The numbers are in, and they are not really a big surprise considering the success of the Samsung Galaxy line the last couple of years. Verizon has announced they sold 9.8 million smartphones in the last quarter of 2012, and pointed to phones like the Galaxy Note II as a big reason for that sales success. Big Red more importantly claimed that 2.1 million of those sales were from new subscribers. With almost everyone on the planet seemingly in possession of a smartphone, finding new customers is always a big deal for wireless service providers.
The Samsung Galaxy Note II running on the powerful and pervasive Verizon 4G LTE network in the United States currently retails for around $149 at select online outlets like Amazon Wireless. In November of last year Verizon announced they had reached more than 440 major markets in the United States with their 4G LTE system. That is approximately 4 times the number that their nearest competitor, AT&T, has in the US. The 4G LTE system of Verizon is perfect for the powerful quad core processor located on the Galaxy Note II, and the handset delivers the Jelly Bean 4.1 operating system out-of-the-box.
The handset was the first to actually launch Android 4.1 for Samsung, and offers simultaneous data and voice capabilities on Verizon’s network. Now you can send e-mails, text, and surf the web while watching videos or movies, and even download applications or check your e-mail while in the middle of a voice call. The popular S Pen smart stylus has returned from the previous and original Galaxy Note, and launches your most frequently used S Pen applications when you remove the stylus from its onboard cradle.
The handset hit the Verizon 4G LTE system last year, and though it currently delivers the largest 4G smartphone display, the handset is slim at 0.37 inches (9.3 mm). That 5.55 inch screen on the Galaxy Note II is protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 2, and the Super AMOLED display is set up with a True HD 16 to 9 aspect ratio, perfect for viewing HD movies. Pixel density runs high at 265 pixels per inch, giving that mammoth screen an overall resolution of 720 x 1,280 pixels.
Battery performance is excellent for such a power-hungry device, with the 3,100 mA cell driving 15.0 hours of talk time and 12.0 days of battery standby power from a single charge. A Samsung Exynos 4 microchip package is built around a 1.6 GHz quad core CPU, and a quad core ARM Mali 400 MP4 GPU handles all graphics processing. 2.0 GB of RAM memory is on board, as is 16 GB of built-in storage, with the built-in microSD slot providing storage expansion. All your video memories can be recorded in 1,080 P HD resolution with the rear facing 8.0 megapixel camcorder.
