galaxy note 2 hands on 2

At an event late last week in New York we had a chance to check out some really cool things coming out over the next couple of months. One of those cool new things was Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Note 2. The Galaxy Note 2 is the successor to Samsung’s popular Galaxy Note “phablet” (phone/tablet) that was released earlier this year on AT&T and a few months ago on T-Mobile.

The new Note 2 looks to take this giant superphone to new heights, with a 5.5 inch HD Super AMOLED screen (up from 5.3 inches on the original Note), 1.6 GHZ quad-core processor with 2 GB of RAM (so anything you do– text, watch YouTube, check Facebook, play a game– is fast and doesn’t freeze or lag), 8 megapixel back camera with 1.9 megapixel front camera for HD video chat, NFC and 4G LTE support, and 16 GB of built-in storage (with room for another 64 GB through microSD). Oh, and the Note 2 will also launch with the latest and greatest version of Android, version 4.1 Jelly Bean.

After playing with it for a few minutes we gotta say, it is one very nice phone. Read on for our Teen First Look of the Galaxy Note 2.

We only had a few minutes to check out the Note 2, but if you’re up for an upgrade and want something bigger than the iPhone 5′s 4 inch screen or even the Galaxy S III’s 4.8 inch screen, this looks to be a great choice. The Note 2 felt surprisingly comfortable in our hands, something we weren’t expecting seeing as they made the screen even bigger on this one. It really feels like a bigger version of the S III, which is definitely a complement.

galaxy note 2 hands on 3The HD screen on the Note 2 is equally incredible and one of the best we’ve seen on a phone. Everything we looked at was so clear and spacious that it took us a minute to readjust to our iPhone 4′s 3.5 inch screen.

Software wise, the Note 2 was what you’d expect from a top of the line Android phone running the latest and greatest version of Android, version 4.1 Jelly Bean. Everything we did– like watching a video while at the same time browsing the web– was extremely quick, with no stutters or lags. And while we didn’t have a chance to check out the front camera, we did get to try the back camera and it took some pretty nice looking shots even in the dark room we were in (the pics were much better than the iPhone 4 we used to take the ones you see here). Samsung also updated the S Pen on the Note 2, making it much more responsive and better for well, actually writing notes.

galaxy note 2 hands on 1We couldn’t get any more information about a price or exact release date, but you know that once we have that we’ll make sure to let you know. All in all, while this isn’t the phone for everyone (particularly those with small hands), if you’re looking for a great new phone with a giant screen you should definitely try to wait for this.

The Galaxy Note 2 will be available later this year on AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile.