and out because it is no longer a flat side a thicker lip under the glass has been added to aid in the handling you can definitely pinch that lift to get a grip on the phone but brushing the edge can still sometimes happen and though I haven't had anything happen to yet I do worry that the curves closer proximity to the ground or to the table that it's sitting on can make it very susceptible to scratches the edge also changes the button layout as the power button has been moved up top which honestly felt pretty different for a samsung phone waking the phone is still easy with the tactile home button but having to reach up top to put it into standby still feels a little odd even today everywhere else we have the same frame that holds together the removable backing made of textured plastic with the front these are the main tropes of the note 4 that continue to make for a very attractive device I've already made a couple of allusions to the handling of the note edge I'll get into more details as they come up but ultimately there are times when you don't notice the curve and then times when you absolutely hate using it I have to admit I do enjoy getting the attention that this attractive Note 4 with a weird curve on the side tends to get this is a very alerting device no doubt about it and my curiosity continues to be piqued it's almost as if I reach for the note edge not just because it is unique to pretty much any other phone but because I'm curious how this edge is going to perform with my general tasks for that day as we will explore throughout this review the edges curve can mean a lot of different things and it will be up to you how positively or negatively you take this version of different obviously the main story what this phone deals with the display as we get a somewhat increase to 5 point 6 inches because of this added real estate what was once a quad HD display gets a little more rest solution but it's not like you'll be using it for media or games because the right side comprises just a number of panels or controls but for the rest of the screen everything brings the same signature Samsung saturation and high fidelity text continues to look sharp and I still enjoyed median games despite the extra screen real estate yes the curve can prove to be a little distracting at times and I really wasn't too happy any time I accidentally triggered it and thus covered a sliver of my Netflix or YouTube video up top touch sensitivity on the curve though is as good as it should be though interactions with the curve are comprised of mostly just swipes and touches on the various icons or elements on that part the Super AMOLED construction allows for this curve to turn on independently from the rest of the display and this is one of its marquee features quite literally as the angle of the curve can be viewed easily from a nightstand or when sitting on a table turn on the night mode to make the note edge kind of a clock or swipe up a few times on it to check the time so yes there are now more pixels on this screen but ultimately they matter little to the overall display handling experience they add a little bit to it but they still rely on your needs to be fully compelling once again the influence of the edges original sibling returns here with the Snapdragon 805 the Adreno 420 and three gigabytes of ram the package that returns once again in the edge as such the performance is largely the same reliable even despite all of the multitasking abilities and TouchWiz is pretty saturated operating system the new addition of the panels and the curve don't detract from the general experience as everything still runs smoothly I do notice that some new animations have been added in to draw attention to the side as all of the apps seem to slide in from the edge but these are just aesthetic changes and overall these animations while different don't do anything to hinder the performance we just might be looking at the most full-featured phone available right now because this is basically a galaxy note 4 which was already packed with features and now we have a new curved display that even adds to the list as such the usual Samsung tropes include the removable back cover that underneath gives access to the removable battery and the microSD card slots call quality is standardly decent and the rear facing speaker despite getting pretty loud is still stifled because of its placement the recent Samsung editions include the heart rate monitor and the multiple microphone setup helps with recording specific parts of a sound spectrum which can be useful for interviews of course the main draw of a note device is the s-pen the stylus that provides precision usage and note-taking capabilities removing the s-pen opens up the air command menu that allows for capabilities like easily clipping parts of the screen for later usage access to the S note and the action memo the S Pen itself has also been enhanced to allow for even better finer writing experiences but the S note application has been given the photo note arguably the biggest addition here which can capture the lines and designs of any scene and make them editable by the S Pen this is good for taking signs blackboards or in any presentations open to your creativity and yes you can definitely use the S Pen on the edge but it just feels weird the battery life of the Note edge falls in line with the large form factor 3000 milliamp hours might sound a little bit poultry for this unit but it still lasted for around four hours screen on time but the standby time and the screen off power consumption were the story here as it allowed me to reach the day and a half mark easily on multiple occasions while my usage might have been a little bit higher than most I will still pretty set with the Note edge and with a Samsung fast charger you can juice it back up pretty quickly alright let's move on to the camera the 16 megapixel shooter in the Note edge that brings the expected Samsung quality and various modes though I have one really big problem with the way it handles if you haven't noticed already a lot of the controls for various Samsung applications are moved over to the curve which is a nice idea half the time and then a terrible idea the other half the camera is a prime example of when it is not well implemented you'll still get access to some on-screen buttons to set settings but the controls and quick settings are all in the curve whose organ AMA not made for smartphone camera shooting I was never able to take photos with one hand because trying to reach that shutter button on the curve is simply awkward and consistently made me feel like I might drop the phone support from my other hand was required pretty much all the time I wouldn't go as far to say that the controls on the edge destroy the shooting experience but it is certainly an example of how an innovation like this needs much more thought put into it still thankfully photos take on the Samsung quality you probably expect including the high saturation levels that might make the a little less accurate to the original scene but even overly vivid photos are often received well by the general user and that's how I feel about this particular camera various modes are available including HDR which doesn't enhance too many photos unless you find the right situation and the selective focus which is a real hit or miss feature that can mess up the focus line around your subject low-light performance is somewhat helped by the optical image stabilization as photos still lose detail and get grainy the darker the situation becomes but I will admit that the note edge and subsequently the note 4 still perform better in low-light than most other competitors but in good lighting the pictures that come out of this performer are reliably good and should please most people who use this phone and finally we have TouchWiz the operating system of the Note edge that now has to accommodate a new area to present a number of elements before we get to the curve let's go through what we have already covered in the galaxy note 4 mainly the multitasking the ease of multitasking was this versions focus and it's plainly seen in the recent apps screen which has added a button to quickly trigger the multi window hit that button and just pick an app to open up on the bottom when prompted but even when in the dual app setup you can still switch to a floating app setup and even make the floating up a small icon for safekeeping dragged down from either of the top corners and most applications will be shrunken down to a floating window and then you can freely switch among all of these different modes multitasking is a very big part of the note experience and it is at its most capable on the note edge especially when you factor in the curve a panel full of icons or folders that you customize make shortcuts to your favorite apps available at all times this feature is by far my favorite aspect of the new curve adding in even more ease-of-use another panel will show of notifications in real time turning into a ticker when they come in and a variety of other panels ad functions like data tracking further news ticking with Yahoo as the source and a set of quick tools that include even a ruler for quickly measuring everything in the real world and finally I took full advantage of the personalization panels in which I could put a small phrase for example and some drawings in order to further make the Note edge my own in the end I enjoy how the software tries to use the curve to a good extent but not every situation will yield a good experience if anything it's a great place to get perpetual shortcuts and a great way of checking the time easily either manually the nightstand clock but are those features really enough to justify the edge but that's a question you have to answer on your own because the Note edge tends to cost more than the note 4 instead encases you're paying almost an extra 150 dollars just to have that extra curve to the screen on the case that the curve of the screen provides enough to justify that price I'm honestly not that sure the Galaxy Note 4 is already a wonderful device and it's price makes sense for such a premium phone so it comes down to whether or not you want to spend the extra money for something that is let's say simply different different that's the word that best describes the experience of using the Note edge even if we're not all that convinced that the curve is enough to make us shell out the full price for this phone I do have to admit that the unabashed allure is undeniable Samsung has moved forward with a new form factor and tried to make it as compelling as possible with mixed results I have said before that I would consider buying the Note edge solely because I don't think many people would and I stand by that statement I don't think what the edge offers over the note 4 is enough to justify its sky high cost and unless you're like me and crave a feeling of exclusivity the note 4 is already such a good package that you would probably be happy with it already there are some times that I really hate using the Note edge but there are 4 more times that I actually really enjoy using it and I think half the reason why is because honestly it feels pretty damn cool to have something this different and this unique in my hand as always thank you guys very much for watching and I hope you enjoyed this review of the Samsung Galaxy Note edge it is a unique device no doubt about it and honestly that's half of its alert but the curve proves impractical just as many times as it proves useful in the end I'm actually really excited to see what a second iteration of this will look like but until then you can keep it tuned to Android authority for even more coverage thank you for watching this review and stay tuned for even more from us and my colleagues in Android you can see a couple of those videos right over on the side and also check out the galaxy note 4 review if you haven't already and you're just looking at this review you should definitely take a look at its original brethren but keep it tuned to you drop us some likes on our videos and subscribe if you haven't already and once you're done with all of that don't forget to head on over to android authority comm because we are your source 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