So this is a difficult one. It's been a year since I bought my current "daily driver", the Samsung Galaxy Note, which I have loved. Though I still can't settle on a ROM, and I'm not too happy about Samsung and their Jelly Bean update, or lack thereof. (Another story perhaps).
Now I've had a chance to have a play with the successor for the Note.. the aptly names Note 2, and the changes are very apparent. I have to say that there is one really good thing that Samsung does and one really bad. They are great at bringing out successors, the S2 to S3 for example was a massive leap forward, and this Note to Note 2 is the same. They are still bad at software though. I STILL don't like the look and feel of their TouchWiz software, although it is far faster and smoother, the usability is still lacking.
The Note 2 is by far a greate leap forward. The faster processor and more memory along with Jelly Bean and its butter programme makes for a compelling device. I still think the fundemental applications of Samsungs devices are terrible. The dialer doesn't solve real world needs and the overall TouchWiz look is just... ugly. It's no MIUI. It frustrates me that these people have a lot of potential and just blow it at what I would say is the most important aspect of a smartphone. But I suppose I would say that being a software designer.
With the Note 2, the basics are still not at the level I think they could be, but they have added plenty of bells and whistles. Split screen applications, more integrated pen capabilities and much more, are all really good and perhaps in some cases a little bit of a gimick, but I still wish they brought in someone with a greater idea of UI like Apple and HTC etc have done. It's like they are playing wth half the formula.
So, the smoother, faster use of the Note 2 is a good reason to upgrade, but I'm not actually very interested in that as the Note isn't exactly slow. It is also bigger than the original too which I was very surprised about. I was hoping that they would reduce the size of the phone whilst keeping the size of the screen the same or perhaps a little bigger. But the resolution has changed to 720px wide from 800px, which means it is 16:9 and not 16:10. It is thinner and longer which I'm not sure felt better.. perhaps a little worse to be perfectly honest. What I really want to find out is whether the battery life is as good as the reviews and rumours are saying, Heavy use will still give you 2 days use... For any smartphone, that is MASSIVE.
Will I upgrade? It's a really difficult question. Have you?