 "Rumour round-up: Samsung Galaxy Note 3")
Samsung is on a roll after the double Mega launches yesterday, but the big one is undoubtedly the Galaxy Note 3. The Korean smartphone leader is expected to unveil the third-generation Galaxy Note in September at IFA in Berlin, just like it did the Galaxy Note 2 last year. We have been hearing lots of rumours about the Note 3 when it comes to the display, camera and other software features. Let’s take a look at what we know so far from the speculations.
Display
One thing is a given. The display on the Note 3 will be massive, if the Mega 6.3 is any indication. Samsung is just testing the waters with the Mega 6.3 to see how well such a massive display is received in the market. At just .9 inches smaller than the smallest Samsung Galaxy Tab, the Mega 6.3 could be the blueprint for the Note 3. Many rumours have suggested that the Note 3 will have a
display measuring 6 inches.
This Note 3 concept looks right on the money (Image credit: uva7 dance)
If the Note 3 does not have a full HD display, we will eat our hats. It is highly unlikely that Samsung will not give the Super AMOLED full HD treatment to the Note 3 considering every new flagship is launching with that resolution. A 720p display on a larger panel will actually be a step back from the Note 2, since the pixel density will drop. This was one of the main criticisms with the Note 2, which had a slightly lower resolution display than the first-gen phablet, but Samsung changed the sub-pixel arrangement on the Note 2 to make the display denser.
Design
Given that Samsung has a full-metal S4 Active in the works, we would give an arm and a leg to see a metal or aluminium-clad Note 3. We have heard that
three prototypes of the Note 3 have been doing the rounds at various production facilities and with major mobile carriers. One of the three is said to be a metal-based body, while another (least likely to be approved) has a flexible display. In all likelihood, though, Samsung would want to solidify its design language as seen in the new Galaxy S4 and Mega smartphones and go with a similar aesthetic for the Note 3. Expect the Note 3 to be slimmer and more compact than the Note 2, just like the S4 is in comparison to the S3.
What will be the camera on the Note 3 like?
Camera
The Note 3’s camera has come up in the rumour mill most recently. Word is that Samsung will be adding
OIS capabilities to the phablet, which should help improve the images and videos taken using its main camera. The company is also reportedly testing a new way to
capture panoramas, called the S-Orb, which is a riff on the whole Google Photosphere feature. S-Orb will let users take pictures of everything around them and stitch them up into one big spherical panorama. When it comes to the actual camera, we doubt that Samsung will be putting in anything less than the 13 megapixel shooter on the S4, which has proven to be quite capable in all conditions.
Software
All the new TouchWiz features will most definitely be included in the Note 3. We are more excited to see how Samsung will take forward the S-Pen functionality in the next-gen Note. We expect to see a pumped-up version of Air View and a stylus-enabled Air Gestures implementation. In addition, the Note 3 will get the camera-related goodies such as Sound & Shot, Drama Shot and other S4-like features, which have also been seen in the new Mega phones.
Processor
We expect the Note 3 to have an Exynos 5 Octa SoC in some regions and a Snapdragon 600 or 800 CPU in others due to their integrated LTE support. The Exynos 5 Octa SoC is based on the big.LITTLE architecture, developed by ARM and is currently put to use in the Galaxy S4 in some regions including the Indian variant. It features four ARM Cortex-A7 cores and four Cortex-A15 cores, which alternate processing duties depending on the task at hand. This arrangement is said to provide high performance without adversely affecting battery life. Some rumours say that the Note 3 will get 3GB of RAM, which seems excessive to us, but will be surely interesting if that actually pans out.
Exynos 5 Octa will most likely power the Note 3
The big news in terms of GPU is that the Note 3 is said to be getting the next iteration of Mali GPU. The Mali 450 GPU will have 8 cores, which will drastically improve the graphics performance.
As with any rumours, take these abovementioned bits with a heavy dose of salt. After all, the Note 3 could be entirely another beast from these speculations. But we want to know what you want to see in the Galaxy Note 3? Let us know in the comments.
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