Samsung Note 2
Let me just start this off by stating nice and clear. I am writing this post out of my absolute love for this phone, and not out of any obligation to write this post. I have not been given the phone to keep, and I have not been paid to write this either. I have always been a proponent of only writing about what you like. And this is something I like.
As a member of the Rogers Social Insider program, I was allowed to borrow the Samsung Note 2 phone to help me with my coverage of World Mastercard Fashion Week. When I was initially given the device, I wasn’t too sure how I was going to like it. Being accustomed to using my iPhone 4 and having used it for years now, when I initially held the much larger Samsung Note 2, it seemed foreign to me. It was large, the shape was different, and it was Android Operating System. However, it took me all of 20 minutes to get accustomed with the phone before I realized that this was going to be my official phone for Fashion Week.
The initial set up of this device took me less than 10 minutes. It instantly hooked up to my DropBox and gave me an addition 50GB of storage which was fantastic (and, every photo I took with the phone instantly synced to my DropBox, so I didn’t have to worry about taking too many photos and sorting through them on my phone). It then allowed me to set up my email, my facebook, my twitter, and, MY FAVORITE PART, it allowed me to use the WordPress app so I could update my website from my phone, and use the images from DropBox as I went. This is something I have never been able to do with my iPhone, and would typically require me to have a computer with me at all time if I wanted mobile instant updates.
When you’re covering runway shows, and you’re trying to get shots of each look that goes by, having a DSLR with you can look funny. Like it’s heavy, it’s clunky, and no one wants to be changing lenses mid show. Then there are always the people who like to bring the iPad with them to the shows. Let’s be real. An iPad looks as out of place at a fashion show as a pair of sweatpants does on a street style site. It looks like you’re taking pictures with a loaf of bread, and just makes you look ridiculous. However, I often had the issue of the iPhone 4 not having a strong enough camera, and not having a photo burst functionality where you can take multiple photos while following a look. The Samsung Note 2 however does. It had an 8MP camera which is comparable with many point and shoot cameras. It also had the burst functionality I wanted. So, I could start taking a picture as the model walked down the beginning of the runway and follow it nearly to the end. The burst allows 20 separate photos taken over multiple seconds which allows for 20 distinct photos, all focused, all looking stellar.
A shot from the Paraezo Couture Show
A Shot from the Allistyle Show
See what I mean about the photos being fantastic? It’s quite rare that you’re able to get a shot that well defined unless you’re at the end of the runway with a high powered DLSR.
The phone also has this fantastic feature, which is the inclusion of a stylus. Think back to the days of PDAs, but think, higher-tech, and easy to use. I probably used the stylus more than I did my finger on this phone, which for me is odd because I was never a fan of styluses. However, it was designed well, and you could tell the screen adapted to the stylus as soon as it was pulled out. A cool feature of this was the S-Note feature, which allows you to write on the screen of the phone and it translates to text (the recognition software was beautiful) as well as the S-Note function where you can draw, sketch, create documents and more. It was truly made to be the best assistant since, well, the assistant.
Running on the newest Jelly Bean operating system I found this phone to be very easy to maneuver, very easy to customize, and ultimately, very easy to use. Instead of with my iPhone where I feel like I need to work around IT, this phone works around me. It learns what I do, and it learns what I use. It moves things around based on how often I use them, and it is truly intuitive. Honestly, it pains me to have to give back because this phone was so beautiful. However, it won’t be my last time seeing the phone. I will be going to the launch of the Samsung Note 2 this week, where PSY will be performing his song Gangnam Style, so make sure to keep your eyes out for those photos, and that footage as well.