Back in August of 2011. Samsung came to IFA and showed off this huge phone. It was a 5.3-inch Galaxy Note. At the time many of us thought that device was just too big. It was only available internationally until CES 2012 when AT&T announced they would be carrying the Galaxy Note. Then later in the year T-Mobile started carrying it. But they only carried it for about a week or so. Then August 2012 came, Samsung showed up at IFA in Berlin and showed off the Galaxy Note 2 with a 5.5-inch display. Which the Galaxy Note 2 launched on all carriers in the US, which instantly made it more of a success than the first generation Galaxy Note. Now that brings us to this year’s IFA where Samsung announced the Galaxy Note 3 earlier today. It’s packing a 5.7-inch display but it’s still relatively the same size as the Galaxy Note 2. So why are we talking about all three models? Well because we are going to compare the three in a table down below. Let’s see how the Galaxy Note has evolved over the last 2 years.
Galaxy Note | Galaxy note 2 | Galaxy Note 3 | |
Display | 5.3-inch 1280×800 Super AMOLED | 5.5-inch 1280×720 Super AMOLED | 5.7-inch 1920×1080 Super AMOLED |
Processor | Exynos 4 dual-core 1.4GHz | Exynos 4 quad-core 1.6GHz | Exynos 5 Octa-core 1.9GHz or Snapdragon 800 quad-core 2.3GHz |
RAM | 1GB | 2GB | 3GB |
Internal Storage | 32GB | 16GB | 32GB |
microSD card slot? | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Rear camera | 8MP | 8MP | 13MP |
Front camera | 2MP | 1.9MP | 2MP |
Camera features | Auto focus, Smile detection, Burst mode, Panorama, Scenes | Back-illuminated sensor (BSI), Auto focus, Smile detection, Burst mode, Panorama, Scenes | Back-illuminated sensor (BSI), Auto focus, Touch to focus, Digital image stabilization, Face detection, Smile detection, Exposure compensation, ISO control, White balance presets, Burst mode, Digital zoom, Geo tagging, High Dynamic Range mode (HDR), Panorama, Scenes, Effects, Self-timer |
Connectivity | Bluetooth 3.0, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, WiFi Direct, Hotspot, HDMI, NFC, MHL | Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/n 5GHz, Hotspot, WiFi Direct, HDMI, NFC, DLNA, MHL | Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/n 5GHz ac, Hotspot, WiFi Direct, HDMI, NFC, DLNA, MHL |
Launch Version of Android | Android 2.3 | Android 4.1 | Android 4.3 |
Current Version of Android | Android 4.1 | Android 4.1 | Android 4.3 |
Availability | AT&T and T-Mobile | AT&T, T-Mobile, US Cellular, Sprint, Verizon | AT&T, T-Mobile, US Cellular, Sprint, Verizon |
Pricing | $199 | $299 | $299 |