Well, before the Note II, I used an iPhone 3GS for 3.5 years. I was trying my hardest to make it last as long as possible, because I like making things last as

Well, before the Note II, I used an iPhone 3GS for 3.5 years. I was trying my hardest to make it last as long as possible, because I like making things last as long as possible -- it's a win win because technology gets better every month and your cost of ownership declines. But the battery was giving out and it wasn't worth it to spend $80 replacing the iphone battery. When I surveyed the field I basically narrowed it down to the Note II and the Nexus 4. I didn't want to wait any longer since I needed a phone now, so I got the Note. At $199 for a 2yr contract upgrade on Amazon, you're getting a lot of value for the money. There's a video out there of a guy hooking up the Note II to a TV and easily using it as a desktop computer. It's quite powerful. And LTE is great ... I speed tested it at 48 mbps the other day, and this was 12 miles from downtown. The delayed updates are indeed a downside. Samsung's keyboard and predictive text are crap compared to the iPhone's (yes, you get Swype, but I don't always want to do the swiping). If you're a heavy mobile user, lots of apps and media consumption, get the Note II. If you're a moderate user, mostly phone and email, I'd say do nothing, wait a year. The longer you wait, the better the products get, and you experience more "wow factor" when you finally do make the switch from your old dinosaur to the newest offering.