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Apple iPad 3 Review: The Retina Display Redefines the Tablet

The 2012 refresh of the Apple iPad wows, but not for the reasons so often associated with Apple products. After all, at first glance it appears to be the same product--it's just barely thicker and a tad heavier than the model that came before it. But that impression changes once you turn on the iPad's screen: That's when the new iPad not only takes your breath away but also demonstrates how Apple has redefined the tablet game--again.

Part of that redefinition is in the price. Other tablet makers continue to struggle to offer innovation at the same price the baseline iPad 2 has had for the past year. In contrast, Apple is introducing its third-generation model (Apple is calling it just “iPad,” not “iPad 3”) with a dramatically improved display at the same prices as before: $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32GB, and $699 for 64GB, plus $130 extra to add AT&T or Verizon LTE 4G connectivity (mobile broadband service extra; at launch, only Verizon will offer mobile hotspot services).

If you're contemplating which size to choose, consider this: The 64GB iPad I tried had only 57.17GB available to me before I even downloaded a thing. And all of your lovely apps, images, and high-definition 1080p videos will take up more room than before. My own images, imported via iTunes, took up more than twice the space on the new iPad as they did on the iPad 2. So you might want to consider springing for more storage, since the iPad doesn't offer any on-board expansion slots as Android tablets typically do.

iPad: It's All About the Retina Display

Apple reset the standard for displays when it introduced its Retina display for the iPhone 4. Once you've seen a mobile world without pixelated, blurry text, you can't accept anything less. That's why I was disappointed that the iPad 2 didn't have the new screen a year ago; by then I was already accustomed to the iPhone 4's higher-pixel-density display, and I was loath to settle.

With the third-generation iPad, you're definitely not settling--at least when it comes to the display. (You are with regard to the tablet's weight and size, but I'll get to that later.) This model's 2048-by-1536-pixel, 9.7-inch display successfully sets another standard, this time for what users should expect of their tablets.

This iPad is the first tablet we've tested to score Superior marks, our highest rating, across our subjective screen-quality evaluation. On our grayscale test pattern, it produced the best balance of blacks and whites we've seen; on our color-bar chart, it exhibited a lovely spread of colors, with no colors blown out at the far end of the scale (something we see often on Android tablets). The colors looked rich and warm, more so than on the iPad 2. The richness of the colors made our images seem just shy of being oversaturated, though that could be in part because we're not used to seeing the images on such a high-resolution display anywhere.

Most telling to me were the results of our still-image tests. In a group-portrait photo that matches the iPad's native resolution, the new iPad showed the most realistic skin tones and the best handling of neutral browns we've seen yet; for one person in the photo, the reddish highlights in the hair were evident for the first time on a tablet (usually, those highlights simply blend into brown). On a 4K-pixel still image that we let iTunes optimize for display on the iPad, we saw outstanding detail and more subtle color gradations than we've seen on any other tablet to date. The image popped with a sense of dimensionality we haven't seen on tablets.

Text was crisp, with no jaggies in sight. However, while text universally looked lovely on the display--not surprising given its outstanding 264 pixels per inch--we quickly noticed that the iPad's Retina display and Apple's upscaling can't perform miracles. Web images, as well as graphics in games, apps, and many magazines in the Newsstand, looked disappointingly fuzzy and overblown on the new iPad. The apps will catch up, eventually; it's a simply a matter of developer time and resources. Until then, be prepared for mixed results with your apps.

iPad Inside and Out

To be honest, I decided to focus so much on the display in this review because anyone who is buying a new iPad is likely doing so for that feature alone. Some people will rave about the 4G speeds, should they take that option; others may point to the quad-core graphics engine, which should make iPad gaming even better than it is today. For anyone considering the upgrade quandary--whether an iPad with a Retina display is worth the money, versus an iPad 2 at $100 less--the answer is yes, the display alone is worth the extra outlay. You'll feel the difference every time you read on the tablet, every time you use an app with optimized graphics, and every time you view your pictures.

You'll also see the difference whenever you play or capture a 1080p movie, or take photos with the new 5-megapixel camera (now dubbed “iSight,” and vastly improved over the iPad 2's pitiful less-than-1-megapixel camera). The camera app was a pleasure to use compared with those on the Android tablets we've looked at, too. Sure, it lacks the finer exposure controls that the Android models offer, but Apple's app simply works more smoothly--it's quicker to focus, and it's more responsive overall, which means you're more likely to get the shot you're after.

Inside the iPad, Apple has applied moderate improvements to the tablet's guts. The new slate runs on an A5X dual-core Cortex A9-based system-on-chip, but it now has a quad-core graphics engine. That translates into what appears to be reasonably powerful graphics muscle, and solid overall performance. In the benchmark tests we ran at launch, the iPad excelled at some metrics, as you can see in the GLBenchmark 2.1.2 charts below.

On other metrics, including two other GLBenchmark tests and our Web-page-load and Sunspider tests, the iPad matched the iPad 2's performance.

[See "New iPad vs. Android Tablets: Is It Game Over?" for more in-depth analysis of how the new iPad stacks up to the top Android tablets.]

Ultimately, how good the iPad looks and performs will depend largely on the content you're viewing. Most things you view on the new iPad will look better than they do on the iPad 2. Books, magazines, apps, and Web pages all have the potential to look great, like nothing you've seen before, and games will be able to advance in graphical complexity beyond what we have today. It will take time, however, for developers to catch up and make that wholesale shift. Until then, be prepared: Your results will vary dramatically, ranging from disappointing to brilliant.

While this iPad lacks Siri support--an odd omission, given that last fall's iPhone 4S introduced Siri--it does add integrated voice recognition. I really liked using the built-in speech recognition tool, powered by Nuance. That said, I didn't like that I needed to be connected online, since, like Siri on the iPhone 4S, it makes calls back to the Apple servers to provide the service. But it was very accurate and responsive when I tested it. I also wish that the device had a way to perma-hold the microphone button on the keyboard (I didn't stumble across it, if one exists) so that I can dictate more than just a quick sentence here and there. I suppose, however, if that were the intent of the voice feature, I'd be using a dedicated app for that.

The Big iPad Stumble

For all of my raving about the display, I have to note that Apple broke with tradition and didn't make this iPad thinner and lighter than its predecessor. The new iPad is slightly thicker (0.37 inch) than the iPad 2 (0.34 inch), the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (0.34 inch), and the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime (0.33 inch). The Toshiba Excite 10 LE, which currently holds the crown as the slimmest tablet available, measures just 0.3 inch.

While I understand that the increased girth is to accommodate the new iPad's bigger battery, its 4G radio (on those models), and the Retina display, I'm more concerned about the iPad's weight. I surveyed more than a dozen editors in our offices, and all immediately noticed a difference between the new iPad and its competitors, including the iPad 2 and the lightest of the 10-inch-class Androids, the 1.12-pound Toshiba Excite 10 LE, plus the sleek 1.29-pound Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime.

The third-generation iPad weighs 1.44 pounds for the Wi-Fi-only version and 1.46 pounds for the 4G version. It's a slight but noticeable increase from the iPad 2's weight of 1.33 pounds for the non-3G version and 1.35 pounds for the 3G version. Heavier is not the right direction for tablets to take, and it goes against the trend among competing Android models, which are becoming lighter.

The difference in weight is palpable, and it may become an issue as you use your iPad to show off content, using your dominant hand to navigate, and your weaker hand to support the device. It's also a shame, because this iPad makes reading on an LCD more viable than ever, yet the added weight will deter many people from engaging in long reading sessions. One colleague likened the weight difference between the Toshiba Excite 10 LE and the iPad to the difference between an empty cafeteria tray and another tray laden with a plate of food.

Bottom Line

Although the extra weight is a disappointment, in the scheme of things it doesn't hurt the new iPad's ascent to the throne. Apple remains firmly ahead in terms of an app ecosystem, with more than 200,000 apps deemed "iPad" apps. The new, high-resolution display will pose some challenges to the iOS developer community, but I have no doubt that the community will rise to the occasion quickly, thanks to Apple's insular product strategy.

If you're in the market for a tablet--and if you don't mind the tethers that iOS and Apple impose (devotion to iTunes, the inability to drag and drop files onto the tablet, the lack of file-level control)--then the new iPad is the clear winner. The third-gen Apple iPad redefines the tablet market, and raises the bar impossibly high for the competition.

The good: Apple's new iPad includes a stunning new screen, matched by a quad-core graphic processor and the world's largest app and media store to feed it content. There's a proper 5-megapixel rear camera now, with 1080p recording quality. Optional 4G data from AT&T and Verizon afford an uncompromising mobile experience.

The bad: The new iPad is slightly heavier than last year's model; apps and movies optimized for the screen might take up more space; and ports for HDMI, USB, and SD require adapters.

The bottom line: With a host of improvements--faster graphics, 4G wireless options, a better camera, and a gorgeous high-res screen--the latest iPad cements its position at the head of the tablet pack.

Quoted from "PCWORLD"

Hands-On With Toshiba AT270 Tablet

Toshiba isn't at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, but we still caught a glimpse of one of the company's upcoming tablets. I managed to get a hands-on with Toshiba's AT270 (at least, that's what the tablet is identified as by the Android Operating System) at the Nvidia booth.

The AT270 sports Nvidia's Tegra 3 chip, which is why Nvidia was showing off the tablet at its booth. Toshiba showed several prototype tablets at CES 2012, this 7.7-inch model among them.

The 7.7-inch AT270 I played with at MWC feels more real than the prototype I handled at CES. The buttons are well-crafted, and the back is made of pleasingly-textured molded plastic. Along the bottom vertical edge is the headphone jack, a microUSB port, and a microSD card slot. The camera is at the upper right corner. While I don't have the actual specs on this tablet, I can say it's slim and lightweight and--most importantly--feels comfortable for extended one-handed use.

Toshiba's display appears to have beautiful colors--not surprising, since it's using a 1280 by 800 pixel super-AMOLED screen. Text looks sharp and crisp, as it does on Toshiba's current 7-inch Thrive. The AT270 is expected to replace the current Thrive, at an as-yet undetermined date.

Nvidia also notes that Toshiba's upcoming 13-inch tablet will also be powered by the Tegra 3. Toshiba says that model, shown in rough prototype form at CES, will have a wide viewing angle display and weigh around 2 pounds. The back of the model shown at CES was made of aluminum and the display resolution was not final. The reference design shown at CES ran Android, but Toshiba implied the tablet could, in the future, run Windows 8.

Toshiba is just one of the many tablet makers looking to use different mobile CPUs for different tablets. The company's Excite X10, which was introduced at CES, has a Texas Instruments OMAP processor.

"It's going to vary by product," says product manager Phil Osako.

For more blogs, stories, photos, and video from the world's largest mobile show, check out PCWorld's complete coverage of Mobile World Congress 2012.

Quoted from "PCWORLD"

Apple's March 7 iPad 3 Event: 5 Things to Watch For

Apple has made its March 7 iPad event official with an invite to the press, promising "something you really have to see. And touch."

Of course, Apple's not providing any more details, but that hasn't stopped the tech press from coming up with plenty of rumor and speculation. Even the name "iPad 3" is just shorthand for "next tablet Apple will announce." Here's what I'd look for at next week's event:

iPad 3 Rumored Tech Specs

The most likely feature for Apple's iPad 3 is a "Retina" display, or at least a screen with double the resolution of the iPad 2, at 2048 pixels by 1536 pixels. The upgraded display, combined with 4G LTE connectivity, may actually result in a slightly thicker frame than that of the iPad 2. For a processor, Apple watchers expect to see either a quad-core A6 processor inside the iPad 3, or a dual-core A5X.

The Vanishing Home Button?

The invite Apple sent for its event, which shows a small section of an iPad, has some tech bloggers in a tizzy because there's no home button on the iPad's bezel. But supposed pictures of the iPad 3'sfront glass panel shows the round home button intact, and it's possible that the image Apple sent is showing the side or the top of the device. I think the home button is sticking around.

Siri Says Hello?

Apple SiriA report last week on Apple.pro, a Chinese blog, suggested that Apple will bring the Siri virtual assistant to the iPad 3. This hasn't been a recurring rumor, but it seems plausible.

iPad 2 Price Drop

Best Buy has already dropped the price of the iPad 2 by $50 for all models, but last year, Apple slashed the original iPad's price by $100 after releasing the iPad 2. Once the new iPad launches, I'm guessing last year's model will get its own $100 price drop at all retailers--while supplies last.

[Read: iPad 3 Is Coming, So Get Top Dollar for Your iPad 2 Now]

Other Stuff: New Apple TV, iPods?

Earlier this month, the Apple TV set-top box sold out at Best Buy's Website, and it was no longer listed at Walmart. That led to speculation that a new Apple TV will replace the old set-top box, possibly with 1080p video support. The Apple TV box is not to be confused with the rumored Apple television, which probably isn't anywhere close to being finished.

I also noticed that Best Buy is having a sale on iPods. While there's not much buzz about an iPod refresh in the tech world, Apple hasn't updated its line of media players since September 2010. They're overdue for a facelift.

Quoted from "PCWORLD"

iPad 3 Display: A Possible Peek

Images from iFixit's analysis.

The screen in Apple’s next-generation iPadis said to be a standout feature of the tablet, and an analysis of what is purportedly one of those new screens supports the growing expectations.

Repairs website iFixit analyzed a screen obtained obtained earlier this month byMacRumors, which says the screen is that of an iPad 3, and confirms the unit has double the resolution of the iPad 2 screen.

An iPad 3 announcement is expected on March 7, and several leaks of the display indicate it will have double the resolution of the iPad 2. iFixit's analysis, available as a video, is of note because the people behind the online teardowns of most new gadgets are verifying the quality of the display. MacRumors isn't saying how it obtained the screen, but claims it is from an iPad 3.

Put under the microscope, the alleged iPad 3 display has double the linear resolution of the iPad 2 -- from 1024 by 768 pixels to 2048 by 1536 pixels -- which is higher than full 1080p HD video resolution at 1920 by 1080 pixels, and should display much sharper images. The improvement would be similar to the difference between a 3.5-inch iPhone 3GS display and the double-resolution iPhone 4/4S screen.

If this is indeed the type of display used in the new iPad, it will be interesting to see whether Apple will use the same Retina moniker it used for the double-resolution iPhone display. As my colleague Matt Peckham points out, in Apple’s book, Retina refers to displays with pixel density of more than 300 ppi (pixels per inch). At 9.7 inches and double the current resolution, an iPad 3 display would have just over 260ppi.

iFixit couldn't power up the screen with iPad 2 hardware, as the current iPad display uses a different connector than the one MacRumors obtained. This suggests that the new display will have different power requirements, and will hamper modders from getting a higher-resolution display with thieir older tablets. But take a look for yourself.

Quoted from "PCWORLD"

iPad 3 Latest Reports Say Screen Sharpness is Nearly as Good as Billed

Apple's enhanced display on its yet-to-be-unveiled iPad 3 appears to be the worst kept secret, judging by all the eyes that are reportedly able to see it.

MacRumors owner Arnold Kim says anyone can buy the next iteration of the popular tablet at the Chinese website TrueSupplier. The skinny: The screen measures 9.7 inches in diagonal, the same size display as used in the iPad and iPad 2, but the resolution is four times as sharp.

Apple is reportedly expected to take the ribbon off the iPad 3 on March 7. Experts say it could include support for 4G LTE, more internal memory, and perhaps Apple's first quad core processor. For now, a lot of the speculation is focused on the display.

"When comparing the iPad 3 display to one from an iPad 2 under a microscope, the difference in resolutions becomes readily apparent, with the iPad 3 display's pixels appearing to be one-quarter the size of those on the iPad 2," reports MacRumors, which says it got its hands on one and used its measurements to extrapolate what the iPad 3 screen resolution should be: 2048 by 1536. That's four times the resolution of Apple's current and first-generation tablets.

PCWorld’s Matt Peckham has made the interesting point, however, that the "retina" description that's been applied to the next iPad is simply a marketing term Apple uses to refer to displays with greater than 300 ppi (pixels per inch), which is the maximum number the average human retina can discern. The iPhone 4 and 4S, running at 960 by 640 pixels across 3.5 inches diagonal, meet this requirement, but the iPad 2, running at 1024 by 768 pixels across 9.7 inches diagonal, doesn't.

When you compute a 2048 by 1536 pixel density across a 9.7-inch screen, it comes out to about 264 ppi, short of the generally accepted 300 ppi threshold. But, as the pundits point out, that's still a big improvement from the iPad 2's pixel density.

As for where MacRumors got the display, Kim said it wasn't stolen, but rather is readily available, much to Apple's chagrin. He says the TrueSupplier site sells an "OEM Apple iPad 3 LCD Screen Display Replacement" for $122.99.

On its website, Truesupplier says it serves more than 65 percent of the U.S. market and is a global provider of mobile data products, software and consulting services, headquartered in Shenzhen, China, with branches in Hong Kong. Apple iPads are made in China, and Apple is currently embroiled in a spat with a Chinese company that claims it holds the rights to the iPad name in China.

quoted from "PCWORLD"

LG Shows Off 5.5-inch Optimus Vu

LG introduced today today the Optimus Vu, a combo tablet-smartphone LTE device with a 5-inch display to support easier multimedia viewing and ebook reading.  

The Optimus Vu will be on display at the Mobile World Congress next week and will be introduced in Korea in March, LG representatives say; no global availability or pricing was disclosed.

The phone measures 5.5 inches (139.6 mm) long and 3.5 (90.4 mm) inches wide. Although its sports a 5-inch, 1024 by 768 pixel display, it measures only 08.5 mm thick, slim among existing LTE phones.

The device runs on a 1.5GHz Dual-Core processor and comes with 32GB of internal memory and 1GB of DDR2 memory; it has an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera. The Optimus Vu will ship first with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, but LG plans to update it soon to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

It’s approximately the same size as so-called “phablet” Samsung Galaxy Note, which measures 5.78 by 3.27 by 0.38 inches. That device, introduced earlier this month, costs $300 with two-year contract

LG touts the device’s bright 4:3 aspect ratio and IPS display, which is intended to make it easier to view documents, books, Internet sites and multimedia content.  

Samsung Galaxy Note Review: Unique and Impressive, but Not for Everyone

The Samsung Galaxy Note ($300 with a two-year contract; price as of February 14, 2012) has been out for a while internationally, but on February 19, the 5.3-inch phone with a stylus-like pen will arrive on U.S. shores exclusively on AT&T’s 4G LTE network. After Galaxy Note commercials appeared during the Super Bowl, Twitter users joked that it resembled a Palm Pilot. The Galaxy Note might have a pen, but it is far from the capacitive PDAs of yore. The Note’s “S Pen” works quite well with the user interface, but I wished that the device had more apps to use the pen with.

Tablet, Phone, or 'Phablet'?

The Galaxy Note’s 5.3-inch display puts the Note in an interesting spot between a phone and a tablet. According to Samsung, an unlocked version of the Note won't be available in the United States, which puts the device more in the "subsidized phone with contract" category.

I have to say, however, that it feels a little silly to hold something of this size up to your face and make a phone call. It is light enough, but I found it a bit too wide for my hands, feeling uncomfortable and unwieldy at times. The Galaxy Note measures 5.78 by 3.27 by 0.38 inches, and weighs 6.28 ounces.

The Note has the typical touch-sensitive navigation buttons below the display (Menu, Home, Back, Search), plus a volume rocker and a power button. On the bottom of the Note, you’ll find the slot for the S Pen (which I’ll cover soon).

The Note’s aesthetic is pretty similar to that of the Samsung Galaxy S II phones (though larger), with a rectangular shape, a piano-black bezel, chrome piping, and a textured “carbon blue” battery cover.

HD Super AMOLED Display

The Galaxy Note’s 5.3-inch display has a 1280-by-800-pixel resolution. The technology is HD Super AMOLED, not to be confused with Super AMOLED Plus, which we saw on the Samsung Galaxy S II line of phones. This is the same display technology as on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. As I noted in my review of the Galaxy Nexus, HD Super AMOLED is based on the PenTile pixel structure, in which pixels share subpixels. Galaxy S II phones, on the other hand, have full RGB displays, in which the pixels each have their own subpixels. In comparison with Super AMOLED Plus displays, HD Super AMOLED displays supposedly have a lower overall subpixel density, reduced sharpness, and degraded color accuracy.

When I reviewed the Galaxy Nexus, I noted that I couldn’t really see a difference between the two different display types in terms of sharpness. The Galaxy Note also handled image and text rendering well, producing sharp, clear text and details on both Web pages and high-resolution images. I noticed a touch of degradation on higher-resolution images, particularly when I zoomed in, but the image quality definitely looked better than on some other phone and tablets we’ve seen.

The main problem I have with the display is that the colors are oversaturated. Additionally, skin tones look ruddy, and whites have a slight yellowish tint. This is a common problem among AMOLED displays, Samsung-made or not. Still, oversaturation isn’t always a bad thing: Colors on the Note look rich and bright, while blacks are deep.

Using the S Pen

The Galaxy Note includes a Wacom-made “S Pen” for note-taking and drawing. And as I mentioned earlier, the S Pen is a far cry from the old styluses you might remember. Wacom pens recognize both right-handed and left-handed users, and the S Pen also mimics the act of physically taking notes: The harder you press the pen on the Note, the thicker and bolder your lines will be.

The Note runs the latest version of Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread, with a version of TouchWiz that's similar to the one on the Galaxy S II line of phones. As you might expect, the Galaxy Note also has built-in software and special gestures for the pen.

One handy app, called S Memo Lite, lets you jot down notes from pretty much anywhere in the phone. To pull up the S Memo Lite app, you hold down the button on the pen, and double tap on the display. If you have another app open, the notepad appears on top of it, allowing you to switch back to it easily.

A fuller version of S Memo is accessible from the apps menu. In this app, you can add color to your drawing or text, or insert pictures (either via your gallery or from the provided clip art) and shapes.

You can also take screenshots, simply by pressing and holding the pen to whatever item you want to capture. Your shot then opens in a simple photo-editing app that lets you crop the screenshot in either lasso or rectangle mode.

Writing on the Galaxy Note takes some getting used to. At first, I was appalled at how horrible my handwriting looked. Once I got the hang of using the pen, though, I started to enjoy it. As somebody who is constantly doodling and prefers writing down notes to typing them, I liked being able to jot down ideas or reminders. The keyboard has a pen mode, which will convert your handwriting into text. I thought it did a pretty good job of recognizing my handwriting, though it misinterpreted what I was trying to write a few times.

Pen gestures involve a learning curve, as well. To go “back,” you hold down the pen’s button and swipe to the left. To go to the home screen, you drag the pen from top to bottom while pressing the pen button. And if you want to open Menus, you swipe from bottom to top while pressing the button. Once you get accustomed to relying on the pen rather than on the hardware buttons, navigating the Note is a breeze. You can, of course, use the hardware buttons at any time if you don’t like the pen gestures.

If the S Pen feels too wimpy (or gives you horrible flashbacks of your capacitive-touch Windows Mobile phone), you can invest in the S Pen Holder Kit (sold separately). The accessory is basically a standard writing-pen shell for the S Pen, complete with a pocket clip.

Pen-Friendly Apps and Other Software

The selection of pen-friendly apps feels a bit anemic. Samsung says that the SDK for the Galaxy Note and S Pen will be available to developers soon (though the company doesn’t specify when). I see a lot of potential for creative programs and productivity apps, as well as games that incorporate the S Pen (think Nintendo DS-style games).

Right now, the included apps that support pen mode are Polaris Office, S Memo, and a game called Crayon Physics. Polaris Office lets you create documents, spreadsheets, and slideshow presentations. You can insert drawings or screenshots in a presentation, or use the pen to insert text. Crayon Physics is a cute game in which you draw objects to move a ball from point A to point B.

This version of Samsung’s TouchWiz interface has a few interesting features, including resizable widgets for the home screen and a revamped calendar app. The calendar app takes advantage of the larger display, presenting a tabbed interface that lets you view the whole year, a week, a month, three days, a day, or the like.

You'll find quite a few AT&T- and Samsung-added apps, too, such as AT&T’s Live TV, AT&T Navigator, YPMobile, Samsung Media Hub, and more. You can remove some of these apps, however, by pressing the Menu key and selecting Edit (see the screenshot).

Performance

The U.S. Galaxy Note is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm processor. (The European version, on the other hand, has a 1.4GHz dual-core Samsung Exynos processor.) I tested a few graphics-heavy games on the Note, including Osmos HD and World of Goo. Both ran smoothly without any glitches, and looked terrific on the Note’s large display. Video also ran flawlessly, without any issues.

I ran the Vellamo benchmarking app on the Note to test its graphics and browser performance. We take these scores with a grain of salt, since the app is made by Qualcomm and the Galaxy Note has a Qualcomm processor. Surprisingly, the Note didn’t do that well, with a score of 773; that benchmark puts the Note behind both the Motorola Droid Razr (1040) and the Galaxy Nexus (803).

I also ran the FCC-approved Ookla app to test the Galaxy Note’s data speeds over AT&T LTE in San Francisco. In my neighborhood, I got an average download speed of 24.64 megabits per second, and an average upload speed of 8.78 mbps. Those are ridiculously fast speeds, and I could see the power of AT&T's LTE when downloading apps (which took seconds), browsing the Web, and watching streaming video.

Call quality was good over AT&T’s network. My friends on the other end of the line reported that my voice sounded clear and natural. I couldn’t detect any distortion or static in my friends’ voices, though a few sounded slightly distant.

We haven’t yet formally tested battery life, but the Galaxy Note lasted a full day of heavy testing before I had to plug it in again. We’ll update this section once we run our battery tests.

Camera

The 8-megapixel camera snapped good pictures, indoors and out. The colors in my indoor and outdoor photos looked accurate, while details appeared sharp. Honestly, though, the phone’s dimensions make it a little awkward to use as a camera. Have you ever tried shooting a photo with a tablet? It just feels strange.

The Galaxy Note can capture HD video in up to 1080p resolution. The device also has a front-facing 2-megapixel camera for making video calls or taking self-portraits.

Bottom Line

As somebody who is reluctant to hop on the tablet train, the Galaxy Note’s size is ideal to me. I like being able to whip the Note out to jot down ideas, and I love being able to doodle during a meeting or while riding the bus. To me, this is a perfectly sized tablet. But a perfectly sized phone? I’m not so sure. I wish Samsung sold a Wi-Fi-only, carrier-free version in addition to the subsidized AT&T version with LTE. I see it more as a secondary device--something I take to work, but not out to dinner or to the beach. Overall, the Galaxy Note works well with the S Pen, and I am excited to see more pen-supported apps. Right now, the selection feels a bit limited.

quoted from "PCWORLD"