Why we like 'em big - Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Review

Damage

Anything from about R9000 up cash. Contract deals available from the various cellular providers.

What you need to know

Android OS
176 grams
153.5 mm x 78.6 mm x 8.5 mm
5.7″ screen
1440 x 2560 resolution
515 ppi
16 megapixel rear camera, 3.7 megapixel front facing camera
32 GB Built in Storage
Comes with Stylus

What we think you should know

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is not nearly as big as you think it is. In fact, next to the Sony Xperia Z3 I saw much of a muchness. It’s not a phablet. It’s the size of smartphones these days (unfortunately). The size won’t put you off and neither will the glorious design. The Note 4 was a tease to the Galaxy S6’s premium look. It brags a gorgeous leather backing and the plastic finish that Samsung became known for is gone. Instead the Note 4 has a sleak aluminium edging. The phone is surprisingly light and easy to carry around.

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There’s a few perks to this smartphone and I’d be silly not to mention them in a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Review. For starters the phone comes with a clever fitted stylus so you can make hand written notes or doodle in meetings if you so wish. It has a removeable battery (which is a good thing considering the one thing about this phone that left me wanting was the battery life. It wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t great either) so you can back a spare and the screen is Gorilla Glass 4 (allegedly this means if you scratch or crack it you can still use it). There is also a MicroSD slot that can accept memory cards up to 128 GB.

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Those were the extras I liked. The ones I didn’t included a fingerprint scanner (buggy at best), a heart rate monitor (I didn’t even try this. What a mission!) and the typical Samsung Bloatware that they insist on adding to a phone (though the S6 is decidedly more simple. Yay!).

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Here’s the thing: the camera is good, the phone is pretty and the extras are fun but there is something remarkable about the Note 4 that I just cannot put my finger on. I enjoyed it. I enjoyed using it. It was fast and worked smoothly. I found my fingers glided across it rather easily and I during our time together I left my tablet at home. I never found it too big but rather just the right size to get what I needed to do done.

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I liked this phone. I didn’t love it, but it seemed to just fit into my life in a way I didn’t expect. It’s like the guy you friendzoned years ago who is now your favourite companion to watch bad movies on the couch with. If the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 was a man there is a good chance you wouldn’t date him, you’d definitely not marry him but you’d still want him around for the important stuff. It’s a phone that could easily last well past its two year contract time frame without you even realising it and you’d be hard pressed to retire it to the back of your cupboard when your time together is up.

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