Database Users

[Q] Would you still advise buying the tab ?

There are 2-3 weeks before all the major tablets launch and I am considering buying the tab. I want a 7 inch so if i wait ill go for the flyer. But I was wondering if it is still worth paying $600 for the device. The new tablets will launch for $1000-120o so please advice me as to whether I should get the tab or wait ?

Just to add I currently have an HD7 as my primary phone and have been using the Desire HD as my backup phone and I will sell the desire hd to buy the galaxy tab. Plz consider this when advising. Thanks

Well, in the computer world there is always something coming around the corner that is better, faster and/or cheaper. That's just the nature of technology.
But, the Galaxy tab is great for me. I bought mine when they first became available in the states for $550 off contract. You can find them now for $500 off contract. To me the 7" size is a better choice then the 10" that most of the new hot tabs have. 7" is better for holding in your hand for ebook reading. The SGT is about half the weight of the iPad and Xoom which makes a huge difference.
The Galaxy tab has flash video for web but the iPad and Xoom do not.
From an ease of use and slickness the SGT runs behind the iPad but ahead of Honeycomb tablets like Xoom (read the Xoom reviews; people like the look of Honeycomb but they admit that it is not as easy to use as android 2.2).
If you are hooked on the 7" size like I am then you might consider the Dell Streak 7 which adds 4g to the mix.
As far as which provider to go with, I think one of the GSM providers (ATT or TMobile) would be better than the CDMA providers (Sprint or Verizon) as the CDMA tabs seem more locked down and have less development going on.

I would wait at this point - Samsung is suppose to be coming out with 8" Honeycomb tablet this summer.

If you can find one used or on sale
at a great price its fine for web browsing and email
and it's the only 7" capable phone out too, if you don't mind flashing it.
Just dont let anyone see you using it as a phone

Sorry is costing me $600 slight typo

Even though I returned my Tab, I'd still heartily recommend one to people looking for a great Tablet.
For me, it was TMobile winding me up that made my decision for me.
Awesome device, carriers did their best to make it fail it appears.
But some 10buck data plans? And the price it's going for atm? Well worth it I'd say. Seems everyone's pushing now for larger than 7inch devices, but the form factor is perfect. It's still luggable around (pocket requirements, but it's doable). Great screen, VERY decent sound compared to other tablets.
Sure, there's 3.0 tablets, but... Don't know. I think the Tab running 2.2 should be renamed 'Tab Classic' It's still very good, no matter what else comes after it.

I think now $500 new off contract and $400 used would be a nicer price?
No reason to rush into a Galaxy Tab with so many options coming unless its a good deal,
except maybe since it has a phone, I'd bet it will be the last 7"+ device with one.

YES
I just bought mine a week ago....luv it gave my ipad to my girlfriend ...I didnt realize how much i missed flash...7 inch is perfect for e reading ...portability is better ....10 inch to me is rather wide not easy to handle....

I have had the Tab for about a month and love it. I played with the iPad regularly since my girlfriend has one, but I consistantly came away with the Tab over iPad for 4 main reasons:
1- I much prefer 7" to 10" inch for mobility, one hand holding, ability to put in a pocket, etc.
2- I had a jailbroken iPhone and got rid of it when the original Droid came out. I still have a DroidX as my main phone due to the fact that I much prefer Android to Apple for the interface, customization, and app selection. Yes, iTunes has many apps and iPad has many tablet apps, but from experience, I found that many apps were 57 versions of the same thing, just with a different sports team branding or something, and I have yet to be unable to find a good Android app for any of my needs.
3- Even compared to another Android tablet like the Xoom, the ease of typing on a Tab is great. Granted, I have larger hands than most, but I can thumb type in portrait or landscape at about 35 words per minute, not too far behind my keyboard speed.
4- Last but not least, I use my Tab for everything. AllShare lets me use it as a remote to stream from the computer to the tv, with a cardock it is essentially a carputer, I can edit documents on a small device without carrying a laptop, and with it is great for showing off pictures and things better than a phone. That is only the tip of the iceberg.
I am sure if I put further thought into it, I would come up with alot more and this is a long post already, but something else the Tab has done for me that I really enjoy is that I enjoy it so much, I have gone from a lurker to a poster on many Android forums, including starting out here on XDA.

Forgot to mention price
Sorry, forgot to mention your concern about price. I got a brand new T-Mobile Tab (researching on XDA I found GSM had more dev work being done) on eBay for $425, so only $100 more than a Nook Color with the protection plan, which is what I had before the Tab and returned it after a week.

SonicTab said:
If you can find one used or on sale
at a great price its fine for web browsing and email
and it's the only 7" capable phone out too, if you don't mind flashing it.
Just dont let anyone see you using it as a phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the phone enabled on my Tab and I use it all the time. I bought the tab without a contract and flashed it with the JMI rom and a modem.
If you buy a device that is capable of voice communication and you use it that way why should you be wary of someone seeing you use it that way?
The device is FCC legal, has a prepaid sim card and is running a legal operating system.
There is nothing wrong with using a device in a way it was designed to be used as long as you pay for it.

Bugman1 said:
There is nothing wrong with using a device in a way it was designed to be used as long as you pay for it.
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I think he was just making a joke about how foolish you look holding it up to your head..
Sent from my SCH-I800 using XDA App

00r101 said:
The Galaxy tab has flash video for web but the iPad and Xoom do not.
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Motorola is getting an hint of respect from me... The less Flash (and Air) the better.
Anyway the tab is really awesome to watch videos, can decode with no trouble 1080p at over 40mbps... Plus i'd say this form factor is the best one. And it works as a phone.
Sent from my GT-P1000 using Tapatalk

get one! the portability is awesome. 10" screen is too big to carry around. at least for me.

Got the tab and am loving it !!!

Congrats ...i was in the same boat 2 weeks ago best decision I ever made....better than the ipad....
Sent from my SGH-T849 using XDA Premium App

The Tab is currently the least worst 7" Android tablet out there. I love it. Now priced at where it should be (here in UK at least). Pop in a 3GB sim card (9 quid on amazon) and it's the perfect always online mobile device. It'll be interesting to see other 7" or so devices hit the market soon. That's what I would be comparing it against.
The 10" ones are not mobile enough due to size and weight (I use a car dock with the Tab - can't do that with a 10" without infringing on some local law ). I'm also a bit wary of how the Tegra 2 chipset found in most of them is performing. Video especially seems a bit of a letdown. At least we'll all soon have a lot of choices in formats and features. Still early days...
My one concern is that we may not see Honeycomb on the Tab. I suspect Samsung will skip over it for the Gingerbread V2/Ice Cream (depending on rumours) OS which brings in Honeycomb features for smartphones. The Tab has physical buttons and Honeycomb would seem wrong with that. Of course, knowing Samsung we may see nothing at all....

Yes I am still happy with my tab.
I would have suggested an version #2 if it was 7 inch with better camera and SuperAmoled screen.
Will sell mine only if next version includes all that features without losing batery life.

Yes if you desire portability. Personally I love my tab,now my dad wants one too so I think I'm going to give him mine as soon as I get the replacement back from Samsung(tab stopped turning one, dead battery I'm guessing). I'm gonna get the iPad 2 since I already have the Evo, which I use on the go and I miss iOS adventure games

My Opinion

Seeing where the SGT Dev community is going (nowhere).... I am thinking of selling my 3 week old SGT for cash and saving up for the wifi-Xoom. Anyone in the same boat.... or can rebut my opinion.

I've had the same thought, but since my GF got it for me for X-mas, I'm gonna keep using it, and give it back to her when I can afford a XOOM
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App

kenfly said:
Seeing where the SGT Dev community is going (nowhere).... I am thinking of selling my 3 week old SGT for cash and saving up for the wifi-Xoom. Anyone in the same boat.... or can rebut my opinion.
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I got the tab in January and so far other than gaining root haven’t done anything else with it, the mobility factor is a big plus no question about it, but then I got the xoom on launching day and now I really like them both…so if or when you do it you will appreciate the differences.
I think the Devs have nothing to do with your decision.

I really like the form factor, but performance is an issue with my tab. and with the dev community not really huge, i feel left out of so much with all of these honeycomb tegra2 tablets coming out. I just really feel that Samsung really jumped the gun with the tab. releasing it with no hopes of any real update. Then pretty much rubbing it in our face by releasing 2 more tabs that are far more superior. makes me feel like i made a bad investment by falling for their trickery.
Maybe SGT 8.9 if released with similar specs as of the xoom. and reasonably priced

The tegra processors and Honycomb make our tab look outdated already but IMO the differences are not that big unless one expects too much from a tablet; is not going to replace our laptops yet…as for sami updating my hopes are nonexistent. I was in Germany recently when a saw the tab of a friend of mine, phone working etc I turned green . My biggest beef is with the carriers here in the US that crippled the device.

tegra 2 isnt a device without their own problem
like not able to play 720p mkv movies unless it converted on a specific format
that would be a problem to some people
and is there really a lot of app that dual core ready anyway?
afaik, for normal process, only 1 core would work unless there's a need for the 2nd core?
jumping too soon on honeycomb with limited apps wouldnt make that much of a difference either
and did you say saving up? how long? ^^
if it took months, who knows we already got honeycomb or ice cream on the way on our tab?
honeycomb, i doubt, but the next generation for smartphone definitely gonna be ported to our tab IMO
my main interest in this tab is phone capability, so unless there's another contender out there, i'm still gonna keep this one

kenfly said:
Then pretty much rubbing it in our face by releasing 2 more tabs that are far more superior. makes me feel like i made a bad investment by falling for their trickery.
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I'm trying to see what trickery Samsung have fooled you with here?
The 7" Tab was sold as an Android 2.2 device, with no promise of a Honeycomb update, and that's what they delivered.
We may, or may not get an official upgrade, which may be Honeycomb, or perhaps Gingerbread, but the Tab is still a very capable and useful device as is IMO. I do believe that we will at least get an unofficial Honeycomb ROM once the source code drops.
None of the upcoming tablets can replace my Tab because they are too big for my purposes, though I may end up getting a bigger tablet purely for home use.
Regards,
Dave

For me its all about size, the 10s are just to big to carry around comfortably. Might as well continue to carry my Dell mini9 laptop. I dont require much from my tab maybe thats why Im happy with the 7.
Remember no matter what you buy it has a good 6 months of obsolescence built in

I think most devs wait for the honeycomb source... no one wants a broken sdk port on an expensive device...
As soon as HC hits aosp I'll contribute developing.

And the xoom community won't move very fast with development for the first six months either. And with that price, probably not much development after that.

rangercaptain said:
And the xoom community won't move very fast with development for the first six months either. And with that price, probably not much development after that.
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Agreed. The xoom may be "developer friendly" but it is way too expensive to mess around with.. the galaxy tab gets cheaper and cheaper and will attract more devs too over time.

Why are we comparing the Tab and the Xoom? Two totally different niches. Anyone buying a Tab should know what they are getting, and most that do are getting them for a reason. 7 inches, and a solid product with the full Android Market without having to push it onto the device.
I have three different 7 inch tablets right now (had a 4th, but the Dell Streak 7 is dismal) and the Galaxy Tab is BY FAR the best of the three. The NookColor is fun, and is running dual-boot Honeycomb (port from sdk) and froyo. It's overclocked to 1.1Ghz and is primarily used by my wife as an e-reader (which is what B&N intended), though she likes firing up Angry Birds, etc.
The Archos 70 Internet Tablet is running 2.2.1..and is slim and can handle just about ANY media thrown it's way. Archos is a leader in Media devices, having created the HDD portable Music player before anyone else (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archos)...including Apple. It's hands down the best for watching movies. However it's flimsy and buggy...Archos sucks at support, truly. Plus, there's not much in the way of accessories for it. I had the 10.1 also...but sold it.
My Tab gets the most use...as I swap my phone's sim into it quite frequently. And it handles pretty much everything I want it to do. Out of the 3, theres no comparison as to my satisfaction.
If I wanted another 10" Tablet...and wanted Honeycomb right now, I STILL would not get the Xoom. I can afford it, but that doesn't mean I want to plunk down $800 on something obviously rushed out of production. Too many things wrong with this early adopter device.
Here's to hoping the incoming 8.9' Galaxy Tab has some of the kinks worked out...cuz I'm gonna pounce on it right away. 10.1" prolly not, the form factor just too large for my usage.

Whatever some people get, they will NEVER be satisfied

hehe...truly, and that's why my wife calls me a gadget whore...just have to have em all. Could be worse in her eyes, at least I'm loyal to her

kenfly said:
Seeing where the SGT Dev community is going (nowhere).... I am thinking of selling my 3 week old SGT for cash and saving up for the wifi-Xoom. Anyone in the same boat.... or can rebut my opinion.
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Click to collapse
If you bought a tablet based on the dev community then you were wrong to do that in the first place. You buy something for what it is, not what it may be based on some random people messing around with roms.
I can't see how a 10" Xoom could possibly be a replacement for the 7" SGT. One you can carry around with you, use in your car, act as a backup phone, and the other is mostly a stay at home couch device. Personally I think the Xoom is a bit of a let down on things it should be better at - like playing high bitrate movies. SGT blows it away on that score. The SGT build and screen is also very high quality. As good as my iPad 1 (which I've not really touched since the SGT came along. Never mind how I've come to despise the Apple lock-in methodology...).
Honeycomb looks like it will be a great update when the bugs are ironed out, but Froyo (maybe Gingerbread soon) on the SGT currently makes more sense as the device really is closer to a phone than a tablet (and I'm personally happy that it is). Ice Cream Sandwich looks like it will be the natural OS upgrade for this device, as it will combine Honeycomb UI changes with smartphone functionality. Whether Samsung will release it for the SGT in the coming months is anyone's guess, but for now I'm rocking the Tab. For a couch device I'll see what the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is like (hopefully they'll find a fix for the video snafu), but none of the Tegra 2 SoC based tablets are wowing me at the moment.

Bandage said:
hehe...truly, and that's why my wife calls me a gadget whore...just have to have em all. Could be worse in her eyes, at least I'm loyal to her
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I'm one too. I hide some from my wife too, so that makes me some kind of addict! But she uses the RAZR we got many years ago.

rangercaptain said:
I'm one too. I hide some from my wife too, so that makes me some kind of addict! But she uses the RAZR we got many years ago.
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Lol...not mine, she's become a gadget snob. Though she won't admit it, she's glad to be cutting edge. I see it when her girlfriends drool over the cool gadgets she totes around, lmao. We'll go get coffee, and she will look to see who noticed her pretty NookColor while she's reading and surfing the internets.

So you're selling a device because people aren't modding it? IMHO that's a ridiculous reason to sell this amazing piece of tech.
And im guessing one main reason is Honeycomb because, lets face it, its what everyone wants in a tablet. Then why not buy a Nook? You complain lack of development, the Nook Honeycomb port is better than anything they'll ever do with the Xoom.
Still, just my opinion. I'm keeping my Tab until it dies, then ill get another one.
Sent from my GT-P1000

+1
and..truly one of these days someone WILL put out an Android device that doesn't need modding! Might be 3 years from now...with 8 core cpu & AirWave connectivity (5+TB wireless connection passed through our existing electrical cables that are strung on the poles...or passed through now vacated VHF / UHF signals...yeah, I can dream BIG!)

But you will only be able to get 3g data or 2g+ voice.

Touchpad prompted your Tab 10.1 Purchase?

I didn't think I had a need for a tablet but jumped in during the HP Firesale. I then saw how convenient a tablet could be, and how it could be very useful. I just didn't want to spend the money to get one I really liked.
After using WebOS, which was a pretty good experience, it just left me wanting more. I was torn between the TF and the GT, but I decided to go with the GT and pleased that I have.
Are any of you new GT owners because of the Touchpad or wanting a better experience coming from a different Tablet?
Thanks!

I can say owning a 10.1, and then buying a TouchPad, the 10.1 was the reason I got rid of the bulbous brick of failure two days after I bought it.
Of all the things I use my 10.1 for (and there are many), the Touchpad was only good as a sub-par browser, a similar email machine, a lesser calender, and simply couldn't do a lot of other things (like let me read my own .epub files, or play movies, or..).

Croak said:
I can say owning a 10.1, and then buying a TouchPad, the 10.1 was the reason I got rid of the bulbous brick of failure two days after I bought it.
Of all the things I use my 10.1 for (and there are many), the Touchpad was only good as a sub-par browser, a similar email machine, a lesser calender, and simply couldn't do a lot of other things (like let me read my own .epub files, or play movies, or..).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
^^^^^
This.
I bought it for $299 when Staples had a coupon running concurently with HP. They killed it a week later and I returned it. It could have been great if HP continued to evolve it but frozen in time as-is it's pretty crude. Like OP, it got me in to tablets and I bought a G-Tab. I have a Wi-Fi right now but have a 3G coming from the UK at the end of the month. Based on my experience with the SGS2 I know Samsung will continue to take care of existing owners and they do a great job with software as you can see by how much better the G-Tab handles video compared to other tablets.

Exactly..! It was a so so email tablet, and ok browser, I'm doing so much more with the GT. Thanks for responding.

I was not attracted to tablets at all, until my friend showed me is TF. Then I started researching and discovered the 10.1 I then ordered one and since them I'm in love. Can't wait to see what the future will be.

Croak said:
. . . bulbous brick of failure . . .
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That's a perfect description! I have a bulbous brick of failure here that I've been trying to figure out what to do with. No apps means no use. Sure, the multitasking is cool, but with nothing worthwhile to multitask... well... I'm hoping they get a good android port onto it. Until then, it gathers dust.

Worth It?

I know this may be a biased crowd but I was wondering if this tablet is worth $319? I am in the market for a 10'' tablet and I've narrowed it down to a few options that include the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 10''. Also is a good tablet? I've read some of the post in this forum and I'm hoping if I do chose to get this tablet that it'll get some custom roms because I am not a fan of touch wiz. So overall what do you guys think of the tablet?

suprkain said:
I know this may be a biased crowd but I was wondering if this tablet is worth $319? I am in the market for a 10'' tablet and I've narrowed it down to a few options that include the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 10''. Also is a good tablet? I've read some of the post in this forum and I'm hoping if I do chose to get this tablet that it'll get some custom roms because I am not a fan of touch wiz. So overall what do you guys think of the tablet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought the 8" model of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 and am very happy with it. I have also looked at and priced the 10" tablets and $319 is a very good price for the 10" tablets. I got the 8" tablet because it is a more portable tablet for me and it fits in my purse a lot easier than the bigger tablet.
I hope that this helps you out.
Cindy
Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk

suprkain said:
I know this may be a biased crowd but I was wondering if this tablet is worth $319? I am in the market for a 10'' tablet and I've narrowed it down to a few options that include the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 10''. Also is a good tablet? I've read some of the post in this forum and I'm hoping if I do chose to get this tablet that it'll get some custom roms because I am not a fan of touch wiz. So overall what do you guys think of the tablet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The 10.1 inch pro is on sale at hhgregg and tigerdirect for 399 If you are looking to stay in the 3-400 range
http://www.hhgregg.com/hh/item/T520NZKAXAR
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...ffiliateID=jo_pTdthTuc-3St5XVNAQ2KCy8cHGn73.A

suprkain said:
I know this may be a biased crowd but I was wondering if this tablet is worth $319? I am in the market for a 10'' tablet and I've narrowed it down to a few options that include the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 10''. Also is a good tablet? I've read some of the post in this forum and I'm hoping if I do chose to get this tablet that it'll get some custom roms because I am not a fan of touch wiz. So overall what do you guys think of the tablet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just bought the 10.1 and I really like it. Size is a matter of pure personal choice though. I already have the Samsung Note 2, so I have a large "phablet" for browsing and needed my Tab to be large enough to do real business (excel, coding etc).
fyi... I also have the Logitech ultrathin folio for the Galaxy Tab 4 10.1 (case and BT keyboard) and it rocks!

[Q] Is it worth the buy ?

Hi, I am getting a gadget that I choose as a gift and since I already have a nice phone/laptop/desktop all other stuff. I am thinking about getting a tablet. I am gonna use it for reading PDF in classroom and taking notes so it needs to have a stylus, so I can get rid of bulky books and notepads. I am stuck between choosing note 10.1 and Nvidia Shield.
How futureproof is Note ?
Shield already has Android L update. Does Note also has it ? If not will it get it ? When ?
How reliable is the stylus ? will it cover the needs of an engineer ?
Would you recommend buying the Note ? Why ?
Thanks in advance

kadeve said:
Hi, I am getting a gadget that I choose as a gift and since I already have a nice phone/laptop/desktop all other stuff. I am thinking about getting a tablet. I am gonna use it for reading PDF in classroom and taking notes so it needs to have a stylus, so I can get rid of bulky books and notepads. I am stuck between choosing note 10.1 and Nvidia Shield.
How futureproof is Note ?
Shield already has Android L update. Does Note also has it ? If not will it get it ? When ?
How reliable is the stylus ? will it cover the needs of an engineer ?
Would you recommend buying the Note ? Why ?
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For your needs I would consider note 10.1 2014 here is why:
No manufactures have Spen as good as Samsung note, hand down and it's very reliable.
Highest Resolution for tablet - is top notch for reading
External SDcard support
3gb ram - the highest in all tablet devices
Note 10.1 will get Android L.
I just got a note 4 (newest Samsung phone) and I don't see any real advantage over the note 10.1 2014 except for a little bit more advance Spen (easier to share and use and added twice the sensitives but I don't see any advantage). So based on this the note 10.1 will be a keeper for 3-4 years or more, unless in the future there will be a new invented feature that you may want enough to switch.

well the tablet is now a year old, but the hardware still holds up. Samsung released several devices way after this with almost exactly the same specs. I'd say it has another year left of still being somewhat high-end but like all technology, newer stuff will be better. On the software front i'd expect a long wait for lollipop and then sammy will probably stop its updates there. The dev community is slow on this thing so i wouldn't get your hopes up for updates that way. Sure, it could happen but don't buy this tablet assuming it will happen.

Yes, I agree with all the comments. I'd say wait for a month or so as Samsung will release note 10.1 2015 edition. The pricing of the new edition should not be an issue considering the competition out there in the market.

Stylus - certainly the note for an Android. Surface Pro 3 is nice if you need more, but it is big and heavy. Note pro 12 is too big for easy 1-hand reading in my opinion too (I can just palm the 10.1). I like mine and will be keeping it at least another year as my primary reading/surfing device. I have not been quite as happy taking handwriting notes on it as I thought I would be.