All the Bells and Whistles of GALAXY Note II

Since before it was even released, GALAXY Note Ⅱ was at the center of attention across the world. Now that it has actually been released, there is continued interest in the improved performance of GALAXY Note II. Today we’re going to explore the cutting-edge features of this not-your-average-smartphone device in more detail, and let you know which functions have seen some serious upgrades.

Innovative S Pen with S Note

GALAXY Note Ⅱ drew much attention for its strengthened S Pen and S Note. Let’s see how the basic pen settings have changed from the original GALAXY Note.

Pen Basic Settings

The original GALAXY Note came with 4 different pen styles, but the new GALAXY Note II adds an additional option, bringing your total number of pen choices to 5 styles.

Also, to make sketching easier, GALAXY Note II allows you to save your top pen settings, so it’s similar to having a cup of your favorite pens on your desk.  You don’t have to enter the pen setting menu every time you change pen types while writing or sketching in S Note. You can pre-configure the color and pen type to use, and just press the button on S Pen to switch to between settings.

To do this, just select the desired color and pen type, and press the “+” icon to add them to your favorite settings as in the figure above. After you add them all, you’re freer to sketch by just pressing the S Pen button to change settings. Isn’t that convenient?

Color Picker

Another new option for GALAXY Note II is the color picker option, which will really enhance some of your more creative works. If you are a Photoshop user, you have probably already seen a feature like this. The color picker allows you to pick a color from a photo or image and use that color to draw with. Now you have access to a greater variety of color options!

Sketch Effect

Continuing in this artistic vein, the GALAXY Note II now allows you to  easily apply various effects to images in S Note. Auto outline, color sketch, charcoal (or fusain), pastel sketch, pencil sketch and other such effects are provided for you to apply to images. In this way,  S Note can help anybody create expert-level works. Before we look at the sketch effects more, let’s take a look at the Idea Sketch feature.  Using Idea Sketch before Sketch Effects will make your ideas and drawings look even more professional.

Idea Sketch

Idea sketch is a function that can insert an image right onto the note by entering the name of the object from clip art or downloaded images in S Note. Images that you’ve drawn and saved can also be used.

To use the Idea Sketch feature, first select the Insert icon as you can see in the picture above and select Idea Sketch.

A blank screen will appear and prompt you to enter a category name or the name of the desired image you want to use. For example, if you enter ‘fruit,’ you will obtain images of objects corresponding to ‘fruit’ such as ‘apple,’ ‘grape,’ or ‘orange.’

Select an image out of the search results as desired, and that image will be inserted in S Note.

As the image is inserted, the setting window will appear as in the figure above. If you want to try out a sketch effect, now is the perfect time, and you can select the option here.

How about fusain, a charcoal effect? The S Note above shows the oranges with the fusain effect.

Idea sketch means that you can get ideas from your mind onto the S Note as fast as possible.  

Multi Window

GALAXY Note II support multitasking function with 141mm screen. This function allows using any two functions such as video, camera, S note at the same time. For example, you can activate both Youtube video and S Note, and choose one or both to use.

Air View

'Air View' is a function that allows you to preview content from the list page just by hovering the S Pen near the display. You don’t have to click on each icon to get the basic information.

For example, in the image list, you can hold the S Pen near the display and preview the images in a folder without actually opening the folder and clicking through each image. Also, if you hold the S Pen over a timeline during video playback, that point in time can be previewed.

Currently, Air View can be used in video player, email, gallery, and scheduler, and it will be updated to support more apps.

Intelligent Context Awareness

GALAXY NoteⅡis pretty intuitive and it will automatically show you different home screens depending on the situation even if you do not select the desired function. If you pull out the S Pen from GALAXY NoteⅡ, the home screen will show you various templates and S Notes. Also, if you plug in your earphones, the music player, video player and such will appear on the home screen.

One cool feature is especially suitable for travelling professionals – if you are abroad, the home screen shows you both the time in Korea and the local time without special settings.

Finally, the home screen provides a function which sorts the installed apps and menus in apps according to the frequency of use. For example, if you are the type of user who frequently attaches photos to instant messages, the photo icon will appear at the top.

Glance View

Next up is Glance View, which allows you to check key information without pressing a single button.  With GALAXY NoteⅡ, you can keep your screen locked and still check missed calls, new messages, battery status, currently playing music, status bar, and time/date.

What you do is simple – with the screen off, place your palm near the ‘proximity sensor’ on the top left to display the basic information.

Even while using the phone’s other features, you can still check your important data without pressing anything or losing what you’re working on.

Quick Command

GALAXY Note II also features quick command functions that allow you to run your favorite apps with a few strokes of the S Pen, and without the need to go through the menu screen.

On the GALAXY Note II screen, hold the S Pen button and draw a line from bottom up. Then the screen in the above figure will appear. Now enter the keyword of the command you want. If you want a web search, write “? Weather” and it will jump to the web browser.

Now let’s send an email really fast. Just like above, open command screen and write “@ name.” For example, say James. It will say that the address and name is not set up yet. Hit OK and it will show you various email servers. Choose the one you like and set up your email. From then on sending emails is a breeze!

All of GALAXY Note II’s new functions are there to improve user convenience, and we think Samsung did a pretty good job, and this article is just scratching the surface.  GALAXY Note II features many more upgrades that we strongly encourage you to check out.  This advanced technology is sure to make your mobile experience smarter.

* All functionality, features, specifications and other product information provided in this document including, but not limited to, the benefits, design, pricing, components, performance, availability, and capabilities of the product are subject to change without notice or obligation.