My Next SGNote: Sony Xperia Z Ultra

Alright, for those who followed.this blog, you know that I'm a suckered for Samsung Galaxy Note N7000, aka the original Galaxy Note. In recent years, that is the smartphone that I used for over 18 months until it became too obsolete that everything become unbearably slow to operate.

2013 is probably the slowest year for me in regards of Android smartphones, except for 2 smartphones: Asus Padfone 2 and Sony Xperia Z series.

I must say, those 2 enticed me with their creative solutions that I decided to buy Asus. Unfortunately, that was a decision that I regretted due to hardware flaws and weaknesses.

2014, I went backward and purchase the abdominal Sony Xperia Z Ultra, this 1920x1080-true-HD-6.44"-screen-2.2ghz-quad-core is the current record breaker of thinnest and biggest screen for a phone category.

As an old fan.of SGNote, stylus writing capabilities and features to support it are something that I yearned when using Asus Padrone 2 or my just retired Polytron Quadra HD. Sony creatively put an incredible amount features to their Z series, including their giant Z Ultra. Those features made my SGNote becomes a museum piece.

Sony Xperia Z Ultra exceptional and useful features (that I know of, and I believe I will find more soon enough):

- Reading/Accessing portable hard disk
Z Ultra ability to access portable hard disk makes my life easier. I don't rely on transferring files using flash memory and computer anymore on the go.  However, accessing big capacity (1TB or above) portable HDD is proven to be hardwork for the unit since the limited electricity power Z Ultra has. Connection easily severed and lost power several time. Looks like there is a limit how long Z Ultra can.supply power to the HDD unit.

- Stylus replacement: pencil, pen, or anything made of iron
Did I hear a "Huh?" Well, it is unique. Sony decided that the users of Z Ultra are people who like pens and pencils so forget the stylus and go straight to use pen and pencil as stylus instead.  Brilliant decision with some risks like screen scratches etc. Solution, screen protector.
I also found out that Samsung C-Pen (not the same as SGNote's faithfull S-Pen), which uses metalized rubber, work like they were born for each other on Z Ultra.
With this feature, users can freely use almost anything to write, annotate or sketch on Z Ultra. Why bother buying a stylus then? Well, users will still need stylus since pens and pencils will scratch Z Ultra screen surface in the long run.

- NFC Easy Connection
Whoa, Sony pretty much exploded NFC trends by applying easy connection features that now tons of NFC accessories are now available in the market. Samsung and HTC have NFC features.but they don't really put NFC as part of their main strategic feature.

- Dust and Water Proof
Sony might not be the first, but they certainly the one to  explode water and dust proof smartphones worldwide. I would.say shame on Motorola for not exploring Defy series further. Now, Samsung has noticed the.Zip series success and launch Galaxy S5 with water and dust proof feature.

- Power Management
HTC One was the first high end smartphone that featured this newer unique feature, however HTC limits this features to only One series. Sony produces almost every middle and top range of their products with Sony's stylized Power Management. Of course, HTC in turn quickly add more products with this feature and Lenovo follow suits to flood the market with affordable Android smartphones with Power Management features pre-installed.

- Being a tall unit with almost 2 cm/1 inch space on top and bottom of the screen means Z Ultra is the current best suited Android for gaming and multimedia consumption

What else can I say, last year I.made a mistake on deciding to buy Asus. This year Z Ultra has gone down in price and become my new favorite smartphone.

Of course there are some drawbacks:
- Painfully gigantic size for a.phone
- Flaps here and flaps there mean extra efforts required to access USB and the rest of the connections
- Glass (front and back) means scratches and fingerprint magnet, self explanatory here, Sony people might talk to Apple people a bit too much
- New screen means trip and error, luckily Z Ultra uses the 2nd generation 1920x1080 HD Triluminous Bravia technology so it is superior to the previous ones on Z, but not necessarily better than IPS and Super Amoled

Final words on my first 1 week living with Z Ultra, I fell in love and Z Ultra is definitely my concubine. Please don't tell my wife.

SGNote ICS Updates: S Note

Okay, this one update is a bit confusing at first since I mistaken it for just an upgrade of S Memo. Apparently, Samsung gives their Galaxy Note users easier access for creativity in business as well as fun.



As you can see, the first screen pretty much describe how S Note provides easy access with templates for your creativity. There are some help guides that you can read for introduction.

In the provided template folder, you will find 7 templates that you can use immediately. You can access it by click/touching the '+' sign on the top right corner of the S Note.



So let's see those templates closer.

The most useful template I use is Meeting Note template because I have too mmny meetings.



You can use 3 methods of input, which are very easy to use:
- typing on soft keyboard on screen
- write using S Pen and keep it as image note



- and the third method is handwriting recognition, basically this method SGNote will recognize your handwriting and convert it to typed letter.



So the handwritten word 'What' will be saved as the typed word 'What'.


Then there is Note and Idea Note. This one is basically an enhancement of S Memo. In Idea Note you will be able to use explore the shapes and formula recognition with the handwriting recognition features.



In this template you can make anything.


Then Magazine template. As you can see, this one is more on the web-based magazine format. You can add video and pictures along in here.




If you travel a lot, you will appreciate the Travel Note template. You can get more than just photos, you can add your own comments and experience.




For those who likea to cook, Recipe template is a handy one.



And you will appreciate to keep your diary in more colorful format with Diary template.





So S Note is an app where you can express your own creativity without limitation. The provided templates are only an exercise to give you an idea how far you can go.

Be creative and be expressive.