Of course, the latest iPhone is available in extra-large (and apparently extra bendy) but it's late to the game. Sumsung has been making the Galaxy Note since 2011 and what's more, the larger version of the iPhone 6 is still not as big as Samsung's latest phablet, the Note 4...
Let me be clear, I don't think you can consider these things to be "hand-held" devices, not "one-hand-held" anyway. In saying that, while giving the Note 4 a go, I did attempt to use it as my everyday phone, just to see if I could.
Obviously the key here is screen size, and while the Note 4's 5.7 inches doesn't sound dramatically larger the the Galaxy S5's 5.1, I can assure you, I definitely noticed the difference when I changed back to the smaller one.
The phone itself isn't so much bigger than the S5, and the leather-feel back case is more contoured and streamlined, giving the impression of a much more slim device. When I say, "not so much bigger," it's still big enough to move it well out of front-pocket territory and probably all the way into your handbag or inside jacket pocket.
This may seem like a bit of a pain, but I had it paired with the Samsung Gear S smart watch so I could even leave the phone at home if I wanted and still receive texts and emails on my wrist. But without the watch, you're left with a choice; do the disadvantages of handling a massive phone outweigh the advantages of a huge screen?
I'd suggest there are so many advantages, you'd really have to give the Note 4 serious consideration.
Let's start with the obvious stuff - video looks great. You can genuinely watch TV on this screen without coming across as some tech-nerd trying to prove a point. Documents display just that much more clearly, photos show up well, and there's plenty of room for the on-screen keyboard if you're working in landscape mode instead of portrait as I prefer to.
Samsung has really taken advantage of the large screen with a couple of unique little tweaks. The stock email client now has the option of a split-screen view which lists all the emails to the left and allows you to read any specific email you select on the right. (Yes, just like a real computer)
And there are other split-screen innovations to behold...
Samsung introduced what they call "Multi-Window" functionality a few generations ago, in order to allow users to access more than one app at once. This makes sense of course as there's not much point in having a multi-tasking phone if you can't actually see what those tasks are up to.
The Note 4 takes this to a whole new level. You can now access Multi-Window multiple ways, either using the traditional long press on the Go Back button and dragging the apps you want onto 2 halves of the screen, or, and this is where it gets cool, press the Recent Apps button and choose an app you'd like to add to your current screen from there. This second app then appears on top of the first in its own resizable window which you can drag anywhere on screen. (Yes, just like a real computer)
Of course, the best way to do all this is with the good old S Pen, Samsung's nifty on-board stylus. Except they've redesigned this too. More accurate than ever, the Note 4's S Pen now draws thick dark lines if you push hard and skinny light ones with less pressure. (Yes, just like a real computer... ah, I mean PEN)
Being a phone user rather than a tablet user, I haven't had a great deal of experience using a stylus, but the I found the S Pen to be so accurate and intuitive, I ended up using it more than my finger.
Obviously the key here is screen size, and while the Note 4's 5.7 inches doesn't sound dramatically larger the the Galaxy S5's 5.1, I can assure you, I definitely noticed the difference when I changed back to the smaller one.
The phone itself isn't so much bigger than the S5, and the leather-feel back case is more contoured and streamlined, giving the impression of a much more slim device. When I say, "not so much bigger," it's still big enough to move it well out of front-pocket territory and probably all the way into your handbag or inside jacket pocket.
This may seem like a bit of a pain, but I had it paired with the Samsung Gear S smart watch so I could even leave the phone at home if I wanted and still receive texts and emails on my wrist. But without the watch, you're left with a choice; do the disadvantages of handling a massive phone outweigh the advantages of a huge screen?
I'd suggest there are so many advantages, you'd really have to give the Note 4 serious consideration.
Let's start with the obvious stuff - video looks great. You can genuinely watch TV on this screen without coming across as some tech-nerd trying to prove a point. Documents display just that much more clearly, photos show up well, and there's plenty of room for the on-screen keyboard if you're working in landscape mode instead of portrait as I prefer to.
Samsung has really taken advantage of the large screen with a couple of unique little tweaks. The stock email client now has the option of a split-screen view which lists all the emails to the left and allows you to read any specific email you select on the right. (Yes, just like a real computer)
And there are other split-screen innovations to behold...
Samsung introduced what they call "Multi-Window" functionality a few generations ago, in order to allow users to access more than one app at once. This makes sense of course as there's not much point in having a multi-tasking phone if you can't actually see what those tasks are up to.
The Note 4 takes this to a whole new level. You can now access Multi-Window multiple ways, either using the traditional long press on the Go Back button and dragging the apps you want onto 2 halves of the screen, or, and this is where it gets cool, press the Recent Apps button and choose an app you'd like to add to your current screen from there. This second app then appears on top of the first in its own resizable window which you can drag anywhere on screen. (Yes, just like a real computer)
Of course, the best way to do all this is with the good old S Pen, Samsung's nifty on-board stylus. Except they've redesigned this too. More accurate than ever, the Note 4's S Pen now draws thick dark lines if you push hard and skinny light ones with less pressure. (Yes, just like a real computer... ah, I mean PEN)
Being a phone user rather than a tablet user, I haven't had a great deal of experience using a stylus, but the I found the S Pen to be so accurate and intuitive, I ended up using it more than my finger.
Whether you're making hand-written notes that can easily be converted into text, or touching up photos, the S Pen seems to be one of those easy-to-use tools that knows what you want it to do before you do.
As an example, the other day I had a very frustrating online retail experience involving a live-chat conversation that almost drove me insane. I wanted to keep a record of the conversation to use in evidence when I eventually broke down was forced to kill everybody involved. But rather than take a series of screenshots, I highlighted the conversation in my browser using the S Pen and sent the pictures to myself in an email.
Imagine my surprise when my email arrived not only with the pictures attached but with the whole conversation transcribed as text to boot.
Yes, the Note 4 can turn pictures of text into actual text, all with the push of a pen.
If like me, you're concerned about putting the S Pen down and leaving it behind, not to worry; the phone reminds you if you haven't placed the stylus back in its slot as soon as you start moving off.
Oh, this is a clever machine alright.
Is it perfect? Close. I found the battery life a little underwhelming, probably due to the constant connection to my watch via bluetooth and I'm assuming the more you use the S Pen, the faster you burn through the juice too. To support the big screen and the wizzy gadgets, it does have a big battery, and it ships with a new 9 volt fast charger which will do about 50% in half an hour. Trouble is, the standard chargers you have everywhere else (car lighters, docks, PC USB slots, etc) only pump out 5 volts. They still work, but you're in for a long wait for a full charge.
While we're talking charging, why all phones don't include a wireless charging receiver as standard these days is beyond me. The Nokia Lumias have had it built-in for ages and while the Galaxies can do it, you have to buy a wireless charging receiver separately which is just plain silly.
One other small design flaw with the Note 4 is unlike the Galaxy S5, it is not water and dust resistant. I don't understand why Samsung decided it wasn't worth making this device toilet-proof, as the peace-of-mind this feature has given me with the S5 is a real selling point.
As an example, the other day I had a very frustrating online retail experience involving a live-chat conversation that almost drove me insane. I wanted to keep a record of the conversation to use in evidence when I eventually broke down was forced to kill everybody involved. But rather than take a series of screenshots, I highlighted the conversation in my browser using the S Pen and sent the pictures to myself in an email.
Imagine my surprise when my email arrived not only with the pictures attached but with the whole conversation transcribed as text to boot.
Yes, the Note 4 can turn pictures of text into actual text, all with the push of a pen.
If like me, you're concerned about putting the S Pen down and leaving it behind, not to worry; the phone reminds you if you haven't placed the stylus back in its slot as soon as you start moving off.
Oh, this is a clever machine alright.
Is it perfect? Close. I found the battery life a little underwhelming, probably due to the constant connection to my watch via bluetooth and I'm assuming the more you use the S Pen, the faster you burn through the juice too. To support the big screen and the wizzy gadgets, it does have a big battery, and it ships with a new 9 volt fast charger which will do about 50% in half an hour. Trouble is, the standard chargers you have everywhere else (car lighters, docks, PC USB slots, etc) only pump out 5 volts. They still work, but you're in for a long wait for a full charge.
While we're talking charging, why all phones don't include a wireless charging receiver as standard these days is beyond me. The Nokia Lumias have had it built-in for ages and while the Galaxies can do it, you have to buy a wireless charging receiver separately which is just plain silly.
One other small design flaw with the Note 4 is unlike the Galaxy S5, it is not water and dust resistant. I don't understand why Samsung decided it wasn't worth making this device toilet-proof, as the peace-of-mind this feature has given me with the S5 is a real selling point.
Ultimately, as a dedicated S5 user, there's not quite enough here to move me to the Note 4, but if I was upgrading from any other device, I think I'd probably be swayed. The editing and multi-tasking abilities of the Note 4 are genuinely ground breaking. Combine that with its large screen and if you're a person who spends a lot of time cutting photos and links from your browser into emails, tweets and Facebook posts, this is definitely the device for you.
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