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I am really interested in getting tablet, only thing holding me back is the price. I can only seem to find it on ebay (looking for wifi version, live in the US) and its around $500 despite being out for a while. It just puzzles me that the 10.1 (which I currently have) is a lot cheaper than this. Can the AMOLED screen really bump the price up? Or is it that Samsung didn't make too many of these therefore increasing demand thus raising price?
I started to reply to this but then noticed that Googling "Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 vs 7.7" gave me all the answers that I just deleted my post and wrote this instead.
In a nut shell: much faster, better battery life, better screen, and much smaller parts costs more $$
Yeah.. Googling.. I like the sound that I make when saying that.
Actually they set the price just below the maximum amount that customers in that region are willingly to spent, regardless of the cost. I know this fact doesn't help you much.
May be the super amoled+, amazingly lightweight and incredible slim design would be worthy? I for one spent extra on them.
kable said:
I started to reply to this but then noticed that Googling "Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 vs 7.7" gave me all the answers that I just deleted my post and wrote this instead.
In a nut shell: much faster, better battery life, better screen, and much smaller parts costs more $$
Yeah.. Googling.. I like the sound that I make when saying that.
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Click to collapse
i own 7.7 and 10.1
7.7 is not much faster then 10.1, battery life 10.1 better, 7.7 better screen and smaller yes
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九千. said:
Actually they set the price just below the maximum amount that customers in that region are willingly to spent, regardless of the cost. I know this fact doesn't help you much.
May be the super amoled+, amazingly lightweight and incredible slim design would be worthy? I for one spent extra on them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if it once by mistake fell down from your hands it will have lots of ugly bumps and scratches even each of its four corners get scratch by it self they are using some kind of cheap plastic to make a back side but super amoled+ is great much tougher than its lightweight and incredible slim body
irmani said:
i own 7.7 and 10.1
7.7 is not much faster then 10.1, battery life 10.1 better, 7.7 better screen and smaller yes
---------- Post added at 06:08 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:01 AM ----------
if it once by mistake fell down from your hands it will have lots of ugly bumps and scratches even each of its four corners get scratch by it self they are using some kind of cheap plastic to make a back side but super amoled+ is great much tougher than its lightweight and incredible slim body
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As a matter of fact, it did, fall from my hand, in a public toilet, toward a moist ground which I didn't want my tablet falling onto. I attempted to grab it mid-air, but out of panic I flapped it toward the opposite wall a meter away, and regardless of my efforts, it still hit the floor. It slided for about 2 meters before it finally stopped by fiction.
Fortunately for me it slided face up. The back panel got some slight scratch on the plastic corner, and an unnoticeable scratch on the metal brand name "Samsung". Amazingly there isn't a noticable scratch on the main metal back panel, though I am sure it must have been in contact with the rough toilet ground.
Regardless of the impacts the tablet is still running without a glitch. This device is more robust than I thought.
irmani said:
i own 7.7 and 10.1
7.7 is not much faster then 10.1, battery life 10.1 better, 7.7 better screen and smaller yes
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Click to collapse
I disagree.
Just got my 7.7 and sold my 10.1. The 7.7 is much snappier and more responsive in every way. One thing that drove me nuts was how laggy the 10.1's gyrometer was in responding to screen rotation. Loading apps and app animation were smoother.
Another issue with the 10.1 was, half the time wifi would take longer (up to 1 min) to connect after wake from sleep. Sometimes, I even need to toggle wifi on/off to force connection. So far, the 7.7 connects instantly (2 s) from every wake.
Finally, the 10.1 must have older graphics hardware. When I use MX video to play a variety of movie formats, some require additional codec download as the files were not compatible with the H/W decoder. For the 7.7 (and a Galaxy Note that I had before), all the movies that I have, originally converted for iPad, work with the H/W decoder.
ikeny said:
I disagree.
Just got my 7.7 and sold my 10.1. The 7.7 is much snappier and more responsive in every way. One thing that drove me nuts was how laggy the 10.1's gyrometer was in responding to screen rotation. Loading apps and app animation were smoother.
Another issue with the 10.1 was, half the time wifi would take longer (up to 1 min) to connect after wake from sleep. Sometimes, I even need to toggle wifi on/off to force connection. So far, the 7.7 connects instantly (2 s) from every wake.
Finally, the 10.1 must have older graphics hardware. When I use MX video to play a variety of movie formats, some require additional codec download as the files were not compatible with the H/W decoder. For the 7.7 (and a Galaxy Note that I had before), all the movies that I have, originally converted for iPad, work with the H/W decoder.
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Click to collapse
To defend the 10.1 which I use on a daily basis for a large variety of things, from youtube to reading documents and pdfs. You obviously had not rooted it and run a custom rom on it. There are a few roms out for it and Galaxy task is one hell of a rom. My wifi is instantaneous (I have set to turn off when screen turns off, but when I turn the screen on, wifi connects my to the internet and google servers before I even pass the lockscreen) and it doesn't lag for me that severely (lag still exists, just not crazy lag to the point of being frozen). The gyroscope when turning the tablet isn't instant, but its not long enough to bother you(takes less than a second to respond).
The main reason I want the 7.7 is because I could go for something a bit smaller than the 10.1, not a 7" tab though. Also being so used to the AMOLED of my S2, I'd really like a tablet to have the same quality screen. I'm thinking about waiting for the Toshiba Excite 7.7 and seeing what happens to the price of this then.
Also thanks for you input everyone.
九千. said:
As a matter of fact, it did, fall from my hand, in a public toilet, toward a moist ground which I didn't want my tablet falling onto. I attempted to grab it mid-air, but out of panic I flapped it toward the opposite wall a meter away, and regardless of my efforts, it still hit the floor. It slided for about 2 meters before it finally stopped by fiction.
Fortunately for me it slided face up. The back panel got some slight scratch on the plastic corner, and an unnoticeable scratch on the metal brand name "Samsung". Amazingly there isn't a noticable scratch on the main metal back panel, though I am sure it must have been in contact with the rough toilet ground.
Regardless of the impacts the tablet is still running without a glitch. This device is more robust than I thought.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Double harrowing story...Firstly, because it actually happened to you, secondly because it sounds like the kind of thing that keeps happening to me
XK
Will be holding this tab in couple more days and I can't really wait
One thing about the gyroscope sensor in, probably, all android tablet devices is that they are not very instant, are they ?
(if you compare to iPad's, it's tad score slower and is not very responsive )
Note that I will and can only fully justify this once I've got this tab on my hand. But experiences on stores showing that the response is very slow. There is even a 7.7" tab on store display that sometimes get "stuck" in orientation when you change from landscape - portrait and vice versa
Now, is it just because it's HC issue or is it more because of TW issue ?
( all store display will run HC - TW by default )
Would installing Go Launcher HD solve or improve the response ?
I have S2 and it doesn't really have this problem
Cheers,
Just got a 7.7 yesterday and I can say I have been buying Android tablets since the chinese have started doing them (which means I bought a lot of crap lol).
Never held a tablet that gave such a feeling of quality when you hold and use it. Never had a tablet not crashing once while using it for a whole evening. And I could not believe how good the sound is albeit not very loud. First tablet ever with 0 light bleed, by now I thought it was impossible for this to happen.
This thing smells of quality like nothing else, definitely in another league than the Asus stuff for example. It's like Samsung said let's use the best of everything and put it together.
No ICS yet, but besides extra smoothness when navigating within the OS, it's not like it's day and night when you are actually doing something in an app. For having had different tablets that were updated to ICS, I know it's better to have no ICS than buggy ICS that's crashes or eats battery like a monster.
aleifuu said:
Will be holding this tab in couple more days and I can't really wait
One thing about the gyroscope sensor in, probably, all android tablet devices is that they are not very instant, are they ?
(if you compare to iPad's, it's tad score slower and is not very responsive )
Note that I will and can only fully justify this once I've got this tab on my hand. But experiences on stores showing that the response is very slow. There is even a 7.7" tab on store display that sometimes get "stuck" in orientation when you change from landscape - portrait and vice versa
Now, is it just because it's HC issue or is it more because of TW issue ?
( all store display will run HC - TW by default )
Would installing Go Launcher HD solve or improve the response ?
I have S2 and it doesn't really have this problem
Cheers,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's a horizontal calibration option somewhere in the main settings. This might help the gyro. Overall I don't think its as responsive as an ipad.
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2
for me its definitely worth every bucks i spent on this little beast .
the perfect screens for movie , just nice screen size for e books .
its worth it
Build quality second to none. Longest battery ever tested on a tablet via engadget review. Screen is amazing. Thin and small bezel looks sexy. Its perfect. IcS will put it over the top.
Sent from my GT-P7500 using XDA Premium HD app
I 'm hardcore android fan.
About 5-6 Mobile & 3 Tablets in a year.
7.7 is worth every $ because
- it's Super AMLED screen is work outdoor.
- Screen density.
- 5000 mAh Battery. & Use as phone : with good BlueTooth, this is only 1 android device that battery over 75% at the end f the day.
- Weight & Handling : Best of single hand's handling.
7.7 price is high but If you use as tablet , Phone , BIG! GPS in car , Movie Player in car
, it totally worth.
OK guys. I caved in and bought the wifi version today. Should be here in a few days, am pretty excited. I'm a student so I'll be using it for browsing, reading documents and pdfs, also movie/YouTube viewing. Didn't need the phone version since I have the sgs2 which is super great btw.
A few questions though, is it just me or us the development slow? I'd think with a superb tablet like this, there would be tons of developers flocking here.
Also any other issues due to software I should know about?
Does this tablet have haptic feedback?
And finally any accessories to recommend? I only bought some anti glare protectors on Amazon.
And one last thing to do, sell my current tab lol
Thanks for all the input guys.
I think development is slow because of it is expensive, and not many devs have this, over say the 10.1 or 7.0 counterparts.
Nonetheless, aside from other users saying that it has a great battery and screen, I would say that not other tablets have a built-in phone. So the fact that this can double as one, it sounds a lot more reasonable doesn't it!
I've bought mine from Dixons, in the Netherlands, for 479 EUR early this month.
I can't force myself to considering it expensive, no matter how I look at it and taking into consideration what it offers me, for the price.
The single fact that it can double as phone - and as a smart one, for that matter - is reason enough to consider this a bargain, let alone the incredible screen, the form factor, the ability to take 64Gb Micros Sds or the USB with host controller capability.
If anything, for what it so aptly does, this one is pretty cheap, me thinks...
XK
I think the price is comperable to the IPad.
murmur70 said:
I think the price is comperable to the IPad.
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Click to collapse
No, it is not, precisely... (at least over here)
My 7.7: 479 EUR
iPad3 16Gb, Wifi+3/4G: 599 (...the same all over Europe. Apple has a tight hand on pricing...)
So, for 120 EUR less (!) I got:
1. A better display.
2. A better format (subjective)
3. The ability to expand the internal 16Gb with 64Gb more, via the SD slot.
4. The ability to use an host enabled USB slot.
5. The ability to use it as a phone.
6. Complete customization for my particular needs, supported by an ever-helping, outstanding community.
Now, if this is not a deal, I don't know what is...
XK
As I posted in the other thread, you can get it in switzerland for 499chf thats 415euros. Maybe you can import them to other european countries but beware of local sales tax.
Sent from my GT-P6800 using xda premium
I posted a review at Samsung.ca for the Tab Pro 8.4.
And of course Samsung deleted it...
The irony was, I gave it 4/5 stars and praised its features. I guess I shouldn't have mentioned any of the minor issues with it.
When manufacturer's provide a space for the public to post a review and then delete those they don't like (and mine was pretty positive), what exactly is the point?
RobilarOCN said:
I posted a review at Samsung.ca for the Tab Pro 8.4.
And of course Samsung deleted it...
The irony was, I gave it 4/5 stars and praised its features. I guess I shouldn't have mentioned any of the minor issues with it.
When manufacturer's provide a space for the public to post a review and then delete those they don't like (and mine was pretty positive), what exactly is the point?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They only want super positive?
Why did you knock a star btw?
This is the first Sammy that I would rate 5 stars to.
Goes to show how dishonest Samsung can be. The reviews are not real and are rigged. To me Amazon has the best review system. You have to own and bought the product from their website and they don't filter the negative feedback except profanity.
scrosler said:
They only want super positive?
Why did you knock a star btw?
This is the first Sammy that I would rate 5 stars to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I only decked it a point for a couple of reasons.
Price. To me it's not overpriced but realistically it should be a $300 - $350 range tablet. With the N7 sitting at $250, the LG G Pad sitting at $250 and the Mini Retina sitting at $400, it should have been somewhere in the middle. Don't get me wrong, I have the Mini Retina and much prefer the Samsung but for those who know nothing about tablets (my mother for example), it is very hard to sell against the Mini retina at the same price point. I showed it to my mother and she was asking why it was the same price as the Mini (which I bought her, sigh) was so much nicer...
Also I mentioned battery life compared to the Mini (that's what probably got the review deleted). Battery life is pretty good for an Android tablet (Better for sure than my G Pad) but compared to the Apple tablets, it's about 5 hours short. That's a big delta.
I also mentioned that the black version was not available in Canada. Why would they launch both colors in the US but only give Canada the god awful ugly white version? I hate white tablets and I'm stuck with one.
I also suggested that for the price point, the Tab Pro should have mini HDMI out. There are plenty of much cheaper tablets (like the Dell) that have this feature. This is being touted as a "Pro" device. Why do I have to hunt around for an MHL HDMI adapter (I've already bought and returned 2 that do not work) so that I can connect this device to a display? It would be great for powerpoint decks at clients (which I currently do with a Surface Pro). For $400, this feature should be a no brainer.
Despite the above, they are all minor concerns as I emphasized that it was the best Android tablet I have owned.
I guess I provided too much accurate info...
I think it's pretty obvious why they deleted your review, you mentioned your a Canadian
Sent from my Nexus 10 using XDA Premium HD app in Toronto
I think I'd probably go with a 3.5 for as it comes out of the box, pre loaded with lots of uninstallable crap, iffy/average build quality and poor battery life.
Once the bloat is removed, its a different beast, but then you have no warranty, so 3.5 stars is fair I reckon.
If they did a google play version, on the other hand, it'd be a 4.5 :good:
RobilarOCN said:
Despite the above, they are all minor concerns as I emphasized that it was the best Android tablet I have owned.
I guess I provided too much accurate info...
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Click to collapse
Fair enough! I agree with your statements!
Monkey Chops said:
I think I'd probably go with a 3.5 for as it comes out of the box, pre loaded with lots of uninstallable crap, iffy/average build quality and poor battery life.
Once the bloat is removed, its a different beast, but then you have no warranty, so 3.5 stars is fair I reckon.
If they did a google play version, on the other hand, it'd be a 4.5 :good:
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Click to collapse
A google play version, black 32GB, would be an instant buy for me (despite already having one).
It's a fantastic tablet, just a few minor things keep it from being perfect.
I also own a Mini Retina 128GB and the battery between the two isn't even close. That is one area that would make a big difference.
If I wrote a review it'd probably never going to be published on Samsung's website so I will do a review here.
I got the 12.2" and used it out for a week now, I would give it a 2.5. The only thing I like about it is the large screen and the clarity of the display. Other then that I too think it's overpriced compared to hundreds of other Android devices out there.
It's heavy and holding it with 2 hands for 30 min my wrist starts to feel uncomfortable. The bloatware is annoying and some of them you can't even be disabled. Of course I could do the root it and delete method it but that would void my warranty. That's a risk I'm not going to take cause I'm not sure if I'm keeping this. There should be a law like in Korea that a user should have the option to remove bloatware easily as they wish.
For a 9500 mAH battery, it sucked bad. Samsung claim you can watch 8 hours of continues movies but the most I've gotten is 3.5 hours. The sound and speaker is horrid because half the video I played has cracking and popping noises in the background. Also some 1080p videos I tested jitters and motion lags at times. For clarification, these videos I tested have no problem playing on my 6 years old MacBook at all. Magazine UI looks cool back in January when they demoed it but once you get to it, it feels incomplete and it is an awful experience. Couldn't remove it either.
Also I got the Black version and it came with an odd white usb cable and charger. Little missed details like that could annoy owners.
The next tablet I'm going to try is the Sony Xperia Z2. In the mean time, this isn't a winner for me so I'm probably going to return it soon. I really tried hard to like this tablet and was anxious when Samsung announce it but it is big let down for me.
NixxonExxo said:
If I wrote a review it'd probably never going to be published on Samsung's website so I will do a review here.
I got the 12.2" and used it out for a week now, I would give it a 2.5. The only thing I like about it is the large screen and the clarity of the display. Other then that I too think it's overpriced compared to hundreds of other Android devices out there.
It's heavy and holding it with 2 hands for 30 min my wrist starts to feel uncomfortable. The bloatware is annoying and some of them you can't even be disabled. Of course I could do the root it and delete method it but that would void my warranty. That's a risk I'm not going to take cause I'm not sure if I'm keeping this. There should be a law like in Korea that a user should have the option to remove bloatware easily as they wish.
For a 9500 mAH battery, it sucked bad. Samsung claim you can watch 8 hours of continues movies but the most I've gotten is 3.5 hours. The sound and speaker is horrid because half the video I played has cracking and popping noises in the background. Also some 1080p videos I tested jitters and motion lags at times. For clarification, these videos I tested have no problem playing on my 6 years old MacBook at all. Magazine UI looks cool back in January when they demoed it but once you get to it, it feels incomplete and it is an awful experience. Couldn't remove it either.
Also I got the Black version and it came with an odd white usb cable and charger. Little missed details like that could annoy owners.
The next tablet I'm going to try is the Sony Xperia Z2. In the mean time, this isn't a winner for me so I'm probably going to return it soon. I really tried hard to like this tablet and was anxious when Samsung announce it but it is big let down for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You raise some good points.However, you can't really complain about the size and weight. It is thinner and lighter than anything else in its size class. If it's too heavy, you should have bought a smaller tablet. I mean, how can you complain about the weight when you chose that size? The 10.1 Pro weighs almost 300 grams less.
I am surprised at your battery results. The 8.4 is good for about 7 hours of video (I've tested it several times on flights). I expected the bigger versions to be better given the higher rated battery.
RobilarOCN said:
You raise some good points.However, you can't really complain about the size and weight. It is thinner and lighter than anything else in its size class. If it's too heavy, you should have bought a smaller tablet. I mean, how can you complain about the weight when you chose that size? The 10.1 Pro weighs almost 300 grams less.
I am surprised at your battery results. The 8.4 is good for about 7 hours of video (I've tested it several times on flights). I expected the bigger versions to be better given the higher rated battery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not complaining about size, it's perfect and I enjoy the large screen estate. I'm complaining about the weight. It feels super light when you carry it around but supporting it long term with your wrists are two different things. Maybe I will wait for the 2nd or 3rd generation to see if Samsung improves the weight and hopefully to be under 1 pound is ideal.
My battery result is what it is. I have it on auto brightness and it's not even that bright at all. The videos I played are standard avi, 720p and 1080p.
RobilarOCN said:
You raise some good points.However, you can't really complain about the size and weight. It is thinner and lighter than anything else in its size class. If it's too heavy, you should have bought a smaller tablet. I mean, how can you complain about the weight when you chose that size? The 10.1 Pro weighs almost 300 grams less.
I am surprised at your battery results. The 8.4 is good for about 7 hours of video (I've tested it several times on flights). I expected the bigger versions to be better given the higher rated battery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bigger screen easily offsets the bigger battery compares to 8.4, because (in normal cases) the screen is always the biggest consumer of battery, the size of the screen is huge on 12.2, so I'm not surprised by the poor battery life it has.
RobilarOCN said:
You raise some good points.However, you can't really complain about the size and weight. It is thinner and lighter than anything else in its size class. If it's too heavy, you should have bought a smaller tablet. I mean, how can you complain about the weight when you chose that size? The 10.1 Pro weighs almost 300 grams less.
I am surprised at your battery results. The 8.4 is good for about 7 hours of video (I've tested it several times on flights). I expected the bigger versions to be better given the higher rated battery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree 100% with everything nixxon said about the 12.2, I got it a few days ago and will be returning it soon.
The screen is gorgeous but it sucks battery like crazy even on low brightness, also the weight becomes uncomfortable quickly when you rest it on your chest (ie reading in bed).
The weight issue is tricky because I have laptops which are heavier but still comfortable to use in bed, what makes the 12.2 so uncomfortable is that all its weight gets exerted on a small area of your body vs a laptop where it's more spread out.
CPU bound tasks seem very quick but graphics intensive tasks feel sluggish compared to my note 10.1, I'm sure that could be improved with an optimized kernel/rom.
Still on the fence over whether to trade for a note pro 10.1 or wait for something else
sefstrat said:
Still on the fence over whether to trade for a note pro 10.1 or wait for something else
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh boy, when it comes to Samsung software, waiting is the most traitorous thing ever. They have a very poor track record of OS and in house apps update ever. Take for example, the Note 10.1 2014 edition has been out since October, has the exact same identical internal spec as the Note pro 12.2 and it hasn't gotten the latest KitKat upgrade yet. They could have easily and inexpensively take the Note Pro 12.2 software and tweak it to work on the Note 10.1 but they still haven't done so.
Samsung doesn't take care of their customers after. They just want to make a quick buck on the hardware moving forward. They don't look back on supporting older devices because it's not profitable.
Haw dare you impede on Samsung's marketing scheme! Shame on you. Aren't you aware their devices are immaculate and faultless in every way?
Those looking at 10 inch you might want to wait for the SM T800.
Hi, SO SORRY for the huge post, just wanted to share my recent experience with the Galaxy Tab S3. I'm not really looking to bad-mouth Samsung or anything, just want to provide my experience, which might help others in some way.
A week and a half ago I decided to purchase an android tablet for entertainment and taking notes/writing down equations at work. After doing some research it was pretty clear that Samsung Tab S series is the front runner here (second was Asus Zenpad 3S IMO). FYI, I previously had a Galaxy Tab S 10.5 and a Google Pixel C. My phone is LG V20.
This was the sequence of events:
1. Purchased Galaxy Tab S2 (Was on discount).
2. Returned the Tab S2 and got the Tab S3.
3. Purchased another Tab S3 to compare to the device I already had for a few days (To see if my device was faulty).
4. Returned both Tab S3 devices and purchased an iPad Pro 10.5 (the newest model).
The Tab S2 was super light, the battery was great, and the screen was absolutely stunning! However, it was constantly stuttering (Snapdragon 652 I think), had no S-pen support, and the speakers were just bad. It was really nice to hold though, light and easy to grip. But after two days I said, well let's get the Tab S3 instead. it has a faster processor, more RAM, S-pen support, and four quality speakers.
Got the Tab S3 and after getting everything setup from scratch I thought it's awesome! Very premium glass design, the INCLUDED S-pen was wonderful to take notes or some minor drawing (it also doesn't require recharging, which is genius), speakers were 1000% better than Tab S2. First day I got 6 hours of Screen on Time. Now, I'm very familiar with android and of course that made sense - new toy, first cycle, extra features enabled, blah blah. After a week, though, I was starting to get annoyed with some things:
1. The battery was just not good, I have no other way of saying it. When the screen is off, no drain whatsoever. When you're doing anything with the tablet, you can literally watch the battery drain one percent at a time. Light usage too, not playing games or anything. The most I got was 7.5 SOT with very low brightness. Here's an example of how my day looks like: Wake up at 5am, have coffee and get ready while watching mostly YouTube on the Tab. Started work at 7am, by then it was at 75%, was taking notes throughout the day. At about 1:30pm it was at 15%. I was taking notes, that's it, fairly low brightness.
2. It felt much heavier than the Tab S2. Yes, it is heavier, but for some reason it feels MUCH heavier.
3. The glass design looks great, but my goodness it's so hard to hold the tablet for more than 5 minutes. It makes your hands sweat and constantly keeps slipping out of them. What it means is that you have to adjust your grip every minute or so.
4. The cameras are just bad in 2017 standards. I got spoiled by my LG phone probably. But these cameras are just below average. Obviously I'm not gonna take pictures with my tablet, but at least put a decent front facing camera for skype and snapchat, etc.
5. But above all, the tablet was just supper laggy. The first day I said "oh well, I was setting it up and stuff so it probably got hot and haven't had a chance to optimize apps". Being objective, when you're using it you notice that it lags constantly. Multitasking, not multitasking, scrolling, just everywhere… To be honest, my LG V20 lags as hell too from time to time which is annoying as well. These two devices have a Snapdragon 820, so this must be it. They get hot and start to lag even more after 10 minutes. Moreover, I noticed that when I'm using the S-pen to navigate the screen, there's a noticeable extra lag. For example, when using Talon for Twitter app or any browser it seems to normally run at 30 fps (could be more, but I'm just making a point). That's what it seems like at least. When scrolling with the S-pen I noticed that it drops to about 20 fps. The activation of the digitizer must have an effect on the smoothness?? And after I noticed it once, I noticed it all the time…
6. I was so confident my unit was faulty, that I went to another store and purchased another Tab S3 haha. All this just to realize they were ALMOST exactly the same. Both lag, both have short battery, but the new Tab I got had some weird light bleed from the top left. Just to be clear, the screen on the Galaxy Tab S3 (or S2 or even the S 10.5) is the best screen you'll probably see. There's nothing better than that, really.
Broken hearted, I gave up, went to the store, and returned both tablets. I have to say, I HATE apple. I just hate their prices, their all-high-and-mighty attitude, "closed" operating system without customization, the fact that you have to buy that stupid apple pencil separately, just not my cup of tea. So I go to the store and say "the hell with this, everyone is drooling over these new iPads, let me see what all of this nonsense is about." I was genuinely saying to myself that I'll play around with the iPad Pro 10.5, realize how much better the Tab S3 was, and have a story to tell how better android is and blah blah blah.
Overall, the iPad Pro 10.5 is about $200 MORE expensive than the Galaxy Tab S3. This is because that damn Apple Pencil costs $150 in Canada. It has more storage (64GB) but lacks a microSD slot. The Tab S3 is expensive. The iPad is EXPENSIVE.
Trying to have as little bias as I can, these are my impressions with the iPad after 4 days:
1. Getting everything set up was super easy. I actually managed to find most of the apps I use on my android devices in the app store. That was unexpected and just shows how little I knew. Some apps were missing (like Palabre), but there are other alternatives that work just fine (but Palabre is still the best Feedly app I've used). Setting up my work exchange account was painless as well. But having to put all apps in folders and not having an app drawer feels a bit stupid.
2. I don’t care who you are, after you use this iPad for a bit you'll say "this is the smoothest, fastest, snappiest device I've ever used in my life". I'm a bit shocked… THERE IS NO LAG
3. The battery is just outstanding! Bravo Apple, you win. Not only it's faster, it lasts MUCH longer than the Tab S3 or the Tab S2. Actually, even longer than the amazing Google Pixel C. Same scenario as I mentioned before. Woke up at 5am, same use pattern. Went to work at 7am, and took notes all day with the Apple Pencil. I left work at 7pm and the battery was at 52%. This is a huge plus, seriously. However, charging it is super slow. Yep. Android users are spoiled with fast charging for sure. But the iPad will last you ALL DAY, so I find that I charge it over night.
4. Holding the device feels great in the hand. Because it's not made out of glass, it feels so solid in my hand/hands. It's heavier than the Tab S3 I think, but it FEELS LIGHTER because it's so easy to grip. Moreover, it has pretty slim bezels. So when I hold it in portrait orientation my thumbs rest sometimes on the touchscreen. That's when I realized how genius the palm/thumb/whatever rejection is. It knows that one finger is holding the device and the other finger is actually using it and scrolling or whatever. I have to say, this implementation is WAY better than it is on the Tab S3.
5. The display on the Tab S3 is stunning, but the display on the iPad is… stunning as well?? It's not better than AMOLED, but IT IS GREAT. It's bright, the colours are punchy, and it has this "True Tone" feature that adapts the display to the lighting in the room. I really dig that a lot, very clever. Also, the display has twice the refresh rate of other displays (including iPads and android tablets). In real life it means that it appears smoother and the latency with the Apple Pencil is very low.
6. Talking about the Apple Pencil. I'm a little ashamed to admit, but it's absolutely wonderful to use. The price is BAD, the size is good, its texture is good, its balance and weight is good, the texture of the tip is good, its battery life is good. The bottom line is, and I'm being objective here, taking notes with this pen on the iPad feels amazing. So smooth and responsive… An absolutely delightful experience. Taking notes on the Tab S3 is GREAT and it has much more actual functionality. Taking notes on the iPad is AMAZING, while lacking a side button or the extra features of the S-pen. But I must say, for my use pattern most of the S-pen features are just gimmicks. Apple should implement an eraser on the other side of the pen (like Microsoft), I bet it'll be in the Pencil 2.0
7. After listening to the speakers on the iPad I realized that the speakers on the Tab S3 are not as good as I thought they were… The sound from these speakers is hands down the best I've ever heard. First time in my life I thought "god, it's too loud…" So so good, really. It's louder in volume, and the sound has much more bass and mids. Just sounds "Fuller", you can feel it vibrate and it feels great. I watched reviews online comparing the sound for both tablets, and people said the iPad is better, but it's a close call. It's not a close call, it's more than that. On top of that, the headphone jack (where is the 'Courage" Apple?!) is again better than the Tab S3. It drives demanding headphones better and louder. There's no equalizer though (am I missing anything here?). Apple is too cheap to include a licenced support for APTX over Bluetooth.
8. The fingerprint scanner is faster and more accurate than on the Tab S3. But for some reason you have to press the home button for it to register, which feels very 2015.
9. I noticed something about multitasking. More apps are kept ready to go in the background, and the implementation of multitasking is smoother and better than on the Tab S3. Actually, better than android in general. I'm not sure what it is, but it seems to work better. No lagginess or stuttering, apps scale better in split screen mode as well.
10. Cameras are awesome. Front facing and back camera. Apple had stock left from the iPhone 7 and they put it to good use. Samsung, get your **** together.
To conclude. The iPad Pro 10.5 is SO EXPENSIVE. It's not perfect. I'm SO HAPPY. I'm keeping the iPad…
Thanks for that. I am considering both the S3 and 10.5. I am a Note 10.1 user so would prefer to migrate to the S3 but the IPad just seems a better engineered device.
The problem with oled display`s is that the brighter the object on the screen the more power the display uses, for white screen like while browsing or writing documents or drawing pictures on a white background they eat the battery life, now if you had white text on a black background your battery would last ages.
Now lcd displays use the same amount of power whatever the screen colour is or what colour the object is.
So it you are going to do a lot of web browsing or writing text or drawing pictures anything with a white or bright background get an lcd display not an oled one.
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John.
jeremyr62 said:
Thanks for that. I am considering both the S3 and 10.5. I am a Note 10.1 user so would prefer to migrate to the S3 but the IPad just seems a better engineered device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here is a professional and balanced comparison of the S3 and the Ipad pro. In a nutshell, the ipad has only a slightly better processor and battery life but the S3 has a much better display and is a better overall value:
http://time.com/4708671/samsung-galaxy-tab-s3-release-review-ipad/
The S3 is my first tablet but I have owned each Samsung Galaxy phone since the S2 and like the Android OS. But I seriously considered buying the ipad pro because it will likely continue receiving updates long after the S3. I eventually decided to go with the S3 primarily for the HDR display but I almost switched to ios for the above reason.
Sorry way too long to make a few points.
Nevertheless, just skimmed read your very long post, I can assure you, my Tab S3 has good super battery life, no lagging at all and none whatsoever of any of the issues you claimed to have experienced.
I found it an extremely useful post. It is rare someone posts such detailed comparisons. The Youtube vids that do this are usually useless. Finding this kind of info from someone who has owned both devices gives a much more valid real world comparison.
Looks like the S3 is quite a bit heavier than the S2 though i would not swap either for my S1 as i use video more than anything and the S1 has an 16:10 screen while the S2 and S3 have a 4:3 display more suited to text, and internet browsing.
Below is a link comparing the S1 S2 and S3 specs.
http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=8554&idPhone2=7438&idPhone3=6235
John.
Bluering5 said:
Nevertheless, just skimmed read your very long post, I can assure you, my Tab S3 has good super battery life, no lagging at all and none whatsoever of any of the issues you claimed to have experienced.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OP shared the good and bad experience he had with a device he really wanted to like. I like having information when I'm spending hundreds of dollars for a device. So i for one , appreciate this post.
Thanks OP, your post and experience really helped me decide.
Appreciate your time.
This is nothing new really.....it's just the way it is and has been forever. iPad's cost considerably more, yes. But they are also considerably better. I personally prefer Android over iOS without question but Android tablets just do not measure up to iOS tablets. Even with Android tablets being hundreds of dollars cheaper, I ALWAYS end up disappointed in them and doing exactly what the OP did, returning them to get an iPad.
Android tablets are "good enough," yes. But once you've used an iPad it is really, really clear to see the flaws in Android tablets. As has been mentioned, things like battery life, lag, and this isn't even getting into how many more apps are made specifically for iPad vs phone apps being shoehorned into a bigger screen on Android.
Nice write-up.
Price and the incredibly silly glass back put me off the Tab S3. Such a shame that to Samsung nowadays "premium" means fragile and slippery. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the plastic backs they used to use and I'll take that it any day over glass or metal.
The iPad 10.5 is what the Tab S3 should have been in so many ways rather than a minor update to the Tab S2 but I'm not ready to go Apple yet. Amoled is keeping me on Android for the time being so I'll simply stick with my Tab S for at least another year.
I am more or less in precisely the same boat with the OP. While I can't comment much about lag and battery (lag doesn't bother me and I don't use it much at a time and charge it rather often) the other complains are clearly justified.
This glass&metal construction is as bad as it gets, both because it's fragile and because it's hard to grip. It is kind of ridiculous, just try to keep it between your fingers and walk with it balancing your arms normally (or exaggerated, just to see what I mean). It will just inexorably slip through your fingers (not to the point of dropping it, if you're careful but you'll have to push it up with the other hand from time to time). That is without having any kind of greasy or wet fingers. I don't know what was wrong with something like Galaxy Note's (1) plastic (removable!) back. Oh, it doesn't look premium, bla bla.
Other than that the display is fine for browsing but for movies is beyond bad. I posted earlier about the dark screen (what is a little bit dark is completely black). Also in daylight (and I mean indirect daylight, in full shade) it's so reflective that is almost useless if you want to do something comfortably.
I would get the ipad (I can still return the S3) but the price difference is rather large (I can well afford it but can't really justify it). I managed to get the S3 for ~450 euros after all rebates (that is with LTE) and I can't do better (at least for the near future) for the ipad than the official 729 euro. And that would be without LTE, pen and with the pathetic 64GB non-expandable. If I go for 256GB and LTE ... sky's the limit. And even with LTE I still can't use the ipad as a backup phone (this was actually what I've got LTE for).
But with iPad I'll get the better screen (which is what I value most) and a much better camera (which might come in handy). But I'll have to change to iOS and it bothers me to learn new tricks (heh, I'm old).
jonidog said:
Hi, SO SORRY for the huge post, just wanted to share my recent experience with the Galaxy Tab S3. I'm not really looking to bad-mouth Samsung or anything, just want to provide my experience, which might help others in some way.
A week and a half ago I decided to purchase an android tablet for entertainment and taking notes/writing down equations at work. After doing some research it was pretty clear that Samsung Tab S series is the front runner here (second was Asus Zenpad 3S IMO). FYI, I previously had a Galaxy Tab S 10.5 and a Google Pixel C. My phone is LG V20.
This was the sequence of events:
1. Purchased Galaxy Tab S2 (Was on discount).
2. Returned the Tab S2 and got the Tab S3.
3. Purchased another Tab S3 to compare to the device I already had for a few days (To see if my device was faulty).
4. Returned both Tab S3 devices and purchased an iPad Pro 10.5 (the newest model).
The Tab S2 was super light, the battery was great, and the screen was absolutely stunning! However, it was constantly stuttering (Snapdragon 652 I think), had no S-pen support, and the speakers were just bad. It was really nice to hold though, light and easy to grip. But after two days I said, well let's get the Tab S3 instead. it has a faster processor, more RAM, S-pen support, and four quality speakers.
Got the Tab S3 and after getting everything setup from scratch I thought it's awesome! Very premium glass design, the INCLUDED S-pen was wonderful to take notes or some minor drawing (it also doesn't require recharging, which is genius), speakers were 1000% better than Tab S2. First day I got 6 hours of Screen on Time. Now, I'm very familiar with android and of course that made sense - new toy, first cycle, extra features enabled, blah blah. After a week, though, I was starting to get annoyed with some things:
1. The battery was just not good, I have no other way of saying it. When the screen is off, no drain whatsoever. When you're doing anything with the tablet, you can literally watch the battery drain one percent at a time. Light usage too, not playing games or anything. The most I got was 7.5 SOT with very low brightness. Here's an example of how my day looks like: Wake up at 5am, have coffee and get ready while watching mostly YouTube on the Tab. Started work at 7am, by then it was at 75%, was taking notes throughout the day. At about 1:30pm it was at 15%. I was taking notes, that's it, fairly low brightness.
2. It felt much heavier than the Tab S2. Yes, it is heavier, but for some reason it feels MUCH heavier.
3. The glass design looks great, but my goodness it's so hard to hold the tablet for more than 5 minutes. It makes your hands sweat and constantly keeps slipping out of them. What it means is that you have to adjust your grip every minute or so.
4. The cameras are just bad in 2017 standards. I got spoiled by my LG phone probably. But these cameras are just below average. Obviously I'm not gonna take pictures with my tablet, but at least put a decent front facing camera for skype and snapchat, etc.
5. But above all, the tablet was just supper laggy. The first day I said "oh well, I was setting it up and stuff so it probably got hot and haven't had a chance to optimize apps". Being objective, when you're using it you notice that it lags constantly. Multitasking, not multitasking, scrolling, just everywhere… To be honest, my LG V20 lags as hell too from time to time which is annoying as well. These two devices have a Snapdragon 820, so this must be it. They get hot and start to lag even more after 10 minutes. Moreover, I noticed that when I'm using the S-pen to navigate the screen, there's a noticeable extra lag. For example, when using Talon for Twitter app or any browser it seems to normally run at 30 fps (could be more, but I'm just making a point). That's what it seems like at least. When scrolling with the S-pen I noticed that it drops to about 20 fps. The activation of the digitizer must have an effect on the smoothness?? And after I noticed it once, I noticed it all the time…
6. I was so confident my unit was faulty, that I went to another store and purchased another Tab S3 haha. All this just to realize they were ALMOST exactly the same. Both lag, both have short battery, but the new Tab I got had some weird light bleed from the top left. Just to be clear, the screen on the Galaxy Tab S3 (or S2 or even the S 10.5) is the best screen you'll probably see. There's nothing better than that, really.
Broken hearted, I gave up, went to the store, and returned both tablets. I have to say, I HATE apple. I just hate their prices, their all-high-and-mighty attitude, "closed" operating system without customization, the fact that you have to buy that stupid apple pencil separately, just not my cup of tea. So I go to the store and say "the hell with this, everyone is drooling over these new iPads, let me see what all of this nonsense is about." I was genuinely saying to myself that I'll play around with the iPad Pro 10.5, realize how much better the Tab S3 was, and have a story to tell how better android is and blah blah blah.
Overall, the iPad Pro 10.5 is about $200 MORE expensive than the Galaxy Tab S3. This is because that damn Apple Pencil costs $150 in Canada. It has more storage (64GB) but lacks a microSD slot. The Tab S3 is expensive. The iPad is EXPENSIVE.
Trying to have as little bias as I can, these are my impressions with the iPad after 4 days:
1. Getting everything set up was super easy. I actually managed to find most of the apps I use on my android devices in the app store. That was unexpected and just shows how little I knew. Some apps were missing (like Palabre), but there are other alternatives that work just fine (but Palabre is still the best Feedly app I've used). Setting up my work exchange account was painless as well. But having to put all apps in folders and not having an app drawer feels a bit stupid.
2. I don’t care who you are, after you use this iPad for a bit you'll say "this is the smoothest, fastest, snappiest device I've ever used in my life". I'm a bit shocked… THERE IS NO LAG
3. The battery is just outstanding! Bravo Apple, you win. Not only it's faster, it lasts MUCH longer than the Tab S3 or the Tab S2. Actually, even longer than the amazing Google Pixel C. Same scenario as I mentioned before. Woke up at 5am, same use pattern. Went to work at 7am, and took notes all day with the Apple Pencil. I left work at 7pm and the battery was at 52%. This is a huge plus, seriously. However, charging it is super slow. Yep. Android users are spoiled with fast charging for sure. But the iPad will last you ALL DAY, so I find that I charge it over night.
4. Holding the device feels great in the hand. Because it's not made out of glass, it feels so solid in my hand/hands. It's heavier than the Tab S3 I think, but it FEELS LIGHTER because it's so easy to grip. Moreover, it has pretty slim bezels. So when I hold it in portrait orientation my thumbs rest sometimes on the touchscreen. That's when I realized how genius the palm/thumb/whatever rejection is. It knows that one finger is holding the device and the other finger is actually using it and scrolling or whatever. I have to say, this implementation is WAY better than it is on the Tab S3.
5. The display on the Tab S3 is stunning, but the display on the iPad is… stunning as well?? It's not better than AMOLED, but IT IS GREAT. It's bright, the colours are punchy, and it has this "True Tone" feature that adapts the display to the lighting in the room. I really dig that a lot, very clever. Also, the display has twice the refresh rate of other displays (including iPads and android tablets). In real life it means that it appears smoother and the latency with the Apple Pencil is very low.
6. Talking about the Apple Pencil. I'm a little ashamed to admit, but it's absolutely wonderful to use. The price is BAD, the size is good, its texture is good, its balance and weight is good, the texture of the tip is good, its battery life is good. The bottom line is, and I'm being objective here, taking notes with this pen on the iPad feels amazing. So smooth and responsive… An absolutely delightful experience. Taking notes on the Tab S3 is GREAT and it has much more actual functionality. Taking notes on the iPad is AMAZING, while lacking a side button or the extra features of the S-pen. But I must say, for my use pattern most of the S-pen features are just gimmicks. Apple should implement an eraser on the other side of the pen (like Microsoft), I bet it'll be in the Pencil 2.0
7. After listening to the speakers on the iPad I realized that the speakers on the Tab S3 are not as good as I thought they were… The sound from these speakers is hands down the best I've ever heard. First time in my life I thought "god, it's too loud…" So so good, really. It's louder in volume, and the sound has much more bass and mids. Just sounds "Fuller", you can feel it vibrate and it feels great. I watched reviews online comparing the sound for both tablets, and people said the iPad is better, but it's a close call. It's not a close call, it's more than that. On top of that, the headphone jack (where is the 'Courage" Apple?!) is again better than the Tab S3. It drives demanding headphones better and louder. There's no equalizer though (am I missing anything here?). Apple is too cheap to include a licenced support for APTX over Bluetooth.
8. The fingerprint scanner is faster and more accurate than on the Tab S3. But for some reason you have to press the home button for it to register, which feels very 2015.
9. I noticed something about multitasking. More apps are kept ready to go in the background, and the implementation of multitasking is smoother and better than on the Tab S3. Actually, better than android in general. I'm not sure what it is, but it seems to work better. No lagginess or stuttering, apps scale better in split screen mode as well.
10. Cameras are awesome. Front facing and back camera. Apple had stock left from the iPhone 7 and they put it to good use. Samsung, get your **** together.
To conclude. The iPad Pro 10.5 is SO EXPENSIVE. It's not perfect. I'm SO HAPPY. I'm keeping the iPad…
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no idea what you are talking about. I have the S3 and I observe no lag. I am not sure what kind of lag you were experiencing but I guess that it is not characteristic of the tablet per se. I wonder if you had a software issue.
I love my Tab s3, but I am getting a little frustrated with the battery drain when wifi is on while the tablet screen is off. I installed tmobile DIGITS and ever since then the wifi won't turn off, even after I deleted the app and did a factory reset.
Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
WoW, just when I thought my issue was unique. My issues with the s3 are as follows.
Horrible virtual key accuracy
At times it is very slow and laggy
Like the weight but glass is very slippery
IPad pro
No split screen
MS groove a very poor app
Nook a poor app
OneNote syncs a lot slower than s3
Although the pen is well balanced, the pen tip is like hard plastic against the screen and I find the feel to be similar to the s3's glass feel, not good.
Despite those issues this blog has helped me decide which item I will keep. I will keep the iPad. I use nook and OneNote quite often and the split screen and the quick nav soft buttons on the s3 is far better than the navigation and quickly getting from app to app on the ipad, but. The feel of the ipad is more secure, there is a wider variety of accessories for the iPad pro 10.5 and the speakers and speed is A 1. Thanks so much for this post and, no need to apologize for the length of the post it was awesome.
The tablet actually has decent hardware just poorly optimized apps. Even the stock browser is trash. With stock browser it was taking over a minute to open a page. I'm using puffin browser now big difference.
A good night mode is a must on an oled display for night time browsing or to just save power, beware some browsers send all you detail to china like UC Browser, I use the free no root firewall, it blocks all data to china, russia, ect and shows where other apps are talking to in the world so you can block them if you want.
I have been using it on my Tab S1 for months and very low if any cpu usage.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lostnet.fw.free&hl=en
John
The comparison between iPad Pro and S3 - like comparing an apple and real tool.
As a former user of iPad Pro 9.7 256 LTE (this is important) i can say that :
apple pencil is a toy . Even note 4 pen is better.
the system is closed and your handwriting is very limited to no value at all.
U have cellular on tablet , but very limited. in some cases you can not even manage your subscription since no phone application is allowed.
you download capabilities limited by system.
you can connect keyboard , but not mouse
using external drives is limited.
etc....
Bottom line - you hardly can leave without regular PC and Apple machine is very preferable.
But I do agree , that iPad Pro is a nice tablet.
Depends what you're looking for and preferable scenarios of use
I have to partially agree. I picked up a Tab S3 last night, and I'm shocked at how laggy it feels. Scrolling through Chrome or whatever other app is jittery. I expect a lot more for the price, and if I have to put up with poor performance, I may as well save a couple hundred dollars and get something around the $300 range.
I'm also taking issue with how dark media can be. A lot of detail is lost in the shadows of any given scene. I never thought I'd say this, but the contrast is just too damn high -- at least, for non-HDR content.
I'll give it a couple more nights to let it grow on me, but I wouldn't be surprised if I end up returning it.
Oh, and it has a light yellow band going across the middle of the screen, so that whites or grays look uneven. I had this same problem on multiple Pixel XLs. I used to think AMOLED was awesome, but it's becoming more hassle than it's worth -- the consistency is crap.
For movies, cinema mode solves any issue. Perfect movie quality in that mode... The Samsung tab S3 does not lag. Just add a adblocker for the Samsung browser and all issues are solved and change the stock keyboard to the Google Gboard keyboard since the stock keyboard is a mess. If you see any yellow banding or graying, your display is defective.
I'm going to save you a lot of trouble if you're considering this tablet and are unsure, as I just put this thing through a lot of testing.
First off I would like to say that I think this is a fantastic tablet. It is just the right size, has an excellent build quality, and runs pretty good all things considered. This has a decnet running/looking Samsng UI, especially considering that it's an older build running on a slower processor. If this tablet had a better processor and maybe stylus support it would be a killer tablet with no competition. It's sad that Samsung doesn't take this size range seriously any longer.
Now for the badish part. This tablet is great for gaming, perfect size, great screen, good enough speakers (mount them stereo next time Samsung!) However it just won't handle intensive gaming stuff, such as Order and Choas 2 or Rules of Survival with the settings turned up. It will certainly play them if you don't mind the low FPS though. Definitely playable FPS for sure, but it won't be butter.
I was curious to see if this was a Samsung processor optimization problem like it is with the Tab s3, so I did some testing to find out. I can confirm that flashing LOS 14.1 it did nothing for the gaming performance. The tablet was quicker and less laggy overall, but the gaming is still limited by the GPU. This tablet also is so good out of the box that it doesn't need the help of LOS anyway.
So there you have it. Great little tablet, just don't expect any sort of massive gaming performance and don't even think about voiding your warratny to try a custom rom because it won't help. In this size range it is really the ultimate for gaming, so I figured a lot of people would be buying it for that, and I wanted to give a heads up. The benchmark scores don't tell the whole story sometimes. I hope they refresh this tablet in 2018 with a better SOC and keep it alive.
Thanks for the info seh6183. :highfive:
You need to tell us what hardware you are testing as the 2015 is using Exynos and the 2016 is Snapdragon. From previous posts on here, the consensus is that the 2015 has the better GPU for gaming but the 2016 is faster.
I don't game on my tablet so I can't add anything to your observations.
I have the 2016 S2, and it is fine for light gaming. However, it heats up fairly quickly if you are doing anything graphically intense for long periods and throttles pretty noticeably. Even fairly simple apps, like Alto's Adventure, will eventually become unplayable if you don't take a break periodically to let the SoC cool down.
Masteryates said:
Thanks for the info seh6183. :highfive:
You need to tell us what hardware you are testing as the 2015 is using Exynos and the 2016 is Snapdragon. From previous posts on here, the consensus is that the 2015 has the better GPU for gaming but the 2016 is faster.
I don't game on my tablet so I can't add anything to your observations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Snapdragon 652.
I just bought a new 'open box' from BestBuy for $209.
I'm not a gamer or user of graphics, mainly a business user. I had the latest 9.7 iPad for a week, and I just kept feeling like one of my arms was tied behind my back.
So I returned it and bought the Samsung Tab S2.
seh6183 said:
Snapdragon 652.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the update seh6183. :highfive:
Are you able to update the title of your post or your initial post to reflect this? Others may find this useful.
Would be interested to hear from a 2015 owner on how it handles the games you mentioned.
I cant imagine buying thos for gaming... If you want to game on a tablet I would just go with the iPad. The new iPad 2017 is so much better than this, and you can get one new for 250 and a bigger screen. I went with tablet only because I can torrent and use my Micro USB to USB 2.0 adapter for music and videos on torrents. Thats literally the only upside to going with an Android tablet nowadays
JoRocker said:
I cant imagine buying thos for gaming... If you want to game on a tablet I would just go with the iPad. The new iPad 2017 is so much better than this, and you can get one new for 250 and a bigger screen. I went with tablet only because I can torrent and use my Micro USB to USB 2.0 adapter for music and videos on torrents. Thats literally the only upside to going with an Android tablet nowadays
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, not the ONLY one, but yeah - most of the best games come out for iOS first and then, if ever, for Android. On the flip side, Android lets you actually use your device like a computer and not merely a media consumption machine. I consider that a pretty big plus.
JoRocker said:
I cant imagine buying thos for gaming... If you want to game on a tablet I would just go with the iPad. The new iPad 2017 is so much better than this, and you can get one new for 250 and a bigger screen. I went with tablet only because I can torrent and use my Micro USB to USB 2.0 adapter for music and videos on torrents. Thats literally the only upside to going with an Android tablet nowadays
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me it has to be Android for little things like power toggles, screebl and the OLED screen.
seh6183 said:
I'm going to save you a lot of trouble if you're considering this tablet and are unsure, as I just put this thing through a lot of testing.
First off I would like to say that I think this is a fantastic tablet. It is just the right size, has an excellent build quality, and runs pretty good all things considered. This has a decnet running/looking Samsng UI, especially considering that it's an older build running on a slower processor. If this tablet had a better processor and maybe stylus support it would be a killer tablet with no competition. It's sad that Samsung doesn't take this size range seriously any longer.
Now for the badish part. This tablet is great for gaming, perfect size, great screen, good enough speakers (mount them stereo next time Samsung!) However it just won't handle intensive gaming stuff, such as Order and Choas 2 or Rules of Survival with the settings turned up. It will certainly play them if you don't mind the low FPS though. Definitely playable FPS for sure, but it won't be butter.
I was curious to see if this was a Samsung processor optimization problem like it is with the Tab s3, so I did some testing to find out. I can confirm that flashing LOS 14.1 it did nothing for the gaming performance. The tablet was quicker and less laggy overall, but the gaming is still limited by the GPU. This tablet also is so good out of the box that it doesn't need the help of LOS anyway.
So there you have it. Great little tablet, just don't expect any sort of massive gaming performance and don't even think about voiding your warratny to try a custom rom because it won't help. In this size range it is really the ultimate for gaming, so I figured a lot of people would be buying it for that, and I wanted to give a heads up. The benchmark scores don't tell the whole story sometimes. I hope they refresh this tablet in 2018 with a better SOC and keep it alive.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far the only bad side of this tablet that I saw was mentioned the battery life (as they reduced it from S1) and the speakers.
My main concern is the speakers which are at the bottom - how do they behave when you hold the tablet in landscape for watching a video? Is all the sound on the right side? Can the speakers be accidentally covered off with the hand that's holding the tablet? How is the sound on this thing?
My Nexus 7 (2013) is seriously showing its age now and due for an upgrade.
I'm considering this (T713/715) or the Huawei Mediapad M3 (or lite) 8.0 which is not at all supported on XDA so I would be stuck with it's software and bloatware whether I like it or not.
atirage said:
I'm considering this (T713/715) or the Huawei Mediapad M3 (or lite) 8.0 which is not at all supported on XDA so I would be stuck with it's software and bloatware whether I like it or not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in the same boat, but it's vs the M5 and I'm more of a reader. It's a tough decision.
stoatbroker said:
I'm in the same boat, but it's vs the M5 and I'm more of a reader. It's a tough decision.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your a reader at night, it's all about the reduced eyestrain of the OLED screen. For me, the M5 is overpriced considering I picked up an M3 for only $180.
Surprise, it was known from the beginning that it has slow gpu, but also not the best cpu, they are continuing this with s3 and s4. They ar selling it for big money and yet, no wonder sales ar low
Extreemator said:
Surprise, it was known from the beginning that it has slow gpu, but also not the best cpu, they are continuing this with s3 and s4. They ar selling it for big money and yet, no wonder sales ar low
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me the S3 and S4 bring little new to the table.
The S2 (when first released,) had that awesome screen. Even though I never intended to own any Samsung product due to touchwiz, I was sold when that Samsung handed me the 8" version in a store. The combination of killer screen and stupidly low weight set this apart from all opposition. For the 8" version, it could be argued this is still the case.
As long as Samsung keep giving us security updates for the S2, I'm not that interested in the S3 and S4 as 9.7" is too big for me.
So, I bought the 8" wifi version (T713) and I'm severely disappointed with battery life: around 6h SOT!?
I keep reducing the brightness but battery percentages just melt away. I don't know, maybe the LineageOS battery life is better, or a custom kernel would help. (I'm still on stock)
Other things I dislike are the volume/speakers - they're easy to cover up and don't sound so great. Not to mention they're basically mono in landscape mode, I hate that on my phone!
The tablet has sharp edges, very uncomfortable to hold and it hurts my hand after a while, fortunately I can buy a silicone cover for this problem. The rest will stick with me
I come from the Nexus 7 2013, and this is definitely a side-grade. The only thing that I missed on the Nexus is that it struggled with hi-res 60fps video (couldn't even do higher than 720p60).
Oh well.
Not much choice in the Android tablet market currently, but I certainly wouldn't recommend this one.
No problem,in the future it will not be Android tablets anymore,so you will not have choises at all.
Google just removed tablets section from Android page,take a look at http://www.android.com/tablets/ .
Cheers
viasat said:
No problem,in the future it will not be Android tablets anymore,so you will not have choises at all.
Google just removed tablets section from Android page,take a look at http://www.android.com/tablets/ .
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are very few redeeming qualities left keeping me on the Android side of the fence anyway, and Google seems intent on killing them. The ease of data management, and the ability to run apps that wouldn't have a shot in the App Store (like Nova Launcher, Solid Explorer, etc.) are about the only things keeping me in the ecosystem. Otherwise, it seems like every time I look, the iPad Pro gets more and more attractive.
atirage said:
So, I bought the 8" wifi version (T713) and I'm severely disappointed with battery life: around 6h SOT!?
I keep reducing the brightness but battery percentages just melt away. I don't know, maybe the LineageOS battery life is better, or a custom kernel would help. (I'm still on stock)
Other things I dislike are the volume/speakers - they're easy to cover up and don't sound so great. Not to mention they're basically mono in landscape mode, I hate that on my phone!
The tablet has sharp edges, very uncomfortable to hold and it hurts my hand after a while, fortunately I can buy a silicone cover for this problem. The rest will stick with me
I come from the Nexus 7 2013, and this is definitely a side-grade. The only thing that I missed on the Nexus is that it struggled with hi-res 60fps video (couldn't even do higher than 720p60).
Oh well.
Not much choice in the Android tablet market currently, but I certainly wouldn't recommend this one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TBH atirage, 6h of SOT is very good for the 8" tablet. My T715 has only ever managed 5h. I doubt lineage will increase battery life by much. At the end of the day, that 4000Mah has to power a hell of a big screen.
I find the tablet the best I've ever held, (also had a Nexus 7 2013 in the past.) but I just hold it in the bottom corner, not attempting to get my hand the whole way around. Agreed about the poor quality speakers.
The thing I've liked about this tablet the most in the last 2 years is the solid, (not ever fantastic,) performance. I've suffered no bugs and everything just works as well as the day I've bought it. :angel:
Not to be all negative about this tablet: the performance is great, granted I didn't fill it up with apps and games yet but I'll see how it will hold up over time.
Even in battery saving mode (70% CPU) it's still blazing fast and a joy to use.
I got a silicon case on it so the handling became better.
And I got used to the sound - it's not good, but passable and loud enough to watch a few YouTube videos in a quiet environment.
I managed to install SABS on it (and make it work), so I got ad blocking now and the ability to disable apps I don't need/use (Samsung bloatware) so I'm hoping battery life will improve a little bit.
It's growing on me.
It was a weird transition from the Nexus 7 (2013), but that fellow got so sluggish that I wanted to chuck it at the wall. That's why I needed the upgrade and the ability to play qHD nicely, and the S2 tab does it oh-so-well.
Anybody can suggest a nice blue light filter app for it?
atirage said:
Not to be all negative about this tablet: the performance is great, granted I didn't fill it up with apps and games yet but I'll see how it will hold up over time.
Even in battery saving mode (70% CPU) it's still blazing fast and a joy to use.
I got a silicon case on it so the handling became better.
And I got used to the sound - it's not good, but passable and loud enough to watch a few YouTube videos in a quiet environment.
I managed to install SABS on it (and make it work), so I got ad blocking now and the ability to disable apps I don't need/use (Samsung bloatware) so I'm hoping battery life will improve a little bit.
It's growing on me.
It was a weird transition from the Nexus 7 (2013), but that fellow got so sluggish that I wanted to chuck it at the wall. That's why I needed the upgrade and the ability to play qHD nicely, and the S2 tab does it oh-so-well.
Anybody can suggest a nice blue light filter app for it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad your starting to see the advantages of this tab atirage: :victory:
You'll also notice the screen picks up far fewer fingerprints than the Nexus 7 2013. Don't know what Samsung have done with the glass but its much better. Even though the FP reader is very 1st gen, its still nice to have and better than a pin every time.
I find the sound to be much better if you put the tablet of a flat surface so the sound reflects off it.
So I went ahead and bought the s21 ultra. I'm coming from the N9860 HK Snapdragon version and I got fed up with the fact that we are still on the November update running Android 10.
I purchased the new s21 ultra snapdragon G-9980 (also HK Snapdragon). In my view, while it's a nice device, the bottom line is, there's hardly any difference between this device and the note 20 ultra except for the fact that the screen is smaller which causes a whole number of display compromises. For example picture-in-picture is basically unusable when compared to the note 20. It's a longer and slimmer device which means that they had to resize the way text is shown and often it is not nearly as pleasant to look at as it is on the note. Just take a look at the weather clock widget. Or the fact that folders are now only 3 items wide (not 4). Using Netflix you really notice the smaller size difference, and the curves, and it reduces the immersive nature of viewing video. The sound in my opinion is not as good on the note 20. Its.not as loud on speakerphone either. I certainly don't notice any difference in speed. And I'm so used to the square shape that I feel like I'm using just another Android device, as opposed to the note 20 ultra which is so unique. Yes the battery life and camera are marginally better (and yes the fingerprint reader is definitely better for me) but at the end of the day the note was good enough for my purposes.
So if you're on the fence and thinking about upgrading make sure you're able to return the device if you don't like it and don't sell your note 20 too fast!
Of course this is only after a day or two of use and maybe I will get used to it! Bit so far I'm already missing my note!
Update: So FINALLY the Note 20.Ultra n9860 got the android 11 update. Unfortunately what I thought are the weird layout issues on the s21 are bundled into the new android 11 update ! So the devices are now more similar than ever, except the size and shapes. What is interesting is the new 'enhanced processing' option... I tested both devices with this setting side by side (they are both snapdragon) and weirdly, the note 20 is actually faster! It's probably less efficient, but nevertheless interesting.
Couldn't agree with you more.
The only thing good/plus on the S21 ultra? The ability to smoothly go from 1x to 3x then to 10x, thanks to the extra camera, other than that, no way. Especially when the rip features like the Micro SD Card slot. When I thought, when are they stopping the ”nonsense” hybrid slot Bellshill... ? They just sort out the problem by removing it altogether.
Dam Samsung...
By the way, Android 11 and One UI 3.0 is now rolling out on my 9860 since today lol.
ekerbuddyeker said:
So I went ahead and bought the s21 ultra. I'm coming from the N9860 HK Snapdragon version and I got fed up with the fact that we are still on the November update running Android 10.
I purchased the new s21 ultra snapdragon G-9980 (also HK Snapdragon). In my view, while it's a nice device, the bottom line is, there's hardly any difference between this device and the note 20 ultra except for the fact that the screen is smaller which causes a whole number of display compromises. For example picture-in-picture is basically unusable when compared to the note 20. It's a longer and slimmer device which means that they had to resize the way text is shown and often it is not nearly as pleasant to look at as it is on the note. Just take a look at the weather clock widget. Or the fact that folders are now only 3 items wide (not 4). Using Netflix you really notice the smaller size difference, and the curves, and it reduces the immersive nature of viewing video. The sound in my opinion is not as good on the note 20. Its.not as loud on speakerphone either. I certainly don't notice any difference in speed. And I'm so used to the square shape that I feel like I'm using just another Android device, as opposed to the note 20 ultra which is so unique. Yes the battery life and camera are marginally better (and yes the fingerprint reader is definitely better for me) but at the end of the day the note was good enough for my purposes.
So if you're on the fence and thinking about upgrading make sure you're able to return the device if you don't like it and don't sell your note 20 too fast!
Of course this is only after a day or two of use and maybe I will get used to it! Bit so far I'm already missing my note!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. The shape of the screen is never going to suit me after I've used a note phone. I hope they never stop making the note series.
tiho5 said:
I agree. The shape of the screen is never going to suit me after I've used a note phone. I hope they never stop making the note series.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, so true.
Unfortunately, all points out to Note 20 Ultra being the last Note.
It's just Samsung being greedy , trying to shift traditional Note users to the latest Foldable trend (More ways to justify the crazy price jump every time they launch a new phone).
In my humble opinion, I will never shift to a Foldable phone until their screen gets a real glass feel (and not easily scratched).
I have both and I'm pretty satisfied with my s21 ultra. Have to admit that it's easier to hold the s21 ultra though. At the end of the day it's to each his own but I'm using both phones anyway.
I'd say if you don't have a note 20 ultra and you're deciding whether it's this or s21 ultra, I'd choose s21 ultra.
Either way you can't go wrong that's for sure.
tiho5 said:
I agree. The shape of the screen is never going to suit me after I've used a note phone. I hope they never stop making the note series.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The rounded display corners puke me out.
No way. Sick of the lame CRT retro look.
Samsung and Android have given me little valid reasons to leave my 10+/Pie platform and plenty of good reasons not to.
Samsung turning out half baked, high dollar phones in an economic recession. Idiots.
Android's scope storage and obsession with security is laughable.
Google its self is the biggest security risk.
Overlays and critical tools are gone starting in Q.
Without those tools security and troubleshooting unrooted phones becomes an even worse guessing game than it was with Pie. Key apps are now useless.
Puny Google.
Put these failed concepts together and you have a big $loppy me$$.
No.
fjorger said:
It's just Samsung being greedy , trying to shift traditional Note users to the latest Foldable trend
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The logic points that way, I agree. However, I think that this game is not going to play well for Samsung. Because there are two types of phone use:
- using a phone with one hand
- using her phone with two hands
Obviously the foldable phones are the choice for the second type of use.
On the other hand I like using my phone with one hand most of the time. Foldable phones allow you this type of use, but on a smaller limited screen. Therefore I would never use a foldable phone until the size of the unfolded(single) screen becomes as large as the size of the screen of the today's Note Ultra phone.
tiho5 said:
The logic points that way, I agree. However, I think that this game is not going to play well for Samsung. Because there are two types of phone use:
- using a phone with one hand
- using her phone with two hands
Obviously the foldable phones are the choice for the second type of use.
On the other hand I like using my phone with one hand most of the time. Foldable phones allow you this type of use, but on a smaller limited screen. Therefore I would never use a foldable phone until the size of the unfolded(single) screen becomes as large as the size of the screen of the today's Note Ultra phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung has sunk huge sums of money and resources into the Fold series R&D and limited (lmao) production runs. Poor sales,multiple and many failures. Samsung neglected their much more lucrative product lines, idiots.
They rolled the dice with the Fold, again and again, and keep landing nothing but snake eyes.
Like a bad gambler they're now into it deep and being driven by the demon named Hope.
Luck done left the house and Hope's not far behind. Bah-ha-ha-ha, pathetic.
No water or dust proofing, no SD card, and a fold screen guarenteed to fail that is impossible to fully protect. Betaware at the best.
A real masterpiece.
Meanwhile during a global recession their key product lines are drastically rising in price with not much bang for the buck.
They really think the masses will buy a new expensive flagship phone every year especially if they didn't get a great experience?
Add to that Samsung support is some of the worst on the planet.
The 10+ was Samsung's last great flagship phone. Pie was Android's last good OS.
No signs either are cognizant of their blunders but consumers vote with their wallets.
No rigging this vote*...
*Not that they didn't try. Look at all the glowing reviews for the Folds when they first came out.
Not one negative one.
Same for Q. Google stopped posting their OS version breakdown because users hate 10 and 11.
I call bs...
ekerbuddyeker said:
So I went ahead and bought the s21 ultra. I'm coming from the N9860 HK Snapdragon version and I got fed up with the fact that we are still on the November update running Android 10.
I purchased the new s21 ultra snapdragon G-9980 (also HK Snapdragon). In my view, while it's a nice device, the bottom line is, there's hardly any difference between this device and the note 20 ultra except for the fact that the screen is smaller which causes a whole number of display compromises. For example picture-in-picture is basically unusable when compared to the note 20. It's a longer and slimmer device which means that they had to resize the way text is shown and often it is not nearly as pleasant to look at as it is on the note. Just take a look at the weather clock widget. Or the fact that folders are now only 3 items wide (not 4). Using Netflix you really notice the smaller size difference, and the curves, and it reduces the immersive nature of viewing video. The sound in my opinion is not as good on the note 20. Its.not as loud on speakerphone either. I certainly don't notice any difference in speed. And I'm so used to the square shape that I feel like I'm using just another Android device, as opposed to the note 20 ultra which is so unique. Yes the battery life and camera are marginally better (and yes the fingerprint reader is definitely better for me) but at the end of the day the note was good enough for my purposes.
So if you're on the fence and thinking about upgrading make sure you're able to return the device if you don't like it and don't sell your note 20 too fast!
Of course this is only after a day or two of use and maybe I will get used to it! Bit so far I'm already missing my note!
Update: So FINALLY the Note 20.Ultra n9860 got the android 11 update. Unfortunately what I thought are the weird layout issues on the s21 are bundled into the new android 11 update ! So the devices are now more similar than ever, except the size and shapes. What is interesting is the new 'enhanced processing' option... I tested both devices with this setting side by side (they are both snapdragon) and weirdly, the note 20 is actually faster! It's probably less efficient, but nevertheless interesting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the tip on the very few differences on the s21 ultra & "my beast"! A couple of the online reviewers were saying similar, but glad to learn of a "hands-on" review from the troops in the XDA Army? So, I'll go back to re-read, but saw you finally got your slice of the buttery bread
Android 11 + One UI 3.0h-No...you kept your beast, the n20u1?
Good read, bruh, ty for sharing!
freezingpoint said:
I have both and I'm pretty satisfied with my s21 ultra. Have to admit that it's easier to hold the s21 ultra though. At the end of the day it's to each his own but I'm using both phones anyway.
I'd say if you don't have a note 20 ultra and you're deciding whether it's this or s21 ultra, I'd choose s21 ultra.
Either way you can't go wrong that's for sure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. I agree. If they would have had SD card support then i would have just got that instead of the Note 20 Ultra. I do like the square screen design on the note though. The Screen technology is also MUCH nicer than what we have with the Note. The Colors look much better. It is also alot brighter. The battery in the S21 Ultra also is alot more efficient thanks to the new panel in the S21 Ultra as well.
With that said i do absolutely love my Note 20 Ultra. I just think Samsung should have put a much larger battery in it
No SD Card, no built in SPen holder is enough for me. Have to have a big ugly case that the pen snaps in the side of. No thanks. Also prefer the less rounded look of the Note.
znel52 said:
No SD Card, no built in SPen holder is enough for me. Have to have a big ugly case that the pen snaps in the side of. No thanks. Also prefer the less rounded look of the Note.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just saw this same set-up you described at a Verizon store near me recently. Awkward, and that combo, the wannabe S-Pen+Samsung Case you get to purchase yourself along with the 25w fast charger, if desired? SERIOUSLY, could this be true?
Honestly I couldn't and wouldn't get the s21 ultra because I don't wanna be another few dollars that convinces samsung to ditch the note series in favor of anything else.
ekerbuddyeker said:
So I went ahead and bought the s21 ultra. I'm coming from the N9860 HK Snapdragon version and I got fed up with the fact that we are still on the November update running Android 10.
I purchased the new s21 ultra snapdragon G-9980 (also HK Snapdragon). In my view, while it's a nice device, the bottom line is, there's hardly any difference between this device and the note 20 ultra except for the fact that the screen is smaller which causes a whole number of display compromises. For example picture-in-picture is basically unusable when compared to the note 20. It's a longer and slimmer device which means that they had to resize the way text is shown and often it is not nearly as pleasant to look at as it is on the note. Just take a look at the weather clock widget. Or the fact that folders are now only 3 items wide (not 4). Using Netflix you really notice the smaller size difference, and the curves, and it reduces the immersive nature of viewing video. The sound in my opinion is not as good on the note 20. Its.not as loud on speakerphone either. I certainly don't notice any difference in speed. And I'm so used to the square shape that I feel like I'm using just another Android device, as opposed to the note 20 ultra which is so unique. Yes the battery life and camera are marginally better (and yes the fingerprint reader is definitely better for me) but at the end of the day the note was good enough for my purposes.
So if you're on the fence and thinking about upgrading make sure you're able to return the device if you don't like it and don't sell your note 20 too fast!
Of course this is only after a day or two of use and maybe I will get used to it! Bit so far I'm already missing my note!
Update: So FINALLY the Note 20.Ultra n9860 got the android 11 update. Unfortunately what I thought are the weird layout issues on the s21 are bundled into the new android 11 update ! So the devices are now more similar than ever, except the size and shapes. What is interesting is the new 'enhanced processing' option... I tested both devices with this setting side by side (they are both snapdragon) and weirdly, the note 20 is actually faster! It's probably less efficient, but nevertheless interesting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, feeling better now
Datboi459 said:
Yeah. I agree. If they would have had SD card support then i would have just got that instead of the Note 20 Ultra. I do like the square screen design on the note though. The Screen technology is also MUCH nicer than what we have with the Note. The Colors look much better. It is also alot brighter. The battery in the S21 Ultra also is alot more efficient thanks to the new panel in the S21 Ultra as well.
With that said i do absolutely love my Note 20 Ultra. I just think Samsung should have put a much larger battery in it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right to the point
So I got S21 ultra because only because there was a great discount + combo offer on the S7+ tab. The only advantages are
- slightly better low light camera performance
- 3x optical zoom dedicated camera, 10x optical zoom vs 5x on Note 20 series
- slightly better display in terms of color accuracy and brightness
- Fingerprint sensor is a little bigger so unlocking is more accurate
- Rounded corners make it easier to hold in hand vs N20U (but narrower screen takes away from the immersive experience you get on N20U)
This S21 Ultra however is a THICCC boi and feels a lot heavier than N20 Ultra. It is like going back to a 4 year old brick phone. I am all for a bigger battery but in this case the extra weight doesn't really double your battery(despite of lack of S-pen), but you do get longer runtime than N20U obviously. The increased thickness doesn't make sense when microSD and MST being removed. This thing runs warm to hot all the time, that Snapdragon 888 is like a dragon breathing fire and probably have worse battery wear over time lol. N20U runs very cool.
I switched back to Note 20U after using S21U for a week as it is a downgrade when compared to N20U. Got Samsung Care Plus on N20U for long term use in case this turns out to be the last Note phone, and gonna keep S21U as a spare and eventually trade it in to get next Note(hopefully).
VICosPhi said:
So I got S21 ultra because only because there was a great discount + combo offer on the S7+ tab. The only advantages are
- slightly better low light camera performance
- 3x optical zoom dedicated camera, 10x optical zoom vs 5x on Note 20 series
- slightly better display in terms of color accuracy and brightness
- Fingerprint sensor is a little bigger so unlocking is more accurate
- Rounded corners make it easier to hold in hand vs N20U (but narrower screen takes away from the immersive experience you get on N20U)
This S21 Ultra however is a THICCC boi and feels a lot heavier than N20 Ultra. It is like going back to a 4 year old brick phone. I am all for a bigger battery but in this case the extra weight doesn't really double your battery(despite of lack of S-pen), but you do get longer runtime than N20U obviously. The increased thickness doesn't make sense when microSD and MST being removed. This thing runs warm to hot all the time, that Snapdragon 888 is like a dragon breathing fire and probably have worse battery wear over time lol. N20U runs very cool.
I switched back to Note 20U after using S21U for a week as it is a downgrade when compared to N20U. Got Samsung Care Plus on N20U for long term use in case this turns out to be the last Note phone, and gonna keep S21U as a spare and eventually trade it in to get next Note(hopefully).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Datz a good call, bruh.Didn't the 512gb s21 ultra come stock with less than 12 gb ram too? No 25w fast charger in the box, no micro SD slot, no s-pen in the box, as it's a "credits" deal with a certain case you select, or buy with your credits separately with a case that it won't attach itself to? Did I get most of that right? smh
Did you return your s21 ultra 5G then?
evnStevn said:
Datz a good call, bruh.Didn't the 512gb s21 ultra come stock with less than 12 gb ram too? No 25w fast charger in the box, no micro SD slot, no s-pen in the box, as it's a "credits" deal with a certain case you select, or buy with your credits separately with a case that it won't attach itself to? Did I get most of that right? smh
Did you return your s21 ultra 5G then?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, pretty much. They give you a coupon code to use on accessories but no charging brick or earphones are included.
It does come with 16GB RAM (512GB model) but way too many other compromises. NO eSIM support either in USA despite them advertising it on S21U product page (removed now), Samsung went out of the way to disable it! I still have the S21U, if I return it then I have to also return S7+ tab so I chose to keep it, but only as a backup phone to N20U.
VICosPhi said:
Yeah, pretty much. They give you a coupon code to use on accessories but no charging brick or earphones are included.
It does come with 16GB RAM (512GB model) but way too many other compromises. NO eSIM support either in USA despite them advertising it on S21U product page (removed now), Samsung went out of the way to disable it! I still have the S21U, if I return it then I have to also return S7+ tab so I chose to keep it, but only as a backup phone to N20U.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can get a Samsung fast charging 25w brick and cable for $20 now. Just got one.
No SD card and those lame round corners are a complete buzz kill for me though.
blackhawk said:
You can get a Samsung fast charging 25w brick and cable for $20 now. Just got one.
No SD card and those lame round corners are a complete buzz kill for me though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got one of those GaN PD chargers and has been working well for me. It has two USB-C ports too so helps with charging the tablet. Yeah, the rounded corners make it look like a vintage CRT and videos don't look immersive at all. Not good for reading websites as well...