The Galaxy Note 3 is a slightly large-screened Android phone equipped with a Wacom digitiser stylus. The bigger brother to the Galaxy S5 it’s also arguably a lot more interesting, although at £600 SIM-free the additional benefits come at a price. There are quite a few aspects of the phone we’re not totally enamoured with, particulry regarding some of Samsung’s design decisions, but this is a great phone for gadget lovers and geeks alike.
There’s no hiding it, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is a very large phone. Saying that, it’s still not quite in the same league as huge mobiles like the Galaxy Mega 6.3 and Xperia Z Ultra. You won’t feel entirely ridiculous putting it to your ear, and holding it in one hand is not too much of a struggle. Samsung has actually managed to make the Galaxy Note 3 narrower than the Galaxy Note 2, even though the new phone has a larger 5.7-inch display.
While this is an impressive feat by Samsung we should not forget that the phone is still 8cm wide. If you crave a phone that you can easily use one-handed, then this is not it. For a bit of context, the iPhone 5S is just 5.8cm wide.
The Note 3 is also among the first Galaxy phones not to use a glossy rear plastic cover. Samsung has tried to fool us into thinking the Note 3 has a leather rear. It looks like leather, from a distance, and the battery cover has fake stitching around its outer edges. But make no mistake – this is not leather.
The Note series has seen a gradual increase in screen size across its three generations. The first had a 5.3-inch screen, the Note 2 has a 5.5-inch screen and the Galaxy Note 3 has a 5.7-inch screen. These small increments have been made without any negative effects on the bodywork. The Note is less wide and less heavy than either of the former Notes.
The Note 3’s core screen technology is similar, though. It uses a Super AMOLED display of 1080p resolution.