Samsung unveiled a new category of device at IFA in Berlin: the Galaxy Note. Half phone, half mini-tablet, it featured a massive 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED display (1280×800, 285ppi), a dual-core 1.4GHz processor, an 8-megapixel rear camera, a 2-megapixel front-facing camera, a pressure-sensitive S Pen stylus, HSPA+ and LTE support, 2GB internal storage, and microSD expansion. Software was Android 2.3 Gingerbread with Samsung services including Social Hub, Readers Hub, Music Hub, S Memo, and ChatON. At 9.65mm thick, it fit in a pocket.
The S Pen was the defining feature. It enabled accurate sketching and handwriting capture, and was deeply integrated into native apps for editing photos and videos, annotating screenshots, and sending handwritten notes via text, email, and ChatON. S Memo brought together pictures, voice recordings, typed text, handwritten notes, and drawings into a single application. Samsung planned to release an S Pen SDK for developers.
No carrier, pricing, or launch dates were shared at announcement.
