Samsung is back in the 7” tablet game with it’s latest entry, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 Plus. Instead of running an OS meant for a phone like the previous Tab, the Tab Plus is powered by Google’s Android Honeycomb 3.2. Along with the new OS, the Tab Plus also received a 1.2GHz dual core processor, IR blaster, and much slimmer body. With all the new ingredients, and a $400 price point, has Samsung cooked up a winning recipe? Hit the details to find out in this Guru Inspection.
Hardware
The Samsung Galaxy Tab Plus measures in at 193.65 x 122.37 x 9.96 and weighs just over 12oz. It’s light, thin, and looks very sexy. The back of the Tab Plus looks like brushed metal, but it’s actually plastic. It doesn’t feel cheap at all. It’s a “dense” feeling device and has a nice weight to it, but it’s not heavy. The front of the Tab has a thin bezel that surrounds the screen and the sides taper off to give it very nice round edges. This along with the slightly rounded back give the Tab a great feel in the hand in either landscape or portrait. It’s light enough to hold with one hand, albeit heavier than a kindle, it is still very nice for reading. I tossed on the Marvel comics app and found it completely comfortable holding the Tab and flipping through pages. The 7” really is the sweet spot for me. Large high resolution screen, but still small enough that holding it isn’t cumbersome and staying mobile with it is a breeze. Another perk with the Tab Plus is that it slips into most pockets just fine. I wouldn’t recommend keeping it there all the time, but when you need both hands for something you don’t need a gear bag to toss it into.
Cameras
As far as I am concerned, cameras on tablets are for one thing, video calls. Holding up a tablet, even as small as 7″, to take pictures is just silly. The 3 megapixel camera on the back of the Tab Plus shoots in 720p but the quality is laughable. The 2 megapixel on the front works great for video calls, Skype and mobile hangouts via Google+. If you plan on getting anything else out of a tablet camera you’re kidding yourself.
Software
The Tab Plus upgrades from the previous model’s phone OS to Android Honeycomb 3.2. Samsung of course couldn’t help themselves and tweaked the UI slightly with Touchwiz. Much like the recent Galaxy S II line, the tweaks aren’t bad at all. It’s not as heavy as the customizations on the HTC Jetstream, but it’s not quite vanilla either. It’s a good mix. Samsung includes a few social apps and widgets, nothing to useful but for basic users they are there. There is also a persistant quick panel on the bottom that gives you access to a task manager, calendar, clock, memo pad, calculator, and music player. The neat thing about these apps is they launch right on top of whatever you doing much like a traditional PC “window”. I found myself using the music player the most and the memo pad quite useful as well.
As far as input methods go, the Tab offers a few different choices. You have the stock Android keyboard, a Samsung keyboard and Swype. Holding that Tab in portrait mode makes it awesome to thumb type on no matter which keyboard you choose. Typing in landscape is a little more challenging given the 16 x 9 aspect ration. Even for someone like myself who has pretty big hands, it’s tough to reach across the tablet with your thumbs. Laying it down or typing with one hand while holding with the other is much easier. Of course you could always install Thumb Keyboard and eliminate the problem all together. There is also a memo pad app that lets you write hand written notes. It’s not on the same level as the HTC Flyer and it’s Scribe Pen, but it’s nice to have.
Among the extra apps that Samsung loads is the Peel Smart Remote. It basically turns you Galaxy Tab Pus into a universal remote for controlling you media setup. I connected it to my Sanyo TV and U-Verse cable box with surprising ease using the built in IR blaster. The interface is really nice and it shows album for the TV programs, and even has a guide function built in. It’s a nice addition and given the Tab’s size, it makes for a great smart remote.
Power and Performance
Android Honeycomb has come a pretty good way from when it first launched. The latest version is still a little laggy at some spots even though the device has a 1.2 dual core processor. It’s not all the time, but It’s worth mentioning. Now the browser is a whole different story. This thing screams! It’s one of the fastest mobile browsers I have ever used. Pages load and render lighting quick. HD video plays great, graphic intensive games play with no lag, and overall use is very smooth. All of this makes the here and there lag even more troubling. A device with these specs shouldn’t have these problems. They are most definitely software related.
Battery life on the Tab Plus is excellent. In the three weeks I have been using it, I might have charged it 4 times. That’s with pretty heavy usage consisting of web browsing, book reading, social networking, a little gaming and all with the screen at full brightness at all times.
Conclusion and Final Score
I am really fond of the 7” tablet size and it’s portability. For the few weeks I used the Tab Plus, I never hesitated bringing it with me wherever I went. It’s an equally great couch computer for browsing the web, posting to social networks, and controlling my entertainment system. The hardware is really solid, but Honeycomb still has some growing up to do. In most cases the Tab was blazing quick, and it lasted for days. I did have a few games that wouldn’t run do to compatibility and a hint of lag here and there, but overall I was happy with the Tab. With it’s $400 price point, you will really have to decide if you need all the features of Honeycomb. With the Kindle Fire coming in at half that cost, and the Nook Tablet being $250, it’s going to be hard to justify that $400 price tag.
| Guru Inspection | |
|---|---|
| Hardware |   |
| Slim and light, but not cheap feeling. Great one handed use and not cumbersome at all. | |
| Cameras | |
| The cameras work well for video calls, but the video and still won't impress anyone. | |
| Software |  |
| While Honeycomb has grown up some, it still needs some work and better app support. Samsung's customizations aren't bad but add little to the experience. | |
| Battery and Performance | |
| The Tab was a rocket ship sometimes and Civic others. Even with these top specs, slow down was still present. | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Unless you absolutely need a full tablet OS, at $400 it's hard to justify this when compared to a Kindle Fire at half the cost. | |
Hi, how’s it going? I hope you are doing well. I wanted to say that I like this article.