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JUST A REVIEW OF SOME OF MY THOUGHTS ON THE NOTE 2, NOT A FULL BLOWN CRITIQUE: Switched, after many years, from APPLE to SAMSUNG. It took guts, my friends. I am totally immersed in all things APPLE, have been since my first Apple IIc computer. Owned desktops, Mac clone Power Computing desktops, every ipod, several imacs, mac minis, iphones....you get the picture. I live in that "closed" but very efficient environment. I was, as of two weeks ago, a Samsung/Android virgin. ----- I got my samsung galaxy note II from Best Buy (they offered a $75 coupon which may, at this writing, still be available), but online purchases were backed up a month so they found me a store in my zip code that had one: 86th and Lex in NYC. Salesperson there, in a huge a crowded store, told me it was the first Note II they had sold. ----- I was afraid that I wouldn't have access to the many apps I had grown to love on my iphone. I have found them all, and more. I was nervous that the criticisms of the "plastic-y" build would be true. Although the snap off back of the Note II is ridiculously thin and flimsy, once it is snapped into place, the phone feels solid. I was warned that it's too big! blah blah blah....It is not too big. After two hours of playing with the Note II, I picked up my iphone and....laughed. Yes, it is THAT easy to become accustomed to the perfect (for me) size of this phone. If you can't reach the dial pad, keyboard, shortcuts with one hand....just go into settings and select "One Handed Operation". Brilliant. It feels great, slips into top pocket, or jacket, inside coat pocket. (although it will fit, don't sit on it in back pants pocket) I think it needs a cover, ordered one for 10 bucks on ebay. The back of the phone is way too slippery and slides too easily. Get a cover that offers some friction but minimally increases the size of the phone. Apparently, Samsung fixed all of the gripes from the original Note. I don't know, but they have thought of a lot of great stuff. ----- Ordered a 64GB SD card on which I will store mounds of music, vids, and pix. THat's a lot of storage space. They say that Apple does not offer memory upgrades on the iphone because SD cards are too slow and would compromise the speed of the machine. Yes, but the new microSDXC Memory Card Ultra Class 10 UHS-I from SanDisk is rated FAST and built for this phone. $60 at B&H Photo. I have to say that snapping off the back of my phone to reveal battery, simm, and SD card slot is an incredibly satisfying experience for an iphone guy. ----- Battery capacity is huge, but don't get too excited. With 4g, bluetooth, 5.5" screen, etc....it lasts a day, just like any other phone. The thing I've discovered that does improve battery life somewhat, is getting yourself an app killer. I have ADVANCED TASK MANAGER. Just kills the unused but running apps and widgets. Also incredibly useful: the pull down notifications window. From any screen, swipe down from top to reveal a list of notifications from all sources: email, Facebook, app updates. Just view them, swipe them to the right and they are gone. Notification light on upper left hand corner of phone reminds you to check. It's instantaneous and handy. ----- Transferring CONTACTS from my MacBook took some investigation, but they are all there. There are also apps to help you retrieve all of your SMS messages, which was very helpful. I haven't figured out the calendar transfer yet...but I will. ----- Updating/syncing happens OTA all the time. You can, of course, control this. Samsung offers KIES and KIES AIR, a program you place on your laptop to facilitate transfers to and from your phone. Also available, Android File Transfer, much more basic but useable. I had trouble when both were on my laptop at the same time. There are loads of options in the PLAY STORE. ----- SUM: Note II is beautiful, sleek, and fast. I have not become proficient with the stylus so you will have to look elsewhere for opinions on that part of this phone. Camera is cool, but do I think the pictures are great because of the luscious screen? I don't know. Everything looks good on this phone. It's fun and I'm glad I took the leap.