The Galaxy S5 like Samsung’s favorite and his flagship, whom, however, the 5-inch display for surfing on the couch but something is too small, which might be interested in the new Galaxy Tab S 8.4. The Android Tablet is equipped with a larger 8.4-inch AMOLED display and comes with the octa-core Exynos CPU 5, 3 GB RAM, 16 GB of memory, a MicroSD card slot, LTE, an 8-megapixel camera, fingerprint scanner and Android 4.4.2 OS as KitKat.
aims with its new Android tablet Samsung on the iPad mini Apple from directly. Even at the launch in mid-June Samsung compared it with the device of the great rival of Cupertino. With a suggested retail price of 399 euros for the WiFi model and 499 euros for the LTE version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.4 S is similarly priced as the iPad Mini with Retina display. Although it has a larger screen size, it’s even thinner and lighter than the small iPad – and makes its equipment on the paper with a very good figure. But is it really better than the iPad Mini retina? The following review takes the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S under the microscope.
Price & AvailabilitySince mid-July, the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 with 16 GB of memory is available in Germany. The version with 32 GB of memory, there are currently not yet available for purchase. Acquire it may interested in retail and at various online stores. You can choose between the two colors “Titanium Bronze” and “Dazzling White”. The price is generally equal to the recommended retail price. In the Amazon Android tablet is but by now become somewhat more favorable. With WLAN, it will cost at a dealership of the online mail-order company only 370 euros, 470 euros with LTE. However, in this range are around 10 euros on shipping costs. Even so, the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S is thus a bit (16 GB, LTE) will cost cheaper than the iPad Mini retina from Apple that without additional shipping costs 389 euros (16 GB, WiFi) respectively 509 Euro.
DesignThe Galaxy Tab 8.4 S comes with the same new design, the Samsung has already missed the Galaxy S5. The back is patterned in an identical manner and made of rubberized plastic. The material summarizes Although significantly better, than the shiny, of earlier more like cheap plastic-feeling plastic Samsung devices, to the more noble metal casing of the iPad Mini retina, the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 but can not compete with it. Of course, this is largely a matter of personal taste, a little more robust affects the iPad thus there is. In return, the Galaxy Tab S lifts something in bronze from its rather unusual color. The iPad is only available in silver and gray.
The design of the back of the Galaxy Tab 8.4 is similar to the Galaxy S S5 (Picture: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com)
Samsung. Tablet is also extremely thin and comes only to a height of 6.6 mm, making it slimmer than the iPad Mini (7.5 mm). With 294 grams, it weighs a bit less than the competition from Apple. The iPad Mini retina brings 331 grams on the scale, but as mentioned, is also slightly more robust.
With an overall height of 6.6 millimeters, the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 thinner than the iPad Mini retina of Apple (Picture: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
The Galaxy Tab 8.4 measures in the height and width 212.8 times 125.6 millimeters. Thus, it is longer and slightly narrower than the iPad Mini, since the screen has an aspect ratio of 16:9. With its dimensions, it is just barely small enough to fit into a jacket pocket, of good, it is to transport the tablet in protective cover, not least to protect it against everyday knocks.
The MicroSD card slot sits on the side of the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 and allowed an expansion of storage capacity by up to 128 GB (Picture: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com) .
On the right side the buttons for the regulation of the volume, the power button, the microSD card and SIM card slot are installed. The latter are protected by a cover. The headphone jack and the micro USB connector sitting at the bottom of the device. The stereo speakers are installed at the lower and upper edge. Who turns the tablet when watching videos to the left, they may cover exactly with his palms. However, this is purely a matter of habit, but we find their positioning is not optimal.
When watching videos is the positioning of the speakers of the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S may not be optimal (Picture: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com)
The back is provided with two cover clips, which are used for docking a protective case.. They interfere not great, a magnetic fastening but would have been a more elegant solution.
The push buttons on the back of the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 are used for docking a protective sheath (Photo: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com)
Display
A special feature of the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S – and its larger Burders – is the display. Samsung has set the first time since the Galaxy Tab 7.7 back to the AMOLED technology for a tablet. The resolution of the 8.4-inch Super AMOLED touch screen is an impressive 2,560 times 1,600 pixels (WQXGA). Which corresponds to a pixel density of 359 ppi. This pulls the iPad Mini with its 2,048 times 1,538 pixels and a pixel density of 326 ppi despite minor diagonal of the short straw. However, both indicators are extremely sharp and make small text or photos while surfing basically identical sharp dar.
The display of the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S solves with 2560 times 1600 pixels and has a good brightness (image: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
The Super-AMOLED panel of the Galaxy Tab S also comes at a higher brightness and a higher contrast ratio than the LCD of the iPad Mini, with Samsung already boasted at the presentation. Thanks to the high brightness and a special technology, which further improves the visibility of the display outdoors, the display in office lighting and bright sunlight is easy to read.
The screen has but, as usual for OLEDs, an extremely rich and vivid color display, which is perhaps not everyone’s thing. Images look characterized by, for example, a little unnatural than LCDs. For those who prefer more natural tones, which the iPad could display in matters of colors like better. Android KitKat and Samsung ToolsOn the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 is Android 4.4.2 KitKat preinstalled. In addition, Samsung has as usual its TouchWiz interface and – as with the Galaxy Tab pro – up plays the Magazine UX homescreen. This is always a place of the homescreen. Off completely can not be the feature. The Magazine UX consists of six widgets or mini versions of system apps that, for example, content from social networks, news & Co. ready. As a Feed Reader serves Flipboard. Who does not like the surface, they can alternatively replace using a launcher like Nova or the device rooten and play a custom ROM. A root guide keeps ready the XDA-Developers forum. Many custom ROMs are available for the Android tablet currently not yet. Interested people can learn about the current state of development at the following location.
as the operating system on the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S Android 4.4.2 KitKat including Samsung’s TouchWiz interface and magazines-UX to use (Photo: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com ).
As usual, Samsung has installed a lot of applications and services. Among the usual Google apps and its own internet browser, calendar or e-mail client. Furthermore WatchOn, multi-window, a child mode, multi-user, Samsung’s App Store as well as some new additions such as Paper Garden and SideSync 3.0 on board. Paper Garden is basically a counterpart to Google Play kiosk that holds magazines and newspapers. With SideSync users can connect the tablet via Wi-Fi Direct with a Galaxy S5 and mirror the screen of your smartphone to your tablet, transfer files and make calls from your tablet from. Cool thing, as we find.
As was the Samsung sets at a number of free third-party software like Evernote or Hancom Office Viewer at his smartphone. Some of the apps can be removed if it’s not needed, but you can clear out the system only to a certain extent, without making any deeper interventions. With root privileges and apps like App Quaratine the superfluous apps can, for example, hide. A custom ROM helps of course.
The Settings menu of the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S (Picture: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
The setting is similar to the Samsung Galaxy Tab S as in S5 designed. Here Samsung offers a wide range of menus and settings in which you have to but get along first.
The iPad Mini is equipped with Apple’s iOS 7, with its new design and numerous features such as the Control Center or the new lockscreen, access to the notification center allows, has caught up in terms of functions on Android. Apple’s iOS works compared less cluttered, tidy and clear with the Samsung tablet. However, Samsung has previously been improved in comparison with the overload of software. fingerprint scannerAs has been speculated in advance, the Galaxy Tab S Samsung’s first tablet, which equips the company with a fingerprint scanner. This is the same technology that Samsung used the S5. This we have already discussed in detail in the review of the Galaxy S5. The mini version of the iPad, Apple has not yet been equipped with its touch-ID scanner.
The Galaxy Tab 8.4 S comes with the fingerprint scanner of the Galaxy S5 and is one of the few tablets on the market that is equipped with this feature ( picture:. Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com)
Performance & Battery life
clock is driven Android Tablet from Samsung’s in-house eight-core Exynos CPU 5 (5420) with ARMs Big.LITTLE technology along with four 1.9 GHz Cortex-A15 cores for applications like games that require plenty of power, and four 1.3 GHz Cortex-A7 cores for tasks that are less power intensive. For the graphics a mail-T628-MP6-CPU provides. At 3 GB of RAM are integrated. The iPad comes with Apple’s Retina mini 1.3 GHz 64-bit dual-core CPU, A7, a PowerVR G6430 and a GB of RAM.
Basically, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S really fast. In the AnTuTu benchmark, which determines among other CPU, RAM and graphics performance, manages around 33,000 points and is thus, for example, still slightly faster than the LG G Pad 8.3. When GFXBench, which is also available for the iPad Mini and in particular, the performance of the graphics unit to the test, it must be, however, a close defeat. The higher-resolution display requires more computational effort.
GFXBench: the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 in comparison with the Apple iPad Mini retina (Image: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
The internal memory of the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 is 16 GB in size and can be expanded via MicroSD card up to 128 GB. A memory card slot, there is the iPad Mini is not.
With its 4,900 mAh battery, the Android tablet is scheduled for a battery life of around 12 hours when watching videos. The iPad provides the official figures, for comparison around 10 hours. In CNET Labs battery test, the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S comes to 8.5 hours with video playback, so it is more in the midfield. The iPad Mini includes a powerful 6471 mAh battery that powers the Apple tablet for just under 14.2 hours with power. The article Tablets: battery life in comparison allows a comparison with numerous other modelsIn everyday life comes with the Galaxy Tab S but good about the day.. Overnight the battery in standby mode loses very little power, making the tablet by holding some days at rest. But on the iPad mini retina, it does not quite measure up. This can also be good than a week without recharging are in standby mode.
CommunicationIn terms of communication, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S offers optional LTE (Category 4, 150/50MBit/s) and UMTS, including HSPA + or only WLAN 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac including MIMO and WiFi Direct. Also on board are also Bluetooth 4.0, MHL, GPS and Glonass and an infrared LED. DLNA and NFC does not support it, for example. Of course, it can also connect to Samsung’s Smart Watch Gear 2. The iPad mini offers basically the same communication capabilities, but does not support the latest WLAN standard 802.11 ac
The Galaxy Tab 8.4 S offers an 8-megapixel camera (image: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
camera
For photos and videos Samsung installed on the back of the Galaxy Tab S 8.4, an 8-megapixel camera along with auto focus and flash light. Video chats are possible thanks to a 2.1-megapixel webcam. The iPad Mini retina comes with a 5-megapixel main and a 1.2-megapixel front camera. The performance of the camera will presumably be for the few users a truly decisive criterion when buying a tablet, but every now and then to shoot even with the Tablet photos. A camera that makes respectable shots, so can not hurt. The 8-megapixel notches of the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 also makes at first glance to make a good impression, as shown by the following test images:
In this snapshot, the camera sets the colors of course, and can also represent with a decent amount of detail convince (Picture: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
In low light, the camera makes Samsung Tablets also not too bad figure. However, seen in the shaded areas of the scene, a typical image noise. Criticisms in moderate light are also the white balance and a less natural color representation. In general, the camera is but perfectly adequate if you do not really want to take pictures with significantly less light (Image: Andrew Hoyle / CNET.com).
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.4 S has a lot to offer. It’s thin, light, has a high resolution display, a microSD card slot and plenty of power under the hood. It also offers a fingerprint scanner for faster unlock the device and an 8-megapixel camera. Touch the ID scanner Apple has not built the mini-tablet. In order for the Galaxy Tab S is a great and also slightly cheaper alternative to Apple’s iPad Mini retina, especially for those users who already own and intertwined with Google’s ecosystem an Android smartphone are .
Perfect is the Android tablet but do not. There has to be beaten the iPad mini in comparison in some areas. Apple is using the high-order materials and has his tablet missed a stronger battery. The term of the Galaxy Tab S is not bad, but is rather in the midfield. Also in the graphics performance pulls the iPad Mini on Samsung Tablet over.
The user interface of the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 is also packed with a lot of additional Samsung software and a variety of third-party applications, which quite can be useful, but need not be practical for every user mandatory. Apple’s iOS works, however, already tidier and clearer. Nevertheless, the Galaxy Tab 8.4 S is a fine Android tablet, this is a good choice especially for owners of Galaxy S5.
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