Samsung's Giant New Galaxy Phone Is Launching On Oct. 17

Samsung's newest phablet, the Galaxy Note 4, will be available in the US starting Oct. 17, with preorders starting on Sept. 19. The company hasn't confirmed pricing just yet, but the phone will be available through Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and US Cellular.

Samsung is also offering a promotion for those who preorder the phone between tomorrow and Oct. 16. The company says you can get up to $200 if you trade in any working smartphone for the Note 4.

The Galaxy Note 4 comes with some major improvements over its predecessor. The newest version of the phone features metal edges that make the phone feel more premium, a much sharper screen with a resolution of 2560 x 1440, and an improved camera with Optical Image Stabilization. This means photos and video won't appear blurry if your hands shake while your shooting.

Samsung is launch preorders for the Galaxy Note 4 on the same day Apple starts selling its first phablet, the iPhone 6 Plus. Apple's biggest iPhone yet comes with a screen that's a bit smaller than that of the Galaxy Note 4 (5.5 inches vs. 5.7 inches respectively), but is the same size as LG's G 3 phone.

What makes the Note 4 stand out from the iPhone 6 Plus and other phones of its size is its S Pen stylus, which can also be used as a mouse-like pointer for the phone.

The company's software is also optimized to be used with the S Pen in other ways. For example, pressing the button on the stylus will launch a short fan-shaped menu of apps catered for use with the S Pen (i.e. sketching and note-taking apps).

Samsung has largely owned the phablet market in the US until now, so it'll be interesting to see how the Galaxy Note 4 compares to the iPhone 6 Plus.

We still have yet to hear about when the Galaxy Note Edge, Samsung's newest curved screen smartphone, will launch.