Touring - Dedicated Camera or Galaxy Note's Camera for Touring?

I was finally right down to the wire, and ready to pull the trigger this morning on a camera, then more or less by serendipitous accident happened to read the latest reviews of a new tablet/phone that had caught my eye when it was first announced. Now the reviews have me reconsidering.

This device sounds very attractive. The screen just blows the (dedicated) cameras' screens out the water, both in size and in quality. Screen quality is important to me. I spend a lot of time viewing, reviewing, and editing. Life's too short to shortchange myself in this area.

The main question I have is how well this device's camera stacks up against the advanced compact cameras (e.g. Samsung TL500, Olympus XZ1, Canon S95 and S100, Fuji X10, etc.). Any feedback on this would be appreciated.

Size and slimness and light weight also favor the Galaxy Note. I'm just concerned that its camera is too limited or wanting, in comparison with the cameras mentioned above.

Galaxy Note reviews (among the most glowing sets of reviews I've ever seen):

www.amazon.com/Samsung-Galaxy-Unlocked-Android-Smartphone/product-reviews/B0061YRDX6/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

I'm in love with the Galaxy Note already. But a good camera is highest priority. Where might its camera fall short?

By all means get something like the Galaxy if that's what you'll look at the pictures with. (Or because you want major geek points for neatest new electronic gadget.)

I cheerfully take a camera as well as a cell phone and laptop when I'm going someplace where I want to take pictures. Even a cheap point and shoot camera typically has a better zoom, flash, and sensor than 8 Gbyte camera on a cell phone. So a snapshot from a "real" camera looks much better when blown up to a decent size computer screen, and prints are much, much better, than a cell phone.

Haven't used the Galaxy N7000, but have not been impressed by the camera capabilities of any of the iPhone/Android/etc. devices. To equal even pretty basic dedicated cameras would require a much better lens with decent zoom capability, a larger sensor, and better flash. If you'd be satisfied with only taking pictures in good light, without zoom, and don't plan to view them on a large screen, then it'll probably work fine. But I wouldn't be happy with those restrictions.

OTOH, I hardly care at all how good the screen is on the camera and usually leave it turned off. I do my picture editing on a PC later, so the screen on the camera is pretty irrelevant except to be able to show the pictures to others who are on the trip with me.

I have a Samsung cell phone and the camera is decent. It takes good "I was here and these are the people I was there with pictures." For anything more, I use a dslr...

I really like the camera on my girlfriend's Samsung Galaxy S,
5 MP camera with 720p video. Now Samsung is out w/ the
Galaxy S2 with 8 MP still photos and 1080p vids :D


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHV8hIbOXl8&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

Thanks for all the replies so far. The Galaxy Note's camera is also 8MP. Some of the pictures coming out of the newer smart phones can be pretty impressive.

I guess I was hoping that the camera on the Galaxy Note might be a step or two beyond the rest of the field; but it does seem likely that, as some have pointed out, it would fall short, in certain specific ways mentioned, of dedicated cameras -- though for some purposes it would be fine.

The Samsung TL500 was a great value at 339.00. It has the best screen in its class, and it is fully articulating. 'Nothing touches it at that price point', as someone put it, correctly it seems to me.

Today the price dropped to 295.00 on Amazon. Hard to pass up. USB chargeable. Fine, bright lens. Great build quality.