I picked up one of these the other day as it is marketed for productivity. I have, however, been left feeling dissapointed. My main idea was to use it in meetings, for updating technical documents and taking notes/diagrams during technical meetings - hence the appeal of the split screen "multitasking" and S-Pen.
The problem is that the software feels Beta. Maybe it is just Android, but here are my thoughts so far:
1. The Samsung mail app on the lock screen does not update the number of emails you have waiting if they are deleted elsewhere. If I receive email during the day and delete it at my computer using Outlook, then the lock screen of the tablet still shows that I have 12 or whatever emails waiting. This is frustrating as you have to unlock the device for it to clear meaning you never know at a glance exactly how many emails you have!
2. On iOS you can see a list of emails/notifications/etc in a list on the lock screen. On this tablet you just see a little notification saying you have a new email with the number of new emails (not always correct due to point 1). The rest of the lock screen is basically wasted space just showing a clock! For a productivity device it is a waste. Maybe there is an app out there that can show a list of waiting emails/notifications on the lock screen?
3. The "multi window" advertised feature only works for a select few Samsung apps. In a meeting today I was taking notes and was being asked what dates were available. I thought "Oooh I can bring up the calendar next to the notes screen" but no, you can't bring up the calendar in multi window mode - WHAT?! The calendar is one of the most used things for productivity! You can only bring up Samsung Internet, Videos, Notes, Gallery and Email. Just the Samsung varieties a lot of which are inferior to 3rd party software versions.
4. Due to the layer on the screen for the S Pen, the screen is not as touch sensitive as other devices I have used. I find myself multiple times having to re-tap the screen harder as my first tap didn't regsiter.
5. When using the Video player there is a new feature where you can open the video as a new window overlayed over the rest of the screen. Pretty cool, but then the video you are watching finishes. You click to bring back the video program and there is no way to go back to the video list! The back button just goes to the home screen and no longer works as intended in the program. Because there is no button within the program to open the video list, you have to quit the program and re-open it to get back to the main menu to select a different video
6. After activating the overlay video mode, you will often find the text and screen has a dark contrast to it. I have to turn the device off and on again to get icons and text looking normal again.
This is after a few days of use... Maybe people can comment on if I am missing something? I was going to buy a Note or iPad 3 and I feel for the price you pay, the Note 10.1 is a dissapointment. The screen resoution is very noticeable after coming from a iPhone 4.
The problem is that the software feels Beta. Maybe it is just Android, but here are my thoughts so far:
1. The Samsung mail app on the lock screen does not update the number of emails you have waiting if they are deleted elsewhere. If I receive email during the day and delete it at my computer using Outlook, then the lock screen of the tablet still shows that I have 12 or whatever emails waiting. This is frustrating as you have to unlock the device for it to clear meaning you never know at a glance exactly how many emails you have!
2. On iOS you can see a list of emails/notifications/etc in a list on the lock screen. On this tablet you just see a little notification saying you have a new email with the number of new emails (not always correct due to point 1). The rest of the lock screen is basically wasted space just showing a clock! For a productivity device it is a waste. Maybe there is an app out there that can show a list of waiting emails/notifications on the lock screen?
3. The "multi window" advertised feature only works for a select few Samsung apps. In a meeting today I was taking notes and was being asked what dates were available. I thought "Oooh I can bring up the calendar next to the notes screen" but no, you can't bring up the calendar in multi window mode - WHAT?! The calendar is one of the most used things for productivity! You can only bring up Samsung Internet, Videos, Notes, Gallery and Email. Just the Samsung varieties a lot of which are inferior to 3rd party software versions.
4. Due to the layer on the screen for the S Pen, the screen is not as touch sensitive as other devices I have used. I find myself multiple times having to re-tap the screen harder as my first tap didn't regsiter.
5. When using the Video player there is a new feature where you can open the video as a new window overlayed over the rest of the screen. Pretty cool, but then the video you are watching finishes. You click to bring back the video program and there is no way to go back to the video list! The back button just goes to the home screen and no longer works as intended in the program. Because there is no button within the program to open the video list, you have to quit the program and re-open it to get back to the main menu to select a different video
6. After activating the overlay video mode, you will often find the text and screen has a dark contrast to it. I have to turn the device off and on again to get icons and text looking normal again.
This is after a few days of use... Maybe people can comment on if I am missing something? I was going to buy a Note or iPad 3 and I feel for the price you pay, the Note 10.1 is a dissapointment. The screen resoution is very noticeable after coming from a iPhone 4.
