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Got My Note 3 Today

Very good.

Sorted.

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As a complete smartphone virgin, my first bugbear is an ergonomic one. It's with the Menu and Back touch-"buttons" to the left and right of the Physical Home button at the bottom below the screen proper. You have no idea they are there and they only light *after* you have hit them. So completely camouflaged. I know I will get used to "knowing" where they are but it's poor design and irritating.

I also don't like that I can't mount the SD card or the phone onto a Mac desktop as I could with my last feature phone. The workaround is with Android File Transfer but it's clunky. You certainly can't do things like renaming files on the phone or do much housekeeping - from the computer. I rather suspect this is all Apple's fault and not Samsung's.

I've found the software occasionally buggy and it has given me problems and necessitating force shutting down of some programs from time to time but so far everything has been soluble.

The OS is still a steep learning curve. I am still finding it difficult editing the main screens and app screens to get them as I want and that Multi Window panel, I am so far unable to add things I want to.

My buying decision was made when I saw the Note 2 about four months ago (at Samsung, London) and I anticipated the Note 3 and waited. The choice was made almost - but not entirely - on the existence of the S-pen. and the screen quality and acreage. I haven't been wrong about either. No buyers' remorse.

Plus of course iPhones have superseded the position occupied by DOS IBM PCs once. Safe and very boring because "Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM". For this and many other reasons, I wasn't going to get an iPhone.


I've been using my Note 3 since September 24. It's fun. I have yet to get into one of its primary functions for me which is controlling cameras. But for a whole lot of other stuff - I already have no idea how I did without it.

For file transfers give Airdroid a try, I personally love the design and it's really easy to use.
 
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I'm obviously not explaining this properly. Almost everything else: drives, phones, cameras, SD cards in card readers, CF cards in readers, satnavs, thumb drives, other computers, CDs, DVDs mount on the Mac desktop as effectively an external drive which is a lot more convenient for various reasons. This phone doesn't. Even the MicroSD card taken out and put in a card reader doesn't.
 
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I'm obviously not explaining this properly. Almost everything else: drives, phones, cameras, SD cards in card readers, CF cards in readers, satnavs, thumb drives, other computers, CDs, DVDs mount on the Mac desktop as effectively an external drive which is a lot more convenient for various reasons. This phone doesn't. Even the MicroSD card taken out and put in a card reader doesn't.

I'm understanding you, nothing wrong with your explanation. I can't help but wonder if you have a defective phone. My S4 is recognized by my MacBook Pro immediately.
 
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Please give us your impressions. I've got a week to wait before mine arrives.
I just got mine this morning.

What I like/love:

1. Solid build quality, I'm loving the pleather battery cover.
2. Monstrous battery performance.
3. At 386 ppi, the display is better than S4's 441 ppi.
4. Extremely fast.
5. Great camera.

Disappointments:

1. In areas of weak network reception, it easily drops signal but not a total loss.
2. I have OCD so it frustrates me (though not a deal breaker) that the camera lens is not perfectly placed at the center. It's hardly noticeable unless you have OCD. Haha
3. Home button is not as firm as the one in Note 2. It does not wiggle but I fear it might in the future.

Initial impression after using it for less than 12 hours: AMAZING PHONE!
 
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I just got mine this morning.

What I like/love:

1. Solid build quality, I'm loving the pleather battery cover.
2. Monstrous battery performance.
3. At 386 ppi, the display is better than S4's 441 ppi.
4. Extremely fast.
5. Great camera.

Disappointments:

1. In areas of weak network reception, it easily drops signal but not a total loss.
2. I have OCD so it frustrates me (though not a deal breaker) that the camera lens is not perfectly placed at the center. It's hardly noticeable unless you have OCD. Haha
3. Home button is not as firm as the one in Note 2. It does not wiggle but I fear it might in the future.

Initial impression after using it for less than 12 hours: AMAZING PHONE!

Thanks for the feedback, sounds great.

Now that you've had a chance to get up close and evaluate this beauty, step back and look at the big picture. You've got one of the finest smartphones there is.

Put away the pros and cons list and just enjoy it... :D
 
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I'm obviously not explaining this properly. Almost everything else: drives, phones, cameras, SD cards in card readers, CF cards in readers, satnavs, thumb drives, other computers, CDs, DVDs mount on the Mac desktop as effectively an external drive which is a lot more convenient for various reasons. This phone doesn't. Even the MicroSD card taken out and put in a card reader doesn't.

Can't fix the issue you are having, but Airdroid is a great work around. Allow easy access to all your phone files..external sd, internal and everything else without having to plug anything in, you can easily copy files from your mac/pc to your phone and back. https://play.google.com/store/search?q=airdroid

My s3 would not be recognized as an external drive with the cable provided I used an old nokia cable and it worked, but found I liked the wireless option better. As for the sd card my only guess would be in the formatting. Hope you get it going the way you want, nothing is more frustrating that trying to do something the way you are used to and it not working.
 
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Simon...
Use the dmg file to uninstall Kies and reboot your mac.
Find and install Android file transfer and place it in your applications folder in finder
Attach your phone to your mac and file transfer should boot up straight away

As a hint find keis download but dont install untill you need to do a software update on the phone
 
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Simon...
Use the dmg file to uninstall Kies and reboot your mac.
Find and install Android file transfer and place it in your applications folder in finder
Attach your phone to your mac and file transfer should boot up straight away

As a hint find keis download but dont install untill you need to do a software update on the phone

Yes. That's how I've been doing it for some days. Android File transfer works as billed and indeed it self boots on the Mac as I plug the phone in. But it's not the same and it's a shame.

For instance, you want to modify some file names on the phone without taking them off (I have wanted to) or you want to move files around in the phone - controlled from the Mac (ditto). You can't do it because it doesn't mount. [Boo]. You have laboriously to copy the files over, do whatever you have to do (if anything) and then copy them back to where you want them in the phone. It's not elegant and it's getting really old fast. It sucks. I blame Apple.
 
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Today, I tried out one of the functions I expect to use my Note 3 for a fair bit. Some of my cameras have replacement SD cards in them with built-in wifi. [Some newer cameras are coming with wifi out of the box.]

The brand of card I've settled on is EZ-share (there are at least three other brands). And unlike my last phone, there is an EZ-share app for Android .

You have to ensure your phone knows the card's wifi - which we actually did in London in the store where I picked it up last Tuesday. Once done, it always re-acquires it like any other wifi. It's password protected of course.

Boot the EZ-share app and you very quickly get a display of what's on the camera on the phone's screen. [You can also use any web browser.] Download what you want from the camera to the phone, do whatever you want to the images in the phone and then email on.

It's like having a phone picture, only not dreadful. Can you tell I'm not a fan?
 
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I most certainly agree that Motorola has a history of exceptional phone performance, yet Samsung Galaxy series phones are much better than their phones of the past.


I know where your coming from. Before I made the leap from Moto Droid Maxx to Note 2, I had to hear from multiple people about rf signal. Samsung had a horrible reputation for bad signal processing. I can tell you that the Note 2 has been exceptional, and I expect the Note 3 to be the same.
 
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Reviews are saying the external speaker sound quality is sub par and the location at the bottom causes issues with your hand covering in landscape. What say you about these two issues to those who have picked this phone up?

While I wait for my Note 3 I'm using an S4. Speaker placement is the same, but I have no problem with it. Quality is better than my iPhone 5S. Some reviewers are biased, & just need to find something to complain about.
 
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Without wanting to sound like I just want to moan about it, I have the n3 and speaker placement is crap -mentioned this the day I got it.. Why they thought putting it where your finger rests when holding it in landscape is beyond me....
Lack of usability testing....!
For some reason some on here think its wrong to find problems...like the n3 is perfect...! Ive found a few problems but overall liking it.
Still not worth the out of contract sim free price though.
I had the n2 and its an improvement in general.
 
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