Note 4 edges. Detailed review and testing of the smartphone Samsung Galaxy Note Edge

Specifications

• Android 4.4.4, TouchWiz shell
• micro SIM
• SuperAMOLED screen, 5.7 inches, 1440x2560 pixels, QHD, 525 dpi, 16 million colors, curved screen (5.6 inches main part - 2560x1440 pixels, curved - 2560x160 pixels)
• Corning Gorilla Glass 3
• S Pen for handwriting, drawing and more
• 3 GB RAM, 32 GB internal memory, memory cards up to 128 GB
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 805, 4 cores Krait 450 up to 2.7 GHz, Adreno 420, LTE Cat.4
• Acceleration Sensor, Gyroscope, Proximity Sensor, Compass, Barometer, UV Sensor, Heart Rate, Blood Oxygen Saturation, GPS/A-GPS/Glonass
• Camera 16 megapixels, optical stabilization, video recording up to 2160p 30 fps
• Ant+, Bluetooth 4.1 EDR, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, dual band; microUSB (USB 2.0), USB Host, MHL, USB On-the-go; NFC, infrared port;
• 3G 850/900/1900/2100; 4G 800/850/900/1800/2100/2600
• Battery 3220 mAh Li-Ion
• Dimensions - 151.3x82.4x8.3 mm, weight - 174 grams

Contents of delivery

• Telephone
• Battery Li-Ion 3220 mAh
• Charger with USB cable
• Wired stereo headset
• Instruction

Positioning

Each manufacturer has products that can be called experiments - these are models that test certain technologies, with their help, companies conduct reconnaissance in combat, assess market demand. You cannot create a production technology, learn to avoid problems if you only create prototypes and do not release them into a series - therefore, every company tries to try them out in practice for new technologies. It looks technologically challenging to create devices with a curved screen - about a year ago, Samsung and LG created models with a curve around the central axis, for example, LG G Flex became one of such models available commercially. The geography of sales of this model was very small, the price was extremely high, this is a fee for a limited edition and the fact that the product is not like everyone else.

In many ways, such products are perceived as something niche, and indeed they are - models for enthusiasts or those who are willing to pay the maximum amount for a device, if only it was unique. Functionality, the need for the technologies used in this way fade into the background, and even the third plan. Usually such phones are bought by those who want to stand out, oddly enough, but their image charge is quite high.

In the case of Note EDGE, we see a complete analogue of Note 4, built on a chipset from Qualcomm, in which they changed the smallest thing: on the right side, a piece of the screen was bent and various reminders were made on this bevel. The difference in price from the standard version is 15 thousand rubles, that is, the cost is about 40 percent higher. Considering that this product is not mass-produced, it goes on sale in a limited number of countries, a small number of stores, no one expects high sales from it - this is a niche offer. Initially, I was extremely skeptical about this model, after a few weeks with EDGE I changed my mind a little, this niche device has its strengths.

Design, dimensions, controls

The design of the case completely repeats that of the Note 4, the same materials are used - plastic with leather-like embossing on the back surface, a metal frame with beveled edges, and it is made asymmetrical due to the bending of the case.

There are two body colors - black and white. I like both options, each has its own advantages, and the choice of one or another color is a matter of your taste and mood.

The phone does not differ in size from Note 4 - 151.3x82.4x8.3 mm, weight - 174 grams.

The speaker in the device was moved to the rear wall, the design is completely similar to the Galaxy S5 - Note 3 had a speaker on the bottom. The changed location made the speaker even louder, in Note 3 it was impossible to complain about it, now the same melodies sound even louder, I tried to show this in our video.

There are microphones at the ends - there are now three of them in the device. Two on the bottom and one on the top. Three microphones do an excellent job not only with noise reduction in street conditions or a noisy room, they have added some features that are uncharacteristic for phones and I have not met until now. The voice recorder has been improved - now it has an "Interview" mode, when it records sound from two microphones - it is important to turn the phone end to the interlocutor and preferably put it on the table. There is also a "Conference" mode, when sound is recorded from different sources. One of the new features, but unlike many, it is not at all useless and convenient in work and life.

A 16-megapixel camera module protrudes on the back panel, it does not have any edging. It doesn't protrude much, and it's already habitual for Note 3, it doesn't pose any problems. Given that the camera is in the middle, this even has its own plus, the body rises, and the speaker sounds louder when the device is on the table.

The sensor under the camera has changed compared to the Galaxy S5, now it can not only measure the pulse, but also measure the level of oxygen in the blood, stress, ultraviolet radiation. Many parameters will become redundant for the majority, but a lot is not a little, in the end, they don’t ask for extra money for them.

At the top there is an infrared port for controlling household appliances. Your phone can play the role of a remote control for any technology. And this sometimes saves and helps. I had several situations when there were no batteries in the remotes from the equipment in hotels, and the phone saved me, in one click it turned into a full-fledged remote control. At home and when using TV services (cable or satellite channels) it also gives all programs, schedules and searches for them. Very comfortably. The service itself is from Peel.

On the left side there is a paired volume rocker, on the right side there is nothing but the screen. The on/off button is moved to the upper end, which is inconvenient due to the height of the phone, you always have to reach out or work with it with both hands. The keys themselves are comfortable to use, they are also metal. On the top end there is a 3.5 mm headphone jack, while on the bottom end there is a USB connector (microUSB 2.0 standard). At the bottom, you can also see the slot for the S-Pen stylus.

Let's talk about the front surface of the device - to the left of the speaker is the indicator of missed events, it blinks blue, you can turn it off in the menu. The proximity sensor is located on the right, and even more to the right is the front camera, it received a higher resolution and also a new function for a panoramic shot of a loved one. The mechanical central key remained unchanged, on the sides of it there are two touch keys.

Let's open the back cover. Inside we will see a card slot micro memory SD, their "hot" replacement is supported. A little lower is the microSIM slot, but you need to remove the battery to replace it.

Of the minuses that caught my eye - unlike Note 4, the back cover is difficult to close in the area of ​​​​the USB connector, you need to press it and make an effort. It is possible that due to bending this is not so easy to do. But other than that, there are no differences.

Display

We took the SuperAMOLED screen from Note 4, folded the right corner and got a display for EDGE. At the same time, the manufacturer claims that the diagonal of the main screen is 5.6 inches, and its resolution is 2560x1440 pixels, but the remaining 0.1 inches from Note 4 went to the side strip, its resolution is 2560x160 pixels.

A narrow and thin strip that allows you to show one line of text - enough for many reminders and controls. But we must understand that this is not a separate screen at all, but part of the main display - they form a single whole. You cannot enable one screen and disable the other, both screens work at the same time. Another thing is that often when the side screen is working, a black background is shown on the main screen, which does not consume energy in the case of AMOLED, and this made it possible to create such a solution.

Just like in Note 4, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 is used here, but it is curved in the shape of the screen, this is another technological challenge - there are not many such models on the market yet, they can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

I won't go into detail about the screen's specs, settings, comparisons with other models, it's all been done, and in great detail, in the Note 4 review that I'll refer you to from time to time.

Working with the side screen - features and impressions

In the settings there is a separate menu item dedicated to the side screen - you can select any picture, and then its vertical piece will become wallpaper. This is not so interesting - it is almost impossible to show something in such a strip. Another thing is that on this screen you can set various shortcuts and reminders. They scroll through in turn, let's start with the obvious, it can be a ruler with shortcuts, including folders. If you click on a shortcut, then it opens on the main screen, but if you click on a folder, then it also opens on the main screen.

It is possible to launch standard applications such as voice recorder, stopwatch, ruler, timer - they will only work on the side screen. It's pretty convenient.

While working in various applications on the phone incoming call shown on the side screen (in all cases, except when you are on the main screen of the phone or it is locked). You can answer from the side screen, and this is not always convenient, a couple of times I made a mistake and hung up the call. But in general, you get used to such an organization, and even begin to like it.

In the app store from Samsung, you can find new "screens" and utilities for the side screen, they fall into the Express Me menu. A large number of utilities are not yet available, for example, there is one that shows the state of the memory. How much is it needed? This is a question. In many ways, the use of the side screen is far-fetched, the company is trying to come up with use cases, they themselves do not understand them.

For example, a couple of toys were released specifically for EDGE - basketball and chess, they use a side screen, but its use is very far-fetched.

Perhaps, of all the modes of the side screen, I like the night one the most - the time and air temperature are shown in white font. You can set the time range when this mode starts to work. On the table near the bed, it is excellent, it largely replaces the traditional alarm clock - it does not shine very brightly, but it is easily distinguishable in the dark. During the night, work in this mode eats up about 3-4 percent of the battery charge, which can be considered quite acceptable.

Finally, one more thing - in the screen settings menu there is an option to rotate 180 degrees, a first for Samsung phones. That is, the device can be rotated as you like, regardless of the location of the hardware button. Turning it upside down, you will see touch keys that replace those on the case.

Now, let's just show the side-screen photos.

Battery

Li-Ion battery capacity - 3220 mAh. According to the manufacturer, the operating time in the main modes is as follows: in standby mode - up to 850 hours of operation, talk time - up to 16 hours, video playback - up to 10 hours, music - about 50 hours. Since this device is based on a Qualcomm chipset, and my Note 4 in the review was on Exynos, made using 20 nm technology, it was interesting to evaluate the difference in operating time and find out if there is any. It turned out that it is almost non-existent - traditionally, Qualcomm creates more energy-efficient solutions, but in Exynos this difference is leveled by a new technical process. As a result, it turns out approximately comparable.

Under normal load, the device can easily work for two days. This is one of the longest-lived smartphones on the market, and no one has been able to come close to it in this parameter. Regardless of what modes you work in, what you do on your smartphone, you can definitely know one thing - it will live longer than similar devices with the same screen size. With a very heavy load, as in my case, it survives until the evening - this is about 3-4 hours of screen operation, constantly online, transferring a large amount of data.

The device used Adaptive Fast Charging & Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 technology, this is the first model with it. In the settings ("Energy saving" item), you can check the possibility fast charging. In this case, with a native, complete charger, you can half charge the phone in half an hour, a full charge is possible in an hour and a half, while in an hour the device will be charged up to 90 percent.

Finally, I want to note that, just like in S5 and Note 4, they added two power saving modes. There is a regular power-saving mode in which you can limit the background work of applications, turn on gray colors for the screen (for AMOLED this is a feature - gray color consumes almost no energy). Moreover, in grayscale, you can work almost everywhere, even watch a video - but it will be gray, which is not very pleasant and convenient.

Memory, memory cards, chipset, performance

Let's start with a simple one, the device has 3 GB of RAM. The amount of internal memory is 32 GB, you have about 24 GB of space available for your programs and data. You can install a memory card up to 128 GB, there is almost no difference in access speed, so the applications stored on the card will work just as quickly.

The model is built on Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 – 4 Krait 450 cores up to 2.7 GHz, Adreno 420, LTE Cat.4. In synthetic tests, there is no difference in performance from Note 4 to Exynos, they are quite comparable.

For comparison, test examples Galaxy Note 4:

To repeat everything that is similar to Note 4, there is no point in this review, the devices do not differ in anything else, you can read the review of Note 4, it chews in detail all the points related to this device.

I will only note that the Qualcomm version of Note 4, and, accordingly, EDGE, uses a camera module from Sony (EXMOR RS), which gives quite typical pictures, comparable to those we saw in the Exynos version. The only difference is that in a number of modes the speed of the camera and its quality are worse - for example, when shooting at night, everything happens noticeably slower, the resulting pictures are worse. But otherwise, the difference is almost invisible. Check out some sample shots below, this is one of the best cameras on the market.

Impression

In terms of sound quality, speech transmission, there are no differences from Note 4 - everything is fine, the device has no flaws. The start of sales of this model in November, the cost is 50,000 rubles, while Note 4 costs 35,000 rubles. Functionally, these are twin brothers, differing only in that the screen is curved in EDGE. Is it worth the overpayment of 15,000 rubles, is there an image component in this? The question is open - rather, the unusualness of the phone is dictated by a limited edition, high cost, and it will find its audience. It can be called an expensive version of Note 4, which in itself is not bad. Is this device worth recommending? Here I am in doubt, since I have always had a prejudice against this phone, it did not seem to me to be something noticeably better than Note 4, a sort of pampering. In many ways, this opinion remained, but after a couple of weeks with EDGE, I liked the mode of operation of the additional screen at night, the ability not to be distracted during an incoming call, as it is displayed on a small screen. But it's definitely not worth the difference, and choosing wisely, I would ditch EDGE. On the other hand, there is a category of people who buy the most expensive things, and for them this niche smartphone is the perfect find. They will definitely not be like everyone else and will be able to stand out. The question is whether people will know that EDGE is somehow unique. Yes, they pay attention to it, it attracts attention, but the value of this device is still unknown. And whether it will be known is not clear. In a word, the device turned out not for everyone, it is niche. And when discussing it, you should always remember this - no one was ever going to sell it in large quantities. The model turned out to be very pleasant in life, but it is definitely not worth the money.

So, today we have to find out what a smartphone is like samsung galaxy Note Edge. This model is considered relatively new - it was released not so long ago, but it is already very popular, especially among those who prefer to follow the latest in modern technology. What are the features and benefits of this smartphone? Why is he so good? What's wrong with "talking" with the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge? All of this we now have to find out with you. Let's quickly begin to understand our today's issue.

Screen

The first thing you should pay attention to is the smartphone display. Without this detail, you can not hope that you will receive a high-quality phone with great features. How is the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge doing?

The thing is that the size of the display is not very large by modern standards. The screen diagonal is 5.6 inches. True, the resolution here is high - 2560 by 1600 pixels. This is quite enough to watch the video in good quality. This is exactly what clients often hunt for.

In addition, the display Edge (and its counterparts) is equipped with good image quality. The touchscreen is made with Super AMOLED technology, which allows you to clearly see the inscriptions on the screen even in the most cloudy or clear weather. Plus, this smartphone model is capable of transmitting up to 16 million colors and shades.

But the main feature of Note Edge is that the screen of this model is bending. This makes the smartphone very original and unique. True, this phenomenon, to put it mildly, baffles some.

Dimensions and weight

Further, dimensions and weight are very important for a smartphone. It's good when the screen on a modern phone is large. But you have to take into account that sometimes it is not very convenient to talk on such models. To be honest, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge SM N915F (and analogues of the Age series) has pretty good parameters in this regard.

In terms of dimensions, the smartphone is 151 by 82 by 8.3 millimeters. This is a fairly compact model by modern standards. True, it cannot be called ultrathin. The thickness of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Note Edge (and other products of the Age series) is average. But such a smartphone does not weigh very much - only 175 grams. The ratio of size and weight in this model is just perfect.

CPU

For each phone, the processor is also an important parameter. In Note Edge SM N915F (and analogs of the series), to be honest, this indicator is at the highest level. The thing is that this model has a 4-core processor. This fact cannot but rejoice. After all, the number of processor cores greatly affects the operation of the device. Or rather, its power.

But it is also worth paying attention to the clock frequency. The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, the review of which we are trying to study, supports a 2.7 GHz processor. For a regular smartphone, this is a lot. According to many buyers, this model is extremely powerful. It can be said that it is ideal for games and active use in modern human life. is not the only point to consider. What else can be important in the characteristics of the phone?

operating system

The next thing to consider is the operating system. It plays an important role in any smartphone. It is thanks to her that the interface, phone controls, as well as a list of possible games and applications that can be launched are determined. And the wider the spectrum, the better.

The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge SM N915F 32GB and its counterparts in the Age series have an operating system that many smartphone owners are used to. Of course, we are talking about the well-known "Android". Probably, now almost every phone has just such a system. But there are also some exceptions. The system version on our today's smartphone is 4.4.4 and the build is Kitkat. It is she who is considered the most high-quality and multifunctional. This means that the phone as a whole will differ in its numerous capabilities from analogues.

In addition, if necessary, you can always update the operating system using the special item "Menu" in the phone. This will make the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge smartphone even more perfect. According to buyers, no failures and malfunctions in this case will be observed. Although some smartphones often start to get out of hand after an update. But not the Samsung Age!

RAM

Complete with operating system and powerful processor Samsung owners The Galaxy Note Edge Black also gets pretty good RAM. This characteristic is important for the capabilities of the equipment. So if you have a powerful processor, then the RAM should be large.

In our case, for example, one can only envy the opportunities offered. After all, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge N915F 32GB offers as much as 3 GB of space. This also applies to analogues of the "Smasung Age" series. To be honest, the RAM here is very good. Compared to other phones, you can be pleasantly surprised - modern manufacturers often offer products with 2 GB of memory. And only occasionally - from 3-4.

The RAM of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge allows you to do many things at the same time without damaging the system. You can be sure that all commands will be executed quickly, clearly and without failures. Plus, Samsung's 3 GB of RAM is the ability to run the latest bright and interesting mobile games and applications. Just what so many buyers need!

Free place

In addition to the characteristics already mentioned, for a modern client, such a moment as free space on the phone is also important. It determines the amount of allowable amount of data that can only be available in the system. And the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is a great solution for those who don't want to suffer from lack of space.

Our device initially has 32 GB of free space. But in reality, the buyer gets 30 GB. The remaining space is occupied by the operating system and its resources. This volume is enough to not feel any restrictions regarding the amount of recorded data.

Compared to other similar smartphones, Samsung Galaxy Note Edge N915F and other devices of the Age series have a lot of built-in memory. In most models, you can find only 16 GB. And this place, to tell the truth, is very rare. Especially when it comes to a gaming smartphone. Modern games require a lot of space. And so you have to choose more expensive smartphones that have enough space.

Memory card support

Sometimes you can do without extra spending. You just need to choose smartphones that have support for connecting an additional memory card. Fortunately, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, the review of which is presented to your attention, has such an opportunity. Do not take this for granted - many modern phones are already made without a slot for connecting a memory card. And, according to experts, this is far from the best phenomenon.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 5 Edge has a special connector that allows you to connect a MicroSD memory card to your phone. This is probably the most common option for this moment. In addition, it is also worth considering that Samsung supports the ability to connect a memory card up to 128 GB. With all this, it is better not to fill out the card completely with your data. It is recommended to leave approximately 1-2 GB free. According to buyers, this will save the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge from system crashes, errors and malfunctions. Yes, there are models that can be completely "filled" with data. But the volume of the memory card there is several times smaller - approximately 32-64 GB. The difference is not worth explaining.

Shooting mode

The telephone is not only a means for conversation and communication with the outside world. It is also a device that now replaces the camera, and the camera, and the alarm clock. And other "miracles" of technology too. And for this reason, people pay great attention to the choice of a smartphone regarding the quality of the camera.

In our case, things are not so bad. The fact is that the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is equipped with two cameras at once. One of them is rear and the other is front. The second type of camera is mainly used for taking selfies, as well as for video calls on the phone. It usually does not differ in phenomenal quality. But in our case, even the front camera is on top. After all, its quality is 3.7 megapixels. For comparison, for a webcam on a computer, this figure reaches from 2 to 3 megapixels. And modern phones offer from 1.3 to 2.5 megapixels.

The rear camera plays a more important role. With it, customers can take pictures and videos. And the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Edge has a pretty high quality score. It is 16 MP. In addition, the phone is provided with automatic image stabilization, autofocus and flash. All this will make your pictures and videos of high quality and unforgettable. So if you need a smartphone that can replace good camera and a camcorder, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is a great choice. You won't find a better phone.

Working hours

"Samsung Galaxy Note Age" is a smartphone that not only works well and efficiently, but also replaces many devices. Before us is a real durable phone. It is able to work for a long time without recharging. And this fact is extremely popular with potential customers. After all, Android-based devices are famous for their rapid failure to work in a short period of time. But this does not apply to our current model.

The battery capacity of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge 32GB is 3,000 mAh. This is enough for 2 months of the included device in standby mode. If you only plan to talk on the phone occasionally, you can expect a recharge in about 18-21 days. But in active use mode, you will need to steadily charge your smartphone every 4 days. In principle, this is a very good indicator for a gaming phone.

In addition, the battery of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is removable. This means that if it breaks, the part can be quickly and easily replaced. Smartphone models with a built-in battery do not have this feature. So you can always stay in touch by purchasing "Sansung Galaxy Age".

This model charges quickly. The manufacturer claims that the recharge rate is as fast as possible. And indeed it is. You can fully charge your smartphone in about an hour. Less time simply cannot be. At least for now.

Connection

The proposed types of communication for users of various smartphones are also extremely important. Especially when it comes to expensive models. And in this regard, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is more than good.

This smartphone offers 2G and 3G connectivity. In addition, it has "Bluetooth" version 4.0, as well as Wi-Fi. These are mandatory items that should be present in any smartphone. We are also offered a connection to the 4G network. It provides a fast and reliable connection, especially when browsing the Internet. So it's worth paying attention to this model. 4G communication is growing and developing at a very fast pace these days. And very soon it will be impossible to do without it. Keep this in mind when you buy a phone.

Price

Of course, such a perfect device and the price is high. This is how buyers describe the cost of the Samsung Galaxy Note. And this fact does not particularly please them. Especially if you find out the exact amount that you will have to pay for the purchase.

On average, such a smartphone costs about 39,000 rubles. Compared to the same iPhone, the price is not so high. But buyers claim that this smartphone should be cheaper. Given some shortcomings, these are well-founded comments. On sales, you can sometimes find a Samsung Galaxy Note for about 25 thousand rubles. Also a high amount. True, if you really need a versatile smartphone with numerous features, as well as unsurpassed quality and a good manufacturer, then you will have to pay attention to the Samsung Age.

A spoon of tar

All devices have flaws. Somewhere they are insignificant, but somewhere they are critical. And it is to the second category that the disadvantages of the Samsung Galaxy Note can be attributed. Especially if you take into account the high cost of the device. At this price, buyers expect quality smartphone which will work and delight them for a long time.

Indeed, the Samsung Galaxy Edge is a new generation gadget. And it will work for a long time. But is it only quality? Over time, according to many buyers, the performance of the device drops several times. True, sometimes it is not noticeable. But exactly as long as you do not fill the memory card heavily. As soon as the space begins to run out, all the "charms" of failures will become noticeable - long command processing, long loading of images, videos, and so on. Sometimes the smartphone itself can reboot and turn off.

Also, buyers assure that with awkward handling, the model quickly breaks down. That is, it is not very well protected from falls. In this case, you will either have to buy a special silicone case, or handle the device very carefully.

The touchscreen sometimes gets out of control too. Especially in cold weather. More precisely, in the cold. The screen responds to an electrical charge. This means that in the cold it will be very difficult and inconvenient to operate the phone.

The price is another significant drawback of the device. If not for all the previous disadvantages of the smartphone, then the cost could be called acceptable. But taking into account all the positive and negative sides, we can only say that a suitable price for such a mobile device should be 15-20 thousand rubles.

Summing up

So we conducted a detailed review of the Samsung novelty called Galaxy Note Age. As you can see, these smartphones are pretty good. But, of course, with its shortcomings. Now it's time to decide whether to pay attention to this device.

In fact, everyone should decide for himself. All buyers have a different budget and different needs and requests. So it all depends on you. But in general, we can only say that the Samsung Galaxy Note is a noteworthy smartphone. In private, it should be studied by those who really like to play mobile applications and games. For such buyers, this smartphone is a real gift of fate.

But if it is important for you that the price of the phone is quite low, and the device itself is well protected from falls and damage, then the Samsung Galaxy will have to be abandoned. This is not a smartphone that you can drop on the pavement and not worry about its safety. In addition, it is not recommended to pay attention to this model if you do not need a gaming device. You can always find yourself other, cheaper and more versatile counterparts. Happy shopping! Weigh the pros and cons carefully. Only then make the final decision.

Expensive innovations in almost flawless execution

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge was one of the main surprises of IFA 2014. Rumors that Samsung is working on some kind of innovative smartphone with a screen that wraps around the edge have been around for a long time, but no one expected to see the final product so early. True, the novelty turned out to be very far from what was expected, although it is still very curious.

As it turned out, the smartphone really uses a curved screen, but it only bends on one side - the right one (if you hold the smartphone vertically, with the screen facing you). According to Samsung representatives (see our conversation with Oleg Budegechiev!), the decision to bend only one side was not due to technical difficulties or economic inexpediency, but solely for ergonomic reasons.

At the same time, the price of the smartphone was still very high: about 50 thousand rubles. That is, at the moment it is the most expensive non-luxury smartphone on the Russian market. We took a detailed look at what users will get for this money and how useful the folding edge is in real use.

Video review

To get started, we invite you to watch our video review Samsung smartphone Galaxy Note Edge:

Now let's look at the characteristics of new items.

Specifications Samsung Galaxy Note Edge (SM-N915FY)

• SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 MSM8974AB
• CPU Krait 450 @2.7 GHz (4 cores)
• GPU Adreno 420
• operating room android system KitKat 4.4.4
• Touchscreen 5.6″, curved, Super AMOLED, 2560 × 1600, 524 ppi
• Random access memory (RAM) 3 GB
• Flash Memory: 32/64 GB + 50 GB in Dropbox cloud service for 2 years
• Support for microSD memory cards up to 128 GB
• GSM communication GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz, HSPA+ 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
• Communication FDD-LTE 800/850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100/2600 MHz
• Bluetooth 4.1LE, A2DP, EDR
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz and 5GHz), Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot
• S Pen stylus
• GPS with A-GPS, Glonass
• Gyroscope, accelerometer, compass, barometer, heart rate scanner, fingerprint scanner
• Cameras 3.7 MP (front), 13 MP (rear) with LED flash, autofocus, optical stabilization, f/2.0, 4K video shooting, Full HD 60 fps
• Battery: 3000 mAh, removable
• Dimensions 151×82×8.3 mm
• Weight 175 g

For clarity, we decided to make a table with the characteristics of other top-end tablet phones in the upper price category, including the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (we need it first of all in order to clearly see the differences in characteristics).

* presumably
** according to manufacturers' official data

As we can see, we have an absolutely top-end configuration, which is very close to the Galaxy Note 4 and outperforms its competitors in a number of parameters (we emphasize that we are talking only about the declared technical characteristics, and not about user qualities).

In terms of technical characteristics, there is absolutely nothing to complain about. Well, it’s a pity that the battery capacity is slightly less than that of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. But otherwise, we have an undoubted flagship. True, it cannot be said that in some respects it was out of competition and set new standards: we have already seen such a density of screen pixels, such an amount of RAM, and cameras with parameters no worse (and even better). But all together it still makes up a truly flagship configuration.

Design

The smartphone came to us for a test without packaging and any additions, so we cannot comment on the package. Let's go straight to the description of the design of the device.

The appearance of a smartphone is perhaps one of its main features. In principle, there are many similarities with the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. However, the key detail of the Note Edge completely changes the impression of the device. This, of course, is about a rounded edge and a screen “sliding” onto it. Without this detail, we would have just a pretty tablet phone. With it, you get an original futuristic gadget.

Deliberate asymmetry adds originality and eccentricity to the appearance of the device. It seems that the screen seems to be shifted to the right relative to the central axis. In the era of faceless symmetrical plastic "remnants", such a decision looks, of course, very bold and expressive. And it is even impossible to say unequivocally whether it would be better if the rounding was on both sides and the frontal surface would be absolutely symmetrical. Of course, from the point of view of the “wow effect”, the illusion that the screen wraps around the entire smartphone is much more advantageous. But if we evaluate the design in isolation from technical innovations, then the proposed solution is even more interesting.

The bending angle is about 45°. The question, repeatedly asked on forums and in discussions, why this particular edge was rounded, is quite simple to answer: it is assumed that the user will interact with the rounded edge with the right thumb. True, this automatically means that this smartphone is not intended for left-handed people (which is not denied by Samsung either). And although it is purely programmatically possible to transfer information from a curved edge to the left side of the screen, there will be no sense in this (more precisely, then the meaning of having a curved edge disappears).

Margins to the right and left of the screen are minimal. Moreover, on the right (at the bottom of the loading area) they are smaller than on the left - only about a millimeter (see photo above). The edging is made of metal, painted in White color. From the side of the curved edge, this metal edging protrudes quite strongly, by about a millimeter (we refer you to the same photo). Apparently, this was done both to protect the screen and for ergonomics - so that the device is easier to hold in your hand (that is, so that your fingers can catch on this ledge) and for easier lifting from the table. Indeed, if the curved area of ​​the screen went down and did not rest against this ledge, it would be very inconvenient to take the smartphone from the table. Now there is no such problem.

Below the screen is a Samsung-branded home button. The button noticeably rises above the level of the screen, but you can not be afraid of accidental clicks - it is quite elastic. The protruding edges of the button are edged with metal, which looks very stylish. To the left and right of the physical button are touch Running applications” and “Back”, respectively.

The white areas above and below the screen look like they have a pattern in the form of stripes (this can be clearly seen in the photo above). Very beautiful! In general, the white color on the front surface looks not just white, but mother-of-pearl. Perhaps this is facilitated by the glass covering the entire front surface, including the areas under and above the screen.

And one more detail: the glass is rounded not only on the right, but also on the left, where there is no screen - just a little bit. This bend is almost not felt due to the edging and due to the fact that the screen itself is straight, but it still looks curious and makes you remember the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, where such a rounding of the glass has become one of the important "chips", although Samsung implemented it a little differently. In general, the great advantage of the design of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is the presence of details that are subtle at first glance, but create the impression of a product that was made with love, imagination and focus on the demanding public.

But the rear side of the smartphone disappointed us. There is just a plastic cover - albeit with corrugation, stylized as leather, but without the feeling of skin in the material itself. This, in our opinion, reduces the premium. On the other hand, the coating is quite practical: scratches are not visible on it, it basically does not collect fingerprints. But, probably, practicality is the last thing buyers of a smartphone for 50 thousand think about, right? Although it can be argued that such a device will not lose its novelty of appearance even after a few months of use, which is really important for premium devices.

On the back surface, two more details attract attention. This is a very large camera eye with an impressive flash under it (next to it is a fingerprint scanner), as well as a speaker hole at the bottom and a 4G inscription next to it. Why write “4G” on a device for 50 thousand, when smartphones for 15 thousand also support this technology, is not entirely clear. Apparently, it was just necessary to place some kind of inscription there for reasons of aesthetics of appearance. Well, OK.

A stylus peeps out from the bottom on the back side - like all devices of the Note series, the Galaxy Note Edge is equipped with a stylus and support for pen input. Moreover, not only the main, but also the curved area of ​​the screen reacts to the touch of the stylus. As a feature we didn't like very much, we note the fact that the screen is responsive (that is, a tiny circle cursor appears on it) even when the stylus is still quite high above it.

But back to the inspection of the device. The back cover is removable. Under it we see a 3000 mAh battery and slots for microSD and Micro-SIM cards. The battery does not need to be removed to access them.

Now let's look at the edges of the device. On the top side we see the power button, 3.5 mm headset jack, infrared port and microphone hole. The location of the power button is one of the main design differences between the Note Edge and the Note 4, where the power button was located on the right side. There, of course, it is more convenient to get to it. But in Note Edge, the right side is occupied by a rounded screen, so I had to move the button to the top side.

On the lower edge is the hole for the stylus we have already mentioned, two microphones and a Micro-USB connector, through which the smartphone is charged and connected to a PC and display devices (TVs, monitors). Support for USB OTG (connection of external devices, including drives) is also available.

On the left side there is only a volume rocker. It is very long, made of metal (like the power button) and pressed with effort and audible sound. Well, the right side, as we already wrote, is entirely occupied by a folding screen. If you put the smartphone face down on the table, the contents of the right side will almost not be visible. But if you hold the smartphone with the edge towards you, then everything can be seen quite well. Note Edge lies comfortably in the hand, the grip strength is ensured by the metal edging of three faces.

It is rather difficult to sum up the design impressions, since the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is one of a kind, it is unique in its own way. Does he impress? Yes, definitely. Do you want to buy it right away and forget all other smartphones like a bad dream? I think no. It is certainly interesting to play with it, but it is hardly possible to say that the presence of a curved edge brings interaction with a smartphone to a fundamentally new level of convenience. This is an interesting experience, but it does not negate everything that came before it. The same applies to appearance. You can hardly call the appearance of the Galaxy Note Edge a new standard of beauty. However, it is precisely this - his non-standard - that he captivates. And for sure there will be those users who want to have just such a non-standard, strange gadget. But if you do not go into subjective moments, then it is worth noting the build quality, practicality and thoughtfulness of all elements of the case and several interesting design and engineering findings. By the way, Samsung representatives note that thanks to the metal edging, the smartphone is quite durable, but we still decided not to crash test the device for 50 thousand :)

Screen

The main questions we asked when testing the screen were as follows: is there a real border between the main part of the screen and the curved area? And how does the screen of the Galaxy Note Edge compare with the screen of the Galaxy Note 4? Finally, are there any parameters that (or the quality of which) had to be sacrificed for the sake of innovative curvature? Detailed testing of the display was carried out by Alexey Kudryavtsev, editor of the Projectors and TV section.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen may be slightly better than the screen of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens (on the left - Nexus 7, on the right - Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, then they can be distinguished by size):

The screen of the Galaxy Note Edge is slightly darker (brightness in photos is 108 versus 110 for the Nexus 7) and does not have a pronounced tint. Note that the reflection from bright objects on the Galaxy Note Edge screen has a faint bluish halo with no pronounced directionality. The ghosting of reflected objects in the Galaxy Note Edge screen is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen. Due to the smaller number of borders (glass-air type) with very different refractive indices, screens without an air gap look better in conditions of strong external illumination, but their repair in case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed. On the outer surface of the Galaxy Note Edge screen there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (very effective, noticeably better than the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much more easily, and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass.

When displaying a white field in full screen and with manual brightness control, its maximum value was 330 cd/m², the minimum was 1.7 cd/m². You also need to take into account the fact that in this case the smaller the white area on the screen, the lighter it is, that is, the actual maximum brightness of the white areas will almost always be higher than the specified value. For example, when outputting white on half the screen, the maximum brightness with manual adjustment rises to 360 cd/m². As a result, readability during the day in the sun should be sufficient good level(I didn't have a chance to check). The reduced brightness level allows you to use the device without any problems even in complete darkness. Automatic brightness control works according to the light sensor (it is located to the right of the front speaker slot). You can make adjustments to the operation of this function by moving the adjustment slider from -5 to +5 units. Next, for three conditions, we present the screen brightness values ​​for three values ​​of this setting - for -5, 0 and +5. In complete darkness in automatic mode, the brightness decreases to 3.4, 8.7 and 18 cd / m², respectively (the first is dark, the rest are normal), in an office lit by artificial light (about 400 lux), the brightness is set to 67, 145 and 270 cd/m² (dark - just right - light, which corresponds to the specified correction), in a bright environment (corresponds to a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or a little more) - rises to 330 cd/m² regardless of the position of the slider. This value is equal to the maximum for manual adjustment. In general, the result of the automatic brightness adjustment function is as expected. Note that even with manual brightness control, an extremely smart smartphone will forcefully lower the brightness if, in its opinion, it is too high for given conditions. For this reason, we were unable to set the brightness to 200 cd/m² when photographing the screen in complete darkness. At any brightness level there is a modulation with a frequency of 240 Hz. The figure below shows brightness (vertical axis) versus time (horizontal axis) for several brightness settings:

It can be seen that at the maximum (and close to it) brightness, the modulation amplitude is low, and as a result, there is no visible flicker. However, as the brightness decreases, the relative modulation amplitude increases and the duty cycle decreases. Therefore, at about 50% (about 150-160 cd / m²) and below, the presence of modulation can already be seen in the test for the presence of a stroboscopic effect or simply with a quick eye movement. Depending on individual sensitivity, such flickering can cause increased fatigue.

This screen uses a Super AMOLED matrix - an active matrix on organic light emitting diodes. A full color image is created using subpixels of three colors - red (R), green (G) and blue (B), but there are twice as many green subpixels, which can be referred to as RGBG. This is confirmed by a fragment of a microphoto:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

On the fragment above, you can count 4 green subpixels, 2 red (4 halves) and 2 blue (1 whole and 4 quarters), while repeating these fragments, you can lay out the entire screen without gaps and overlap. For such matrices, Samsung introduced the name PenTile RGBG. The manufacturer considers the screen resolution based on green subpixels, on the other two it will be two times lower. The arrangement and shape of the sub-pixels in this variant is similar to the variant in the case of the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and some other newer devices from Samsung with AMOLED screens. This version of PenTile RGBG is better than the old one with red squares, blue rectangles and stripes of green subpixels. However, some uneven contrasting borders and other artifacts are still present. However, due to the very high resolution, they have minimal effect on image quality.

The curved part of the screen is in no way separated from the main area of ​​the screen and forms a single whole with it. The photomicrograph below shows that the flat part of the screen (bottom) smoothly and seamlessly passes into the curved one (at the top of the photo), and the only visible sign transition is the defocusing of subpixels.

The screen has excellent viewing angles. True, the white color, when deviated even at small angles, acquires a slight blue-green tint, but the black color remains just black at any angle. It is so black that the contrast setting is not applicable in this case. When viewed perpendicularly, the uniformity of the white field is excellent. For comparison, here are photos in which the screens of the Galaxy Note Edge (profile Basic) and the second comparison participant, the same images were displayed, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to approximately 160 cd / m², and the color balance on the camera was forcibly switched to 6500 K. White field:

We note the excellent uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field. And a test picture (profile Basic):

The color reproduction is good, however, the color balance of the screens is slightly different, and the colors of the Galaxy Note Edge are slightly more saturated (at least, as the image is recorded by the camera). Note that in this case the picture occupies the height (with this screen orientation) of the entire area available for displaying the image and already goes to the curved edge of the screen, which leads to darkening and some color distortion. Also in the light, this area almost always glares, which makes it even more difficult when viewing images displayed in full screen. Well, at least the picture of films with an aspect ratio of 16:9 does not go to the bend, but in the full-screen output format, this feature also manifests itself in this case. The photo above was obtained after choosing a profile Basic in the screen settings, there are four of them:

Profile adaptive display differs in some kind of automatic adjustment to the type of displayed image and environmental conditions. What happens when you select the two remaining profiles is shown below.

AMOLED movie:

Saturation and color contrast have increased noticeably.

Photo AMOLED:

The saturation is still high, but the color contrast has returned to normal, and the skin has become excessively reddish. Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen (again the profile Basic). White field:

The brightness at an angle for both screens has noticeably decreased (to avoid strong darkening, the shutter speed is increased by 2.6 times compared to the previous two photos), but in the case of Samsung, the drop in brightness is much less pronounced (darkening at the bend can be ignored). As a result, with formally the same brightness, the Galaxy Note Edge screen visually looks much brighter (compared to LCD screens), since you often have to look at the screen of a mobile device at least at a slight angle. And a test picture:

It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens and the brightness of Samsung at an angle is noticeably higher. Switching the state of the matrix elements is almost instantaneous, but there may be a 16.7 ms wide step at the turn-on front (which corresponds to a screen refresh rate of 60 Hz). For example, the dependence of brightness on time looks like this when moving from black to white and vice versa:

In some conditions, the presence of such a step can lead to plumes trailing behind moving objects, but in normal use it is difficult to see these artifacts. On the contrary, dynamic scenes in films on OLED screens are distinguished by high clarity and even some “twitchy” movements.

If a profile is selected Photo AMOLED or Basic, then the gamma curve constructed from 32 points with an equal interval according to the numerical value of the shade of gray did not reveal any blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows, and the exponent of the approximating power function is 2.27-2.28, which is slightly higher than the standard value of 2, 2, while the real gamma curve deviates very little from the power dependence (in parentheses, the exponent of the approximating power function and the coefficient of determination are given):

For profile AMOLED movie The gamma curve has a slightly S-shaped character, which increases the apparent contrast of the image, but in the shadows the distinguishability of shades is preserved.

Recall that in the case of OLED screens, the brightness of image fragments dynamically changes in accordance with the nature of the displayed image - it decreases for images that are generally bright. As a result, the resulting dependence of brightness on hue (gamma curve) most likely does not correspond slightly to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential grayscale output almost on the entire screen. This image dynamism is enhanced by selecting the option Auto config. screen brightness. In this case, a descending section appears on the graph of the dependence of brightness (vertical axis) on time (horizontal axis) when moving from black to white and back, that is, the brightness of the white field after about 0.3 s begins to decrease:

Color gamut in profile case AMOLED movie very wide and almost covers Adobe RGB coverage:

When choosing a profile Photo AMOLED coverage is pressed to the borders of Adobe RGB:

When choosing a profile Basic coverage shrinks even more, almost to the borders of sRGB:

Without correction, the spectra of the components are very well separated:

In the case of a profile Basic with the maximum correction, the color components are already noticeably mixed with each other:

Note that on screens with a wide color gamut without proper color correction, normal images optimized for sRGB devices look unnaturally saturated. Hence the recommendation - in most cases, watching movies, photos and everything natural is better when choosing a profile Basic, and only if the photo was taken on an Adobe RGB setting does it make sense to switch the profile to Photo AMOLED. Profile AMOLED movie, despite the name, is the least suitable for watching movies and anything else.

The balance of shades on the gray scale is not ideal, but, in general, acceptable. Profile color temperature AMOLED movie above 6500 K, in the remaining two it is close to 6500 K, while in a significant part of the gray scale this parameter does not change very much. The deviation from the black body spectrum (ΔE) remains below 10 units over most of the gray scale, which is considered a good indicator for a consumer device, and also does not change much:

(The darkest areas of the gray scale in most cases can be ignored, since there the color balance does not matter much, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

Let's summarize. First of all, we note that in all the main parameters (except for the bend and resolution on the short side), the screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge practically does not differ from the screen of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. The screen has a fairly high maximum brightness and has good anti-glare properties, so the device is more likely In total, without any problems, you can use it outdoors even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. It is permissible to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works quite adequately. The advantages of the screen include a very good oleophobic coating, as well as sRGB color gamut and color balance close to the standard (when appropriate profiles are selected). At the same time, let's recall the general advantages of OLED screens: true black color (if nothing is reflected on the screen), excellent white field uniformity, noticeably smaller than that of LCDs, and a drop in image brightness when viewed from an angle. The disadvantages include modulation of the screen brightness. Users who are particularly sensitive to flicker may experience fatigue as a result. However, overall the screen quality is very high.

Let's add a few words about getting part of the picture at the beginning of the bend. As noted in the testing above, this results in a darker image on the folded plane. From the point of view of practical use, this is, of course, a minus. However, the illusion that the picture “goes beyond the horizon” enhances the “wow effect”, that is, we admire this and feel the unusualness of the screen to a greater extent than if there were no such feature.

Operating system and software

The smartphone runs on Android 4.4 KitKat, which has Samsung's proprietary shell installed. At the time of testing, Android 5 was not yet available for the Galaxy Note Edge, although it would be very interesting to see how it will look and function on this device.

Describe preinstalled applications and other things that we usually write about in smartphone reviews, we will not be here, since in most respects the Galaxy Note Edge software is identical to the Galaxy Note 4. But, of course, with the exception of one detail - the software component that is responsible for displaying the image on curved area. This is what we will focus on.

So, first of all, it is worth noting that from the point of view of the program component, the curved zone is an independent element. In fact, the operating system perceives it as a separate screen with a resolution of 160x2560. Therefore, when specifying the screen resolution of the Galaxy Note Edge as 2560x1600, it must be clarified that it is actually 1440x2560 plus 160x2560. Therefore, the maximum resolution of a picture fully displayed on the screen will still be 1440 × 2560. We cannot display an arbitrary image on a curved zone, but we can quite flexibly configure what will be displayed on it.

Content that is displayed on the curved area is referred to by Samsung as "panels". There are several options for such content. The first option is notifications that appear at the top of the screen in other Android smartphones. For example, "App X installed" or "Screenshot saved." The second option is arbitrary text that you specify. For example, it could be your name..

The third option is quick launch icons (and even folders with multiple icons). Their set can be customized.

The fourth option is all sorts of useful things, such as a ruler, a stopwatch, a voice recorder, a flashlight button, etc.

The fifth option is notifications from specific applications. The sixth option is the night clock (that is, the main zone of the smartphone screen is turned off at this time, and the clock is displayed on the curved zone). It is very convenient, because the battery is practically not wasted, but if you wake up at night, you don’t have to get up in bed and pick up the phone to find out what time it is - just look at the edge.

Note that all of the above options can exist simultaneously. That is, to switch between them, you do not need to change the settings. You can simply flip through the panels, making swipes from right to left or from bottom to top along the curved zone (in this case, additional icons will open - with a ruler, etc.).

In the smartphone settings there is a separate item "Curved screen". With it, you can add new panels, change the appearance of the splash panel, write text to display on the panel, mark applications from which notifications will come to the panel, and also set the night clock mode.

Alas, it remains unclear how to find third-party applications in the Samsung Apps store that support working with panels, and whether there are any at all. At the presentation of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, it was reported that an SDK was available to developers, but whether there were any results and how many applications currently exist that use the functionality of the panels remains a mystery.

Performance

The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 SoC and has 3GB of RAM. A true flagship! Let's see how he will show himself in comparison with competitors.

Let's start with browser tests: SunSpider 1.0, Octane Benchmark and Kraken Benchmark. In all cases, we used on Apple devices Safari browser from iOS 8, and on Android - Google Chrome.

The strange result in SunSpider is compensated by very good results in Kraken Benchmark. However, it is clear that the iPhone 6 Plus wins our today's hero.

But in perhaps the most popular comprehensive Android benchmark AnTuTu 5, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge smartphone showed a record result, significantly outperforming Android competitors.

The gap from them is even too large, suspiciously large, but - what is there.

But Geekbench 3 (a multi-platform benchmark that measures CPU and RAM performance), on the contrary, turned out to be unkind to Note Edge. The novelty, for some unknown reason, lost miserably to all other test participants.

The last group of benchmarks is dedicated to testing GPU performance. We used GFX Bench and 3DMark. The results of the Bonsai Benchmark, which we used before, are no longer indicative of modern SoCs, since all the subjects gain a maximum of 60 fps or so there.

Let's start with GFXBenchmark. In the table below, Offscreen tests are rendering images in 1080p, regardless of the actual screen resolution. And tests without Offscreen are rendering images exactly to the screen resolution of the device. That is, Offscreen tests are indicative in terms of the abstract performance of the SoC, and real tests are indicative of the comfort of the game on a specific device.

Since we did not test the LG G3 in this benchmark, we will present the results of the Asus Padfone S on the same SoC, but with a reduced screen resolution (regular Full HD). So, the “naked” performance of the Note Edge was on par with the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and slightly better than the Asus Padfone S, but worse than the iPhone 6 Plus. The saddest thing is that due to the ultra-high screen resolution, in none of the two scenes, the smartphone could reach the playability threshold in Onscreen mode (30 fps).

The last GPU benchmark is 3DMark. Here are the results for the Ice Storm Unlimited mode (simpler modes are not interesting for evaluating such powerful GPUs).

And again, an inexplicable failure ...

Despite the fact that the Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 is an absolutely flagship and frequently used solution, the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge does not do very well with game support. Of the nine games of our methodology, only six were launched on a smartphone.

Apparently, this, like the strange performance results in some benchmarks, is due to a flaw in the firmware: obviously, its non-standard functionality, which actually involves the operation of two screens, is in some kind of conflict with some applications.

All in all, don't take the benchmark tests as a defeat for the Galaxy Note Edge, but be prepared for surprises in real games. Although, perhaps in the next firmware it will be fixed.

Video playback and connection to an external display

To test the MHL interface, we used a monitor ViewSonic VX2363Smhl, which supports direct MHL connection (in version 2.0) using a passive Micro-USB to HDMI adapter cable. Recall that Samsung has implemented its own version of this interface at the physical level. As a result, to connect an external device via MHL, you need to use special adapters or connect standard MHL adapters through simple passive adapters.

In this case, we conducted the test using a proprietary Samsung adapter, while MHL output was carried out at a resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels at 60 fps. When the smartphone is in portrait orientation, the image on the monitor screen is also displayed in portrait orientation, while the image on the monitor is inscribed in the screen boundaries in height, and wide black fields are displayed on the right and left. With a landscape orientation of the smartphone, the image is displayed on the monitor screen in landscape orientation, while the image on the monitor is inscribed in the screen boundaries in height, but narrow black bars are displayed on the sides to match the screen formats:

MHL sound is output and has good quality. At the same time, at least multimedia sounds are not output through the loudspeaker of the smartphone itself, and the volume is controlled by the buttons on the smartphone case. The smartphone connected via MHL is charging (in any case, this is indicated by the indicator).

Further, using a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see "Methodology for testing video playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)"), we checked how the video is displayed on the screen of the smartphone itself. Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output frames of video files with various parameters: the resolution varied 1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels and a frame rate of 24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps. In tests, we used the MX Player video player in Hardware+ mode. The results of this (block titled "Smartphone screen") and next test tabulated:

File	Uniformity	Passes
Smartphone screen
4K/30p	Fine	No
4K/25p	Fine	No
4K/24p	Fine	No
1080/60p	Great	No
1080/50p	Fine	No
1080/30p	Great	No
1080/25p	Great	No
1080/24p	Great	No
720/60p	Great	No
720/50p	Fine	No
720/30p	Great	No
Uniformity and Passes green ratings are set, this means that, most likely, when watching movies, artifacts caused by uneven interleaving and dropping frames will either not be visible at all, or their number and visibility will not affect viewing comfort. Red marks indicate possible problems with the playback of the respective files. According to the criterion for displaying frames, the quality of video files playback on the screen of the device itself is good, since frames (or groups of frames) can be displayed with more or less uniform alternation of intervals and without frame drops. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 (1080p) on a smartphone screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly on the wide border of the screen. The clarity of the picture is high, but not ideal, since there is no escape from interpolation to the screen resolution. However, for the sake of experiment, you can switch to the one-to-one mode by pixels, there will be no interpolation, but PenTile features will appear - the vertical world through the pixel will be in the grid, and the horizontal one will be a little greenish. This is on test worlds, the described artifacts are absent on real frames. The brightness range displayed on the screen actually corresponds to the standard range of 16-235 - in the shadows, only a couple of shades merge with black, but in the highlights, all gradations of shades are displayed. With a monitor connected via MHL, when playing video with third-party video players, the monitor displays exact copy mobile device screen. That is, with interpolation and black stripes on the sides. So uninteresting. When playing video with a standard player, everything is much better - the image of the video file is displayed only in landscape orientation, while the monitor displays only the image of the video file in full screen without black side bars, and on the screen of the mobile device only information elements and virtual controls are displayed (which disappear through a few seconds, and until the next touch of the screen, only a dark picture-pictogram in the center is displayed). The results of the monitor output tests are shown in the table above in the "MHL (monitor output)" section. The output quality is good. When playing video files with Full HD resolution (1920 by 1080 pixels) on the monitor screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the border of the screen while maintaining true proportions, and the resolution corresponds to Full HD resolution. The brightness range displayed on the monitor is equal to the standard range of 16-235, that is, all gradations of shades are displayed in the shadows and in the highlights. The conclusion is typical - the MHL connection can be used for games, watching movies, displaying web pages and other activities that benefit from a multiple increase in screen size. True, you will have to purchase an adapter specifically for Samsung or find an appropriate adapter, and play the video with a regular player. Offline and Connectivity The smartphone has a decent battery, but still not the maximum capacity. Nevertheless, in the tests, he managed to surprise us: all of a sudden, the smartphone lasted as much as 17 hours in reading mode! The screen at this time was at a brightness level of 100 cd/m². But in other tests, he lost a little to Note 4, which is already quite logical, given the slightly smaller battery capacity. In general, the situation with battery life in Note Edge is not bad, although it is not a record holder. Under load, the smartphone heats up not only the back side, but also part of the screen, which, in general, is not very good. Samsung Galaxy Note Edge supports all the latest communication standards, including LTE Advanced and Wi-Fi 802.11ac. IN Russian networks LTE (4G) smartphone works without problems. We also did not have any complaints about the quality of signal reception or the quality of sound transmission in the process of testing the device. Camera The smartphone is equipped with two cameras. Their characteristics are similar to those we saw in the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. The front has a resolution of 3.7 megapixels and is designed for video communication and selfies. For both applications, its quality is more than enough. The rear camera is characterized by a resolution of 16 megapixels, boasts the presence of an LED flash, autofocus, optical stabilization, as well as shooting 4K video and Full HD 60 fps. Testing the photo and video capabilities of the rear camera of the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge was carried out by Anton Solovyov. Below are his test shots and conclusion. The camera handles macro photography fairly well. The text is well done. Good sharpness throughout the frame, drops a little in the corners. The camera works well with shadows. The long-range plan is worked out well, but small details are lost. The color of the sky is quite even. Sharping on the wires is barely noticeable. You can make out the numbers of not the closest cars. Recently, Samsung has lost some ground in terms of cameras. In the new modules, not only is the former zeal and desire to be the first not felt, but there is also a noticeable sagging in quality and implementation. However, this does not fully apply to the hero of the review and primarily concerns the laboratory test. In the field shots, one can note the good work of the noise reduction, and the program as a whole; only occasionally there are minor areas of blur. It would be quite possible to work out the details and long-range plans better, but the existing result is quite good. In general, the camera is quite suitable for shooting various scenes. The camera can shoot videos in Full HD and 4K. Video examples are shown below. Video recording is not of high quality, although the quality is good for a smartphone camera. The image shows characteristic ripples, but the clarity is quite good. conclusions Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is an unusual, innovative smartphone. One can argue for a long time about how well the capabilities of the bent edge are implemented here; one can argue about how, in principle, this solution is useful in real life. But there is no doubt that Note Edge expands our understanding of smartphone use and offers new ideas on how to use emerging technological opportunities. Note Edge is already the second Samsung smartphone with a curved screen. But unlike the Galaxy Round, where bending only affected ergonomics (and that’s not a positive fact), Note Edge is the first attempt to get some new functionality using a curved screen, a qualitatively different look at using such displays. While the usefulness of the found solution remains in question, but, again, it is the first step that is important. Fast forward eight years and remember appearance of the iPhone. It was the first touchscreen smartphone to use a capacitive screen. Prior to the iPhone, smartphones used resistive displays that are sensitive not to the touch of a finger, but to pressing with any hard object. But much more important is not the fact that the iPhone has touch panels different type, but a new way to use them, which was invented by Apple. The capacitive screen made it possible to implement multitouch control. And now this is a real revolution. Multitouch and gesture support have revolutionized how we interact with mobile devices. Now we finally got curved screens (and in the future - flexible; a single and very conditional example of the LG G Flex does not count). And now it's important to figure out how to use it. We can say that Note Edge is the first example of such a brainstorming session. Another thing is that, unlike the iPhone, this device will not become a cult one and will not give rise to a huge number of imitations. Apple hit the bull's-eye with its iPhone (sorry for the pun). Samsung, meanwhile, is only shooting. But at this time, the rest do not see the target at all (at least, there are no signs of the opposite). So we only welcome such attempts. As for specific recommendations, to buy or not to buy this device, here I can say this. If you were going to buy Vertu or you just have a few extra tens of thousands that you wanted to spend on some kind of technological toy that emphasizes your advancement and high social status, then spend them better on Samsung Galaxy Note Edge. This is a real premium flagship, which also turned out to be a pioneer in some sense. And someday it will certainly take a place in the museum of the history of smartphones, so years later your property will not just be an outdated piece of plastic and metal, but a rarity. If the image component does not dominate your decision to choose a smartphone, and the threshold of spontaneous emotional purchase is below 20 thousand rubles, then do not even think about Note Edge. We give the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge our Original Design Award for innovative and unusual design.

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Concepts with curved displays appeared quite a long time ago, Nokia experimented with them in its best years. For example, last year we looked at the LG G Flex, which had a visual effect of curving almost the same as the Nexus S a couple of years ago. Yes, here the display was actually curved, this is a fact, but not much at all. And it was hard to come up with any application for such a bend. This year, at the Unpacked event, Samsung showed not one Galaxy Note 4, but two. It was in the second that I first saw such a strongly curved display - the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge.

Of course, this will not be a full review of the smartphone, because we are already talking about the Galaxy Note 4. In addition to the display, our today's copy differs from the one in the review in three ways: the lock key has moved to the upper edge on the right, this is due to the bend on the last one; battery capacity has slightly decreased - from 3220 mAh to 3000 mAh; and also, our Edge has a processor from Qualcomm - Snapdragon 805 (4 cores at 2.7 GHz), paired with Adreno 420 graphics.

Let me remind you that there is also a version with a Samsung-developed processor - Exynos 5 Octa 5433 (4 x Cortex-A57, 1.9 GHz + 4 x Cortex-A53, 1.3 GHz) with Mali T760 graphics. Therefore, here you can only compare the results in synthetic tests with those in .

Otherwise, there are still the same 3 GB of RAM, 32 built-in, expandable, two cameras: 3.7 and 16 MP that take great pictures, a chic S-Pen electronic stylus, Android 4.4.4 and a lot of proprietary software.

• Dimensions: 151.3 x 82.4 x 8.3 mm.
• Weight: 174 g.
• Operating system: Android 4.4.4 KitKat.
• Processor: Octa-core, Exynos 5 Octa 5433, 4 x Cortex-A57, 1.9GHz + 4 x Cortex-A53, 1.3GHz / Qualcomm Snapdragon 805
• Graphics: Mali-T760/Adreno 420
• Display: Super AMOLED, 5.6″, 2560 × 1600 pixels, 525 ppi
• Memory: 32 GB flash, expandable with micro SD memory cards.
• RAM: 3 GB.
• Camera: main - 16 MP, video recording in 1080p, front - 3.7 MP.
• Wireless Technologies: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1, Infrared
• Interface connectors: 3.5 mm headphone jack, Micro USB 2.0.
• Battery: Li-Pol battery 3000 mAh.

The main difference between the two notes is the display, and I will pay attention to it. Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is one of the few devices with a curved display, and here, as I said above, this curve is not for show. You do not need to look closely - the right side of the display immediately catches your eye. And it looks interesting, everyone pays attention. It can be judged that the demonstration of technologies was a success. And the fact that the smartphone was on the shelves is also pleasing, most of these ideas remain concepts or, at best, exhibition samples.

Technically, here we have one display, the right side of which is bent. Programmatically, the entire interface is divided into two zones: the main screen has a diagonal of 5.6″ and a resolution of 2560x1440 pixels, and a sidebar, its resolution is 2560x160 pixels. This is enough to place a whole column of icons, a ticker and a lot of other useful information.

In the settings there is a separate item responsible for setting up the sidebar. In it, it can be customized and configured for convenient use. Standard functionality allows you to: select the displayed lines (favorite applications, news, weather, sports and even small games), customize individual ones (news source, select displayed applications), change their location and even download new ones from the Samsung store.

The latter is especially pleasant, it is likely that third-party developers will catch up with time. If this happens, the benefit of the line at the end will be much greater. For example, you can display additional elements in heavy games (for example, strategies), tabs and submenus on it. I would really like to see notebooks in Evernote here.

For myself, I found several useful uses for this line. For example, night hours. You choose the time when the mode is active, after which, in the locked state, the weather, time and date are displayed on the side of the display. Very handy if you have a bedside table. Given the ability of Super AMOLED displays to use only certain pixels, this also does not affect battery life much.

Navigation in this line is carried out by swipes: to move between screens, you need to swipe right or left to open the curtain with additional features, you need to pull it from top to bottom, there is a flashlight, a stopwatch, a voice recorder and even a ruler! A swipe from the bottom will bring up quick access to the line settings.

The main use of this line, as for me, is notifications. You can, without looking up from the game, watching a movie or reading, see who wrote what, who is calling, and so on. It is especially convenient in games, the process does not even stop and you can, for example, reject an incoming call or read an incoming message.

But there are also disadvantages to the curved display. For example, it immediately becomes clear that when falling on the right side of the display, he can receive a full hello, because there is no protection here, only glass. You don’t need to think long and conduct research, in case of damage to the display, replacing the glass on a regular Galaxy Note 4 may seem like a visit to McDonald’s. Also, if you are a fan of films on the display, this will be a problem.

There is no left-handed version, in all copies only the right side is bent. But Samsung provided a software solution. Note Edge is the manufacturer's first smartphone that can be turned upside down and the interface adapts. Like on tablets. Only in this case, on-screen keys for control will appear. Thus, the sidebar appears on the left.

That's basically it. The sidebar seemed to me both interesting and convenient, especially when you play tanks and someone calls you, something irresistible will never happen. Now the capabilities of Edga are revealed only in a basic way, but not bad. You can put here your favorite applications that you need quick access to, a news line, or other functions. If third-party developers catch up, such a panel will bring a lot of convenience to familiar applications.

In general, the idea is interesting, and the smartphone itself, as Galaxy user Note 4, I consider one of the best on the market today. You just need to understand that such a curved band is expensive, if the regular Note 4 will cost an average of $ 730, then the Edge is $ 300 more.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge video review

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