Clavier Samsung Galaxy Tab A 2019

Laptop Magazine Verdict

A bright brandish, long bombardment life and a smart remote make Samsung'due south Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 a compelling and affordable pick.

Pros

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Powerful forepart-facing speakers
+
Vivid display
+
Smart Remote app for controlling TV
+
Complimentary 50GB of Dropbox storage for one twelvemonth
+
Long battery life

Cons

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Charges slowly
-
Mediocre photographic camera

With the original Galaxy Tab ten.1, Samsung had a pretty skilful affair going: Information technology was thin, lighter than the iPad 2, and had strong speakers. But technology never stands notwithstanding, which is why Samsung added smart remote capability for controlling your TV, as well every bit a microSD card slot, all while lowering the price by $100. Now just $399 for the 16GB version, the Tab 2 10.ane is a definite comeback over the original, but has Samsung done enough to stay ahead of the Android competition?

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Blueprint

Click to EnlargeUnlike the Tab 2 7.0, which looks almost identical to its earlier iteration, the Tab 2 ten.1 has a slightly different design. Nearly notable are the ii silver speakers that flank the display when held in portrait manner. Their placement makes the Tab ii a bit wider than the starting time (10.1 x 6.ix 10 0.38 inches, compared to nine.7 x half dozen.vii ten 0.34 inches), just it means that you'll never take to worry about muffling sound if you have the tablet in your lap.

Instead of the all-black artful mutual to many touchscreen devices, nosotros similar the silver plastic back and greyness plastic edges of the Tab ii ten.ane.

Like the New iPad, the Tab two 10.1 is both thicker and heavier than the previous version (1.28 pounds, compared with one.24 pounds), but the divergence in both cases is minimal. Information technology's slightly smaller and lighter than the ASUS Transformer TF300 (1.four pounds, ten.four x 7.one ten 0.38 inches).

Click to EnlargeThe top of the Tab 2 10.1 has a ability push button, volume controls, a microSD carte slot (something missing from the original), an IR transmitter, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

The placement of the speakers, IR transmitter, and webcam (forth the long edge of the bezel) betoken that, different the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, this 10-inch version is meant to exist held in landscape, not portrait mode.

Display

Watching Movies on the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1

Click to EnlargeSimilar to the previous Tab 10.1 and the TF300, this version has a 10.1-inch brandish with a resolution of 1280 x 800. Explosions in the trailers for "Battleship" and "The Expendables 2" were peppery and bright, though we noticed some splotchiness in darker scenes.

With an average brightness of 424 lux, the Tab 2 10.1 far outshone the TF300 (331 lux) as well as the Android tablet average (351 lux) and the new iPad (386 lux).

Audio

Having the speakers on the front of the Tab 2 10.one, equally opposed to the edges or dorsum, makes a big difference. Whether nosotros were listening to music or watching a movie, it was nice to have sound directed at united states of america. While there will always exist an element of tinniness in speakers this small, we noticed adept depth and detail in songs, from Bruce Springsteen's "Tunnel of Love" to Jay-Z's "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)."

We simply wish the physical volume buttons were within easier achieve of our left or right hand, instead of existence on the elevation.

Keyboards

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 Virtual Keyboard

Click to EnlargeSamsung offers its keyboard just on the Tab two 10.1, which works fine. Keys are nicely spaced, and a petty low-cal appears when caps lock is on. Nosotros also like that dedicated .com and @ buttons appear when you're typing in an email address field, for instance.

Google vocalization typing is also included for those who adopt to dictate their missives.

Software and Interface

Click to EnlargeSimilar the Tab ii 7.0, the 10-inch Tab features Android Ice Cream Sandwich with a topping of TouchWiz. Buttons for Back, Habitation, Settings and Recent Apps are in the lesser system bar. Dismissing recent apps and notifications took merely a quick sideways swipe. Instead of holding down the ability and book buttons, we were able to have screenshots using the screenshot button next to the Recent Apps icon.

Samsung TouchWiz adds small flourishes with big touch on. We continue to be fans of the arrow icon in the bottom system bar, which calls up helpful Mini Apps such as Reckoner, Alarms, E-mail and Job Managing director that open in a higher place the currently opened app. You tin can have up to vii apps in the arrangement bar, but you tin can't use information technology for third-party apps.

The Notifications Box on the right side of the bottom system bar also has some TouchWiz tweaks. A large clock sits at the top, along with a Quick Settings box seen in well-nigh Galaxy S II phones. Scrolling to the left reveals a number of settings, including Wi-Fi, Plane Mode and Bluetooth. Display Brightness and Settings are located beneath Quick Settings with space for other notifications underneath.

Overall, we like the look of the ICS/TouchWiz combination on the Tab 2 10.1, only with the app button, notifications menu, Mini Apps tray and multiple home screens, at that place'due south quite a lot to process versus the more than straightforward iOS on the iPad.

Operation

Click to EnlargePacking a ane.2-GHz dual-core TI OMAP 4430 processor and 1GB of RAM, the Tab ii 10.1 turned in skilful, but not great scores on our synthetic benchmarks. On the Benchmark CPU examination, the slate scored two,834, nigh 100 points higher than average, merely well below the ASUS TF300, whose Nvidia'southward quad-cadre Tegra 3 CPU notched 3,613. In fact, it'due south lower than the original Tab ten.1, whose i-GHz Nvidia Tegra two processor registered 3158.

On An3DBench, a graphics test, the Tab 2 10.1 scored 6779 to the TF300's 7,705. The category average is 7,194, and the older Tab 10.1 scored vii,526.

Withal, the Tab 2 10.1 was speedy when opening apps and flipping through domicile screens. We rarely, if ever saw a slowdown or pause, fifty-fifty when we were surfing the Web with Pandora playing in the background.

Our configuration of the Galaxy Tab 2 10.i came with 16GB of internal storage, which can be expanded to 48GB using the microSD card slot.

Samsung Apps

Click to EnlargeAs with Samsung's other tablets, the visitor packages a number of its ain apps in the Tab 2 x.1, some of which are more useful than others. Samsung AllShare lets you stream multimedia content to other DLNA devices, such as TVs and set-acme boxes, using Wi-Fi. We were able to connect quickly and easily to a Samsung Series 9 running AllShare, and stream videos to it, too as to the Tab ii 10.i. Notwithstanding, when we tried to connect to our Buffalo network-attached storage bulldoze, all nosotros got was a spinning circle on the Tab two 10.1.

Click to EnlargeSamsung Media Hub is where you lot can rent movies and unmarried episodes of television receiver shows, such every bit "American Dad" for $1.99. In that location's also the Music Hub, where music lovers can buy albums or unmarried tracks (for $14.99 or $ane.29, respectively). Games Hub offers a big catalog of casual and hardcore games while Reader's Hub offers newspapers, magazines and books courtesy of PressPower, Zinio and Kobo.

Click to OverstateSamsung as well includes ChatON, a mobile communication app that works over nearly smartphone platforms. ChatON tracks interaction with your buddies and enables the sharing of calendars, contacts, video or music. Users can also create messages with manus-drawn animation.

Google and Third-Political party Apps

Click to EnlargeGoogle-branded apps include Google Talk, Play for downloading apps, Google+, Google+ Messenger, Play Music and Play Books. Netflix, Skype, Polaris Role and Dropbox are among the third-political party apps. Samsung even bundles a free yr of Dropbox with 50GB of online storage, which typically costs $99.

Although Samsung has washed a pretty expert job hither creating a mini ecoystem, it's fighting an uphill battle versus Amazon, which lets y'all buy everything from games and movies to books and music using a unmarried account nigh people already have. The Samsung Milky way Tab 2 10.1 gives you more than option just likewise a bit more complexity. For instance, to download apps from the Samsung App store, you'll offset accept to create a Samsung account, in addition to the main Google account on the tablet.

The third-party app selection on Android tablets continues to exist a mixed bag. While some apps look great on larger screens (such as Netflix and "Angry Birds Space"), others are just stretched-out phone apps (Pandora, Facebook).

Smart Remote

Click to EnlargeExclusive to Samsung Android tablets is the built-in Peel Smart Remote, which allow u.s.a. control our cablevision box and TV using the tablet's IR blaster. Setup was relatively fast, taking approximately five minutes. We could almost immediately plow on our Samsung television receiver using the app, which also quickly recognized our Motorola DVR cablevision box and was automatically able to switch channels and access the aqueduct guide.

Our favorite Smart Remote feature is its ability to learn our preferred programs. Later choosing several genres and shows, Smart Remote began suggesting shows and movies from the aqueduct guide. It'south a lot more personal than Logitech'south Harmony Link.

Unfortunately, the Pare app seems less stable than when we tested it previously. For example, when we pressed the power push to turn off our Goggle box, cablevision box, and stereo simultaneously, the app would crash.

Camera and Camcorder

Click to EnlargeWe doubt many consumers will utilise a 10-inch tablet to accept photos, but we nevertheless want them to look expert Sadly, the 3-megapixel camera on the back of the Tab 2 10.1 did non fare well indoors. Images were grainy and washed out; a model Ferrari Testarossa looked more pink than its trademark red.

Outdoor photos weren't much better as the edges of objects such equally buildings and copse seemed a chip hazy, even on a sunny mean solar day. Images taken in directly sunlight were fairly colorful, but not particularly sharp and those taken in a shady area were darker than we'd look.

Click to EnlargeA 720p video we shot of a city landscape was smooth, simply suffered from the same haziness equally outdoor stills. Colors like the light-green on tree tops appeared a scrap muted too.

The front-facing VGA camera was even worse. We saw many more artifacts when nosotros turned the camera on ourselves.

Battery Life

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 should last yous all day long. When we ran the LAPTOP Battery Test, which involves continuous surfing over Wi-Fi at twoscore per centum brightness, the Galaxy Tab 2 lasted an epic 9 hours and 59 minutes. By comparing, the TF300 lasted seven hours on Balanced mode; the tablet category boilerplate is 6:51.

One of our pet peeves almost the Tab ii x.one is how slowly information technology charged. At one point, it had charged merely 6 pct after 25 minutes. We establish things moved quicker, though, when the screen was turned off.

Verdict

Click to EnlargeWith the add-on of a microSD bill of fare slot and moving the speakers to the front end of the tablet, Samsung has made some overnice improvements to the Galaxy Tab ii 10.1, all while keeping the price below $400 and the battery life really long. Our favorite feature is the ability to use this slate as a smart remote.

However, the Asus ASUS Transformer TF300 offers faster quad-core functioning and offers twice the internal storage for the same price. Plus, the TF300 can double as a mini laptop when you add together the optional keyboard. And then again, the Tab two 10.i has a brighter brandish, longer battery life and better sound in a thinner, lighter design.

Information technology all comes downwards to what you value nearly, simply the new Tab is certainly one of the top mid-range Android tablets.

Samsung Galaxy Tab ii 10.1 Specs

Make	Samsung
CPU	1.two-GHz Dual Core
Camera Resolution	3MP
Carte Reader Size	32GB
Card Readers	microSD
Company Website	world wide web.samsung.com
Display Resolution	1280 x 800
Display Size	10.ane
Front-Facing Photographic camera Resolution	VGA
Has Bluetooth	Yes
OS	Android 4.0
Ports	Headphone, Proprietary
Size	10.one x 6.9 x 0.38 inches
Storage Drive Size	16GB
Storage Bulldoze Type	Flash Memory
Weight	1.28 pounds
Wi-Fi	802.11b/g/n

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