Samsung Galaxy Tab

Very rapidly established as the iPad alternative in the world of large screen connected devices, the Samsung Tab has plenty under the bonnet. 7-inch PVA panel (we reckon after testing it with the sensor), 1024 x 600 pixels, in-house ARM Cortex-A8 1 Ghz processor, 16 GB of memory, a microSD slot for topping up on extra bytes, Android 2.2 Froyo, wi-fi and 3G connectivity, 3.2 megapixal photo sensor on the back and 1.3 megapixel at the front for videoconferencing and an HD video player (up to 1080p). Impressive.

It remains to be seen in the field what mobile phone operators have gone for to match it up against the Apple iPad with.

Design and handling

7-inches is pretty much ideal for this type of device. It sits in either one or two hands, is nice and compact and is more easily tucked away than the iPad, which measures almost 10-inches.




The Galaxy Tab almost scores ten out of ten here. To get top marks, Samsung would have had to work on the edges in portrait mode as they're too thick to make it comfortable to hold in between the fingers of one hand. On this point, we prefer the Archos 70 IT, lighter and easier to hold, but overall Samsung has come up with a coherent design. They've gone for nice quality plastics and the Tab feels a good deal more solid than the Galaxy S.
 

There are 4 touch sensitive buttons at the bottom of the screen. They've been well calibrated and don't get set-off too easily when brushed over accidentally. Just a little comment to make on the microSD and SIM slots: you'll need a pointed object to slot the cards in correctly.

There's no USB connection but a 30-pin PDMI port, like on the Dell Streak. A USB cable adaptor and charger are supplied. Note that you can't recharge your Galaxy Tab via a USB connection to your computer. It's mains only here.


A word on the telephone function (see inset for more detail). Many of you will be wondering how practical it is to use the Tab to make calls? Truth be told, it is a little too big. The 5-inch Streak is better adapted, especially as you can use it without using the headphones. The Samsung model does however work in combination with any smartphone SIM card, which is great, except that you then have to pay top dollar. Signing up with one of the providers will bring the price down.



The screen

As we've already mentioned, 7-inches are probably the best compromise between mobility and screen size. To look at, the Galaxy Tab is more similar to the iPad than the Dell Streak or the Archos 70 IT. We already approve of Samsung's choice of screen technology (no TN panel here), which means you won't be troubled by reduced viewing angles. When it comes to responsiveness, the panel is on a par with your average notebook screen, which puts it at about 8 ms. Hot on the heels of the iPad then, which makes it very responsive for a touch tablet. Ghosting won't be a problem on HD or SD video, though when Internet browsing, scrolling (especially text) can cause some blurriness.

The Galaxy Tab scores a contrast ratio of 589: 1, which puts it 22.5% down on the iPad, but up on other tablets (+18% compared to the Archos 70 IT). Moving on to colour and brightness, the Tab is very much in line with Samsung TV products such as the C9000. The deltaE is 8.7 and there's a strong tinge of grey and blue. The resolution handles videos and photos well enough but a lot of detail is lost in the display of text-based Internet pages. You need to zoom in in portrait mode to see properly, which is frustrating.



Interface and navigation

Smartphone Galaxy S users will be on familiar ground. Samsung has simply extended out what you get on its latest Android star to fit the larger screen. Of course there's no AMOLED here. For the uninitiated, no need to panic, accessing the Galaxy Tab is child's play. Samsung has added extra services to the OS home onto which you can graft apps, widgets and so on. A second menu slides in over the top with all the application potential.

Bringing two fingers together on-screen pulls up all the desktops as mini-frames. This makes browsing even faster still. The Tab never sticks and proved very rapid indeed in testing. Indeed, if anything, it's over-sensitive and the accelerometer tends to switch the image just a little too rapidly.



Multimedia

Video gaming is a definite plus in terms of your Tab experience. With identical software, we like the feel better here than on the iPad, whose screen is sometimes too big for certain types of games. The best example is, without a doubt, Gameloft's N.O.V.A. It's a shooting game and feels much more focussed and natural on a 7-inch screen.


We enjoyed surfing on the Tab and of course Flash means you can access anything you like. The browser's slightly lethargic though. Horizontal and vertical scrolling isn't all that fluid and you seem to be jumping up, down or across one slab at a time. Of course, you can go for one of the faster alternative browsers available but all the same, on a tablet, you'd expect more attention to have been given to this to avoid having to resort to something like Dolphyn.

Listening to music is definitely also a positive experience, compared to what you can get on this type of product. The equaliser gives you plenty of options and you can even adjust your preferences. The graphics of the player doesn't have any of the animation you get on something like the Archos 70 IT however. For your film experience, pride of place goes to HD with support for 720p and even some 1080p files (if you're lucky!). You can fast forward and rewind within videos, come out and go back in all within a few seconds without troubling the system. The "5.1" spatialisation simulation mode is just for decoration here however.


While Samsung Apps gives you access to applications set-up for the Galaxy Tab, Samsung should be congratulated for its efforts to include Android Market. This does imply a level of risk as the user-experience may be compromised should there be any incompatibility between the tablet format and Android Market apps. In fact, however, apps usually work without a hitch. At worst, the Tab stretches the app to a max of 5-inches and surrounds it with grey.

Looking at the apps that come pre-installed or are available free on the Samsung Apps portal, we've already talked about Gameloft's N.O.V.A. This tie-up also includes Asphalt 5. BBC iPlayer, Sky+ and Sky news come built in and ready to go. You also get access to content on the Financial Times website and a content partnership with WHSmith for access to their e-book store. Kobo is available, giving a similar experience to iBooks on the iPad. Samsung Videos has over 1000 titles to chose from and download using the wi-fi connection (99p to rent). Samsung is offering various introductory offers too to get you hooked in.


The Digital Versus app on the Galaxy Tab offers the best experience of all the Android products tested so far.

The 3 megapixel sensor mounted on the Tab is from another era and something of an insult on a high-end product.

Battery life

Announced at over ten hours, we found the Tab lasted for more like eight. It all comes down to type of usage though, obviously. As soon as you start on the various options (audio, video, Internet, GPS, camera, calls) it will dip well below eight. Not to mention that some applications (the video apps in particular) really do kill the battery. If you're having problems, make sure your apps aren't coming out of standby and trying to connect without your say so.


At the end of the day, the battery life you get out of the Tab will depend on how you see it: is it going to be your main communications tool or rather an extra device for certain specialised usage? We don't feel we really know where to position it just yet.

Our rating for the Galaxy Tab may well prove temporary in fact and could be reduced depending on the results of our new review of the Dell Streak with Android 2.2 and its revised and corrected desktop.

How much it really costs: with contract

Samsung has made it clear that Galaxy Tab stand alone sales aren't what it's aiming at. It'll generally be purchased as part of a deal with a network provider. The advantage of this is that operators then subsidise its purchase price considerably. You also gain when it comes to services: texting, TV channels, 3G downloads and so on. The disadvantage is that you're then tied into a contract that will definitely set you back a big wedge (at least £1000) over a couple of years.