Video review: Marques Brownlee
MY NEW (REFURB) GSM WORLD PHONE - Samsung NOTE 4
My objective is to have a phone that works anywhere I get off a plane, in the states and in MX for example - and I like this phone's size and performance. It has all the features of an expensive new Galaxy phone, but not the price tag. And I don't want to pay major carrier prices for service either; my bill will be under $20 per month.
I love Phablets! - Because it has a large hi-rez screen, I use it like a tablet. I can also use it as a phone. So I have one device that does it all, and it still fits in my pocket (some pockets).
Let's talk about getting signed up for inexpensive phone service in the States first, but before that, here's this phone's specs:
Factory Unlocked Samsung Note4 N910W8
- a factory unlocked international phone. Unlike CDMA phones by Verizon and Sprint, it is designed to work anywhere in the world. This phone can be used in the US with Tmobile, AT&T, or in other countries on all GSM carriers.
I purchased the Samsung Note 4 world phone refurbished for $180 on AMZ, and it looks almost new. I already own a Sprint version of this phone, and the only thing I don't like about it, is that I can't take it with me on international trips. I know people that are afraid of losing their nice new phone when they travel, so they leave it at home, and take a cheap Walmart phone with them when they travel; these phones are a complete step down in functionality and that does not work for me.
Also, I considered the newer Galaxy Note 5, which is also available, for about twice the price, and decided I prefer the Note 4. I'll cover why, as I explore the features of this phone and why I love it so much in general.
I love the Note 4 because:
- a great phone for designers and artists, it has a built in S-pen stylus and pressure sensitive drawing and handwriting recognition
- it does not attempt to auto-load the carrier software updates - My Sprint phone constantly attempts to download new OS updates (it might be possible to turn this off in Settings I know..)
- does not come with carrier bloat-ware - it's faster that way
- a true "factory unlocked" GSM world phone - no begging the carrier to unlock - SPRINT would not agree to unlock my phone and told me "it cannot be unlocked"; which may be true, if it may come from the factory that way.. made for SPRINT. Getting nice phones to be unlocked has been a real pain in the ass for me; I did it with Verizon, and failed, and sent the phone back to the seller, and then again with Sprint. After crash and burn twice, I'm done with carrier model phones!
- memory card may be added; up to 128GB - unlike Note 5!
- large 5" Hi-Res screen, is almost like using a tablet
- excellent camera, it will take 4K video for long periods of time without overheating
- phone back comes off; and wireless charging may be added
- battery can be changed out quickly for another day of power - unlike the Note 5!
- I've read it's possible to get a hacked SIM card for it, that works with mobile carriers in most countries…(?) I can imagin if a SIM card is hacked to activate all features of the phone, then it may open the phone up to working on all supported frequencies - Please leave a comment if you know something about this; I intend to search Ebay and talk about it at some point!
After paying high prices for Verizon for many years, and looking at major GSM carriers in the US, I decided to go with an MVNO. What’s that?
Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) in the United States lease wireless telephone and data service from major carriers, like AT&T and T-mobile (the 2 major GSM mobile carriers in the US).
After looking at carrier maps and coverage, out of these 2 major carriers, there are some places I plan to visit in the next year that are better served by T-mobile 4G-LTE data.
MVNO carrier choices for T-mobile towers and coverage:
- TING
- US Mobile
I looked at plans for these 2 T-Mobile MVNOs and decided on US Mobile. They have a plan that is $11 a month 100min/100txt (100MB) and if you go over, you are charged an additional $3 for more data only if needed that month (for 500MB). There are plenty of months I only use my phone for txt and phone, so this makes sense for me. And my bill is always less than $18 a month for T-mobile LTE service.
After getting my new SIM card in the mail (card was $7.99 for 2 day delivery) I popped it in (take out battery first) and signed up for service on their web site.
Porting my phone number over from FreedomPop (ugh) only took an hour. I was amazed it was so fast!
Then I got on a chat with US Mobile support and gave him my SIM number. He asked for a few minutes to do the setup. He then pointed me to an instruction page that gives the procedure to connect the phone to their services.
I tested outgoing and incoming calls first. It was not working. Turned off wifi too..
After doing a quick reset, and pulling the battery, I got calls and text working, but no data. We did some more configuring and checking of settings, another reboot, and LTE connected.
Whala!
I walked around the next hour calling anyone I could think of to talk to (mom) and walked in every room; this is the best phone coverage I've ever had in this place, and beats the heck out of Verizon for my location; Sprint too.
What I have learned from this:
Don't expect a given carrier (by reputation) to be the best in your area, or support the most locations. It will come down to actually checking coverage maps and knowing what to expect, and sometimes, just trying it. If you are not happy with your phone coverage, definately keep trying carriers until you are.
Moral of this Story:
It is not necessary to spend very much to carry a world class smart phone these days. The Note 4 is almost identical to the Note 5, they are difficult to tell apart, and the Note 4 provides many features the Note 5 does not, at half the price. And using an MVNO carrier, it can cost less than $20 per month for excellent coverage and the fastest data rates.
In part 2, we'll get into how to connect this phone for service in Mexico, and how to research which carriers are available internationally in any country. Also, if you prefer a given carrier in Mexico, please comment and tell us why!
Samsung makes good phone devices, but I rather use Huawei phone. The new Mate 10 Pro will be awesome. The most critical problem if you somehow broke your phone's glass. It will be never more water protected, and a screen replacement costs around half price of a new phone (We experienced this with my wife's phone). I have a mate 9 phone and it is amazing. With dual sim I can use my office sim card and the private number on the same phone. If you don't need the two sim, you can put two an sd card instead of it. I assume in the largest model with this procedure you able to get 1TB usable space and 8GB memory. Now this is more like a desktop device :)
Ill check it, how much cost?
My phone is < $200 so it's relative..
You can check the price tag: http://www.androidauthority.com/huawei-mate-10-price-release-date-deals-796183/ It starting from 650USD which costs more, but it is a latest model. If you compare with the Galaxy Note 8 it will be much more cheap. You can check the mate 9 when it released. I use that model, and absolutely satisfied with it.
Hey @surfyogi ,
right now I've read your special interesting report about your outstanding famous Samsung Note4 gsm Worldphone.
Definitely I'm surprised about your strongest positiv statement. Why? Because I use an Smartphone from Apple which is much much more expensive and which is not nearly so phantastic like your Samsung. And therefore right now I'm a little bit shocked {even more a little bit depressed...} because your Samsung is on a higher useful level than my expensive Mobilphone.
I will think about your modell and I wish you almost the best moves with your 10/10 New Samsung ^^
Greetings from Germany
@zeuss11
good bang for your buck!
👍
here in Amsterdam I use a WIKO multifunctional 2sim slot very cheap android smartphone for socialmedia and keep my trading in view on the go.
There is a new way of permanent sim in the make the E-sim a memory chip comes buildin the phone De e-sim is an initiative of the GSM Association (GSMA).
Better hoard and use your multiple sims now ! gone are the PVA
I wish I understood your comment better. I actually looked up all the terms, and still don't understand the big picture view you speak of. Please elaborate further?
Samsung might launch its foldable phone coming year. Congrats on your new buy :-)
This trend of getting the newest thing is such a profit for the marketing department, lol. They really know how to work on the human brain. While logically, buying an older model costs twice as less, and has minor change in utility.
Congratulations on your cell phone. wait to see the photos you make!!!!
I don't know much about the phone but it looks like a smart choice because the note 4 has more features for less price than the note 5. Congratulations on getting this phone It looks like a killer phone and powerful. Smart choice. Because of this, I hate you jeff. Hahahahahaha.
Don't hate me cause I'm beautiful!
Hahahahahahaha. Ok noted.
I always see minor changes in the phone industry now but Samsung actually is more favorable towards change than iPhone is during currently
It's really fun to draw and paint on this phone with the s-pen. I've become more artistic in the last several years as a result..
I'd defiently have to give it a try since I am beyond horrible at art
I don't like Phablets that much. Probably since for a user like me I don't get a good feel in the hand and it doesn't feel right ergonomically. That just might be because I don't have the biggest of hands haha
A Note 4 is a great pickup. I don't know why people spend hundreds or nowadays thousands of dollars just to get the latest technology despite the fact they can still pick up and use old phones which run impeccably well and have great specifications.
One of my favourite thing about this phone and all previous phones, in general, is expandable storage. Amazing how you can just slip in an SD card and get a huge boost in data rather than buying some sort of cloud storage or buying more for a phone.
Well I hope you enjoy your Note 4 @surfyogi! :)
The idea is indeed great getting almost the same features as the other phones with less price ,and it is indeed great to carry This kind of phone as work gets easier in many occasions ,in my point of view nice Choice :)
I now have Samsung Note 3, I was just thinking of buying a 5 model. But perhaps, it is better to buy Samsung Note 4, since it is just as good, but cheaper.
Even i am using Note 4.... i had the option to go for Note 5 but i chose Note 4 because it have a better battery capacity and it replaceable, also it have the option of a memory card which Note 5 doesn't.
Samsung is a good company which spends the most on research and development
The best part about there phones is there UI, I love samsungs ui but the problem is about hardware
I live in India, and Samsung launches phone worldwide with Snapdragon processors but when it comes to India they use there own processor of Exynos with increase in price
Let's see will Samsung Note 8 survive after iPhone X launch
Btw I am Xiaomi mi note 3 and Samsung Galaxy S6 user
Your post was informative, Thanks👍
I love Samsung! I have an Edge 6 and it works perfectly!
I hope yours will work the same!
Very good post @surfyogi Samsung is a good company which spends the most on research and development.i also like samsung mobile phones
thanks for sharing
upvoted and following updates...
Used to own note 4 but got rid of it because of overheating and battery drainage
Right, I had problems with a previous Verizon Note 4 phone. This new phone is actually my third Note 4 phone..
The Verizon phone I started with, I allowed a major android upgrade and it was never the same. It would turn off before the battery had run down, it would heat up, waste power. Horrible. Either android or some new software has bugs and it's not well tested for performance. Older version was fine.
I sold it to a guy, and told him to re-install the previous OS. It's no fun but that should fix it. Then turn off OS updates. Uninstall all carrier software as well.
I am also searching for a good phone with S pen so that while I am travelling, I can make my digital drawings and post them here on steemit. I think this Note 4 will be a good option for it, what do you think about it dear? Or should I wait for the note 8 prices to drop or its refurbished model to come in the market?
Note 4 does what I need; and when I drop it in the sand or in the water, I will pull the battery out (can't do that on iphone or new samsung phones!) and then let it dry out and it will work again.. or you can spend 4x more and get a water "resistant" sealed phone.
I like being able to replace it for so little expense, so I don't have to worry about it! ;-)
I will also carry this phone in foreign countries and may lose it easily. Or I want an extra battery with me so I don't have to worry about charging it while at the airport or when I have no time for a charge break, and don't have to carry a charger, ever.
But someone else mentioned the model sold in India is not the same processor (less powerful CPU). If you can purchase used on AMZ or Ebay, that might be the way to do it, if you can get this same model that way..
Thanx for your great reply. I will search it on amazon and ebay.
Thx for this great review.. I loved the samsungs in the past.. but I had to switch to IOS for work.. But I must say this is also very very good...
I've mentioned you and your idea in our latest deadpost. Thanks for the inspiration. Are you on discord?
steemit.com/contest/@whatamidoing/the-deadpost-initiative-week-2-share-your-most-undervalued-work-sbd-prize
I'm on Discord but always forget to log in.. I'll check it out, and thanks.
Okay, so I have one and have to say I love it but need to learn more about it!
Thanks to @sirsensei who gave it to me, Bossman :) Hope the Tip! will work since its an older post, Tip! @tipu:)
Stay awesome!
Good,, l like my post @surfyogi
new phone lunch.
One of the best large screen phone. I really like to watch videos on that phone.
I had a Samsung but an earlier model, I liked it. Samsung Note 4 seems to me good.
I hope samsung is a world wide famous company.which spends the most on research and development.i use and like also samsung product.i expected more better and update product in future.
Wow. I love Samsung . I also use Samsung Smartphone . Congratulations on your cell phone
After the scandal of the galaxy-note-7 i guess
Samsung note series is a closed case :p
wow , what an extensive review . I have never owned one ...
The stylus part really makes things easy to do on the go perfect for creative users and persons who love multitasking with ease !!
It provides excellent features as that of other branded set, yet very very economical in price comparison, That sounds really awesome.
Thank you so much for the post, steem on and stay blissful.
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STOPThx for this great review.. I loved the samsungs in the past.. but I had to switch to IOS for work. you are a great job ...,i proud of you...,
Since some days I use the Samsung Galaxy S8, really a great device with a high quality camera. It's more expensive than yours but I really love it ;-)
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STOPSamsung NOTE 4 is a great one sumsung doing a great job thanks for sharing
$20 a month! What a deal!
Even i am using Note 4.... i had the option to go for Note 5 but i chose Note 4 because it have a better battery capacity and it replaceable, also it have the option of a memory card which Note 5 doesn't.
Congratulation for this new phone !
upvote
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