I lost my contacts, photos, apps, notes and pretty much everything else. I want to recover this information, but is there a way to do so? I have to return the phone to Asurion soon, so I need as many answers as fast as possible.
When you log into your Google account on the new phone, most (if not all) of your data & apps should begin syncing/installing. It may take an hour or more depending on how many apps you had installed, but at least it won't be lost. The only thing I don't think is stored on your Google account is the notes app (unless you use Google Keep). I'm guessing you used the factory Samsung app. Unless you also set your phone to automatically sync/backup to your Samsung account, the notes data is most likely lost.
I appreciate the answer, but the terrible thing is that I somehow didn't back the phone up. Any other things to do like rooting beyond that to recover it with software?
