List Price: $649.99
Sale Price: $422.00
Today's Bonus: 35% Off
Full disclosure, I purchased the i9200 from an eBay seller as there are no 16gb versions available for this device on amazon. Price was four seventy nine for the 16gb version. I found the 8gb version of this phone severely limited the amount of apps I could download. 16gb is perfect as I could download multiple 3D HD games like dead trigger, need for speed and ashphalt hd without filling up the phones internal storage. I also purchased the i9205 LTE version from Amazon about a month ago but I had to return that device since it had some issues.
I'm a Galaxy Note user who has had the note since September of 2011. When the Note 2 came out I decided to skip it because I didn't think it was that worthy of an upgrade. So the Note has been my primary device for almost 2 years.
Like you, I discovered the Mega 6.3 and began reading up on it and watching video reviews online. My initial worry was that it wouldn't be as fast as the current flagships and that I'd regret buying a device with last years specs.
My reasoning to go ahead an purchase the Mega was based on the fact that to me it would feel like an upgrade since I was coming from my old Note.
After using the Mega all my fears of it being underpowered and slow were gone. The device has a large bright crisp LCD display which I can now see clearly in daylight! The 1.5 GB RAM is handling my multitasking very well as I've yet seen a launcher redraw occur. The device is very snappy and has had no issues playing large MKV files. One of the coolest features that I was excited about was the IR port. Now you can control all your living room devices with your phone. The i9200 camera is on par with the galaxy note 2. For some reason the mega 6.3 i9205 that I tested had a poor performing camera. This i9200 performs much better, not sure if different firmware is the reason. Either way I'm much happier with the camera quality on the i9200.
The big win with this phone is the sheer amount of real estate you get. The original Note fits within the Mega 6.3's display area. You aren't just getting a phone when you get a Mega 6.3 you are also getting a small tablet. This device is a true Phablet. While the Note 1 and 2 were big devices the Mega elevates the browsing and media viewing experience to a true tablet level experience. If this is what you are interested in then I highly recommend picking up this device. So to recap, this device has a great display, versatile form factor, decent camera and great performance.
And I hope I don't understate that the battery life is AMAZING!. I'm used to phones beeping low battery warnings around 5-6pm. With the Mega I no longer have to worry about my battery life. I literally cannot kill the battery. By the time I hook up the charger at night its 11PM and the Mega still has 20% battery left. And this is with HEAVY usage. I can take the Mega off charger at 6am and still have battery left in the very late evening.
If you are trying to win the antutu, quadrant benchmark wars then I suggest you stay away from the Mega as the S4 is the current flagship which is putting up crazy benchmark numbers.
If you are looking for a large crisp HD display with last years flagship specs and excellent real world performance then the Mega 6.3 is your device. The only thing that should hold you back from this purchase is whether you want to wait for the Note 3 which will have the S-Pen, better camera and a 1080P display. The Mega 6.3 I picked up was the 16gb version for four seventy nine shipped from e bay. The unlocked international note 3 will start at mid $700's most likely.
I can personally confirm that this phone (i9200) does work on AT&T 3G and 2G frequencies. My Mega 6.3 i9200 is running on AT&T 3G HSPA+. Unlike the unlocked Note N7000 and Galaxy S II I didn't have to enter any APN settings when I inserted my AT&T SIM. The Mega automatically defined the proper AT&T APN settings and the 3G was working great. You will need a MICRO SIM for this phone. If you have a standard sized SIM you can either cut it down to MICRO SIM size or visit an AT&T store and ask for a MICRO SIM.
The Mega 6.3 GT i9200 will NOT work with ANY AMERICAN LTE (4G) frequency. In North America we use LTE frequencies 700, 800, 1900, 1700, 2100 MHz which are bands 4, 12, 13, 17, 25
AT&T uses BAND 4 and 17 Frequencies 1700/2100 for Band 4 and 700 for Band 17
T-Mobile uses BAND 4 Frequencies 1700/2100 AWS
The i9200 has NO LTE radio so AT&T 3G HSPA+ is all you will get with the GT i9200 here in the United States. You will get 2G on T-Mobile. This phone isn't compatible with Verizon.
******************************************************************************************************ATT subscribers may ask themselves why should they buy the full price unlocked phone versus the $99 on contract Mega 6.3 that AT&T is currently offering? Well one major reason is that the AT&T Mega 6.3 has a locked boot loader. If you don't know what that means then you should get your Mega 6.3 directly from AT&T. However if you enjoy performing modifications to your phone such as rooting and flashing custom roms then the i9200 and i9205 are the only options you have with the Mega 6.3. You currently cannot root the AT&T Mega 6.3, please be aware of this if you are thinking about purchasing directly from AT&T and are hoping to root the AT&T Mega 6.3
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If you purchase this unlocked international device from Amazon or any other online retailer and you live in the United States, Samsung will not warranty your phone. Buying an unlocked grey market phone that was not specifically released for your country (USA) is not eligible under Samsung's 1 year warranty. Please consider this before you purchase any unlocked international Samsung phones as they will not be covered under the Samsung warranty (It doesn't matter what the Amazon seller puts in the description about this). If you want a warranty from Samsung then either wait for your carrier (T-Mobile, AT&T etc.) to carry the phone or purchase a 3rd party warranty from a vendor like Square Trade. You've been warned.
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