The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Review
by Joshua Ho on October 15, 2014 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Samsung
- Android
- Mobile
- Galaxy Note 4
WiFi Performance
While the Galaxy S5 LTE-A Broadband had a Qualcomm Atheros solution (QCA6174), the Note 4 moves back to Broadcom's WiFi solution. In this case, we see the BCM4358, which is a revision of the BCM4354 that was first seen with Samsung's Galaxy S5. This shouldn't have any major differences outside of improved Bluetooth coexistence but antenna design can and does change between revisions. In order to test this, we use iperf and Asus' RT-AC68U router to try and achieve maximum performance.
As one can see, the Galaxy Note 4 has a strong showing in this test, easily surpassing every other device we have available for testing.
GNSS
At this point, it really goes without saying that the GNSS solution of choice is the one built into Qualcomm's modem. This allows for fixes based upon initial location and time data that the modem has, and therefore in practice every GPS fix is a hot fix and takes around 5 seconds for a lock in good conditions. In the case of the Note 4, with airplane mode on and no assistance data I saw that it took around 50 seconds to achieve a lock, but this is strongly dependent upon environmental conditions. Once locked, I found that the Note 4 had quite a strong lock and quickly went down to 10 foot accuracy level without issue.
Misc
Similar to the new Moto X we see a Cypress CapSense solution in the Note 4 but this is likely used for the capacitive buttons rather than any impedance-matching antenna tuner. The UV sensor appears to be a Maxim design win, although there's no information on the specific part. The battery's fuel gauge is also a Maxim part, as is the speaker amplifier and pulse sensor. The NFC chip used is NXP's PN547, so host card emulation should be supported and therefore Google Wallet's tap and pay system should work as well.
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nerd1 - Thursday, October 16, 2014 - link
So again anandtech use Chrome browser to do web testing and not showing any multi core benchmarks at all. LOLtralalalalalala40 - Saturday, October 18, 2014 - link
don't take the phone so seriously. default browser is fatally flawed, have to use chrome.Krysto - Thursday, October 16, 2014 - link
You should review the Exynos one, too.nerd1 - Thursday, October 16, 2014 - link
Wow, I was totally dumbstruck to read the camera comparison. I actually spend some time to download original image of Note 4 and iPhone 6+, and although N4 is VASTLY better than 6+ (6+ image is totally desaturated and looks like phone camera image) this review says "while it is better than galaxy s5, iphone 6+ still has better detail" WHAT THE F***?akdj - Thursday, October 30, 2014 - link
I think you're the first I've read to exclaim 'VASTLY better' --- both have made two signfificant strides. OS and faster, wetter focusing. With the two, better low light photography.Some well regarded photography sites, mags and forums that have, too, sung the praises of the new optics and IP. Continuing to refine an 8 mpxl cam seems to make sense with a 6+, perfectly optimized '4K' sensor for shooting video (as quixk as these read/write speeds have gotten!)
jerrylzy - Thursday, October 16, 2014 - link
I believe the daylight scene of camera test is at UCLA.pjcamp - Friday, October 17, 2014 - link
So the Xperia Z3 was released before this device -- is there a plan to review it in the near future?sgmuser - Friday, October 17, 2014 - link
Galaxy Note 4 is a killer product from Samsung. I have a Ipad mini Retina and I hate when i have multiple tabs and it keeps on refreshing when switch tabs. Low Sunspider score never matters if this keeps on refreshing tabs, its annoying, I tell you. We need more RAM! Better graphic scores are not for every day use! Avid games himself only uses 20 or 30% of his time in gaming if not he plays in his gaming system or PC. Now with bendgate, I am moving away from apple. Lets be realistic and choose wisely and spend wisely. I am looking at G3 and Note 4 and both impresses! Esp N4 in the top of the list.tralalalalalala40 - Saturday, October 18, 2014 - link
meh, if all you do is browse the web then choose android. ios is for productivity apps. would say that reloading of tabs isn't that big of a deal since the reload is faster than app switching on the note, even with 4x the ram.DaveMo - Sunday, October 19, 2014 - link
Ugh. I also can't stand the browser tabs always reloading.