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Samsung has just unveiled the Note 7: Here's our hands-on guide

It's official; the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is coming to Ireland. The company opted against the rele...
Newstalk
Newstalk

12.18 2 Aug 2016


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Samsung has just unveiled the...

Samsung has just unveiled the Note 7: Here's our hands-on guide

Newstalk
Newstalk

12.18 2 Aug 2016


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It's official; the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is coming to Ireland. The company opted against the release of their last Note device in Europe, much to the disappointment of phablet fans. The tech giants have officially unveiled the new Note 7, and we managed to get a hands on look at the new device.  

Spoiler alert: it's awesome.

There are so many features to this phone, it's hard to know where to begin. Let's start with an image:

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It's beautiful. 

The Note 7 has a 5.7-inch screen, placing it securely into the phablet category, which Samsung really pioneered all those years ago with the original Note device. 

A key feature of the Note is, and always has been, the S-Pen aka the stylus. It has been given extra functionality this time around; users can write, sketch and even create GIF with the little pen.  

The pen may seem like a gimmick but research (conducted by Samsung) shows that the stylus is used by 2/3 of users weekly. As a former Note 4 user, I can confirm that the pen has some very practical uses, such as the hover / magnify functionality. 

Aside from that, there's three other important pillars upon which the Note 7 is built. They are:

  • Security
  • Entertainment
  • Galaxy Foundation

Security has been upped on the Note 7. Aside from Samsung's Knox feature, there's now added iris scanning which is incredibly cool. It's more James Bond than the fingerprint scanner. Looking at the front camera unlocks the device in less than a second. 

Users can also store private and confidential documents in an encrypted folder. This is useful for sensitive documents or images, such as passport scans or work related content. Users simply drag their private files and place them into the secure folder. This requires a separate password, meaning that if a friend or family member uses your device, they will not be able to access these files.

 

In terms of entertainment, Samsung say there's no such thing has a "one or other" user anymore. If someone buys a smartphone, they want to be able to write emails and watch YouTube without any hassle. They say we live in a "blended world" and that our devices need to be able to keep up with us. 

There is no denying that video looks stunning on the Note 7. Colours pop and the large screen makes for an immersive viewing experience. 

There's a 3,500mAh battery, which is needed to host such a large screen and all that functionality. 

Finally, there's the 'Galaxy Foundation', which is a nice marketing-way to talk about the principals of their devices. These include a microSD slot to expand the device's memory up to 256GB, the Edge UX and the fact that it's water resistant. 

Points of difference:

Aside from it's impressive build quality and power, there are certain features that wowed upon first play.

Screen-off memo is one. Again, this may seem quite basic, but if you're fond of a post-it note, you'll love this. It's possible to use the stylus to scribble a note on the locked screen, and then edit or view it later. This is very handy during meetings or when trying to compile a shopping list! 

A rather slick feature, which I can 100% see myself using, is the GIF creator. It's possible to highlight a portion of a video, be it YouTube, a channel player or whatever you may be viewing, and cut a particular clip to create a GIF. Very simple, but clever. 

And it's fully waterproof too. I discovered just how much this feature matters after I dropped a brand new Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge into the sink the day after I received it. 

 

Samsung Galaxy Note7 will be offered in Blue Coral, Black Onyx and Titanium Silver.

It will be available in Ireland from August 16th. 


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