Quote:
Originally Posted by Prestidigitweeze
I'd be very interested to know how a Galaxy S4 and S5 might compare to your G3 in terms of reading -- whether its far deeper ppi is easier on the eye. If there's a pronounced difference in readability between previous high-res screens and the G3's, then that could be an exciting development.
I'm also going to be interested in the next-gen LG, since it will likely use the Snapdragon 805, which I think will be far more practical for 24/192 audio.
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I can't say anything about the G3, but we had two S4 and now my wife has a S5 since last month and I got my Note 4 yesterday. The S5 was a visible upgrade in screen quality, even though specs compared to the S4 were negligable. If you think the S4 had a nice screen, the S5 is even better all around. I highly doubt it has anything to do with the extra 0.1" screen size, it is just better technology oled. For reading only the S4/S5 is a draw. Enter the Note 4 and it becomes very obvious that the S4/S5 is a different class (lower quality) as ereader. I do not believe that it is necessary the increased ppi that stands out, but the increased physical size (5.0/5.1 versus 5.7) while keeping the same screen technology. (No more - I miss the oled from the S4). To be fair to the Note 4, the increased ppi over the S5 is noticeable in the legibility of extra extra tiny fonts - so it is not nothing. Except those sizes are inadequate for reading continuously while being super useful for not needing to zoom in as often when browsing.
All the books we are reading come from Amazon, the only reader app being used is the Kindle app (it is good enough, not worth it for me to mess with DRM to be able to use different app). On the Note 4 the Kindle app looks significantly better - even though the same settings result in the exact same layout. There is no more words per page, but everything that fits is useable. The smallest available size can be read easily at arms length away (for me) while with the smaller screen on the S4 at arms length away I start to have problems to keep the words in focus let alone read comfortably. Putting the phone closer (stretching the arm out gets tiring really fast) just makes the Note 4 so much better compared to the S4.
For holding the phone our S4 / S5 / Note 4 are about the same. Due to the huge size increase in the Note 4 I opted for the folio cover by Samsung instead of an Otterbox. The Note 4 is just about the same width and a little bit longer with that case compared to the S4 in a Defender series. Excellent cover, love the auto wakeup when flipping it open, and it got real stitches along the edges. Is it as rugged? Of course not, but then again it covers the beautiful screen - either face down and up when laying it down. It is even capable of making phone calls with the cover shut - yay no more pushing buttons or wiping off ear and cheek prints.
All in all, the Note 4 is an amazing phone and ereader. The one big flaw (besides the cost) is the ugly app launcher. That was the very first thing that I replaced with Nova. Is it faster compared to the S4? Oh yeah it is fast. So fast actually that the S4 feels sluggish in comparison - if that makes much sense. The S4 never really was a slouch, IMO. Not sure about the snapdragon 805 concerning 24/192 audio - I would think external dac would be easiest and more convenient with a BT digital out audio device? Unless of course BT does not support that much bitrate for audio?