Next Gen Galaxy Note Could Shed Samsung's Plastic Design
Samsung could give the Galaxy Note 3 an aluminum body.
Samsung may be changing its game plan for the upcoming Galaxy Note 3 with an all metal body. After the success of the HTC One's all aluminum body, Samsung appear to be edging away from plastic for its new phablet.
Sam Mobile claim that the company is planning on upping the build quality for the next gen Galaxy Note, completely out of league with any of its previous handheld designs. This is likely a reaction not only to HTC's success, but also as a response to criticisms concerning the cheap plastic build quality of the previous Galaxy S and Galaxy Note devices.
Samsung already has a plan in hand, as it has apparently been experimenting with a metal Galaxy S4 which, while it was received positively by employees, was not put into effect due to delays in manufacturing and a possible revision of the original launch date.
As to what material is going to be used, we can only speculate. As the HTC One uses an all aluminum body and the iPhone 5 features aluminum with glass, we can expect to see one or both of those come up in the Galaxy Note 3. It would be nice to see the company experiment with some aesthetic materials on phone bodies such as polished chrome, titanium or even kevlar (rumored to be used for the Motorola X).

You do realize that Aluminum is one of the strongest metals around right? Though not in the top 10, it's much stronger than the plastic you find in phones.
You do realize that Aluminum is one of the strongest metals around right? Though not in the top 10, it's much stronger than the plastic you find in phones.
Actually, carbon fiber, silk, and many other synthetic polymers have much greater tensile strength than aluminum. Even bamboo is lighter and stronger than Aluminum. There are plenty of other options out there to enhance the quality of the phones without giving them the metallic aesthetics.
Without getting into expensive titanium alloys or carbon fiber, plastic is the most durable, lightweight material you use for an application such as a phone. Aluminum looks nice and feels like it is better quality (It costs more, so it should), But unless you baby your phone, you will end up with ugly scratches and dents.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is just speculation at this point, based on some abandoned design for GS4. Even if they decide to replace plastic, they have way better choices than entirely metal. Some metal blend with ABS or kevlar or carbon fiber can be good.