Samsung Galaxy Note (T-Mobile)

The Samsung Galaxy Note for T-Mobile ($233) is exactly what it looks like: the largest smartphone available today. And it runs a recent version of the Android OS on a fast, inexpensive network. If you want a big-screen device that's still (barely) pocketable, the Galaxy Note stands alone.

The T-Mobile model is very similar to the original Samsung Galaxy Tab (AT&T) , except that it's on T-Mobile's network and runs Android 4.0 (which the AT&T model has since been upgraded to.) Still, though, the software and my opinions are different enough that while this review will share some paragraphs with the AT&T review, it's significantly different.

Physical Design, Call Quality and NetworkI was originally skeptical about the Galaxy Note, but I've been won over by the flood of Note fans contacting me since my first review. The Note's gigantic 5.3-inch, 1,280-by-800 screen is ideal for in-car GPS use, for people who enjoy reading at larger text sizes, and for games. It's still not really a one-handed phone, but not everyone wants that. At 5.8 by 3.3 by 0.4 inches (HWD), the Galaxy Note is slender and beautiful, with a gorgeously sharp, 5.3-inch, 1,280-by-800 Super AMOLED screen showing colors so deep you can fall into them. There's an 8-megapixel camera on the back and a 2-megapixel unit on the front, as well as standard MicroUSB and 3.5-mm headset jacks. A memory card slips into a slot under the textured plastic back panel.

Call quality is very good. Surprisingly, the earpiece doesn't go extremely loud, although volume is fine; the speakerphone, on the other hand, can get very loud. Transmissions through the mic were generally clear, if a bit nasal. Aggressive noise cancellation blanks even loud background sounds, but at the cost of just a little computerization of voices. You can turn it off if you want. The phone also supports T-Mobile's Wi-Fi calling, which is great. That lets you seamlessly make calls over any Wi-Fi network, just as if it was T-Mobile signal.

Such a big device almost demands a headset, and the Galaxy Note worked very well with our Jawbone ERA Bluetooth Headset at Amazon Marketplace

. Activating the Vlingo voice-command function went flawlessly. Vlingo is better than simple voice dialing but not quite up to the standards of Google Now or Apple's Siri. It can dial the phone, launch apps and set appointments, but not answer free-form natural language queries.

The Galaxy Note's lanky body leaves plenty of room for a great antenna, and I got terrific Internet speeds of 7-8Mbps down on T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42 network. While that's considerably slower than I've seen on AT&T's competing LTE network, T-Mobile's network is less expensive, available in more places than AT&T's 4G LTE, and still really fast. 

All the other usual radios are here, too: Wi-Fi 802.11n (including 5GHz), Bluetooth, NFC (although Google Wallet is blocked), and GPS (which locked in very quickly out on the street.) The Note also works as a USB modem or mobile hotspot for up to eight devices.

The large 2500mAh battery lasted for 8 hours and 8 minutes of talk time, a solid result.

Apps and PerformanceThe T-Mobile Galaxy Note runs Android 4.0.4. No, that isn't the current version, which is Android 4.1 Jelly Bean . But it's a heck of a lot better than the Android 2.3 the AT&T model launched with. Most importantly, it lets you use the fast Chrome browser, a major step up from the earlier default Android Web browser.

Android 4.0 on the Galaxy Note doesn't look anything like stock Android 4.0, with its minimalist black backgrounds. In fact, you'll be hard-pressed to tell the difference between the UI here and the earlier Android 2.3 UI. Samsung's TouchWiz overlay is so heavy and complete, touching every major app, that there's little new in many of the core apps.

Hold down the Home button, though, and you get a scrolling list of thumbnails of running apps—that's a new Ice Cream Sandwich feature. The new software also supports NFC (but not Google Wallet) and Google's gimmicky face-unlock feature.

The new version has fixed some of the complaints I had about software on the original Galaxy Note, but not others. You still can't download tablet-only apps like Autodesk Sketchbook Pro and the Adobe Touch apps. TweetDeck and Facebook still don't use the full screen area effectively. But Chrome offers a much better Web browsing experience with fewer "mobile" sites displayed.