When Samsung debuted their Galaxy Note 4G smartphone, they claimed the integrated smart stylus S Pen and native handwriting recognition technology, coupled with the large 5.3 inch touchscreen, would create an entirely new consumer electronics device category. Evidently, Samsung knew something that no one else did. With the largest screen in the entire 4G smartphone marketplace, the Samsung Galaxy Note 4G handset has a display nearly as large as a small tablet. But unlike tablets, 4G LTE smartphone connectivity is offered by the AT&T 4G LTE wireless network, and the device can slip into a pocket. Aside from creating an entirely new device category, the handset has also coined the term “Phablet”; part smartphone, part tablet.
And recently online consumer electronics analysis firm ABI Research released the results of their most recent mobile device research, and they claim that as many as 208 million phablet devices (smartphones with fast processors and 5.1 to 5.5 inch screens) will be sold annually as early as 2015. Certainly, Samsung did not know that they would be at the forefront of such a massive technological movement, but with sales estimates ranging from 7 to 10 million Galaxy Note 4G units already sold, Samsung executives and shareholders are probably smiling.
Recently receiving a retail price reduction to $199 on contract at select retailers, the Galaxy Note 4G tablet phone delivers one of the fastest processors found in the entire mobile handset marketplace, as well as one of the highest resolutions, substantial RAM memory allotment and high resolution video capture. Facebook, YouTube, Picasa and Twitter social media destinations come pre-installed, and Near Field Communications (NFC) support is present out-of-the-box as well.
The Galaxy Note 4G delivers the Gingerbread operating system, but Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) 4.0 is slated to hit the handset by the end of this month. The 5.30 inch display benefits from 16 million color rendering and 285 pixels per inch pixel density. That creates an overall screen resolution of 800 x 1,280 pixels, and a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass offers scratch resistance. Talk time runs approximately 25% better than the average 4G handset, at 10.00 hours from a single charge.
Powering the Galaxy Note 4G is a Qualcomm MSM8660 microchip package that includes a graphics dedicated processor and dual core 1.5 GHz CPU. A full 1.0 GB of RAM system memory is on board, as is 16 GB of built-in storage and a microSD slot. The 8.0 megapixel camcorder on the back of the handset provides video capture at 1,080P HD, and a 2.0 megapixel chat cam on the front of the handset also offers video call support.
