Register Guidelines E-Books Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Go Back   MobileRead Forums > E-Book Readers > Android Devices

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 11-20-2011, 06:45 AM   #1
l..k
Enthusiast
l..k began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 33
Karma: 10
Join Date: Feb 2011
Device: k3
Samsung Galaxy Note - after a first week

All the mobile gadgets in my posession are utilized 60% on book reading, 30% on web surfing and some other things like notes, diary etc. So I thought of sharing a few lines about the new Samsung's toy here.
  1. Usability - Gui
    I was very frustrated at first probably because this is my first android device and it resembles iPhone. Right, I am using iPad for quite a time. To put it short the usability improved very much when I found that android has special menu and back keys
    The weight is just right. I can keep it in my hand very long whereas my k3 with cover feels a bit too heavy.
  2. Screen
    Awesome! The screen adjust the light appropriately to environment condition. The pixel resolution and AMOLED high contrast makes reading very easy. I was reading on it for 3-4 continous hours without any eye strain where on iPad I have a feeing of dizziness after about one hour. I believe that the "clear" picture does matter for reading experience.
  3. Pen
    Again awesome! I love to make highlights and notes using the pen. It has a sharp point and does not require applying presure so it brings easy, natural pointing experience with high accuracy.
  4. Multitasking
    Although the device specs seems very strong the multitasking is not Holding the home button a list of running apps show up, you can easily switch between them. The problem is that apps loose it's state without your consent. For example I open a browser navigate somewhere on the web, then I open a notepad and write something. Going back to browser and forth to notepad seems working... however if I stay long browsing the web and then switch back to notepad I do not see my unsaved note anymore. It is even clearer if I use another app like book reader, then switching back to browser shows only starting page, switching back to book reader shows starting page... etc. Something wierd is going on with regards to multitasking vs application state and I do not see how I could configure it. Why the apps do not save the work temporairly or prompt you to do so?

So summarizing, if you are looking for great reading experience I can give my word you would be satisfied
l..k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2011, 11:18 AM   #2
dsana123
Nameless Being
 
Galaxy Note

Hi,

Thanks for the review. I'll also add my thoughts...

I upgraded to the Galaxy Note from an HTC Desire. Previous to the HTC Desire I had an ipod Touch 1G which was my first reading eBook reader. The step up from ipod Touch to HTC Desire was massive reading-wise due to the increased pixel density. The step up from HTC Desire to Galaxy Note was not as big compared with ipod Touch to HTC Desire, but still a worthy improvement.

I'm using larger text on the Galaxy Note compared with the HTC Desire, but due to the large size of the screen there is more text. The pixel density (285ppi) is higher than the HTC Desire (252ppi), so the text should be slightly sharper (although I don't notice much difference). Both devices have a pentile display but my eyes do not notice any issues with the pentile display in either device.

The size of the Galaxy Note may be a deterrent to some, but it fits comfortable into trousers.

I am also a comic book reader, and the large screen means no more panning when reading pages --- you can read a single page without needing to zoom in and moving the page.

@l..k --- Android multitasking: upon pressing the home button the Android app has the responsibility of saving its internal state. If an app isn't doing that then it's probably coded up incorrectly.
  Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 11-20-2011, 01:53 PM   #3
l..k
Enthusiast
l..k began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 33
Karma: 10
Join Date: Feb 2011
Device: k3
Quote:
Originally Posted by dsana123 View Post
@l..k --- Android multitasking: upon pressing the home button the Android app has the responsibility of saving its internal state. If an app isn't doing that then it's probably coded up incorrectly.
Good to be assured. I hope there would be more multitasking aware apps when lots of Galaxy Note devices sells. Sounds like saving state was not needed just yesterday and the apps have to be fixed.
l..k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 02:50 AM   #4
Filark
Armed with a smile :)
Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Filark's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,421
Karma: 2463560
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: California, USA
Device: enTourage eDGe & Pocket eDGe, Samsung Galaxy Note II
I'm glad to read both of your reviews. I'm thinking of asking for the Galaxy Note as a late Christmas present when it comes to the States.

I read just today that the Note has a feature allowing a notepad to pop up while you are in another app or a browser so that you can take notes about the underlying page, tapping back and forth between the notepad and the app/browser. Does that make sense, and is it true??

Glad to know the reading experience is positive!
Filark is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 03:40 AM   #5
dsana123
Nameless Being
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Filark View Post
I read just today that the Note has a feature allowing a notepad to pop up while you are in another app or a browser so that you can take notes about the underlying page, tapping back and forth between the notepad and the app/browser. Does that make sense, and is it true??
Hi, sorry, I can't answer that as the stylus wasn't the selling point for me, and I've removed most of the Samsung apps (I prefer the vanilla Android experience). But I believe that your statement is correct (even though I can't test it).
  Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 11-21-2011, 11:53 AM   #6
PatNY
Zennist
PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
PatNY's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,022
Karma: 47809468
Join Date: Jul 2010
Device: iPod Touch, Sony PRS-350, Nook HD+ & HD
Thanks for your reviews/thoughts. Do the two of you who have the Note live in the U.S.?

I'm just wondering when this will come to the U.S. This is the first tablet that actually has me excited. I find the iPad just too cumbersome and heavy to read comfortably on for long periods of time. I like the 7" tablets but they aren't that portable. The 5.3" Note seems to be just the perfect size for a portable reading device. And I love the stylus and writing capabilities. I have no problem reading on the little ipod Touch for hours, so I figure the Note will even be better.

This is definitely on my radar. I just hope it's reasonably priced when it comes here.

A few questions --

1) Does it come with a reading app already installed?
2) Is there a compatible android reading app that has most of the features of Stanza -- specifically the ability to automatically sort your books into collections using tags applied in Calibre?

--Pat
PatNY is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 03:21 PM   #7
dsana123
Nameless Being
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by PatNY View Post
Thanks for your reviews/thoughts. Do the two of you who have the Note live in the U.S.?

<snip>

A few questions --

1) Does it come with a reading app already installed?
2) Is there a compatible android reading app that has most of the features of Stanza -- specifically the ability to automatically sort your books into collections using tags applied in Calibre?

--Pat
I am UK based, and ordered the Note in Germany (Amazon) as it was cheaper than the good old UK.

1) I was rather ruthless with my cull of unnecessary apps, but I see that in my folder of removed apps there is something called Kobo.apk, so presumably this is a reading app.

2) Ah, Stanza! I loved it on my ipod Touch. If you like Stanza, you'll probably like Aldiko (which is what I am using). v2 of Adliko, the current version, is very much like Stanza. In fact, I swear it has a similar bug (multiple counting of books with more than on tag). You can use Calibre with Android. I've used it on the HTC Desire and the Note by simply setting up the server in Calibre and the client in Aldiko so you can wirelessly transfer books from your PC. Aldiko has a "Tags" tab which sorts out your books based on tags. It also has a "Collections" tab which I don't use. You may want to read more about Aldiko here, http://www.aldiko.com .

Last edited by dsana123; 11-21-2011 at 03:26 PM. Reason: Forgot to add a word!
  Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 06:46 PM   #8
Filark
Armed with a smile :)
Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Filark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Filark's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,421
Karma: 2463560
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: California, USA
Device: enTourage eDGe & Pocket eDGe, Samsung Galaxy Note II
PatNY, it looks like the Note will be available in the US in early 2012 from AT&T. That's according to this article: http://www.examiner.com/gadgets-in-l...t-t-early-2012. We'll see . . .

dsana, thanks for the info on setting up Calibre with Aldiko -- sounds great!
Filark is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 08:29 PM   #9
PatNY
Zennist
PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
PatNY's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,022
Karma: 47809468
Join Date: Jul 2010
Device: iPod Touch, Sony PRS-350, Nook HD+ & HD
dsana, thanks for the heads up on Adilko. Sounds like a capable reader. Does it also have an animated page turn? Where the page curls up a little like a real book page?

Can you do me a favor and measure the viewable screen area? I know it's 5.3" diagonally, but how does the actual screen area measure in terms of width and height?
PatNY is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 08:33 PM   #10
PatNY
Zennist
PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.PatNY ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
PatNY's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,022
Karma: 47809468
Join Date: Jul 2010
Device: iPod Touch, Sony PRS-350, Nook HD+ & HD
Filark, thanks for the link on availability. Hope it sells for a reasonable price outside of a cellular plan as I don't need a mobile contract. I just want to use it mainly as a reader.

I can't believe it's selling here for $800 now as an import! That's crazy. Think I'll wait till it's widely available here.
PatNY is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2011, 08:42 PM   #11
Dopedangel
Wizard
Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Dopedangel's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,758
Karma: 30063305
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Singapore
Device: Boyue
Quote:
Originally Posted by PatNY View Post
dsana, thanks for the heads up on Adilko. Sounds like a capable reader. Does it also have an animated page turn? Where the page curls up a little like a real book page?

Can you do me a favor and measure the viewable screen area? I know it's 5.3" diagonally, but how does the actual screen area measure in terms of width and height?
try this website you can compare the size to any device
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...LJqzlpAQGP4DWg
Dopedangel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-22-2011, 02:02 AM   #12
dsana123
Nameless Being
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by PatNY View Post
dsana, thanks for the heads up on Adilko. Sounds like a capable reader. Does it also have an animated page turn? Where the page curls up a little like a real book page?

Can you do me a favor and measure the viewable screen area? I know it's 5.3" diagonally, but how does the actual screen area measure in terms of width and height?
There is an animated page turn feature, which slides the screen from right to left. No page curling.

(Viewable) screen area is 11.4cm x 7.1cm (4.5" x 2.8"), or thereabouts.

Last edited by dsana123; 11-22-2011 at 02:05 AM. Reason: Forgot to mention page turn feature.
  Reply With Quote
Old 11-22-2011, 03:07 PM   #13
RainingLemur
Spork Connoisseur
RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.RainingLemur ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
RainingLemur's Avatar
 
Posts: 2,355
Karma: 16780603
Join Date: Mar 2011
Device: Nook Color
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dopedangel View Post
try this website you can compare the size to any device
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...LJqzlpAQGP4DWg
That's a great link. Thank you for that.
RainingLemur is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-23-2011, 08:25 PM   #14
emt
Nameless Being
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by PatNY View Post
Thanks for your reviews/thoughts. Do the two of you who have the Note live in the U.S.?

I'm just wondering when this will come to the U.S. This is the first tablet that actually has me excited. I find the iPad just too cumbersome and heavy to read comfortably on for long periods of time. I like the 7" tablets but they aren't that portable. The 5.3" Note seems to be just the perfect size for a portable reading device. And I love the stylus and writing capabilities. I have no problem reading on the little ipod Touch for hours, so I figure the Note will even be better.

This is definitely on my radar. I just hope it's reasonably priced when it comes here.

A few questions --

1) Does it come with a reading app already installed?
2) Is there a compatible android reading app that has most of the features of Stanza -- specifically the ability to automatically sort your books into collections using tags applied in Calibre?

--Pat
The Galaxy Note is not available here yet but the Samsung Galaxy Player 5 WiFi is at Bestbuy for$269 US. I have had one for several weeks (very easy to root so as to freeze/uninstall bloatware). It is lightweight, makes a great ebook reader/music player/web surfer/movie player and has a great battery life.

I use Moon Reader because I like it's scrolling feature.
  Reply With Quote
Old 11-25-2011, 12:45 PM   #15
l..k
Enthusiast
l..k began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 33
Karma: 10
Join Date: Feb 2011
Device: k3
I can see, I was *away* for a few days

I am in EU and didn't even know that we have the phone earlier than US, but anyway, the same was with iPhone - the first release is where the company HQ is.

Answering some questions from this thread:
Yes, there is a 'pop-up' note, happened to appear a few times but honestly I do not know how I did that I googled for the know-how without success. I just have an idea that maybe it works only with apps from 'Samsung choice' store. Will check that

There is 'Readers Hub' preinstalled which integrates Kobo reader and some newspaper publisher. I do not use it anyway. Right now I am testing which app works best for me. 'FBReader' and 'blio Reader' seems to be the winers.

There is 'Polaris office' preinstalled, very handy, works pretty fast and I did not see any incompatibility with MS Office documents.

I got used to 'Dolphin web browser'. Many people complain on Android store that it is sluggish, but believe me it's not true on this phone The user defined gestures and variety of pluggins make it being really awesome.

Well finally, the size and weight is definitely the best of all my gadgets (iPad, kindle 3, psp). I live in urban area with LTE coverage in most places so I do not even see any difference when I am at home within WiFi or outdoors. I finally feel that I do not waste the 40min commute to work anymore, I come to the office having already checked all the morning news

The battery life lasts one day for me - which means using ~5 h web browsing on LTE. Well, it's not completely drained after one day, but will not last full two days... I have to check if forcing EDGE transimission could save power or not using the stylus, maybe Wacom drains much of the battery. However I do not expect miracle, it's obvious that the big screen consumes the most. It would be just good to know.
l..k is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Samsung Galaxy s2 edwinm Devices 13 07-05-2012 03:06 AM
Galaxy Note 5" to hit UK Nov 17. =X= Android Devices 4 10-30-2011 04:45 PM
iPhone or Samsung Galaxy or ? Laura81 Which one should I buy? 30 10-07-2011 09:01 PM
Samsung Galaxy Note- 5.5 inch S-AMOLED Display with Pen Input Dulin's Books News 33 09-06-2011 01:03 PM
Samsung Galaxy Tab mgmueller Android Devices 96 11-16-2010 08:19 AM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 12:41 AM.


MobileRead.com is a privately owned, operated and funded community.