Updated: Samsung Galaxy Note 2 release date, news and features
Updated: Samsung Galaxy Note 2 release date, news and features
Following in the footsteps of the original Samsung Galaxy Note "phablet", Samsung is just about ready to announce its next super sized device.
We're not expecting a major overhaul of the original, given that it worked surprisingly well. Big really is beautiful. So what ARE we expecting? Fear not, we have assembled all the latest rumours below:
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Release Date
Checking back to around this time last year, Samsung announced the original Galaxy Note at IFA in Berlin. A similar time this year is on the cards; GSM Arena reported Samsung would be holding one of its Unpacked events, a day earlier than IFA 2012, on August 29 - and Samsung has since confirmed that it will launch the Galaxy Note 2 on August 29, just before IFA 2012 begins in Berlin.
That very event, complete with a picture of what looks suspiciously like a box of tablets being opened by a stylus, has also been confirmed through a press invite -so looks likely to actually be the Note 2 release date?
This is a month earlier than some reports, but with Apple likely announcing the sixth iteration of the iPhone, the foretold iPhone 5, in September now, it's an unsurprising move.
We'd also suggest that Samsung will have the Galaxy Note 2 in shops as quickly as possible, especially as it managed to get the Samsung Galaxy S3 on sale within a month.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Name
We could put forward a list of potential name suggestions, but given Samsung's naming history, we would suggest that Samsung Galaxy Note 2 (or is that Note II) is the most likely. We wouldn't be entirely surprised should we end up with the Samsung Galaxy Note S, though.
However Samsung might well have given the game away here, with a tweet seeming to confirm the Galaxy Note 2 name.
Samsung might even choose to call its next Note device the Samsung Galaxy Note 5.5, putting it more in line with its tablet devices, such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 or Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1.
Even more unlikely, but still plausible, is the decision to break away and call the next device by a totally different name. As much as we highly doubt this, we'd be remiss if we didn't at least mention the words Rush, Amp and Helm.
If you're into your seemingly-random collections of letters and numbers, leaked benchmark test results have revealed the potential model for the Galaxy Note 2 could be GT-N7100 - which would make sense as the original Note was GT-N7000.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Price
All the evidence suggests that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 won't come cheap, but then again it was never going to be a budget device. The original Galaxy Note hit the shelves at just under £600 (around $930), and the Samsung Galaxy S3 is also available SIM-free at the same price.
Given the likes of the Google Nexus 7 are on sale for £199, there's every chance prices may be more competitive, but we expect Samsung to stick at the higher end of the scale, with contract prices starting at £35 per month for the Galaxy Note 2.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Display
We said in our original Samsung Galaxy Note review that it was "what media devices should look like", so at the very least, we expect the next screen to continue to reflect that.
Thankfully, all rumours to this point have suggested that Samsung are going even bigger. The current Galaxy Note packs in a 5.3-inch screen, but sources point to a larger, yet narrower, 5.5-inch screen.
A more recent leak of the chassis seems to confirm this; but the bezel has been reduced so the already-large footprint of the phone/tablet shouldn't put more stress on your pocket.
We've also heard that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is going to get a Super AMOLED display, in line with its predecessor. We're hoping that like the Galaxy S3, that we get a Super AMOLED HD screen, or better yet, a Super AMOLED HD Plus display (with better colour rendering and sharpness), but we're not counting our chickens.
We've also got the fact a leaked benchmark test has apparently revealed the screen resolution for the Galaxy Note 2 to be 1280 x 720.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 CPU
Expected at the very top of end of the price scales, the CPU will have to match. We've heard that Samsung might put in a 2GHz proprietary Exynos 5250 quad-core, but we heard that with the Galaxy S3 as well so we're taking that with a large pinch of salt.
What we can say is that Samsung put a hefty 1.4GHz quad-core Exynos 4212 processor inside the Galaxy S3, and this is what we expect to make its way over to the Galaxy Note 2.
We wouldn't be disappointed though, as we noted in the review that it's a "blazingly-fast core that is almost infallible".
According to a leaked benchmark test, the Galaxy Note 2 will use the same quad-core Exynos 4412 chip found in the Galaxy S3, but Samsung may over-clock it to 1.6Ghz.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 design
The original Samsung Galaxy Note looked remarkably similar to the Galaxy S2, so we'd put our money on Samsung doing something similar again, with MK Business News reporting that the Korean firm is ready to release a "derivative" of the Galaxy S3.
We should point out though, that Samsung had 3 working prototype designs for the Galaxy S3 to avoid any leaks, so we can't rule out something similar.
Samung Pakistan posted an image on its Facebook page claiming to be the Galaxy S3, and then the Galaxy Note - this was followed up by a device that seems to be something Note-esque from Samsung's South African Facebook page.
It looks a lot like this design 'leaked' to KnowYourMobile - could we be seeing a shrunken-down Galaxy Note 10.1 design?
Then we've got the fact the S-Pen will certainly be included in the frame as well, so tolerance will have to be made for that. If you want to see how it will look really close up, then check out this video with Wim Wenders.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Battery and Camera
We pointed out with the Samsung Galaxy Note that the battery life was on par with the S2, with the extra screen size balancing itself with the extra juice that Samsung had provided. If Samsung really is producing a "derivative" of its Galaxy S3, then expect the amazing battery life found there to continue.
Being a media heavy device, we are also expecting the camera to be pretty powerful too, an upgrade on the 8MP offering of the original. Current rumours have the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 bringing in a 12MP sensor, however the Galaxy S3 did come in with almost identical hardware to its predecessor.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 operating system
We're into Android 4.1, Jelly Bean, territory now, with Google premiering it on the Asus-built Google Nexus 7. Google told us that it was going to be initially rolled out to its Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S devices, as well as the Motorola Xoom.
We know that this is well under way, with reports that its already reaching Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ devices. We also know from the I/O 2012 keynote speech that Google is pushing its software updates to manufacturers a lot faster.
You can see where we're going with this, and with YouMobile reporting that Samsung will push out the OS to Galaxy S3 devices in Q4 this year, all the signs seem to point one way. But apparently the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 will ship with Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich, no Jelly Bean joy to be had until later in the year.
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Review
No rumours here, only the promise that in true TechRadar tradition, we will get you a full and detailed Samsung Galaxy Note review as soon as we can - expect a hands on from August 29 though, as we're that good to you.
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