World Of SAMSUNG: Samsung Galaxy Note [AT&T] unboxing and impressions

Big phone, small tablet, or unnecessary hybrid? Our man Chris Davies said it best during his initial review of the international Galaxy Note, but today we have the AT&T 4G LTE powered Note on our tables for a quick glance. Below we unbox it, compare the differences from the international version and the size boost over the Galaxy Nexus. Not to mention a few LTE speedtests and pictures so check it out.

First off this device should need to introduction but just in case I’ll run down the impressive specs Samsung has packed into this large phone. The Galaxy Note features a massive 5.3″ Super AMOLED HD display coming in with a 1280 x 800 resolution. Making this one of the highest resolution and best looking displays on a smartphone. Powered by a 1.5 GHz dual-core Qualcomm processor (not the 1.4 GHz Exynos like the international Note) and 1GB of RAM. Samsung’s added 16GB of internal storage although only about 10GB is available for usage.
You pair all of that with an 8 megapixel camera on the rear, 2 MP up front for video, a built-in stylus called the S-Pen with extreme accuracy and pressure sensitivity all ran off Android 2.3 Gingerbread and a huge 2,500 mAh battery it’s destined for success. Or is it too big? For now we’ll quickly show it off, test the LTE speeds and let you check out the video. Then stay tuned for our full review and complete thoughts once we’ve had some time to enjoy it and decide what we truly think.

For those familiar with the international Galaxy Note the AT&T model has a few key differences. For one like mentioned above is the dual-core 1.5 GHz Qualcomm, not Samsung’s in-house Exynos running at 1.4 GHz. So the AT&T model will perform differently. Speaking of performance it might also get better, or worse battery life depending on that new processors efficiency — and how much the 4G LTE sucks down on power usage. All of this will be looked over for our review. If you are on AT&T the choice is pretty clear as this has 4G LTE and will fit nicely as an upgrade from a previous device. The last difference is the hardware home button being replaced with 4 capacitive touch buttons — but that was expected for a US release.
So where do I begin? The phone is big, really big. I thought the Galaxy Nexus was pushing my limits and it clearly is. The Note is huge! This will definetaly be for a certain crowd for the sheer size and lack of portability. If you can get over the size however, this is a truly versatile device. The fact that it’s actually thinner than the Galaxy Nexus really helps, the rounded edges makes it feel smaller than it really is — helping its cause given the size.
The display is gorgeous, and I mean that. The colors are extremely crisp, vivid and bright and it is absolutely impressive to say the least. I love the Galaxy Nexus, but the Note’s screen is just WOW worthy. Throwing the phone to your ear in public might get a few of those “Wow’s” too though. AT&T’s 4G LTE seems to be chugging along just great here with the Note. In a solid signal location in Las Vegas I’m averaging around 12-15 MB/s down and around 7-10 up. Not the fastest we’ve seen but I’ll take it. We’ll be sure to test in more locations later too.

I’ll be sure to test out the S-Pen and the WACOM digitizer and see just how well it really performs for day to day use, and decide if a stylus is something I see myself using daily. For some that wont matter but I’m sure a few are interested in hearing. Enjoy our video unboxing and stay tuned for a full rundown and review coming in a few days.
Galaxy Note AT&T hands-on and unboxing