Samsung Galaxy Note 5 review: still a big deal
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 release date and price
The Galaxy Note 5 is currently only available in the US and Canada. It launched on August 21 in the US on AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint and US Cellular. It isn’t coming to Europe (including the UK) at this stage, although that could change, and we have heard that the Note 5 can be found unofficially in Europe, but you’ll need to search for it.
A "trusted Samsung source" of Gadgette.com brought the news in early December that the Galaxy Note 5 would finally see a European release in 2016. The move comes with dubious timing, given that the device has been available for nigh on six months in the US, and the next line of Galaxy devices is due to be unveiled shortly, but consumers will surely be gladdened by the news, nonetheless.
The Galaxy Note 5 is reportedly going on sale in the UK first, in late January.
The Galaxy Note 5 price is reasonable considering its premium build, but you’re still going to fork out quite a bit for it. In the US, it’ll set you back US$250 on a two-year contract and US$696 off-contract with Verizon.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 where to buy
These are the current best offers and deals for the Galaxy Note 5. All prices are correct at the time of writing.
AT&T, US$70 p/m (plus US$45 one-off activation fee and US$249 for the handset) with unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 2 GB data, on a two-year contract
U.S. Cellular, US$70 p/m (plus US$40 one-off activation charge and a US$199.99 upfront fee) with unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 1 GB data, on a two-year contract
You can also buy an unlocked international version of the Galaxy Note 5 with 32 GB of internal storage on Amazon for around US$762.
- Buy now: Samsung Galaxy Note 5 at Amazon.com from US$762
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 design and build quality
Samsung has applied the design language it used with the Galaxy S6 to the Note 5. Gone are the days of tacky fake leather and plastic for the Galaxy Note series: the Note 5 shines with an aluminum frame and Gorilla Glass 4 on the front and back.
The most striking thing about the Note 5’s design is its rounded rear edges. Imagine the curved front edges of the Galaxy S6 Edge+, transplanted to the back of the Note 5. The bezels surrounding the display are extremely narrow, particularly next to those curved edges, and they look great. Samsung has taken a real leap forward here in terms of design quality.
The Galaxy Note 5 is certainly beautiful. Its design and the materials used means it feels like a more premium device than its predecessors in the series, but it has lost a few typical Note features. There is no microSD card slot, for example, which will disappoint many fans of the series, and the battery is not replaceable.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 display
The Galaxy Note 5 display is a 5.7-inch Super AMOLED unit with QHD resolution. There is no display quite like it – not even the dual edge display of the Galaxy S6 Edge (with or without a plus) looks quite as good.
The Galaxy Note 5 display is actually more comparable with that of the Galaxy S6. Both have a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 pixels, but because the Note 5 display is bigger (5.7 inches compared with 5.1 inches), the pixel density is lower. It still amounts to 518 ppi though,which we don’t imagine would be a cause for complaint for anyone.
DisplayMate test results
To get a broader set of results for our testing, we’ve used turned to experts in the field of smartphone and tablet displays. Every year, DisplayMate tests displays using complex procedures to identify color fidelity, color space, brightness, sharpness, reflections, viewing angle stability and so on. Samsung gets top honors virtually every year.
The Note 5 display is much brighter than the Note 4s. It can be seen much better in bright ambient light, and it is also significantly more power-efficient. According to DisplayMate, it provides the best color reproduction of all mobile displays. The Note 5 also set a new record on display brightness.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 special features
The special feature of the Note series is the S Pen. A novel feature of the Galaxy Note 5’s S Pen is that it now has an ejecting mechanism. By pressing the thruster on the end, the stylus pops out from its housing and can be pulled out.
You can use the pen in two modes. Pulling it out while the phone is in standby mode starts the minimalistic launcher.
When the phone is unlocked, removing the Note 5 stylus launches Air Command. This shows a list of S Pen-specific apps that you can access quickly.
To use the S Pen for typing, you need to change the keyboard to pen input. You can find this on the Samsung keyboard to the left of the spacebar.
Following the Note 5s release, many users reported a design flaw. They claimed it was easy to insert the S Pen into the slot the wrong way round, and that doing so made it difficult to remove the pen, and caused the pen removal detection to stop working.
Now, Samsung has quietly corrected this flaw. New models feature a small internal tab that allows for damage-free ejection of the stylus when it is inserted incorrectly. The discovery was made by a user over at Phandroid and was laterconfirmed by Samsung, who had previously included warning labels on the packaging, which evidently proved insufficient.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 software
The Note 5 has already had numerous software updates. The T-Mobile Edition we used came immediately with performance updates based on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop. An update to Android Marshmallow is on the way.
Our review unit came with some bloatware apps installed, but not an excessive number; just the S Pen apps in addition to the usual Facebook and Microsoft apps. Samsung still runs its TouchWiz UI over the top of its Galaxy series.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5 performance
The Galaxy Note 5 packs the powerful Exynos 7420 processor, which has eight cores and a clock speed of more than 2.1 GHz. It has 4 GB of RAM. As with the Galaxy S6 Edge+, there is only the choice between 32 GB and 64 GB versions.
In processor speed and and memory performance benchmarks, the Note 5 performance sits somewhere between the S6 Edge+ and the Sony Xperia Z5 Compact.
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Samsung Galaxy A5 2016 review a compelling package
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) review: a compelling package
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) release date and price
The Galaxy A5 price is around US$399, or 425 euros in Europe (as of January 20), so it sits in quite an affordable price bracket. In terms of its features and size, the Galaxy A5 (2016) is comparable to the likes of the Honor 7 (around US$369) and the Nexus 5X (about US$379). Its a little more expensive than those devices, but not overly expensive by any stretch.
The 32 GB Samsung Galaxy S6, however, now costs only around US$450. Its still Samsung’s main flagship, and superior to Galaxy A5 (2016) in many areas, but only costs minimally more, and it is precisely this minimal difference that could have a negative impact on the sales of the Galaxy A5.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) design and build quality
The design of the two new A models is very similar. Both the Galaxy A5 (2016) and the A3 (2016) have the same quality appearance and stylish metal frame as the Galaxy S6. If just look at only the front and rear of the A5, you might think you actually had an S6 in your hand.
But look closely, and you’ll notice that the glass on the A5 has a rounded 2.5D edge design, which merges the glass and metal frame almost seamlessly.
After several days of testing, the Galaxy A5 impressed me. The 155 g, 5.2-inch smartphone always felt secure in my hand and the metal frame hasnt started to show any scratches. The Galaxy A5 (2016) feels robust, with Gorilla Glass 4 on the front and back.
The aluminum standby and volume buttons on the side feel nice to the touch and are easy to reach. Its definitely possible to use it one-handed.
In short, the Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) is easy to hold and use and just feels like a quality piece of hardware. The fact that the camera protrudes is a slight annoyance, but you could live with it. The Galaxy A5 (2016) is currently available in black, gold and white.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) display
The Galaxy A5 (2016) comes with a 5.2-inch Super AMOLED display, which offers a Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) resolution and rich, deep colors. Its contrast range is good too.
While the display’s richness benefits gaming, it also means that regular apps look impressive. Texts can also be read easily, thanks to the high contrast it offers.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) software
Samsung has finally started to heed the "less is more" motto. It has purified its software, and the A5 comes with significantly fewer pre-installed apps than some of its other devices. This is a good thing, and right from the start, youll find the apps that are there add real value to the software experience.
Included are the usual suspects Google, including Maps, YouTube and Google Drive, as well as a good selection of apps from Microsoft, including Excel, Word and Skype.
We were sent a German test model (SM-A510F) running Android 5.1.1 Lollipop (build LMY47X). Like the Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016), TouchWiz is the software interface.
The Touchwiz interface is unquestionably a matter of taste. It has some advantages over stock Android, and can be individually adapted.
Theres nothing in the way of special features. The Galaxy A5 (2016) does not offer anything that you wont find on another current smartphone.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) performance
The processor of the Galaxy A5 (2016) is an old acquaintance, as found in the Galaxy View tablet and Galaxy Tab S2. Its a 1.6 GHz clocked octa-core Exynos 7580, receiving support from 2 GB RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, which can be expanded via microSD card. The Samsung Galaxy S6 famously does not have a microSD slot.
I performed a range of benchmark tests on the Galaxy A5 (2016), and it ended up mostly in the midfield. In the AnTuTu benchmark (v6.0.1) the Galaxy A5 (2016) scored 40,931, which is almost on par with the Nexus 5X and slightly behind the Honor 7 (around 45,000 points). It doesn’t stand out from the competition, and doesn’t come close to the current top smartphones.
But – and this is probably the deciding factor – no annoying delays or slowdowns were apparent when I was browsing and opening a succession of apps. Even graphically elaborate games ran smoothly across the screen.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) audio
The Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) has a mono speaker on the bottom. It plays music well (especially classical) but not brilliantly. The sound is better when listening with headphones.
Also included is a headset that has a button for answer/end call, play/pause and a volume rocker. There’s a software equalizer for the music app that can be found in settings in the Audio options. Here you can improve the sound experience with headphones through the options SoundAlive and tube amplifiers.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) camera
The camera of the Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) is nearly identical to that of the Galaxy A3. Thus, the main camera also has 13 MP in 4:9 format with a f/1.9 aperture. The front camera packs a 5 MP sensor with a f/1.9 aperture. In contrast to the A3, the A5 has an optical image stabilizer, which helps avoid blurry images.
In dark interiors, it’s hard to get good snapshots from the Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016). Only in bright light will you get nice photos and selfies, so this isnt a suitable phone for photography enthusiasts.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) battery
At 2,900 mAh, the battery of the Galaxy A5 (2016) is 600 mAh larger than its predecessors. The battery can be fully juiced up in about an hour, thanks to the fast-charging feature.
The battery itself can run for quite some time, even under intensive use. In tests, I surfed the internet quite heavily and called up several apps, viewed more than an hour of video and played eight video games.
The integrated energy-saving mode also ensures that you can determine which apps are running in standby. This can save a significant amount of battery.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) technical specifications
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