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Samsung Galaxy Note 7 review

THE GOOD The Galaxy Note 7 is a beautiful, capable Android phone that showcases Samsung's best in design, battery life, speed and features. The 64GB base model leaves you plenty of space for photos, videos and games, and it's a real improvement over 2015's Note 5.

THE BAD It's pricier than almost every other Android phone, and a little heavy. After seven iterations, there are still minor problems writing with the S Pen stylus. Fine particles, like beach sand, can wedge the stylus in its holder.

THE BOTTOM LINE We loved our first few weeks with the Galaxy Note 7, but hold off on this phone until Samsung confirms that its battery issue has been resolved.

editors' Note, September 2, 2016: Samsung has suspended sales of the Note 7 because of a "battery cell issue" that has reportedly caused fires in some units. Samsung will exchange all Note 7 units sold to date, and will share details of the exchange process next week. Meanwhile, local carriers and retailers have begun detailing how they'll handle returns -- reach out to your original merchant for specifics. (US carriers' comments here.)

Because of this, we have stripped the Note 7's rating above.

We'll revisit this review once new units are available, even though our current Note 7 review samples haven't experienced any noticeable battery problems yet. In the meantime, you should check out the very similar Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, and keep an eye on the forthcoming iPhone 7, which we expect Apple to reveal on Wednesday, September 7.

Editors' Note: The original review of the Galaxy Note 7 follows. It was first posted August 16, 2016, and updated August 17 and August 22 with expanded design and comparison sections. Additional updates were made on September 1 and 2 detailing the reports of battery explosions and the subsequent recall.

The 5.7-inch, stylus-slinging Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is a damn fine phone. Its sexy wraparound glass, precise S Pen and brilliant screen would impress anyone, but it's ideal for artists, architects and people who would rather write with their own hand than type on a screen.

It has a gorgeous, symmetrical design that looks particularly stunning in Coral Blue. It takes great photos and has both the water resistance and expandable memory slot that last year's Galaxy Note 5lacked (oh yeah, there is no Note 6). Battery life goes on and on -- but not as long as the Galaxy S7 Edge -- and you can charge up wirelessly.

This is Samsung's ultimate phone, with all the Edge's curved-screen goodies and more: 64GB of storage instead of the Edge's 32GB. An iris scanner for unlocking the phone with your eyes. A good, refreshed take on Android. A USB-C charger port that also charges up your other devices (you should buy a USB 3.1 cable for faster data speeds). New pen tricks to magnify, translate languages and make an animated GIF. A nighttime filter you can schedule to automatically give your weary, screen-staring eyes a break.

The question you have to ask yourself is how much all this is worth to you. Because the Note 7 is one of the most expensive phones you can buy. It's comparable to Apple's large-screen iPhone 6S Plus (the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus are right around the corner), but costs more than the already pricey Edge, and twice the OnePlus 3, a CNET Editor's Choice winner for its excellence as an all-round midprice phone. In the US, promotions that bundle a free memory card or Samsung wearable help soothe the sting.

There's also some question about the Note 7's fragility. Although it survived all but the meanest splats in our dedicated drop test, the screen of my review unit mysteriously cracked in my purse. And reports of manufacturing mayhem that's reportedly caused some units to explode en route to customers is putting the brakes on shipments for now. For the record, none of our three review units has exploded or experienced similar trauma.

As much as I loved my time with the compelling, beautiful, functional Note 7 -- and I really did -- I hesitate to recommend it to anyone who isn't serious about using that digital S Pen to draw, write and navigate on the phone. The S Pen has some minor issues, too. It isn't perfect at everything. Sometimes wielding the stylus feels natural; other times tapping and typing make more sense. (Though it does make really great annotated photos, Snapchat snaps and social media GIFs.)

At the end of the day, most people can easily live without the Note 7, especially with the capable S7 Edge a near doppelganger. If you're ready to move on from the Note 4, switching to the Note 7 gets you more storage and power, an upgradable Android version and a far better S Pen. If you're happy with the Note 5, wait a year. If not, you get waterproofing, expandable storage and software shortcuts on those curved edges. With its elevated features and fee, the Note 7 is for rarified buyers who delight in details. Buy it and you get an excellent phone -- but if you aren't going to use that pen, forget it.

Here's how the Note 7 compares to the S7 Edge, Motorola Moto Z, iPhone 6S and OnePlus 3

SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 7 PRICING AND AVAILABILITY

	Sale date	Price	Colors
US	August 19	$834-$880 (varies by carrier)	Blue, black and silver
UK	September 2	£700*	Blue, black and silver
AU	August 19	AU$1,349	Black, silver and gold

*Provisional, based on one prominent retailer.

Using the new S Pen stylus: Smooth, precise, tricked-out

Without the S Pen, the Note 7 is just a refined S7 Edge with steeper curved sides. This year's digital stylus has a fine, precise point and senses 4,096 levels of pressure, double last year's model. I wrote countless notes and a haiku, doodled all over, even handed the phone to CNET's art director for his professional assessment. And? It's very good. But, compared to a 10-inch tablet, the screen is a small for creating fine art, though it handles notes and more casual drawings very well.

You can sketch some really cool things with the Note 7. CNET's art director, Marc Mendell, put my doodles to shame.Josh Miller/CNET

A few things bothered me with execution. Including the Note Edge, this is the seventh Note phone ever made, so all S Pen maneuvers should be flawless by now. But I still found it hard to paint an entire canvas without on-screen buttons getting in the way (they'll move if you get it right). It's easy to accidentally exit or press unintended controls that mysteriously shift the layout into something you don't want. That's frustrating, especially when you can't figure out how to resume the original canvas.

Here's what's good about the new S Pen:

Navigating with the pen keeps the screen cleaner and reduces repetitive-stress finger strain.
There's now just one Notes app for all your writing, not five separate apps.
You can jot a note from the lock screen, and pin it there.
The stylus won't get stuck in its holder if you put it in upside down (it might actually spring across the room).
The S Pen worked after we dunked the entire phone in 2.5 feet of water for 28 minutes (it's rated for 30 minutes in about 5 feet of water).

Here's what's not so good:

Using the S Pen helps keep gross, oily prints off the screen.Sarah Tew/CNET

You can type faster with your fingers than you can handwrite, keyboard-trace or touch-type with the S Pen. Handwriting mode, where you write with the pen in a specific text field, created many errors, especially if you write quickly.
You can only see the note you pin to the lock screen when you tap an icon...with your finger. It won't respond to the S Pen. (Oh, the irony.) It'd be better to see the note ghosted onto the Always On display.
A few times I worried I'd lose the stylus. Magnetic sides would make it a more loyal sidekick when the S Pen is outside its holder.
At the beach, grains of sand wedged in between the pen and its holder, and wouldn't dislodge with fingernails, a slim knife blade or a flat set of Swiss Army Knife tweezers. It's forever stuck. An outlier case, but it could happen to you, too.

Streamlined design, new iris scanner and waterproofing

The Note 7 looks even better than the already terrific-looking Edge and S7: sleek, symmetrical and sophisticated. Everyone I showed it to agreed. It's heavy compared to other devices, but feels pleasantly compact for its expansive screen. Not small, but smaller than past Note models and easier to hold. At this point, I'm desensitized to the feeling of phones in my back pocket and their weight in my purse; this fits my expectations, and wasn't too big to zip into my jacket pocket.

If you worry about those curved sides getting in the way of S Pen navigation, the good news is that they mostly don't. Mostly. A couple times when drawing to the screen edge, my pen did slip off the sides.

The iris scanner that unlocks the phone with your eyes is fast and accurate, and worked with my glasses and contacts. But if the phone's already lying on the table, picking it up again is inconvenient. Also, Samsung told us it's meant more as a secondary security measure to the fingerprint scanner than for constant use. (And is it even secure?) You might want to use it to unlock the Private Folder, for example.

The Note7 is the first Samsung phone with a USB-C port, which is reversible. That means no squinting and fumbling to see which way is "up". Best yet, it supports USB 3.1, which means you can ask it to charge other devices and transfer data quicker (this won't happen automatically). However, Samsung supplies a USB 2.0 cable in the box. A USB 3.1 cable will get you faster data speed transfer with a compatible USB port, but don't sweat it too much. The standard cord still works fine. Read more aboutthe wonders of USB-C charging here.

On the splish-splash front, the Note 7 survived our two bucket dunk tests, both with and without the S Pen snapped inside. That's 28 minutes in 2.5 feet of water for each test. The phone's rated for 5 feet and up to 30 minutes (also known as IP68), which could break the device. We just want to stress it. Considering the other phones in the "7" family passed our underwater pool test, we feel pretty good about this one -- though Samsung does apply a yearlong warranty if something goes wrong.

Corning's Gorilla Glass 5 tops the Note 7's stunning screen (it uses AMOLED technology versus LCD, as always, to achieve high contrast). This version of the chemically strengthened glass promises to withstand 1.6 meter drops, or 5.25 feet, but don't get too excited. That's only Corning's promise for a straight sheet of the stuff; it makes no claims once a devicemaker has shaped the screen like Samsung does here. Prepare to buy a screen protector and a case to guard your investment.

Sleeker Android, with Nougat ahead

The Note 7 runs Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, but will upgrade to Android Nougat down the line. Samsung's refreshed custom layer is a more colorful, trimmed down take on its TouchWiz software interface, and feels cleaner and easier to read. If you don't like digging around, simply search the app tray and settings menu for what you need.

There are bonuses sprinkled here and there, like adding apps to home screen folders with a tap (rather than a drag-and-drop), and more visually accessible data in subsettings like the battery and memory meters. The setting to keep the phone from turning on in your pocket or bag is clutch.

Camera: New gestures, great photos

The Note has the same cameras as the S7 and S7 Edge: 12 megapixels on the back and 5 up front. Like those phones, this is one of the best all-around cameras we've used. If you're worried that the Note 7's 12-megapixel camera pales in comparison to the the Note 5's 16-megapixel shooter, don't be. 16 sounds more impressive than 12, but as we keep saying, image quality has a lot to do with processing and light.

Just like the S7 and S7 Edge, the Note 7 takes clear, bright, crisp photos in indoor, outdoor and low-light settings. Selfies are generally good, too, especially when the screen lights up as a flash for dark environments. The extra-wide selfie works like panorama mode and is impractical for group pics that require others to stay still. There are tons of filters and editing features; shortcuts make photos easy to share.

The camera app gets a jolt with new gestures. Swipe up and down to switch between front and rear cameras, and swipe to the sides to bring up filters and effects. This usually works well, and I liked the instant gratification of previewing the filter effects before choosing the one I want. But my fingers kept accidentally tapping the Back and Recent buttons, which kicked me out of the app. Sometimes my swipes zoomed the photo or slid a vignette control instead of calling up the other menus or switching cameras. Mistakes are time-wasting and annoying.

Battery and speed are great, but a bit behind S7 Edge

The Note 7 has many of the same hardware guts as the S7 Edge, but performance and battery life slightly lag (see full specs list below). Its barely smaller battery ran 2 hours shorter in our looping video drain test; a 17 hours, 40 minute average versus the Edge's 19 hours, 40 minutes. In real-world tests, I got a solid day between charges and topped up in between using either a wireless charging pad (sold separately) or through USB-C cables at work and at home. Samsung gives you one in the box; I recommend buying a spare.

Depending on your region, the Note 7 comes with either Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 chip or Samsung's housemade Exynos processor. I tested the Qualcomm version, and my colleague in Asia ran benchmarks on the Exynos version as well. Both scored high compared to most phones, but weirdly, the Qualcomm version was a little lower on the graphical benchmark test Geekbench 3 than the S7 Edge.

In real-life tests, the Qualcomm-outfitted Note 7 is a pretty snappy device. It gamely handled fast-paced, graphics-heavy games, launched apps and downloaded and uploaded content quickly. But when I started using the drawing tools heavily, it lagged. Not much, but enough to notice.

Be aware, a security flaw in Qualcomm's 820 chip may affect this phone and millions of other Androids.

Note 7 versus the competition

I compare S7 Edge, Motorola Moto Z, iPhone 6S and OnePlus 3 in-depth here. Also a quick breakdown, as well as how the specs stack up, is below.

Note 7 versus S7 Edge: The Note 7 costs more, has the stylus and doubles the Edge's onboard storage. However, microSD cards are affordable, and if all you really want is a large screen, the S7 Edge does a fantastic job for less. Get the Note 7 if you'll use the S Pen. Otherwise, go for the S7 Edge.

Every Note phone ever made.Josh Miller/CNET

Note 7 versus Note 5: Compared to the Note 5, it brings a more sensitive and powerful pen, water-resistance and an external storage slot on a sexy, curved screen design. If you can be patient, it's financially prudent to wait.

Note 7 versus Note 4 and earlier: The Note 7 is a great upgrade for any Note older than a year. Seriously, everything is better.

Note 7 versus OnePlus 3: You can buy two OnePlus 3s for the price of a single Note. Our favorite midprice Android phone lacks the Note 7's features largesse, but it does share specs like 64GB of built-in storage and an identical processor. Get the Note 7 if you want a pen plus expandable storage and the OnePlus 3 if you're happy with an all-arounder. If you're looking for large-screen luxe, the S7 Edge will do.

Note 7 versus iPhone 6S Plus: With the iPhone 7 phones coming in a matter of weeks, don't even bother. Wait to see what that large-screen phone holds, and keep in mind that the 6S Plus' price will drop after the iPhone 7 Plus goes on sale.

COMPARING PHABLETS

	Samsung Galaxy Note 7	Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge	Apple iPhone 6S Plus	OnePlus 3
Display size, resolution	5.7-inch; 2,560x1,440 pixels	5.5-inch; 2,560x1,440 pixels	5.5-inch; 1,920x1,080 pixels	5.5-inch; 1,920x1,080 pixels
Pixel density	518ppi	534ppi	401ppi	401ppi
Dimensions (Inches)	6x2.9x0.3 in	5.9x2.9x0.3 in	6.2x3.1x0.29 in	6.01x2.94x0.29 in
Dimensions (Millimeters)	153.5x73.9x7.9 mm	150.9x72.6x7.7 mm	158x78x7.3 mm	152.7x74.7x7.35 mm
Weight (Ounces, Grams)	6 oz; 169 g	5.5 oz; 157 g	6.8 oz; 192 g	5.57 oz; 158 g
Mobile software	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow	Android 6.0 Marshmallow	Apple iOS 9	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
Camera	12-megapixel	12-megapixel	12-megapixel	16-megapixel
Front-facing camera	5-megapixel	5-megapixel	5-megapixel	8-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K	4K	4K
Processor	2.15GHz + 1.6GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor (or Exynos, depending on region)	2.15GHz + 1.6GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapgradon 820 processor (or Exynos, depending on region)	Apple A9 chip (64-bit)	2.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820
Storage	64GB	32GB, 64GB (varies by region)	16GB, 64GB, 128GB	64GB
RAM	4GB	4GB	2GB	6GB
Expandable storage	200GB	200GB	None	None
Battery	3,500mAh (nonremovable)	3,600mAh (nonremovable)	2,750mAh (nonremovable)	3,000mAh (nonremovable)
Fingerprint sensor	Home button	Home button	Home button	Home button
Connector	USB C	Micro-USB	Lightning	USB-C
Special features	S Pen stylus, water-resistant, wireless charging	Water-resistant, wireless charging	N/A	Notifications toggle, dual-SIM, Dash Charging
Price off-contract (USD)	AT&T: $880; T-Mobile: $849; U.S. Cellular: $834	AT&T: $795, Sprint: $750, T-Mobile: $780, Verizon: $792, US Cellular: $780	$749 (16GB); $849 (64GB); $949 (128GB)	$399
Price (GBP)	£700	£639	£619 (16GB); £699 (64GB); £789 (128GB)	£329
Price (AUD)	AU$1,349	AU$1,249	AU$1,229 (16GB); AU$1,379 (64GB); AU$1,529 (128GB)	Converts to AU$530