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Samsung Galaxy Note 3: 3 Key Things We Still Don’t Know

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Yesterday’s Samsung Galaxy Note 3 launch cleared up many of the questions that consumers had about the Galaxy Note 2 successor including those about its hardware, software and more. However, for some Galaxy Note 3 buyers, there are still some key pieces of information missing about Samsung’s upcoming flagship.

As expected, Samsung took the stage yesterday in Berlin, Germany and announced a new Galaxy Note smartphone dubbed, Samsung Galaxy Note 3. The device, on paper, looks to be a solid addition to Samsung’s smartphone lineup and a worthy successor to the company’s successful Galaxy Note 2 from last year.

At the event, Samsung announced many of the key Galaxy Note 3 details, details that the company hopes will entice buyers into placing an order for the Galaxy Note 3 ahead of its release date.

Read: What the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Says About the Galaxy S5.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-Fo5x7ZIPCM

Those details include its screen size and resolution, the dimensions of ifs form factor, the intricacies of the Galaxy Note 3’s 13MP camera, its enhanced S Pen and multitasking features, its carriers, and yes, even its release date in many of the major battlegrounds, including the United States. Indeed, Samsung put most of the Galaxy Note 3 on display for consumers, key word being most.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 may be official and it may have had many of its key details announced, but there still are several key features that Samsung, and its U.S. carriers, left out of yesterday’s announcement.

Here, we take a look at what Samsung didn’t announce yesterday and what Galaxy Note 3 details remain unknown ahead of the device’s upcoming release date.

Specific Release Dates

Samsung announced that the Galaxy Note 3 would be hitting over 140 regions around the world on September 25th. Some of those regions, including the UK, have already seen pre-orders for the Galaxy Note 3 arrive, well ahead of schedule.

Unfortunately, Samsung did not use exact timing for the Galaxy Note 3 release in the United States and Japan, only saying that those two countries would be getting the device sometime in October.

This gives carriers a ton of breathing room as far as the Galaxy Note 3 release is concerned. We could, in theory see them release the device well over a month from now at the end of October. We could even see them release it after October given that we saw the Galaxy S4 release pegged for April in the U.S. and we saw one carrier, Verizon release it in May. It’s wide open.

Verizon Galaxy Note 3 pre-orders start tomorrow ahead of an unknown release date.

Verizon Galaxy Note 3 pre-orders start tomorrow ahead of an unknown release date.

We’ve seen carriers throw their support behind the Galaxy Note 3 though we haven’t seen a single one confirm a specific release date which could lead to the same confusion and misinformation that we’ve seen plague numerous Galaxy launches in the past.

We’re hoping that Verizon answers a ton of question tomorrow when its pre-order for the Galaxy Note 3 kicks off but even then, it’s possible that we could see the carrier offer the pre-order without a specific release date.

Price

While we know that at least some carriers will get the Galaxy Note 3 in October, there are two things that remain completely mysterious. Yesterday, we didn’t see any carriers reveal just how much they will be charging for the Galaxy Note 3.

Historically, the device has arrived with a $299.99 price tag and we expect that to be the case this time around though if that’s true, carriers and Samsung aren’t saying.

The Galaxy Note 2 was $299.99. Will the Galaxy Note 3 be $299.99 as well? We don't know.

The Galaxy Note 2 was $299.99. Will the Galaxy Note 3 be $299.99 as well? We don’t know.

Unlike the release date, we should have answers to this puzzle soon as Verizon is unlikely going to offer a blind pre-order for Galaxy Note 3 users. If the price tomorrow is $299.99 on-contract expect that across the board, if it’s more expensive than that, it’s possible that Verizon might be on the high-end while other carriers like Sprint and U.S. Cellular try and undercut it.

So while it’s possible that this will remain a mystery for most carriers, we should see Verizon partially solve it tomorrow.

Storage Options

Yesterday, Samsung confirmed that it will be offering 32GB and 64GB Galaxy Note 3 models to carriers. This is a change from the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB format that we’ve seen with the past two Galaxy Note models.

What this means is that the base model in the U.S. is likely going to be 32GB, though, we still don’t know if that will mean an increased price tag or if a 64GB model will accompany it to shelves.

It's not clear if carriers will offer a 64GB model.

It’s not clear if carriers will offer a 64GB model.

We’ve seen carriers pick and choose, most recently with the Galaxy S4, so it’s possible that we could see both variants emerge on U.S. carriers. Unfortunately, we still don’t have any idea.

Tomorrow’s Verizon pre-order should give us a hint though as we’ve seen, carriers also have launched larger storage options later on, well after the initial launch date. Hopefully they clear this up from the start this time around.

Making Strides

Even with the mysteries, we have to give credit where credit is due. This year’s Galaxy Note 3 launch was the cleanest that we’ve seen from Samsung. No, the event wasn’t perfect, but the company included many of the important details, something that wasn’t always the case in the past.

Samsung’s events are still not on par with Apple’s, the latter typically offers solid U.S. release dates and pricing, but the fact that we’ve seen Verizon take charge with the Galaxy Note 3 is a sign that Samsung is making headway.

Perhaps next year, with the Galaxy S5, we’ll finally see the company issue all of the pertinent details at launch. It would certainly resonate with consumers.

5 Comments

5 Comments

  1. UKTech

    09/05/2013 at 1:48 pm

    I must have seen a different unpacked. The one I saw jumped backwards and forwards between products giving skimpy details and boring arty video inserts. I’ve now managed to discover that it still has a microsd slot, the battery is removable, it has ac wireless and has a horrid usb power/data port. I’ve also found a variety of og contract prices here in UK ranging from £599 to £648.

    Even if these details are not clearly mentioned during the unpacked event itself, they should be readily available and in detail on the company website. Last night after thr event had ended the Samsung site was still telling us how wonderful the new S4 was. No mention of the Note3 or Gear. That was left to their facebook page which aftrr many many requests for tech details snd pricing did respond after an hour or so with some sketchy info.

  2. Felix

    09/05/2013 at 11:10 pm

    until I saw the paycheck which had said $8709, I be certain that my mother in law woz like they say actualey erning money part-time at their computer.. there neighbour has been doing this for less than eighteen months and a short time ago repayed the loans on there villa and purchased a great new Maserati. look what i found…… https://gg.gg/gkta

  3. Adam

    09/06/2013 at 12:27 pm

    I pre-ordered mine (for Verizon) “Off-Contract” this morning for $754.94 (including taxes-I don’t want to give up my Unlimited Data ;-) ). My delivery date is set for 10 OCT 13, but the sales representative said it will most likely arrive a day or two early. Hope that helps someone.

  4. Jeff

    09/07/2013 at 8:12 pm

    So how ugly are they going to make it with the Verizon logo on it, how much storage are they gonna fill with bloatware garbage, and why pre-order after the game they played with the S4? I’ll wait a few months for them to release the 64.

  5. Andy Turfer

    09/12/2013 at 3:10 am

    I live in the UK and want this beast of a handset. I’m going to purchase mine SIM free. What concerns me is I have no idea how to tell what CPU will come with the handset. I want the model that houses the Snapdragon 800, not the Exynos model. I guess I’ll have to wait until it’s released and I can walk in to a store to check the specs first.

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