Samsung galaxy note 3 neo technical. The radio of the mobile device is a built-in FM receiver

It is a continuation of the same idea that is inherent in smartphones with the prefix “mini” in the name - a simplified version of the popular model at a more attractive price. The Neo went under the knife with the same characteristics that were usually simplified in “mini” flagships: display diagonal and resolution, camera, memory, processor. The new product costs about 200 dollars less than the flagship (about 2.5 thousand UAH). We will look at how attractive the device is for the money and how much of the famous flagship remains in it in this review.

Specifications

KamAZ with gingerbread turned over and on the street there were fans of the “feather” line, who lacked support for two SIM cards in the device. Neo has it. The model on the global market will be available with two processor options: a six-core Exynos for the version with LTE (they will not be imported to us) and with the fairly common Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 MSM8228 (1.6 GHz, four Cortex-A7 cores, Adreno 305 graphics) for version that will only work on 3G networks. The simplification of performance against the backdrop of half the screen resolution goes almost unnoticed. For an HD display, such a chipset and 2 GB of RAM, which the device is equipped with, are quite enough to work fast enough and withstand the abuse of games with “heavy” graphics. The results in the benchmarks, of course, are not amazing, but a live, perfectly working model clearly demonstrates that “parrots” in devices above the average level should no longer become a subject of comparison and speculation. As a more affordable camera, the smartphone received an 8-megapixel module without the DualShot function, but with typical preset modes, FullHD video recording, flash and autofocus. The battery capacity was slightly reduced - by a purely symbolic 100 mAh, which is justified by the smaller display diagonal compared to the Galaxy Note 3. And the display itself, by the way, in terms of characteristics is painfully reminiscent of the Galaxy Note II - Suler AMOLED, 5.5”, resolution 720x1280 pixels, support for working with gloves. The OS version is the same as in Note 3. The model has exactly the same interface capabilities: Air Command, pre-installed SketchBook Pro, S Health and a number of other pleasant little things. If we put aside the ambition to have the most sophisticated smartphone in favor of the desire to have a working tool at hand with not too much, but a sufficient number of capabilities, then you get exactly what the Galaxy Note 3 Neo has.

Specifications Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
operating system	Android 4.3
Display	Super AMOLED, 5.5"", 720x1280 pixels, 16 million colors, pixel density 267 ppi
Frame	dimensions 148x77x9 mm, weight 163 grams
SIM	two, micro
CPU	quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 MSM8228, ARM Cortex-A7, 1.6 GHz, Adreno 305 graphics
RAM	2 GB
Flash memory	16 GB + microSDXC card slot (up to 64 GB)
Camera	8 MP, autofocus, 1080p video recording, LED backlight; front camera for video calls (2 MP)
Wireless technologies	Wi-Fi a/ac/b/g/n (2.4/5 GHz), Bluetooth 4.0
GPS	Yes
Additionally	S Pen
Battery	3100 mAh

Frame

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo looks exactly the same as its flagship predecessor. Well, except that the new overall microUSB 3.0 connector is not used here and the volume control key is located a little higher than we would like, and a little higher than it is in the Galaxy Note 3. However, perhaps it seems so only because the Galaxy Note 3 Neo is shorter than the flagship Note. While the smartphone was in my hands, I noticed that I had already easily learned to operate the 5.5-inch model with one hand. Even the high location of the volume button is not a problem.

The case cover is still the same “leather”, and the plastic ends pretend to be metal.

In the area under the screen, the plastic has also acquired a “metallic” texture - it is very similar to polished metal. The navigation unit, the arrangement of sensors, diode and camera are also completely identical to those in the Galaxy Note 3. Pay attention to the modest thickness of the frames around the display; this is a very valuable property for a 5.5-inch smartphone. The thickness of the case, by the way, is only 0.3 mm greater than that of the older model.

The smartphone uses micro SIM card slots. To install SIM1 you need to remove the battery; the second card and microSD do not require this.

The pictures below show Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo and LG G Pro Lite Dual (both have a 5.5-inch display diagonal) and Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 (5.5-inch diagonal). The Galaxy Note 3 Neo is thinner, shorter, but slightly wider than the G Pro Lite Dual. It feels a little better in the hand due to the fact that it has a less slippery body, and both the texture of the body and the material allow the model to maintain its marketable appearance longer. However, both models cannot even be called competitors: the gap in performance, quality of display, camera and, most importantly, stylus capabilities and price place them in completely different market segments.

In general, since the size of the case has slightly decreased, and the brilliantly polished arrangement of buttons and connectors familiar to an Android smartphone has not changed, we can say that compared to the older model, the Galaxy Note 3 Neo has improved ergonomics. Well, purely symbolically improved, because the Galaxy Note 3 is very good for its segment.

Screen

Samsung Galaxy Note 3, although it has a simpler screen than the older model, still cannot be criticized and is pleasant to use. The brightness of our sample was not amazing, but its behavior in the sun was definitely pleasing. Of course, it’s not very pleasant to play Temple Run on the street on a clear day, but you can read, write messages, look for the necessary contacts and other information without hiding in the saving shadow. HTC's flagship smartphones have the brightest displays today.

Device name	White field brightness, cd/m2	The brightness of the black field, cd/m2	Contrast
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo	335.05	0	∞
Samsung Galaxy Grand 2	349.15	0.73	478:1
Samsung Galaxy Note 3	323.81	0	∞
Samsung Galaxy S5	370.3	0	∞
HTC One M8	459.44	0.22	2088:1
HTC One Max	416.37	0.33	1262:1
LG G2	336.41	0.4	840:1
LG G Pro Lite	328.28	0.52	631:1
LG Optimus G Pro	306.79	0.51	602:1

Screen calibration is quite typical for mid-range smartphones: the color temperature is colder than the reference 6500K by as much as 2000K, the amount of blue color exceeds the standard. But, as is typical for Super AMOLED displays that Samsung uses in older models, the color gamut approaches the Adobe RGB space. By the way, the item with color modes has disappeared from the settings menu. Either they simplified it for a simplified model, or it turned out that users were not interested in it.

Autonomy

My standard scenario for using a smartphone is three to four hours of listening to music during training and on the road, a small number of calls, about an hour of gaming on average, although this value can range from 0 to 2 hours, reading the news in the morning and before bed, perhaps watching an episode of the series somewhere in between, WhatsApp, Skype, Hangouts, mail from time to time, two accounts (although a computer is still preferable for mail). In this mode, the smartphone lasts for about a day and a half, although two days, if you discard the games and camera test, and slightly reduce the chatter on Skype, is not a problem for it. Below is the result of the AnTuTu autonomy test (anything more than 500 points is already a decent result, under 700 points is an excellent indicator for a modern smartphone).

Performance, interface

In all kinds of benchmarks, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo is not a star, but a confident average. However, it is capable of beautiful graphics (this is evidenced by the result in Epic Citadel and the rendering of beauties in Temple Run 2 at maximum settings without a hitch, and the playback of video files weighing several GB), and a smooth interface (let me remind you, TouchWiz is also known as glutton), and working with a bunch of pre-installed and pre-installed applications (pay attention to the number of applications in the interface screenshots). I tried to load the device as much as possible, and to the Galaxy Note 3 Neo's credit, the smartphone handled everything perfectly.

The smartphone interface is completely identical to that of the Galaxy Note 3. You can read and watch in detail about the capabilities of the S Pen stylus and the Note 3 interface in general in this video. Let me briefly remind you that an important feature of the new version of the interface for the Note family of smartphones and tablets is more convenient work with information thanks to the Air Command functions: active note, quick access to search, “scrapbook”, “screenshot” (allows you to quickly move on to processing screenshot) and “cut fragment” (allows you to quickly launch useful applications). S Health in this smartphone is different from that in both the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S5. I liked this app more in its latest incarnation, but that's not a problem at all. Some functions in the Note 3 Neo did come under the knife: KNOX, designed to protect correspondence, contacts, images and other sensitive user data, and display color settings, which is not a problem at all.

Camera

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo is equipped with an 8-megapixel camera with flash, autofocus, and FullHD video recording. The quality is quite typical for Samsung smartphone cameras with this resolution, but not in flagship models. Better than the market average, but it seemed to me that the camera was inferior to the Galaxy Grand 2, although perhaps the Grand 2 was more fortunate with the weather. Landscapes on the Note 3 Neo turn out to be slightly blurred when shooting on a clear day, but in the second half of the day. In low light, the camera has trouble focusing on close objects, but still produces good results. But the pictures turn out juicy, well detailed (if you’re lucky with the lighting and distance), and the smartphone doesn’t distort the colors. It is worth noting that the shooting process is very fast, and the camera menu is notable for its simple and rich settings. There are several modes in quick access, the camera recognizes voice control, allows you to view filter effects before shooting, and allows you to take photos while recording video. Examples of photographs taken with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo can be seen below or in a separate gallery on Torba in original resolution.

Competitors and line neighbors

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo in the manufacturer's line fits exactly between the flagship Note 3 of 2013 and the once flagship Note II of 2012. It is cheaper than the first by about 200 dollars (2400 UAH) and more expensive than the second - by 100 dollars (1200 UAH). At the same time, between the two Note generations there is almost an abyss of possibilities, so if you are committed to this line of devices, I would recommend saving up some money for the Note 2 Neo (or wait until it gets cheaper), because the difference in the current exchange rate exceeds 1000 UAH. In the Galaxy Note 3 Neo, the S Pen stylus has a lot of useful features, the appearance and plastic of the body are significantly superior to its predecessor, and the performance is more relevant. It is also important that this is the only Note with dual SIM support. If you were expecting to see such a solution in the top model, and now you are worried about whether the Neo is cool enough, then give it up. The most noticeable thing for the user will be the slightly lower quality camera, and even then it copes decently with shooting at night and in poor lighting, and this is already excellent. In fact, the Galaxy Note 3 Neo is very good, although on paper it doesn't look nearly as interesting as its older counterpart. Among smartphones with a stylus from other manufacturers, the Galaxy Note 3 Neo has no direct competitors.

If you are looking for a smartphone with a diagonal of more than 5 inches with decent performance and support for two SIM cards, and consider the S Pen capabilities unnecessary, then you can consider the Galaxy Grand 2 model as a candidate for purchase. In the segment of large-diagonal mid-range smartphones, it has proven behaves better than everyone else, and costs almost 2 times less.

Bottom line

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo is a fairly good solution for those users who are not ready to spend just over $700 on the excellent Galaxy Note 3 smartphone, the main attraction of which is the S Pen, or those who have been waiting for this miracle in feathers with dual SIM support. kart. The strengths of the model are its fairly high performance, the presence of two SIM card slots, the successful design of the back cover and, of course, the Air Command functions. A simplified camera, reduced display resolution and a weaker processor are actually not bad at all, they are not flagship, yes, but an adequate user will be quite satisfied with their quality. As a result, I would again cite the price as the main reason not to buy the Galaxy Note 3 Neo, which is certainly good at the global level, but in our country, due to the collapse of the national currency, it began to bite again.

3 reasons to buy Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo:

• Galaxy Note 3 features at a more attractive price;
• sufficient performance for active use of the smartphone, excellent battery life;
• support for two SIM cards;

1 reason not to buy Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo:

• because of the exchange rate, the price bites again;

Galaxy Note 3 Neo uses a processor Samsung Exynos 5260. It consists of two computing units, one of them contains 4 computing cores with frequency 1.7 GHz, the other is equipped two cores with frequency 1.3 GHz. The essence of the idea is that weaker cores save energy when performing simple everyday tasks, and the quad-core unit is connected only under high computing load (for example, during a game). At the moment, the concept can be considered viable, since it does extend (albeit slightly) the battery life of the device.

The chip is responsible for graphics calculations ARM Mali-T624. In itself, it is not bad, however, other smartphones in the same price category use significantly more powerful solutions.

In general, the performance of the smartphone turned out to be quite mediocre. It corresponds to the level of much cheaper smartphones based on MediaTek hardware platforms. Some benchmarks (especially Linpack) do not consider Samsung processors adequate at all (this was manifested in the fact that the results in single-threaded and multi-threaded tests were almost identical, that is, very low).

The Galaxy Note 3 Neo can easily handle playing Full-HD video, viewing multiple Internet pages at once, and playing all the current games. We did not notice any significant slowdowns when performing everyday manipulations with the phone. But this is rather due to the low-resolution screen. But the productivity reserve for the future no at all no.

Andrey N. 4 years ago

Yandex Market

Better buy Samsung galaxy note 3 sm n - 9005 or sm n - 900.

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Advantages: The case is decent, nothing more

Disadvantages: this is a copy of Samsung gfalxy note 2

Sergey O. 5 years ago

Yandex Market

I took it from my hands after 1.5 years of using the lumia 820, there are noticeable lags and a lot needs to be done, for example, when reinstalling the system on Microsoft, even SMS for the entire time and the call log are restored. there is no such thing here. swipe seems to be working fine. I'm pleased with the battery, the sound is excellent in wired headphones and has become noticeably better in a Bluetooth headset.

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Advantages: Screen, battery combined with processor, assembly is not bad, s-pen works perfectly.

Disadvantages: You need to work with the Kotska body on all sides, I struggled for a very long time with 4g on yota. helped with custom with xda.

5 years ago

Yandex Market

This is not an iPhone, I bought it and be glad you gave it to me. This smartphone is a godsend for the living and curious. There are mountains of firmware, even homemade ones. You can use any shell. There are so many free programs that you won’t have enough time to try them all, and every day there are more and more of them.

lamvar 5 years ago

Yandex Market

The best phone for the money I bought it for (17,000 rubles) I have never seen so many useful functions anywhere else, the iPhone flew into the trash. The phablet has replaced a computer, phone, tablet and a lot of time) I recommend it.

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Advantages: Screen size (Fit comfortably in the hand, even after iPhone 4s) Battery capacity (1-2 days) Speed ​​of operation (Android 4.4 - works stably) NFC (Ordered tags (chip) from China and programmed them for various functions, very convenient, for example, while driving, with one touch you can connect to the radio via Bluetooth, turn on 4G and open Yandex maps, I also read the number of remaining metro trips) S-PEN (The stylus is alive!) Notification indicator (very convenient, just +++++) Several windows (very convenient) Remote control for TV, air conditioning and everything where there is an infrared port.

Disadvantages: The camera is so-so. 1 column, I often cover it with my finger. Sometimes it happens when switching from 4g to 3g and vice versa they cannot get through.

Dmitry Yu. 5 years ago

Yandex Market

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Advantages: I have owned the Samsung Galaxy S3 GT-I9300 smartphone for several years now and therefore I will compare it with it, so I bought the PCT version in December 2014 for 17,300 rubles, let's go: The screen is large, bright and very juicy, at home I use it at a maximum of 10% of the maximum brightness . I also really liked the camera and yet the pictures come out better than on my Samsung Galaxy s3 (I compared it specifically), in terms of overall performance it is also significantly superior to the Galaxy s3 (very fast), but the battery charge lasts much longer by about 50% ( definitely enough for a whole day), the sound speaker is also good and louder, works great over Wi-Fi, LTE is also great (it tries to keep the LTE range until the last minute, then immediately switches to 3G). Also, due to the pseudo leather, it is more convenient to hold in your hand.

Disadvantages: Immediately after the purchase, I noticed three spontaneous reboots, then froze once in camera mode and rebooted again, after that it works stably. Sometimes the screen does not turn over, you have to reboot the device, but here, as I understand it, the problem is not with a specific device, but with Android itself.

Mikhail A. 5 years ago

Yandex Market

The screen is super: When watching a video, everything is black - truly black, without highlights. The camera is certainly not great (in artificial light) in street lighting or light through a window: the photo is much better. Wi-Fi reception level is excellent. It also receives gsm well and wcdma is 1 division better than the SIII 9300 duos. Navigation also works flawlessly, cityguide or Yandex navigator. A good, durable case does not creak and is not scratched yet. Charging is fast, I bought a spare battery for 600 rubles. I installed a 200 R gloss film, put 300 rubles in the bumper, I use it as a navigator, an e-reader, access to the Internet, distribution, as a dialer I don’t use a 2 SIM card, but I checked: I can hear the interlocutor very loudly, they can also hear me perfectly, the call ringer is loud enough. And no crashes, freezes, glitches, loss of Wi-Fi, widget crashes when launching other applications. No! The factory firmware is 4.3, as soon as I bought it I immediately installed a ban on updating to Android 4.4 because I consider it malicious. And I stopped programs that I don’t use. I bought it for 15900 in early January. I am very pleased with the purchase.

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Advantages: 1. Screen - contrasting, rich. 2. Thin frames. 3. Lightweight 4. Battery - holds a charge well, for example, compared to the SIII 9300 duos. 5. LTE on the street works without problems both in St. Petersburg and in Vyborg. 6. The speaker is located on the side, you can put it either with the screen or the lid down, nothing will change. 7. Doesn't heat up. 8. Appearance.9. I sometimes use the IR emitter as a TV remote control. And of course, the stylus has a very useful function - recording a reminder.

Disadvantages: Again LTE. You have to force WCDMA in the settings, otherwise the machine installs LTE and if the level is weak, then there is no connection or Internet at all, and then it doesn’t accept calls either (this happens in residential buildings or on the outskirts of a city or region). Small RAM in fact is about 1.6 GB , all the time to capacity, we could do 2GB! The light sensor does not work adequately; it is very dark with it.

Nikolay K. 5 years ago

Yandex Market

I bought my wife a note 3 from the s4 itself.. I used my wife’s phone and was just amazed at how convenient it is compared to the s4, only too big of course.. so I bought the note 3. It’s quite a bit smaller, but these are the sizes that suit me, although when I bought the s4 I thought it was a shovel) ))..I immediately sold my s4 and bought a note 3 neo and just enjoy it))) I practically don’t use the tablet... the resolution is of course less than that of my older brother, but it’s noticeable only if you compare both phones at the same time.. in short, I recommend it perfectly.

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Advantages: Screen, size!!!, appearance and much more.

Disadvantages: Didn't find any

Disappointed 5 years ago

Yandex Market

You can read the detailed message about the problem with the screen; there are photographs there, and how to check for a defect, it is written: http://w3bsit3-dns.com/forum/index.php?s=&showtopic=547617&view=findpost&p=37279960 Or in VK, in the official group: https://vk. com/topic-2611_30270103?post=147280 By the way, regarding artifacts on the display, I first contacted an authorized S/C, they told me that this was normal. Then I contacted the branded S/C Plaza, explaining specifically the cause of the defect (high inertia of green subpixels), and they took the phone for repair. But neither replacing the display module nor replacing the board helped. Then I went to another service center again, where I even managed to look at another Note Neo (they had it under repair), and it had the same problem. And in the end, as they told me: “This is a feature of the model.” So it goes.

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Pros: High Wi-Fi speed. At 5 GHz: 80/90 Mbps up/down. Almost 39,000 points in Antutu (on firmware 4.3 it was 7k less). The remaining advantages have already been described in other comments. But there are no shortcomings, and I will tell you about them in detail. If you need more details, follow the links in the comments.

Disadvantages: Screen, yes. It is this superAMOLED display that is the main drawback. (You can see details and photos by following the links in the comments.) Specifically: in dynamic scenes, if there is black color, i.e. black pixels, then artifacts will appear - purple trails. This is especially noticeable at low screen brightness. (Technically, this is due to the fact that the green subpixels of the matrix light up very slowly from the off state, unlike the blue and red subpixels. And it turns out that, for example, white text on a black background turns purple when moving (blue + red (green after all) did not have time to light up, and the white color will not be formed)). And the lower the brightness, the slower the green subpixel lights up, and the longer and more noticeable the trails. But even at maximum screen brightness

Evgeniy D. 5 years ago

Yandex Market

Unfortunately, my Galaxy Note 3 Neo did not last even two weeks, it began to freeze for no reason when in use, only removing the battery helped. I took it to the service for the first time, it was ready on the same day, “Software flashing, reset to factory settings.” The next day I picked it up and after a few hours the device froze again. So I brought it “hanging” to the service center, showed it to the engineer, and they said that they would change the board. Now the service website monitors the status “waiting for spare parts.” It's sad, gentlemen, the device is from the flagship line, not cheap, and if a manufacturing defect is discovered, I have to wait for some spare parts to be delivered. The phone was returned to me within a couple of weeks. Since then it has worked as it should, which is good. The result of the Samsung service: not mega-fast, but no one took the full 45 days, in the end the device was repaired as it should and works, i.e. The service basically works and it makes sense to buy devices with official service support. Where would I go with a defective Meizu phone, I don’t know.

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Pros: The biggest advantage is the battery. In fact, two days without turning off the Internet (on the road 3G, at home/at work WiFi). The screen is not bad, all modern wireless communications are available. The S-Pen allows you to quickly draw something, it’s not for everyone, but for those who need to sketch something by hand, it’s cool.

Disadvantages: I will describe the disadvantages from the point of view of my subjective: The interface from Samsung could already be more elegant, there are a lot of examples, starting from the innocently killed iOS6 by Cook and ending with MIUI. And here is some dark, angular something. After a couple of days of use, I installed another dialer and started using hangouts instead of the native SMS application. What’s also annoying is the lack of any button to minimize the keyboard when you’ve already typed what you want in the input field and you need to click “send” on the page, for example. But no, the keyboard is not foldable, why???

GGGDDD G. 5 years ago

Yandex Market

I bought a Galaxy Note 3 Neo SM-N7505 after the New Year holidays. Included: charger, headphones with replaceable spare parts and spare pens for the stylus with tweezers. I’ll say right away: before this I used the Samsung Galaxy S 3, and therefore now I will sometimes compare them when describing them. I was afraid that with a larger screen size than the Galaxy S3 and the same resolution of 720x1280, the pixels would be visible, but I worried in vain, I can’t see them even from a distance of 10 cm. Let's start with what scared me. When purchased, it was running Android 4.3. Problems started while using it. When there is an incoming call: the call rings - the screen remains black and you cannot see who is calling, when you press any key during a call (power on, volume control or home), the screen lights up and you can receive an incoming call. The second problem: when installing live wallpaper on the lock screen, when unlocking, I lost the memory card every other time, an inscription appeared like: the card was unexpectedly removed, then after 5-10 seconds, I found it again. Contacts and everything else have nothing to do with it - I checked it. By connecting to a Wi-Fi network, I received a software update to Android 4.4.2. And... voila - all the glitches are gone. My joy knew no bounds, I was upset that I got a defective copy. Apparently there was a problem in the firmware. 1. Super AMOLED screen. The screen is beautiful, I like it. 2. There is an infrared port, can be used as a remote control for TV. 3. You need to use the stylus to get used to it. Still, it's nice that he exists. 4. The battery will hardly survive until the evening with active Wi-Fi, 3G. If you just call, of course he will live for 3-4 days. Overnight the discharge is 1-3%. Battery consumption is about the same as my previous Galaxy S3. 5. This model was captivated by the presence of LTE. Those. ability to work in 4G networks. Really works in Chelyabinsk. MTS operator. 6. This device has 6 cores. I didn’t notice any particular speed, nor any brakes. 7. The camera has the same characteristics as the Galaxy S3. The disadvantage is the inability to remove the sound of the shutter click.

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Advantages: Large comfortable Super AMOLED screen, stylus, LTE (4G) support, infrared port.

The Galaxy Note 3 Neo phablet is a simplified version of the Note 3, which makes it cheaper and more accessible to a wider range of buyers. This gadget has reduced functionality and performance, but it is still powerful and multitasking. The main difference from its older brother is the lower resolution screen and 8 MP camera.

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In tests for battery life, it showed its best side. The device can last more than 10 hours in web surfing mode, and 12 hours in video playback mode.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo has a 5.5-inch Super AMOLED screen with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels, which allows you to save processor resources and get a high-quality picture. For wireless control there is an infrared port, Bluetooth, NFC and Wi-Fi. And for navigation users there are two modules: GPS and Glonass.

Due to such reduced characteristics, the price of the Galaxy Note 3 Neo has dropped significantly - by almost 5,000 rubles.

The main camera is capable of taking pictures in a resolution of 3264 x 2448, and the backlit sensor allows you to take high-quality pictures in the dark. You will be able to shoot videos in Full HD resolution (30 frames/sec). Unfortunately, the engineers did not add protection from moisture and dust.

Specifications of Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo

Main technical characteristics

Class	Phablet
release date	January 2014
Price at the start of sales	19 990
Current Android version	Google Android 4.4.2
TouchWiz version	TouchWiz 5.0
Dimensions (L × W × T)	148.4x77.4x8.6 mm
Weight	162 grams
Battery	3100 mAh (Removable)
Available models	SM-N7505
Case color options	Black, white, green
Display
Diagonal	5.5 inches
Permission	720 x 1280 pixels
Type	Super AMOLED
Pixel Density	267 ppi
Protective glass	Corning Gorilla Glass 3
CPU
Graphics accelerator	ARM Mali-T624
CPU model	Exynos 5 Hexa
Frequency and architecture	1700 MHz, ARM Cortex-A15 and ARM Cortex-A7
Number of Cores	6-core
Memory
Random Access Memory (RAM)	2048 MB
Read-only memory (ROM)	16 GB (12 GB available to the user)
Memory card slot	microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC up to 64 GB
Camera in Galaxy Note 3 Neo
Main camera	8 megapixels (3264 x 2448), autofocus, LED flash
Characteristics	Voice activation, Backlit sensor, Geotagging, Tap-based autofocus, HDR, Face and smile detection, Panorama mode, Autofocus
Video	Full HD (1920x1080), 30 fps
Front-camera	2 MP
Optical stabilization	Eat
Flash	LED
Multimedia capabilities
Number of speakers	1
FM radio	No
Connection
SIM type and quantity	1 Micro-SIM card
2G (GSM/GPRS/EDGE)	850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
3G (UMTS/WCDMA/HSPA)	850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz
4G (LTE)	800, 850, 900, 1800, 2100, 2600 MHz
Navigation	GPS and GLONASS
Data transfer
WiFi	802.11 a, b, g, n, n 5GHz, ac
Bluetooth	v4.0, A2DP support
NFC	Eat
USB	Data storage, USB charging, OTG
Miscellaneous
Protection from moisture and dust	No
Electromagnetic Absorption Rate (SAR)	For head: 0.25 W/kg; For body 0.27 W/kg
Sensors	Accelerometer, Gestures, Gyroscope, Compass, Proximity sensor
Other	Additional microphone for noise reduction

Review

Performance
Build quality
Autonomy
Screen
Camera
Sound
Current value
Benchmark tests
AnTuTu Benchmark	26412
VELLAMO METAL	1009.3
BASEMARK OS II	552.6
Battery life
Rating	65 points
3G conversations	18 hours
Web surfing	10 hours
Watch video	12 o'clock

Competitors

Sony Xperia Z Ultra

HTC One M8

LG G3

Overall rating from the site

FAQ - answers to frequently asked questions about the Galaxy Note 3 Neo

What's included in the package?

• Telephone
• Charger with USB cable
• Instructions

Will Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo be updated to Android Lollipop?

Probably yes. There is no official information yet.

Will I be able to Root this phablet?

Yes, detailed instructions can be found in the corresponding section of our website

Is it comfortable to play games like GTA SA on it?

Of course, the performance is more than enough!

Can it be used as a Wi-Fi hotspot?

Which is better to take: Galaxy Note 3 Neo or Note 2?

Each of these phablets has its own pros and cons. Note 2 is more productive and cheaper, and Note 3 Neo, in turn, is more productive and energy efficient. It is worth writing a separate article on this topic, which we will do soon.

Contents of delivery:

• Telephone
• Charger with USB cable
• Instructions
• Battery Li-Ion 3100 mAh

Positioning

At Samsung, all products with the Neo prefix indicate cheaper versions, in which functionality was somehow reduced, but at the same time they were able to reduce the cost for the buyer. It is obvious that the Note 3 Neo model is based on the company’s original flagship – Note 3. At first glance, all software functionality remains the same – the pen can perform exactly the same actions, even the sizes of the devices are very similar.

In theory, Neo looks correct and good - the reduction in price is due to less memory, a different screen, and a camera with a lower resolution. But with comparable operating time, as well as new color solutions. If the Note 3 Neo had been released simultaneously with the main model in October 2013, it would have had noticeable sales, but today the cost of the Note 3 is quite low, in particular, you can still find a model from MegaFon, which costs 21,990 rubles (plus 3,000 to the operator’s account), in the end this gives 24,990 rubles. They ask for exactly the same amount for Neo - and there is no point in buying it at the same price as the original. But this story is typical for Russia; in other markets the price gap is quite noticeable, and someone may like Neo based on this parameter.

Apart from the Note 3, this model can be considered as a typical representative of the phablet category; here the Note 3 Neo has undoubted advantages over its competitors - operating time, the presence of a stylus and all the features associated with it, which stem from the Wacom digitizer built into the display. Competitors don't have anything even close to this. But the fact is that this device will still compete with its older brother – Note 3. And it loses this competition completely. However, let's look into this in a detailed review. In it I will sometimes compare this device with the original Note 3, since this comparison is of some interest.

Design, dimensions, control elements

Most of Samsung's current models are indistinguishable from each other; their front panels differ only in size, but not in design elements. In your hands, you can easily confuse the Note 3 Neo with the original Note 3; they are indistinguishable. In a direct comparison, you will notice that the Neo is smaller - 148.4x77.4x8.6 mm versus 151.2x79.2x8.3 mm. The difference is not fundamental; the device fits well in the hand, which is not what you expect from such a large phone. The weight of the device is 162 grams.

And this is what the Note 3 Neo looks like compared to the larger Galaxy S5, but this difference is not so critical.

Especially to make Neo different from its brother, they made a new color scheme – green. But the device is available in both white and black colors.

The layout of the device is traditional: there is a mechanical key on the front panel, and two touch ones around it. Above the screen you can see the front camera, as well as a proximity and light sensor. On the left side there is a paired volume key, on the right side there is an on/off button. At the top end there is a 3.5 jack for headphones or a headset, and there are also microphones at two ends. The main camera is located on the back surface, next to it is an LED flash. Finally, at the bottom end there is a standard microUSB connector, and right there you can see a socket for the S-Pen stylus.

The build quality of the device is excellent, there are no backlashes, the parts fit tightly together. Opening the back cover, you will see a microSD connector and a slot for a microSIM card.

Display

The screen has a diagonal of 5.5 inches (5.7 inches in Note 3), is made using Super AMOLED technology, the resolution compared to its predecessor has decreased to 1280x720 from 1920x1080 pixels (16 million colors). The screen is capacitive and supports up to 10 simultaneous clicks. The screen quality is good, but there is a clear disadvantage of the older model. By the standards of the phablet market, the Neo has an excellent screen; competitors' displays are usually worse. But it doesn’t stand up to comparison with Note 3 – color rendition is worse, brightness doesn’t have the same margin, and so on. If you don't compare the screens directly, you won't notice this. But when compared side by side, it catches your eye.

The settings retain all the signature features characteristic of the flagships of the line, in particular, adjusting the color saturation; you can make them calm, or you can choose bright colors. What’s unusual is that video optimization during playback does not always work correctly here: sometimes the black color in videos is displayed as crumbling squares, this is clearly an error in the engine that analyzes the image. I have never seen anything like this on any Samsung device, and this flaw appears quite often.

The screen remains readable in the sun, and there are no complaints about it. Overall, this is a good solution, but it is significantly inferior to the Note 3, and this is noticeable.

Battery

The phone uses a 3100 mAh lithium-ion battery (3200 mAh in Galaxy Note 3). According to the manufacturer, the battery can provide up to 18 hours of talk time and up to 540 hours of standby time (3G mode). In Moscow networks, the device works on average for about two full days under very high load (the difference with the third Note is not very noticeable). The time to fully charge the battery is about 3 hours.

Video playback time is about 13.5 hours. You can listen to music with the screen off for up to 64 hours. Work with Wi-Fi for up to 12 hours, data transfer on a 3G network for up to 10 hours. In general, there are almost no differences in operating time from the Note 3, as well as the gains that could be expected from a less powerful processor.

USB, Bluetooth, communication capabilities

Bluetooth. Bluetooth version 4.0 (LE). When transferring files to other devices that support this technology, Wi-Fi 802.11 n is used, and the theoretical transfer speed is about 24 Mbit/s. Testing the transfer of a 1 GB file showed a maximum speed of about 12 Mbit/s within three meters between devices.

The model supports various profiles, in particular Headset, Handsfree, Serial Port, Dial Up Networking, File Transfer, Object Push, Basic Printing, SIM Access, A2DP. Working with headsets does not raise any questions, everything is ordinary.

USB connection. In Android 4, for some reason, they abandoned the USB Mass Storage mode, leaving only MTP (there is also a PTP mode).

USB version – 2, data transfer speed – about 17 Mb/s (in Note 3, USB version is 3.0). When connected via USB, the device is recharged.

The microUSB connector does not support the MHL standard, which is also a simplification compared to the Note 3.

WiFi. The 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac standard is supported, the operation wizard is similar to that for Bluetooth. You can remember selected networks and automatically connect to them. It is possible to set up a connection to the router in one touch; to do this, you need to press a key on the router, and also activate a similar button in the device menu (WPA SecureEasySetup). Among the additional options, it is worth noting the setup wizard; it appears when the signal is weak or disappearing. You can also set up Wi-Fi on a schedule.

802.11n also supports HT40 mode, which doubles Wi-Fi throughput (requires support from another device).

Wi-Fi Direct. A protocol that is intended to replace Bluetooth or begin to compete with its third version (which also uses Wi-Fi version n to transfer large files). In the Wi-Fi settings menu, select the Wi-Fi Direct section, the phone begins to search for devices around. We select the desired device, activate the connection on it, and voila. Now in the file manager you can view files on another device, as well as transfer them. Another option is to simply find devices connected to your router and transfer the necessary files to them; this can be done from the gallery or other sections of the phone. The main thing is that the device supports Wi-Fi Direct.

NFC. The device has NFC technology, it can be used with various additional applications.

S Beam. A technology that allows you to transfer a file of several gigabytes in size to another phone in a few minutes. In fact, we see in S Beam a combination of two technologies - NFC and Wi-Fi Direct. The first technology is used to bring up and authorize phones, but the second is already used to transfer the files themselves. The creatively redesigned way to use Wi-Fi Direct is much simpler than using a connection on two devices, selecting files and so on.

IR port. Necessary for using the phone as a remote control for various household appliances. Automatically configures for almost any model of equipment.

Memory, memory cards

The phone has 16 GB of internal memory, initially about 10 GB is available to the user. Memory cards up to 64 GB are also supported.

The amount of RAM is 2 GB, after downloading about 1 GB is free. The Note 3 has 3 GB of RAM, which is noticeable - applications launch noticeably faster there, and the overall performance of the system also differs; the Note 3 wins here.

The model turned out to be fast, but by no means a record holder. Again, if you don’t compare it with the Note 3, then everything will be fine - but as soon as you pick up the two devices, the difference immediately catches your eye.

Model hardware options, performance

The processor race on the market does not subside for a minute; Qualcomm refuses to release solutions with more than 4 cores, and most manufacturers presented their 8-core solutions last year. Samsung also decided to use more cost-effective 6-core Exynos processors for replacement models and announced the first processor in February, it became the heart of the Galaxy Note 3 Neo, which comes in two variants - N750 and N7505. The N7505 model has LTE support, which is implemented using an LTE modem from Intel – XMM 7160. Thus, Samsung is reducing the cost of producing LTE models, abandoning Qualcomm solutions that go into top-end devices.

A unique situation has developed in the market in which Qualcomm is the leader in the production of LTE solutions, as well as simply chipsets, but its share is being eroded by companies such as MediaTek (their solutions are already used by A-brands, and their number will increase), other manufacturers are advancing in budget segment, where the company has nothing to answer. NVIDIA is bit by bit, as well as Samsung, which is slowly but surely improving its processors.

For me, the Exynos 5260 chipset was interesting because it can be compared with the 8-core counterpart used in the Note 3, since they have comparable batteries (3200 mAh in the original Note, 3100 mAh in the Neo). The screens are comparable diagonally, but Neo has a resolution of 1280x720 pixels. On the other hand, the screen should not greatly affect power consumption; first of all, it could be the chipset.

The official specifications provide these parameters for the operation of phones in various modes.

	Note 3 Neo N750	Note 3 N900
3G internet	Until 10 o'clock	Until 11 o'clock
Wi-Fi internet	Till 12 o'clock	Until 13 o'clock
Video	Until 13 o'clock	Till 12 o'clock
Audio	Up to 64 hours	Up to 68 hours
Waiting time, 3G	Up to 540 hours	Up to 490 hours
Talk time, 3G	Until 18 o'clock	Up to 20 hours

Note that despite the 100mAh difference in battery capacity, the Exynos 5260 runs less in most modes than the 8-core Exynos 5420. The technology used to make the processors is 28 nm, that is, there is no difference here. The only difference we can discern is the standby time - a difference of 40 hours in favor of the Neo.

It turns out that a 6-core processor made using ARM BIG.little technology does not at all provide an increase in operating time, as we would like to believe and what is said in this technology. In theory, the gain should come from the fact that 4 A7 cores at 1.3 GHz do not consume as much energy as more productive A15 cores at up to 1.7 GHz, the number of which was reduced to 2 in this chipset. The Exynos 5420, which is found in the N900 Note 3, has 4 A15 cores, each of which is capable of operating at a frequency of 1.8 GHz. And this is where bewilderment arises: what in theory seemed like a gain turns out to be comparable, or even worse, operating time. Why?

The answer lies not in the number of processors, but in how they work. Most modern chipsets support variable clock speeds, and as a result, they do not operate at maximum frequencies most of the time. High-performance cores are used in 3D games and when watching videos, but not when accessing regular phone functions. That is, in fact, we see that the same music playback is approximately the same, other modes are also the same. The same main 4 cores are used, and the difference of 2 cores has almost no effect on performance.

It turns out that a solution that is more economical in theory turns out to be just cheaper to produce for the company, but this has almost no effect on the cost of the final product (in our case, Note 3 Neo).

In synthetic tests, the Note 3 Neo looks quite ordinary and is much inferior to the original device.

Camera

Regular 8 megapixel camera with autofocus. It is typical for the previous generation of devices; it is by no means bad, but it does not cause delight. Let me remind you that the Note 3 has a 13-megapixel camera, which has a number of serious improvements - it is capable of producing better quality photographs. However, you can evaluate the quality of shooting and video yourself (FullHD, 30 frames per second).

Note 3 software features

In this aspect, the model is completely identical to the Note 3, so I won’t refer you to the review, but will simply share the information below.

Impression

The call quality is not satisfactory; it is typical for Samsung products - a good, loud speaker during a call, an excellent call and an average vibration alert.

The cost of the device is 24,990 rubles (LTE version), a regular device costs a little less. Considering that for this or comparable money you can buy the original Note 3 (not in the LTE version, that is, also on Exynos), then there is no problem of choice - it’s worth choosing the Note 3. It has a number of undeniable advantages - a 13-megapixel camera, the presence of 32 GB of internal memory, 3 GB of RAM, large diagonal and screen resolution, and the quality itself. Approximately the same case size. Let me remind you that Note 3 can, and quite rightly, be considered the best phablet on the market; it is an uncompromising solution. At the same time, the Galaxy Note 3 Neo is not of interest; it is clearly a niche product that no one is betting on and does not particularly attract attention to it. It will have fairly modest sales. It's also worth mentioning that, unlike the Note 3, the Neo doesn't have as many free subscriptions and programs that you might like. The device does not have any bonuses out of the box. As a short verdict, I would not consider this model for purchase in Russia, because the Note 3 is superior in everything at almost the same cost (and the version from MegaFon is at a lower price).