Price and comparison
As mentioned before, the advantage of
having a smartphone provided by 4 national networks (and a local one) means
that you don’t have to worry about moving to another company if you are a happy
customer. Due to this, we focus on the way Galaxy Note II is compared with rivals
in each network, instead of judging whether it is worthy into another place.
T-Mobile's version of the Galaxy Note II
has been sold today, and you have different options: you can opt for the
Equipment Installment Plan, which includes a prepayment of $249 and 20 monthly
payments of $20 thereafter (available in retailers), or just the classic plan
(online and retail) and spend $369 in exchange for a two-year commitment. If
contracts or monthly payments doesn’t suit you, you can purchase it for a RRP
of $649. It is only available in a 16GB option, and T-Mobile hasn't announced
any intentions of adding a 32GB model.
Once
you narrow it down, the only factors will be size, power and the interest you
have in the S Pen.
Of course, this puts the Note II onto the
hi-price segment, but this wouldn’t be a surprise to anyone looking at the specs.
In T-Mobile's case, this will be the first (and only hitherto) quad-core device
provided by the company. Your only other options in the company's top-end
smartphone lineup are Samsung Galaxy S III ($229 for 16GB, $279 for 32GB), HTC
One S ($150) and Samsung Galaxy S Relay 4G ($150). In other words, Sammy
completely dominates T-Mobile's upper segment of smartphones. This means that
unless you are looking for a QWERTY device, these two ones are your only
options; once you narrow it down, the only factors will be size, power and the interest
you have in the S Pen. (Windows Phones are surely a potential rival as well although
we can't speak much about the selection or OS until we know more official
details).
Conclusion
Now, this Galaxy Note II review is an actively
changing. We've only had the chance to feel how T-Mobile's version of the
device stands against not only the rest of the service providers’ lineup but
the N7100, yet we are pretty happy to see that very few things have been changed
during the migration to the US. As we mentioned before, we'll continue updating
this review when we receive other models via post office. But we believe that
our review of the global Note II is still valid with T-Mobile's edition – and
due to this, it has been sitting complacently as our top choice in its lineup,
unless the size looks quite imitating for you.
We
are pretty happy to see that very few things have been changed during the
migration to the US
Info
·
Price: $369 with a commitment
Pros
·
T-Mobile’s best smartphone up until now
·
Wi-Fi Calling
·
Great battery life
·
Compatibility with HSPA+ 42Mbps network of
T-Mobile
T-Mobile’s
best smartphone up until now
Cons
·
T-Mobile’s version is pricier
·
Multi-window is not available at launch
Key point
·
T-Mobile’s Galaxy Note II is nearly identical to
the global version, and the best in its segment hitherto – as long as you are
willing pay for the high price.
Technical
specs
|
Processor
·
Quad core, 1600 MHz, ARM Cortex-A9
·
Speed: 1.6 GHz
Storage / Memory
·
Memory RAM: 2.0 GB
·
Memory ROM: 16.0 GB
·
MicroSD: 64.0 GB max + MicroSD 2.0 compatible
Display / Screen
·
Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M
colors
·
Resolution: 1,280 x 720 pixels
·
Display Size: 5.50 inches
·
Features: Capacitive; Multi-touch
Physical
·
Size (L x W x D): 151.10 x 80.50 x 9.40 mm;
5.95 x 3.17 x 0.37 inches
·
Weight: 183.00 grams; 6.46 ounces
·
Form Factor: Slate
Camera(s)
·
Megapixel: 8.0 megapixels
·
Features: Flash; Auto-Focus
|
