Samsung took the wraps off a sequel to its popular Galaxy Note smartphone. The Galaxy Note 10.1, which went on sale in Germany and the United Arab Emirates, will soon be launched in other markets. The new Galaxy Note smartphone comes with a host of new features and is twice as wide as its predecessor and nearly the size of a tablet.

The new Galaxy Note smartphone comes with a host of new features and is twice as wide as its predecessor and nearly the size of a tablet.

The Galaxy Note 10.1 – powered by Google’s Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) features a touchscreen which is 10.1-inches measured diagonally, considerably wider than the 5.3-inch screen of the previous Note.

Like Galaxy Note, it comes with a stylus called the ‘S pen’ to write notes or draw on the screen. The new version allows users to split the screen in half to view two programs at once.

The Galaxy Note 10.1 is equipped with a quad-core processor that allows users to run multiple applications faster than the previous version, which had a dual-core processor.

The device also includes a 5-megapixel main camera and a 1.9-megapixel front-facing camera. The Galaxy Note 10.1 comes equipped with the S Note, which is a unique tool that gives users the ability to combine notes and sketches with other digital content in ready-to-use templates.

Featuring its advanced 6.5mm ‘S’ Pen, Galaxy Note 10.1 is optimized for the creation of personalized and expressive content. The S Pen’s feel and functionality are specifically designed for an optimal experience on the 10.1-inch screen.

Several other features have been added to Galaxy Note 10.1 including Smart Stay, which tracks the user’s eyes to ensure that the screen is always on while being looked at, and Pop Up Play, which allows the user to watch a video anywhere on their screen while simultaneously running other tasks.

The AllShare Play feature enables users to share content with a large group in real-time by connecting GALAXY Note 10.1 to Samsung HD TVs, mobile tablets, laptops, and other consumer electronic devices on the same network. With AllShare Group Cast, users can also share and collaborate on documents, presentations, or images without loading the files separately.

The Galaxy Note 10.1 comes in three connectivity options: a WiFi-only version, a WiFi-and-3G HSPA-Plus connectivity version at launch, and a WiFi-and-LTE version later this year.