Samsung Galaxy Note: Bridging the Gap

When I see someone with a tablet in one hand and a smartphone in the other, two things typically go through my mind; first, I think, I'm jealous but then I think, Isn't that an overkill? A smartphone and a tablet? That's about $800 up front, and $70 a month for the smartphone. And for some reason, I think that I'm not alone in thinking these thoughts. And if I'm correct, that means AT&T and Samsung could've thought of the next big product category.

The Samsung Galaxy Note

Whether you prefer calling the above device a tiny tablet or a supersize smartphone, Samsung's idea is to use it to create a whole new category of products that bridge the gap between a smartphone (3.5" to 4.6" screens) and tablets (7" to 10.1" screens). It's easy to tell the way Samsung developed the Galaxy Note's screen size; their largest smartphone has a 4.6" screen, and their smallest tablet has a 7" screen. Calculate the average of the two and you get 5.3"; that's the exact size of the Galaxy Note's screen.

These types of devices are off to a slow start, but Samsung does have faith in them. When Dell tried to launch a similar product, the Dell Streak, it was a failure. They soon took it off the market. (Then again, you could say no one would buy a smartphone from Dell regardless of how good it was.) And when Samsung first introduced the Galaxy Note, no carrier wanted to take up the offer, but AT&T made a last-minute decision to take a chance with it at CES.

Nevertheless, Samsung's new phone has many features that make it quite appealing to the public. First of all, its ability to serve as a tablet and a smartphone make it very appealing to the people who love technology but are budget-conscious at the same time. Not only is it's price only $200 (You'd expect it to be somewhere between the price of a smartphone and the price of a tablet), but its plans are relatively cheap. You can get it for $60 a month with talk ($40) and data ($20).

The standout feature of the new device is that it comes with the Samsung S Pen, a stylus for writing on the screen. To quote Samsung, the stylus can be used for "accurate sketching and artwork, and instantly capturing ideas freely before they float away." Included with the smartphone is S Memo, the best note taking app I've seen yet, which Samsung says is "designed to record all forms of user-created content."Your notes can include pictures, voice recordings, and text, whether it be typed or handwritten.


The other rather appealing feature of the Galaxy Note is its ability to split screens. The screen is big enough to be divided into two sections, one for each app you're running. This is compatible with almost every app available on Android 2.3


Whether this new device will be just another fad or a revolutionary new device, only time can tell. But that this device is unlike any other seen before, that we can all tell.