Table of Contents:
It's key selling points are:
Memory: 16 GB or 32 GB
Colors: Blue and White.
4g options: HSPA+ or LTE. (Not both though)
NFC is 'optional' and will be only available for certain countries.
Note the 'Blue' is a very very very dark blue and pretty much looks black.
If you hold the back under the sun you will see blue glittering specs.
The models currently available are 16GB, with HSPA+ without NFC.
No offical announcement has been made for US availablility yet.
For the USA:
2.3.6 has started being pushed to phones as an over the air update.
Squaretrade seems to be highly recommended for US buyers as a third party insurer.
BUT.....
One USA user called Samsung USA user and was told the warranty will be supported - if purchased from the UK, the phone wuold need to be sent back to UK support.
Handtec has stated, for example:
What is curious is that in your hand/pocket, the Note feels lighter than the iphone.
Note some chargers require a 'charging cable' to prevent the note from detecting it as a computer (and charging at the USB standard of .1 Amp)
FCCid: A3LGTI9220
Note that MHL, in addition to a bluetooth keyboard/mouse makes the Note almost a netbook replacement.
The Note can use the GLONASS system in addition to the standard A-GPS system
Typically with the A-GPS system you can get a lock with 7-8 GPS satellites.
Although several web sites are reporting the Note has gorilla glass, no press release for the Note has ever stated that it has Gorilla glass.
You have to use substitution programs like NoLED or Smart Vibrator.
There are various articles to read about this - here is a random one
The Pen is a Wacom Stylus and uses electromagnetic resonance technology.
4) The stylus has a pressure sensor that tells the Phone how hard you are pushing against the screen.
Some Wacom 'pens' have an 'eraser' on the other end of the tip, and that works too.
The stylus is not capacitive and can not press the 'back' and 'menu' buttons.
Anti-reflection screen reflectors tend to add a bit of friction, which is nice for stylus use.
This can cause some issues if you try to use the note upsidedown (i.e. in bed)
This is different from some android versions which mount internal memory as / and the micro sdcard as /sdcard.
It is possible, therefore, that if you run a lot of apps that download a bunch of data, you can run out of memory regardless of the size of your SD card. It may be possible to mount /sdcard somewhere else and mount the sdcard as /sdcard, but this has not been tried yet.
In settings -> accessibility -> Vision there is Font setting fot the Samsungs apps.
Another way is to edit build.prop (in /system ) and change ro.sf.lcd_density to something smaller.
Since Samsung advertises the Galaxy Note as (part) tablet, it seems inevitable that it will get Ice Cream Sandwich,
The ICS sources have been released and developers are already at work trying to port it for the Note.
Due to the powerful CPU in the Note, they run quite well.
Some users are having issues directly connecting on Windows 7 64 bit - try using Kies Air
The last version to use 720p videos was 2.2.16, so you can try using that one instead.
Facts:
People like to say 'Tablets are bigger than phones', but that's a random definition.
The question should perhaps be split and reworded as:
So again - the phone is certainly big, but not too big.
Many web pages and reviews claim that you will look stupid holding it up to your head and talking.
My gut feeling, however, is that buttons on tablet optimized apps will be a bit small to use comfortably without the stylus.
Apps that try to cram a lot of information onto a 10 inch tablet will probably be pretty painful to use on the note.
Reaching the far edge may be difficult without either hitting the capacitive buttons or dropping the phone,
Scrolling through web pages and reading books is no problem at all.
It is not a bad idea to make a mockup out of cardboard and play with it.
For shirt pockets - the pocket may be too narrow to put the Note in.
It may not fit in smaller pant pockets (especially small women sizes), nor tight pants.
This tends to depend on the region your phone came from. I.e. EU gets updates at different times than Korea.
There are some sites that claim that the resolution is not 1280x800 since it is a Pentile matrix, with some claiming that the resolution is up to a third less and the resulting resolution is far less than the Galaxy S II.
This is not a Pentile issue as apps that show banding generally also show the same banding on the Galaxy S II's RGB display.
For whatever reason Wifi connectivity drains battery fairly strongly.
If you unplug something from USB Host (like an external drive or card reader) the UsbStorageUnmountter sometimes goes crazy (taking wakelocks), and you need to reboot to get it to stop.
A rough test shows 3.5 hours from empty to 100, which is averaging 750 mah for the 2500 Mah battery.
In theory a 1A USB charger should charge the 2500 Mah battery in 2.5 hours, however charging slows down
By the math, charging through a computer USB port should take 26 hours (!)
You mess around with your Note at your own risk, and be aware that you can totally brick your phone
You can also root through CWN but the above is generally much easier.
Turning on 1700 seems to cause a hardware/software conflict. This results in the phone rejecting your SIM card, blanking out the Service mode menus, and you are toast until you factory reset your phone and manually reset.
It is possible that it's left in so that if/when a 1700 Mhz supported phone released the OS is good to go.
This is fairly widespread but doesn't seem to affect much.
What models are actually available for sale?
Both colors are availiable but White is harder to find (i.e. usually out of stock).
The Korean model, to be released shortly, will have LTE. It appears to use a 2.5 Ghz band for LTE.
LTE, like 3g, has many bands so LTE is generally incompatible across networks.
Where is the phone available for sale?
It has been slowly rolling out across Europe and Asian countries.
They will basically be generally available there by the end of the year.
It has passed FCC Certification in the USA for AT&T bands, but phones have passed FCC certification without ever being released.
It's a safe assumption that Samsung will sell this phone in as many markets as possible.
What Networks does the phone work on?
The phone is quad band:
HSPA: 850,900,1900,2100
EDGE: 850,900,1800,1900
AT&T : Works on 2g, and 3g (850)
T-mobile: Works on 2g. T-mobile 3g requires 1700 and 2100 so the phone won't work on 3g.
What is the Model number?
There are two model numbers:
N-7000 and GT-I9220.
They are identical.
What is the Stock Operating System?
Android 2.3.5 running Touchwiz.
It includes a few programs written especially for the S Pen, and contains some widgets that are only available within Touchwiz. Who would really like the Galaxy Note?
People who would really benefit from the Note:
Who would dislike the Galaxy Note?
Where can I get manuals?
German and English manuals can be downloaded here
Italian: here
If I order an unlocked phone internationally, do I lose the Warranty?
Short answer: Maybe.
Long answer: Samsung does not like grey market sales, and will ask you for a receipt showing you purchased the Galaxy Note in the country of intended sale (i.e. correct currency/taxes/etc). They also know what country the Galaxy Note was made for by the IMEI.
In this case the device will come with 24 months warranty, it will need to come back to Handtec and then we will send this to Samsung on your behalf.
How heavy is the Note?
The Note weighs 178 grams (6.28 ounces).
In comparison, the iphone 4s weighs 140 grams (4.94 ounces)
This may be because the iphone is more dense (2.2 grams/square cm) vs the note (1.5 grams/square cm)
How fast of an SD card should I buy?
The most 'SD intensive' thing you will probably do is record 1080p video, which is 17 megabits/2.2 megabytes per second.
A class 4 card (4 megabytes/second) should be sufficient for everything.
In fact, many brand name Class 2 cards can be written to faster than specifications (i.e. > 2 Meg/second).
A faster card will allow you to load/offload things faster (i.e. copying videos onto it from your pc or whatever) but you won't see much further benefit.
What is the specifications of the charger that comes with the Note?
The Note comes with a USB charger (full sized USB plug) that outputs 1 amp, and a USB to micro USB cable.
Input voltage varies depending on what country you purchase it in. The bottom line is any USB charger should work.
Due to the capacity of the battery you should get a charger that has a decent amperage output or charging will take a while.
What car charger should I get?
The Note uses a lot of power if you have everything turned on for navigation.
i.e. bluetooth, display on with no timeout, GPS and 3G data.
Ideally get one that outputs 1 full Amp. If you use a cheap one you might be able to charge the battery,
but might not have enough juice to keep the Note from draining during full activity. What customs info might I need for importing the Galaxy Note to the USA?
If for some reason the USA customs information is incomplete (and they are holding your Note hostage),
give them the folloing info:
Harmonized Tariff Number: 8517.12.00800
Trade Name: Samsung
Manufacturer's Name and Address:: Use Samsung's office of country you are importing from
Importer's name and address: Samsung's office as above
Device Model - GT-I9220
Check: #1 in part 2 (i.e. The FCC has issued a grant of equipment authorization.....)
General Hardware Questions
This Battery cover is really flimsy!
The battery cover is made of plastic and quite light and flexible.
It is, however, quite strong. See this video .
That video is of the Galaxy S II, but the Note presumably uses the same material (if not something better)
The Note has an MHL port - what is it?
MHL is a connection standard.
You can purchase an MHL adapter to output the screen, at screen resolution (1280x800) to an HDTV.
The MHL adapter connects to the MHL Micro USB port and usually outputs via HDMI.
More Details regarding what happens when you connect via MHL
Outputting the screen to MHL does not disable seeing it on the phone - you can have both on if you like
Some devices can power an MHL device. If not, you can also plug a charger into an MHL cable to charge your phone.
MHL output uses a fair amount of power so use a strong charger.
What is USB OTG (On the Go?)
USB On the Go allows a device to interface directly with some USB devices.
You need a USB on the go Cable between the two devices.
This allows you to connect devices such as USB Keyboards, flash drives, card readers, or external hard drives.
What devices are confirmed to work with USB OTG (On the Go?)
The following sometimes work (may be model specific)
What is the Barometer for?
At the moment, the barometer is only used for assising the GPS by providing altitude data.
What is the GLONASS satellite system?
Short Description: It is a Russian GPS satellite system.
Long description: click here
You need around 5 satellites to get a decent position lock. (it's not perfect triangulation)
The Note has seen to lock onto 18 satellites total (counted using the GPS Test app) with both systems combined.
The higher number of satellites leads to higher accuracy and much faster lock times!
Does the Galaxy Note have Gorilla Glass
Apparently Not.
On the Note's web page, it doesn't indicate it has Gorilla Glass.
(Compare this with Galaxy Tab pages, which have a prominent Gorilla Glass section.)
What should I know regarding SD cards?
The Note does not come with a SD card.
It must be formatted as FAT32.
Largest confirmed working Microsd is a 64GB SDXC card.
There's No LED notification light?
Nope.
Due to the way AMOLED screens use power, something like NoLED isn't hard on your battery.
What Processors are in the Galaxy Note
CPU: 1.4 GHz Dual Core ARM Cortex-A9 processor with the Exynos chipset.
GPU is the Mali-400MP GPU.
GPS: Assumed to be SiRFstar IV, which was used in the Galaxy S II.
What is Allshare DLNA?
AllShare is Samsung's DLNA protocol that allows you to stream media (photos, music, and movies) over Wifi.
It also allows other things - for example if your TV supports Allshare you can have it display a notification if you get a phone call.
S Pen questions
What is the S Pen?
The S Pen is the stylus that is included with the Galaxy Note.
Samsung is calling it the S Pen, possibly to differenciate it from the normal "sausage" capacitive styluses you see.
This means a few things:
1) The stylus has a plastic point which makes it far more accurate than capacitive styluses.
2) The stylus doesn't need to actually come in contact with the screen.
You can, for example, put a piece of paper over the screen and trace something.
3) The stylus is powered by induction, so it doesn't need batteries.
You can 'draw' by holding the stylus near (but not touching) the screen, and pushing on the tip of the sensor to fake it out.
Touching the screen with the pen tip, but not applying any pressure, will not 'draw'
The stylus has a button on it, used to activate various functions.
Do other Wacom Styluses work with the Galaxy Note?
Wacom tablet PC styluses should work.
Wacom graphic tablet styluses (Bamboo, Intuos, etc) will not work.
I.e. you can just flip the pen over to erase.
How secure does the pen stay in the Note?
It is quite secure and 'clicks' in a bit. It's not going to fall out, nor does it rattle after being inserted.
What programs does the stylus work with?
It basically works with everything.
If you need to hit the back button, you can hold the stylus button and swype left.
If you need to hit the menu button, you can hold the stylus button and swype up.
When will the Stylus SDK be released?
It's already out.
How does the stylus feel when writing compared to pen/paper?
A bit odd. The tip is hard plastic and you are writing on glass so it is 'slippery'.
The stylus is also pretty small/thin - if you write a lot you should consider getting the GALAXY Note S Pen Holder Kit, which makes the stylus 'pen sized'. Or you can get a Wacom stylus that works with the Note and there are a few of those. Is there input lag with the stylus?
A little bit - maybe .1 of a second.
It's noticeable if you scribble really fast.
What does the 'dominant hand' pen setting do?
The Note, like most Wacom Tablets, will 'draw' 1-2 millimeters away from where you are actually touching.
This is so you can see what you are actually drawing.
If you have this set to 'left hand', it will track to the right of your stylus, and if 'right hand', to the left.
What are the basic operations of the S Pen?
The main 'quick' operations of the S-Pen:
It immediately kicks you into edit mode to draw on the screenshot.
Notice that the s-memo can be hidden (so you can see under it) briefly by touching the screen.
This allows you to copy stuff currently on the screen.
It doesn't work with the capacitive buttons, so :
hold the stylus button and swipe up for 'menu'
hold the stylus button and swipe left for 'back'
Does the S Pen disable Multi touch?
When the pen is active, multi touch is disabled (i.e. you can touch the screen with your hand while drawing).
As soon as you lift the pen off the screen though, multi touch is active again.
How do I use the S Pen to draw notes in Evernote?
You can't - not directly.
Download an app called skitch which lets you draw and import them into evernote.
why is my pen 'drawing' even though it's not touching the screen?
When you press on the screen, the tip pushes against a pressure sensor which then tells the phone
how hard you are pressing. This is how the pressure sensitivity works.
If for some reason your pressure sensor is broken, or the stylus tip gets stuck, your phone can be up to 1-2 cm
away from the screen and it will start 'drawing'. It's close enough to communicate to the phone. Can I calibrate the stylus?
No. Sometimes the stylus gets really weird and you need to reboot to reset it though.
Touchwiz/Android 2.3.x questions
Notes on the memory/sdcard mount points
The internal memory available for data is mounted as /sdcard
The micro sd card is mounted as /sdcard/external_sd.
On the Galaxy Note, AppstoSD will move apps from app memory to /sdcard/external_sd/Apps2SD.
Applications which download data themselves (i.e. you run them and they internally download a data file) will put their data onto /sdcard. What settings do I need for AT&T?
If you have an international unlocked phone and no AT&T data, create a APN of:
Name: Cingular 410
APN: wap.cingular
Proxy: null
Port: null
Username: WAP@CINGULARGPRS.COM
Password: CINGULAR1
Server: cingulargprs.com
MMSC: http://mmsc.cingular.com
MMS Proxy: wireless.cingular.com
MMS Port: null , or 80
MCC: 310
MNC: 410
Authentication type: null
APN Type: internet + mms, or blank
Name: ATT PHONE
Everything null except
MCC 310
MNC 410
APN type: Internet
Name: ATT WAP
APN: wap.cingular
Proxy: wireless.cingular.com
Port: 80
MMSC: http://mmsc.cingular.com
MMS Proxy: wireless.cingular.com
MMS Port: 80
MCC: 310
MNC: 410
APN Type: mms,supl
Can you specify a specific homepage (i.e. #4) as the default?
No. It always uses #1.
You can drag a homepage to slot #1 for a specific layout, but it will always start at #1 - i.e. the left side of a 'stretched' desktop wallpaper.
What are the special 'motion features'?
The following are enabled when you turn on: settings -> Motion -> Motion Activation
Assuming the screen is facing you, turning so the screen faces down makes it zoom in, and vice versa.
You can imagine all the home screens side by side on a piece of paper. You 'hold' down an icon, and then slide the icon (phone actually) so that the icon is now on another home page.
How do I take a screenshot?
Two easy ways:
Swipe across the entire screen (sweep across it with the side or your hand), or
With the stylus: hold the button, and press the stylus against the screen. Hold for 1 second.
How can I make the fonts/icons smaller?
You can't - not really.
Note build.prop is in /system which is mounted read only, you can't just directly modify it.
You must use adb or a rooted app.
Note this is unsupported and will break some apps, including the stock Samsung apps which appear hardcoded to work with the default density. But it works well with other apps so your mileage may vary. How do I change the defaults? (like default launcher)
Settings -> Applications -> Manage Applications -> (select app) -> clear defaults
will remove that program from being automatically selected for a particular action
General Software Questions/Notes
When is the Galaxy Note getting Ice Cream Sandwich (android 4.0)?
Samsung Italy announced the Note would be getting ICS in Q2 2012.
Not long after they retracted their statement.
since Google has stated that all Android devices will get android updates for 18 months.
The only real question is when. It should be sooner rather than later, since Google wants
to push ICS to help resolve Android fragmentation.
Impact of Ice Cream Sandwich on the Note
Notable things how Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) will affect the Note:
Why is the android market all messed up?
Some Notes got released with a buggy market that has a graphics bug.
If you have issues update to 3.3.11 - get it here
Is the Note laggy?
It is a little bit laggy.
Nothing dealbreaking, but slightly noticable which is surprising given the CPU speed.
It will likely take the same path as the Galaxy S2, which took a few updates before it became extremely smooth.
Is there any way to run Tegra games?
Yes - they run, but you must use a driver passthrough called Chainfire 3D.
Installing Chainfire will require rooting your Note. Programs with 'night modes' to save battery
Also note there are some blackout themes for android.
Recommended Video players
The following have been plugged:
Can I have different sounds for different programs's notifications?
Yes - check the in-app settings.
Specific Software program questions
Does Skype work?
Yes, fine - and both cameras work.
Note on the Juniper Security Suite
Junos Pulse and Junos Pulse Mobile Security Suite are available for the Galaxy note free of charge.
This is the first time Juniper has provided its SSL VPN software for Android.
They provide secure access into corporate applications for mobile devices, and the Security suite includes other management features including antivirus/anti-malware, Internet Address filtering, and remote data wiping of lost devices.
Problems with Market and/or Navigation
Some notes were released with slightly buggy Markets (graphics scaling) and Navigation.
Force a software update of each and you should be fine.
Recommended keyboards
Keyboards are a matter of taste, but Thumb Keyboard and Swiftkey X have been frequently mentioned.
AI type has also been plugged.
Recommended Navigation software
The following have been plugged in various threads:
How can you get the browser to use the desktop page (vs mobile page)
You can't by default but you can manually toggle it by entering about:useragent
Alternate browsers have options to do this by default - like Dolphin, Opera, xScope, Boat Browser Mini
How can you convert s-memos to text to paste into documents?
When you are in 'draw mode' in s-memo, the menu button shows a 'convert note to text' option.
Examples of useful programs that require root
Some suggestions:
Can you uninstall Twlauncher?
You have to use something like Titanium Backup, MybackupPro, or ROM toolbox.
Screenfilter issues
Screenfilter seems to turn black light grey' in addition to dimming colors.
Not a huge issue but worth noting.
Kies Issues
If you can't connect to Kies, try turning off USB debugging - the phone should show 'MTC connection' in notification bar
One user using a UK Note had to use the UK Kies to connect (i.e. not the one from Samsung.us).
Kies may not connect if any apps are currently open.
One user reported Kies would only connect when running the touchwiz launcher
How do you add a pop3 account?
click on apps - email -> buttom left key that lights up - get the account to add account.
Why does Youtube HQ look kinda bad?
Youtube currently shows HQ videos at 480p, which look not fantastic on the large screen of the Note. Is there a way to disable unlock for Exchange syncs?
See this thread
General Usage Questions/Notes
Is this a phone or a tablet?
Regardless of what you read in reviews, It's officially a phone.
That being said, technically, it's still a tablet.
By definition, a tablet is a computing device whose primary input/output is done through a touchscreen.
It is worth noting that Tablets and Smartphones have been around for over ten years now,
long before it made any sense to compare their sizes.
Is the Note too big to be used as a phone?
This is commonly asked, and the simple answer: Not at all. Cordless phones used in homes are signifigantly larger than the Galaxy Note, and they function as phones just fine.
1) Is this phone too big to carry around as a main phone? Since the phone is pocketable, and certainly 'purseable', the answer is clearly no.
2) Is this phone so big that you can't talk and hear at the same time? Definitely not.
In practice, this has not been the case, for the following reasons:
When I first got the phone I actually made a big deal of using it in public so people could see what a neat phone I had.
And if that's the case, you are just begging to drop the phone anyway so it's not going to be an issue for much longer.
I suppose this could be an issue if you have a brightly colored case.
I found out, however, that not one person had any interest in what phone I was talking on.
There is no question that some people will notice, but the entire 'you will look stupid' thing is overblown.
Is the Note too small to be used as a tablet?
The phone runs Gingerbread, not Honeycomb, so the ability to use tablet software is not yet there.
The screen is such high resolution that reading text should be fine - and with the stylus using the buttons/menus should be fine as well.
Can the Note replace my current phone/tablet/laptop?
In the end, that depends on what you do with your current devices.
Notes:
An application for a 10 inch tablet could be painfully small on a 5.3. Icons/text/etc could be tiny.
How can I unlock my Note?
As per This Thread, the helroz unlock galaxy s app might work.
Note the app requires root.
Can the Note be used one handed?
That depends on what you want to do.
Unless you have very small hands, the phone can certainly be held and used as a phone one handed.
You can reach a decent portion of the screen depending on how large your thumbs are.
You will not be able to reach the far corner, nor the edges of the screen.
(Good luck dragging the notification bar down, for example).
so typing is not real pleasant. I suspect someone will come out with a '3.5 inch keyboard' for the note to allow 1 handed typing. Does the Note fit in any pockets?
The note fits quite well in most pockets.
The dimensions of the phone are: 146.85 x 82.95 x 9.65mm.
On work shirts, the Note probably fits in the shirt pocket, but will likely stick out by an inch or so.
For most men, it fits comfortably in front pant pockets including jeans.
The length is short enough that you can still sit, go up stairs, or whatever.
I'm not sure how pocketable the Note will be if you put a really chunky case on it.
It should be alright but we will see. The main concern would be increasing the length, since that determines whether or not you could bend your leg.
It is relatively easy to make a cardboard mockup to test out your own pockets if you have any doubts.
How do you access the service menus?
Note most of these are android generic.
Phone/battery/Usage stats.
Application launch count is fun
(WARNING: Changing values can screw up your phone to the point of needing to factory reset)
Nukes google account settings, sys and app data, and downloaded apps.
There is confirmation prompt.
Nukes everything in the phone, and reloads from ROM.
NO CONFIRMATION PROMPT. Enter at your own risk.
Shows various firmware information.
Shows Mac address and a 'enable/disable power save' menu ?!?
All three go to the same WLAN test screen.
Not sure what it does though.
Shows FIrmware numbers for PDA, Phone, and CSC, Build time and Changelist number
output a tone to speaker, receiver, or headset for testing.
Also includes fast dormancy setting.
Allows changing CSC (aka Country code )
WARNING: Resets terminal and does a factory reset.
How can you print to a printer?
Try Printer Share
Samsung (Mobileprint), HP and Epson also both have apps for their printers.
The note's max volume is too quiet
You can try the Volume+ app to increase the volume of the speaker.
PowerAmp has a preamp to boost volume level when playing music
Another suggested app is 'Equalizer' by Smart Android Apps
Some users forget to take off the thin plastic covering the microphones and speaker grille.
How is the handwriting recognition?
It takes some practice.
The slick screen takes practice - a screen protector can help that
Some people use writepad instead.
What are some comment complaints about the Galaxy Note?
Is there a place to attach a lanyard hook?
Not really.
One user ran it through the speaker grille hole - the back plate is fairly security attached.
Why is my Galaxy Note verbally announcing Caller IDs?
If your Galaxy Note is announcing every caller through the speaker, you probably have 'Driving mode' enabled.
It's in settings -> Voice Input and Output -> Text to Speech settings -> Driving mode
Who do I get OS updates for my Unlocked Galaxy Note?
Carriers broadcast their updates to carrrier locked phones.
Unlocked notes typically get their Updates when you check using Kies, which checks directly to Samsung's servers.
Why does the note appear to have less than 1 GB of RAM?
Appplications displaying total RAM show that the Note has only 800 MB total RAM, versus the advertised 1 Gig.
This is because it does not include the reserved memory used by drivers/System Programs/the GPU.
Some general tips/shortcuts
The Screen is AMOLED, not AMOLED+? Doesn't AMOLED suck?
Samsung has stated that the jagged lines that can be seen on low density AMOLED displays are non issues on a high density (dpi) screen.
In addition, AMOLED has reduced Power consumption and is cheaper for Samsung to manufacture.
This is not true. If you look at any hands on review of the device, or see on in person, you will find people have nothing but great things to say regarding the resolution. Many of them compare the screen right next to an iphone or Galaxy S II and thing the screen is fantastic.
Does the note have banding?
The Galaxy note has a 24 bit display.
Running direct screen tests shows that banding is not an issue with the screen.
Apps that use 16 bit color images may show banding. (Angry birds title screen for an example)
Images that load slowly (say, over 2g) may show extreme 'banding' until they are fully loaded. Why do blacks look pixelated on videos?
Videos with low bitrates may have slightly blocky/pixelated blacks.
For Youtube, make sure high mobile quality is on in settings, and try to view the HD versions if available.
How is the Battery life?
Due to the huge 2500 Mah battery, (the highest capacity battery of any smartphone!) battery life is quite good.
Mileage will vary depending on what you do, but general consensus is that it should last you an all day easily. Are there any notable battery draining activities?
As with all Amoled displays, each pixel is powered individually.
This means a fully black screen is equivalent to turning the screen off, and displaying white uses maximum power.
Also note that the Note has a pretty bright screen, so doing full powered white can be a real battery drainer. How long does it take to charge the battery?
How long the battery takes to charge depends on your charger and what is running during charging time.
as you hit 90% and approach 100% so you'll never hit that. What is 'Android OS' and why is it using so much battery?
Android generally means it is the Operating system and/or a service consuming battery.
If you see the phone generally 'Awake' more than you would expect (especially if the screen is off),
then you should install something like BetterBatteryStats and check which programs have a high number of Wakelocks. (i.e. keeps waking up)
What are some useful programs for monitoring battery usage?
Some popular choices:
Do any other phone's batteries work in the Galaxy Note?
The Galaxy S II's contacts actually match up with the Galaxy Note just fine.
You technically can use the GS II's battery in the Galaxy Note, but you'll need spacers to hold the battery in place since the battery is physically smaller than the one in the Galaxy Note.
READ THIS FIRST
Although I will try to maintain as much accuracy as I can, (Hell, I use this FAQ too),
I take zero responsibility for any information in this document.
If you change stuff incorrectly. How do I root the Note?
One method which seems to work consistently is Doomlord's zergRush Exploit.
You can also search for SuperOneClick which uses zergRush. What is the binary counter?
The binary counter is incremented whenever you install a new ROM or kernel.
Samsung may refuse warranty work if they see it incremented. It's not guaranteed they will refuse,
but you might want to reset it to zero before sending your Note in for work.
How do I enter Download Mode?
Hold down the home key, Volumne down, and the power button at the same time until the download mode screen appears.
Why is there a 1700 mhz option in service mode?
This question is interesting because USA T-mobile 3g requires the 1700 Mhz band, and the 1700 band is not listed in the specifications of the current Galaxy Notes being sold. This means that on USA T-mobile, you only get EDGE/2g.
Note no Galaxy Notes released or announced specify 1700 in their specifications.
How do I reset the binary counter?
Here is one method as documented in This Thread
(Note: ROM and USB jig required)
Where do I get adb drivers?
For windows, You can install PDANet (and you can quit once it's installed USB drivers) or Kies.
Does the camera have pink spot issues?
Not widely reported, but A couple of users reported seeing pink spots when taking picutures of completely white objects.
Right side of the screen is darker
Two users reported having issues where the rightmost side of their screen is darker.
Does the screen look green when you look at it from an angle?
Yes, a little bit.
Strange black marks under the screen
It has been observed when switching off the phone, the screen will turn dark grey for a split second (which is normal), but you have blank marks in the grey area. Can't sign in - username and password don't match
Turn off 2 step verification if you have it activated.
Follow the instructions here
The person I'm calling can't hear me very well!
If the person you are calling is having problems hearing you, try turning off the Noice Cancellation option.
It is in the menu after the other person picks up.
Annoyingly, there is no way to have it off by default.
The second option may be to cover the Noice Cancelling microphone at the top of the phone.
The camera lens isn't centered in the camera hole
A couple of people reported the camera lens isn't centered in the camera hole - a bit off center.
It doesn't appear to affect anything.
My phone is rebooting during media scanning!
If your phone is stuck in a boot loop and rebooting during media scanning,
You might have a corrupt file, and it dies syncing with Google.
Try turning the phone to flight mode so it doesn't attempt to sync.
Bad Bluetooth Quality
A few users report bad Bluetooth audio quality -
Doesn't seem to be widely reported.
Back/Menu buttons stop working after a call
A few users report the back/menu buttons not working after a call.
Could possibly be related to a faulty/dirty Proximity sensor, which is supposed to blank/disable the screen during calls so you don't hang up with your cheek.
Screen is less/unresponsive during charging
Some users report an unresponsive (or less responsive) screen during charging.
This could be an incompatibility with the charger you are using.
Blacks aren't black on the lockscreen
Some users report black lockscreen background pictures not being black, but greyish or with greyish stripes.
The characteristic symptom is that the picture looks fine as a homescreen background.
One user suspects the lockscreen does some sort of dithering/compression on the image.
How big are video files?
1080p records at roughly 17mb per second.
Does the Note record audio in stereo?
Yes. There are two separate microphones for recording audio - one on top of the phone, and one on the bottom.