Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Lands Sept 4: 3 Major Things to Take Note
Samsung has chosen the 2013 IFA in Berlin as the platform to launch its third high-end phablet edition, the Galaxy Note 3, making for the Episode 2 of the Asian tech giant's Unpacked event this year.
Episode 1, of course, refers to the Galaxy S4 New York rollout in March 2013 and since then more than 23 million GS4s are in active circulation. Will the Note 3 equal or even exceed the feat in the same amount of time?
The Note 3 performance will depend on consumers' reaction - it surely will fly off the shelves if the specs and features do not disappoint, which according to previous will pretty much reflect what have been served with the GS4, with all the awesome TouchWiz attractions and perhaps even the flaws.
The phablet is just the bigger package and once it is uncloaked, there are at least three things that everyone can expect, which are briefly discussed below.
Mixed CPU deployment
Like the GS4 before it, Samsung is shipping out the Note 3 in two CPU flavours - the Exynos Octa 5 that is 8-core and developed in-house and the Qualcomm-made Snapdragon 800, which is of the quad-core class.
In a report by BGR News, it appears that Samsung is indeed uncaging a monster in the Note 3. Citing SamMobile as its source, the same report pointed to an AnTuTu benchmark result of 22,361 for the soon-to-be released device, beating out the GS4's score of 21,089. It is understood that the two were pitted with the same Snapdragon muscles.
No mentions were made about the Exynos build but its capabilities should not be too remote with that of the Note 3 sourcing its might from Snapdragon wafers. Note too that distribution will depend on market location.
No giant surprise on the look department
As mentioned above, the Note 3 will mirror much of what were already seen with the GS4 and the same is true about their build and look. Practically, they will be twins only the former is hulking a bit, with screen size ranging from 5.7-inich to 6-inch flat and no more, plus it wields the familiar Note digitiser - the S-Pen.
The make is still dominantly plastic - scored by some experts for its cheap feel but thumbed by others for durability and a little flexibility. A number of Android watchers offered that the Note 3 will not add weight despite having a larger screen. This is achieved by pushing the bezel surrounding the display near to the edge, as close as possible, making for a gorgeous-looking giant smartphone.
The major upgrade - Jelly Bean 4.3
This latest Android is already rolling out and the first Samsung device to get it is the GS4 Google Edition. Now, there is a solid chance that the Note 3 will get the honours of being the second Sammy device to chew in the freshly released Android sweets following the vanilla serving.
With the new Jelly Bean on-board, this serves as the key interface overhaul that the Note 3 represents. While Android experts regard the version as incremental upgrade from the Jelly Bean 4.2.2, it should be interesting how Samsung fuses the new GUI with that of the TouchWiz skin.
On the application side, expect the Note 3 to flash the same sensor-generated Smart features that were lavishly provided through the GS4 and probably more.
As the unveiling is set on Sept 4, gadget shoppers, especially the avid Galaxy fans, can look forward to late September or early October 2013 as the actual release date for Samsung's flagship phablet.