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Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Note 4, the latest model of the company’s large-screen smartphone, or phablet, opened for preorders today through AT&T and Verizon Wireless. T-Mobile customers will be able to preorder the device starting Sept. 24, while Sprint customers will have to wait until Sept. 26.
The preorder process was unveiled in a Sept. 18 announcement by Samsung, which also unveiled that the new Galaxy Note 4 smartphone will be officially released on Oct. 17 for sale in retail stores and online.
The Galaxy Note 4 is a cross between a smartphone and a tablet, with a large, 5.7-inch quad HD (2,560-by-1440) Super AMOLED display, a 2.7GHz quad-core processor, 32GB of internal memory plus a micro SD slot that accepts cards up to 128GB, a rear-facing 16-megapixel auto-focus camera with Smart OIS, a front-facing 3.7MP camera and a 220mAh Li-ion 3 battery. The new Note 4 runs on Android KitKat 4.4.4 and includes Adaptive Fast Charging, which can recharge a discharged battery back to a 50 percent charge in about 30 minutes, according to Samsung.
The stylus write-on-screen feature has also been updated using shortcuts that quicken everyday tasks, according to the company. “With the evolved S Pen, writing is more natural, allowing users to easily handwrite e-mails and texts, capture and edit meeting notes and post handwritten notes to their homescreen,” Samsung said in a statement. “The S Pen also offers the ease and precision of a computer mouse, making it simpler to select and move content, resize windows, and drag and drop between apps.”
The Galaxy Note 4 will be available in Charcoal Black and Frost White.
Samsung is offering customers a guaranteed trade-in of $200 for any working smartphone under a Galaxy Note 4 preorder deal that runs Sept. 19 through Oct. 16.
Verizon is selling the new phone for $299.99 with a two-year agreement or for $34.99 a month (20 monthly payments) under its Verizon EDGE plan, according to the company. Customers who want to buy the Note 4 without a contract can purchase it for $699.99. Verizon said it will ship the devices to customers by Oct. 23.
AT&T said it expects to ship preordered Note 4 phones beginning Oct. 14, while a date for retail sales in stores will be announced later.
The Galaxy Note 4 can be purchased from AT&T for $34.42 per month under the AT&T Next 18 plan or for $41.30 per month under the AT&T Next 12 plan. The phone can also be purchased for $299.99 with a two-year agreement or for $825.99 without a contract. New customers and existing AT&T customers who activate a new line of service with a smartphone on AT&T Next will receive a $100 credit on their bill, according to the company.
Sprint has released few details about its Note 4 offering, but is telling customers that if they trade in their old phone through Sprint Buyback that Samsung will match its trade-in value, up to $200, when a customer preorders a new Galaxy Note 4.
T-Mobile said it will sell the Note 4 in its stores and online starting Oct. 17. The company has been accepting preorders on the phone since Sept. 3. The device will be offered for $0 down and $31.24 a month for 24 months.
The new Note 4 will also be available for sale through U.S. Cellular and in Samsung Experience Shops inside Best Buy stores, as well as at Amazon, Costco, RadioShack, Sam’s Club, Target and Walmart, according to Samsung.
Earlier this week, Samsung’s latest Galaxy Tab S 10.5 and Galaxy Tab S 8.4 tablets were also offered for preorder by AT&T, with shipments to customers beginning on Sept. 23, according to a previous eWEEK report.
In addition, AT&T recently announced that it is taking preorders for Motorola’s new second-generation Moto X smartphones, according to an earlier eWEEK report. The Moto X phones will start shipping to customers starting on Sept. 23 and will be available in AT&T stores beginning Sept. 26. The new Moto X models come a little more than a year after the August 2013 arrival of the first Moto X devices, which run on Android and are highly customizable by users.