Samsung Galaxy Note Edge review

1. Edge screen makes performing day-to-day tasks easier

2. Easy to operate and fast, smooth learning curve

3. A great multimedia device and go-to camera

After starting the big-screen trend and following it up with the stylus test, Samsung is now experimenting with the curved screen. Whether it's a curved TV, a curved wearable (Galaxy Fit), a curved phone (2013's Galaxy Round) or the new Galaxy Note Edge, Samsung is trying out the curved formula on all possible places.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, the most expensive Android phone in India today, is pretty similar to the Note 4, but sports a secondary screen. Priced at Rs 65,000, is Note Edge just a conversation starter or does its two-screen formula work well enough in real use-case scenarios to warrant a purchase over iPhone 6 Plus and Note 4? We find out in this review...

Display
Let's get started with the Edge screen, a curved display on the left of the main screen. The Edge panel remains independent of the main screen and can be used an extra utility, giving you access to more data and apps with just a tap of your finger. The slanting screen is fairly easy to access with the thumb when you hold the phone in the right hand, but left-handers will face a lot of problem with one-hand operation. Being a pretty big phablet, reaching the top of the screen in one hand use is impossible, but pretty easy if you are operating it with both hands.

The most remarkable part about the Galaxy Note Edge is that it does not feel out-of-the-ordinary once you start using it as your primary phone. Swiping over the wraparound edge feels natural and not as forced as we had imagined before starting the review.


So, the question is: What's the real use of the Edge screen. Much like smartwatches of today, the Edge screen is more of a convenience rather than some groundbreaking functionality. Except the ruler feature (which is pretty cool), there are no Edge panel functions that you cannot perform using the main screen of the phablet.

So what are these functions that the Edge screen can perform? Well, the Edge screen houses all the apps that you commonly use, instead of the bottom bar of the home screen. Notice that the bottom bar only has the Dialer shortcut at the bottom, but no other apps. A downward swipe opens the screen that mirrors the notification bar, complete with icons that open the notification when tapped. So, for example, if you have a missed call in the menu, just tap on the corresponding icon on the Edge display and your recent calls will open. It also displays the weather widget.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, like other top-end phones nowadays, has a pedometer and displays the number of steps you have taken, distance covered and calories burnt on the Edge panel. Swipe downwards a few more times and the panel will show you Twitter trends, stock tickr, sports scores and news updates. One disappointing thing about this is that the second screen won't show you tweets from your timeline or news updates from sources of your choice; for that, you will have to open the app.

As mentioned above, the Edge screen can act as a ruler, which is a pretty neat function of the additional display. However, we didn't find ourselves using it too often without going out of our way. Instead, using the same panel to access the voice recorder and flash light came more naturally to us.

Samsung provides other functions of Galaxy Note Edge's extra screen in its Galaxy Apps store, such as a shortcut for common apps like contacts, camera etc; S Planner widget; mobile data usage tracker etc. To download these widgets, you need to create a Samsung account. When the phone's screen is turned off, it will display the time and date in a low-power mode, so that you get to see basic information without the phone losing a lot of battery.

Along with these, you can pick up or reject phone calls with one swipe from the Edge screen or click the camera shutter key; the camera functions are pretty well optimized for the Edge display and taking selfies becomes a lot easier with it.

But the real question is: do you really *need* the Edge display on your phone? Well, the answer is: not necessarily. Nevertheless, it fulfils its purpose of providing added convenience, saving up some space on the primary screen by placing a number of widgets on the side, and can be used to save a little time while doing day-to-day operations on your smartphone.


Now that we have covered the Edge screen, let's discuss the main display. The primary screen (as well as the Edge display) is of the Super AMOLED variety, but with good saturation levels and decently balanced green hue; much like the Galaxy Note 4, it doesn't feel as bad as the one on older Galaxy S models in terms of colour reproduction. As you would expect from an AMOLED panel, the colours are vibrant and rich. Viewing angles and sunlight legibility of Samsung Galaxy Note Edge are also very good.

The main screen measures 5.6-inch, just 0.1-inch smaller than the one on Samsung Galaxy Note 4. It packs a 2K panel (1440x2560p resolution), so there is never any chance of pixilation. As the screen is pretty big, navigating it with one hand can be a cumbersome task, but Samsung has preloaded the software to make one-hand operations easier on the phone.

Design



Being a device with a quirky design, Samsung Galaxy Note Edge's design is among its highlights.

Samsung has essentially stuck to the design that it employed in Galaxy Note 4 in its first mainstream curved device. The metal frame around the body is still present, but is reduced to a thin strip along the right spine, while remaining thicker on the left, top and bottom. At the bottom, Samsung Galaxy Note Edge houses the S Pen stylus, a trademark feature of the Note series. The removable plastic casing with faux leather patterns remains as well.

The hardware keys are retained too, which is a mistake in our opinion because it makes the phablet unusable for left-handed people. Had the device used only on-screen keys, operating the Edge screen would have become more natural for southpaws because the secondary screen can change orientation to 180-degrees, the same way the primary display does. However, when the phone is used in this manner, the Home, Task Switcher and Back keys are at the top and practically unreachable for anyone, unless they have huge hands.

The asymmetrical shape can lead to some questions over its usability, but we encountered only one major problem: accidental taps. During the review period, we accidentally put our thumb over the secondary screen a few times while operating the phablet in normal mode, which makes it register accidental taps.

Similarly, we touch the dead area of the screen, where no apps are present, but this is still taken as an input (long pressing the areas with no apps does not activate any features on Note Edge). Now, when we try to open some app on the primary screen, the phablet does not accept the taps as it is already registering the long press on the secondary screen, leading to a few moments of frustration.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge vs Galaxy Note 4



The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge variant sold in India is identical to the Galaxy Note 4 in terms of features and specifications. It runs on the 2.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor and is 4G ready. The phablet also packs 3GB RAM, 16MP rear camera with optical image stabilization, 32GB internal storage, microSD card support up to 128GB, 3.7MP selfie camera, infrared, microUSB 2.0 port, and Bluetooth 4.1.

The S Pen stylus is also the same and performs all the same functions. Same goes for the fingerprint sensor and heart rate monitor.

In fact, the only visible downgrade is the switch from a 3,220mAh battery in Note 4 to a 3,000mAh battery in Note Edge.

On the software side too both phablets are identical, giving you the same set of features on Note Edge that are seen in Note 4 but with the addition of the Edge screen-optimized functions. You get the S Pen software, health tracking software, photo capturing features on the Android 4.4-based Samsung custom UI (named Revolving UI in Note Edge).

Performance
With so many similarities between Note Edge and Note 4, you would expect the two to have exactly the same performance, right? Well as it turns out, Note Edge is slightly slower than Note 4, though not terribly slow.

Both phablets boot up equally fast, but Note Edge is noticeably slower when switching between apps using the Task Switcher key. It is also not as quick in opening apps compared to Note 4, though it is just as fast as most other smartphones in the market. It's not a dealbreaker, but it's something you would notice in a product that is the most expensive Android handset in the Indian market. Gaming performance, however, remains pretty similar on both phablets, with no noticeable frame drops or lags on either.

However, the relatively slower performance is not as big an issue as the battery life. The 3,000mAh battery lasts just a day with regular usage and Wi-Fi/3G turned on and a day and a half with moderate usage. Though equal to that of iPhone 6 Plus, this battery life is lower than that of Samsung Galaxy Note 4, which delivers an extra half a day of battery life on both counts.

The speaker is positioned on the back of Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, and the audio quality is pretty good. In fact, it can replace a portable speaker without much loss in sound quality. Couple this audio with the Note Edge's gorgeous screen and the phablet becomes a great device to watch videos.

The 16MP camera protrudes from the back, just like the one on Note 4. As we described above, the Revolving UI moves key camera app features to the Edge screen, where they are easy to access for most users. However, the interface makes taking photos with one hand a little difficult because you risk losing the grip on the phablet if you try to click the Capture button on the Edge screen with the thumb.


In terms of camera performance, Note Edge is as good as any shooter in the market right now. The phablet's 16MP snapper takes photos rich in details, colours and white balance. We noticed some overexposure in some shots, but over 85% of the photo we took came out splendid. The selfie camera is also very good, capturing even wide-angle self portraits with sufficient detail. The camera can shoot Full HD and 4K videos with equal ease, along with the regular HD videos. The videos we shot did not lose focus even as the hand moved.

Which one to buy: Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, Note 4 or iPhone 6 Plus?
If you are in the market to buy a phablet, then your three choices are Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus. The choice can be difficult for most buyers, but ultimately it comes down to what you want from a smartphone. In an earlier comparison, we had established that Note 4 is a device more optimized for the big screen and that holds true even now. So the real question is whether you should buy Note 4 or its curved screen sibling.

Well, if you want a device that turns heads around and makes doing a lot of stuff more convenient, then Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is the device for you. However, you should remember that almost all of the functions that the Edge performs can be done using the home screen as well, so you need to be clear that you want the novelty factor in your next phone, not a utility factor.

In our view, Samsung Galaxy Note Edge's secondary screen does not do enough to warrant a price tag that's nearly Rs 10,000 more than that of Galaxy Note 4's. However, what's pleasing is that it does everything it is supposed to do very well, showing that the idea has been executed well, even if its scope is rather limited for now.