I watched the Samsung Galaxy Note launch event, the one that was held in London, the start of its world tour. No, I wasn’t there physically, but I watched it through webcast. The event was, overall, pretty impressive. I was particularly interested to find out how Samsung was trying to pitch the Galaxy Note, which in my opinion, was too large to be a phone, yet too small to be a tablet. Samsung thinks so too, so, what are they up to with a 5.3″ display? Could Samsung be creating a new category of mobile device, like Apple did with the iPad?
One of the thing that had puzzled me was, how would one carry such a big device around? I don’t think it would fit comfortably in my pant’s pocket. If it doesn’t fit into a pocket, then it would join the category of the iPad in terms of portability.
So when Andrew Coughlin, Global Account Director of Samsung European Telecommunications Operation, came on stage and pulled his Galaxy Note out of his jacket’s inside pocket… I suddenly understood. It’s for business people. Well, for people who wear jackets. Only then you’d have big enough pockets to comfortably fit a 5.3″ display device, without having to contain it in some other bag or carrying case.
The Samsung Galaxy Note arrived on Singapore’s shores pretty quickly – 19 Nov. Within a week, I met with someone who carried the Galaxy Note. We were having a business meeting. He didn’t have a jacket, so no, I suppose there was no suitable pocket to fit his Galaxy Note in. So during the meeting, it was set on the table. Doesn’t look all that big when it’s on a table.
I had the opportunity to try out the Galaxy Note at a telco shop. Like you see in the photo above, it is pretty massive in my hands. It’s thin, no doubt, but it does occupy a fair bit of space. Pretty much like a small notepad, which I guess that’s precisely how Samsung planned it to be.
The writing stylus of the Galaxy Note is absolutely nice to use. It’s not just an ordinary touchscreen. Samsung actually married the Wacom tablet technology into the Galaxy Note, which means that unlike ordinary touchscreen devices that sense only touch or no-touch, the Galaxy Note with its writing stylus will sense varying levels of stylus pressure. 128 levels of pressure. It’s really good. In fact, during the launch even in London, Samsung had an artist sketch a drawing up on stage, live. It’s a testament to the usability of the Galaxy Note’s stylus.
Would you get the Galaxy Note? Personally, I’m still skeptical about the portability of a 5.3″ display device. There’ll definitely be some good use cases for some people. Depending on your lifestyle and your work, this might or might not work for you. Perhaps if you’re always out and about, and constantly need to jot notes and sketches, the Galaxy Note will be very practical for you.
If you need to carry your phone in the pocket of your pants… I think the Galaxy Note might be oversized. Oh, but I’ve not tried it myself, so I could be proven wrong.
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