The originator of the "phablet," Samsung is putting its fourth Galaxy Note on the market to go up against Apple's first such device, the iPhone 6 Plus.

At 5.7 inches, the Note 4 slightly outsizes the 6 Plus, but the former boasts a crisper 2560 x1440 Quad HD Super AMOLED display. Several reviewers looked back on the first Galaxy Note release in 2011 and recalled their reservations of this new device being dubbed a "phablet" (phone + tablet hybrid).

Edward C. Baig, USA Today: "One unintended consequence of the iPhone 6 Plus launch was to showcase the category of ginormous smartphones pioneered by Apple's chief rival Samsung. While the 6 Plus represents Apple's first foray into the phablet-sphere, Samsung's Galaxy Note 4 is merely the latest device in a series that met considerable skepticism when first unveiled in 2011.

"I had my doubts too but came to like the original Note, which has been improved through each subsequent generation."

Joanna Stern wrote for the Wall Street Journal that remembered thinking Samsung was "off its rocker" for releasing such a large smartphone. After all, the point of smart phones was to put a pint-sized computer that can also make phone calls into customers' pockets.

"It's wrong to call the Note an oversized smartphone at this point. It's a pocketable computing device with serious multitasking power. But while Samsung is further ahead on big-screen software features than any competitor, the other half of the software story isn't as rosy. The Note 4 still lacks that all-important mobile essential: an intuitive, cleanly designed user interface," she wrote. "The design is far from perfect. The chamfered edges of the phone can be sharp, (I prefer the curves of the iPhone 6 Plus and the new Moto X), the bezel's subtle lines don't match the rest of the aesthetic and, unlike the Galaxy S5, the Note 4 isn't rugged or waterproof."

The Note 4's main strength seems to be in its display, according to the Guardian's Samuel Gibbs.

"The quad-HD screen is crisp, bright and has wide viewing angles, which makes viewing videos, photos and browsing websites a more satisfying experience than on a smaller 5in smartphone, much more akin to a tablet," he wrote. "The very high pixel density on the large screen of 515 pixel per inch allows smaller text to be read, but may require a magnifying glass to see it. For comparison, the 5.5in Apple iPhone 6 Plus has a 401ppi and the Note 3 has 386ppi - the difference is visible on the tiny scale, but the merits of such a high resolution are debatable. The stylus, which slides out from the bottom of the phone, makes manipulating text on a tiny scale possible, but whether people are likely to want to do that is unknown."