In no way do I want to offend the improved generation of Samsung Galaxy - Tab 2 (10.1), it really is just lovely in feathers. This tablet "hatched" and went out almost at the same time as and many expected that Samsung would again chase after something stunning, bells and whistles to be one step ahead of the competition ... but, apparently, the company has changed tactics regarding this tablet. And right!
The novelty is not a device with flagship characteristics. Samsung decided not to release something super top, the goal is the middle price segment of the market. Therefore, you will not find any revolutionary technologies in Tab 2 (10.1): a screen with a huge resolution, an advanced graphics chip, a high-quality camera, etc. But the price will please you - $ 400, and at the same time, Tab 2 is still a high-quality, stylish, modern device.
The tablet finally got its own individual design and now you can’t confuse it with the apple family even in the dark! Stylish silver body (by the way, there is also a white version), speaker grilles on the front side, display frame - all these elements are dynamically combined. It can be seen that the designers sweated a little in order, nevertheless, to achieve a difference. The second tabik looks original, although we see a similar design in Samsng Galaxy Note.
The case is made of matte plastic, while in the previous generation there was gloss. Tab 2 dimensions - 256x175x8.6 mm. The parts fit well, there are no gaps, the tablet is comfortable and pleasant to hold in hands (although I don’t really like keeping it upright because of the oblong shape), the weight is more than 0.5 kg.
On the front panel there is a front VGA camera and a light sensor. The latter responds quickly and adjusts the brightness of the screen backlight. There is also a rear, three-megapixel camera (without flash and autofocus, which, in my opinion, is sadness). Both cameras do not represent anything outstanding, it is acceptable to use them only for video calls, and the photos are very mediocre.
On the top side there are power and volume buttons, a headset jack, slots for microSD and SimKI cards. By the way, the SIM-card slot is ordinary, not fashionable now microSIM. It cannot be said that the location of the slots and buttons is very successful and intuitive, especially the headphone jack. Although, of course, you can get used to it. On the sides of the screen, the speakers, which produce a fairly loud and clear sound, everything is very clearly audible at a distance of up to two meters. They are located far from each other, so the stereo effect is well expressed. Not bad for a tablet - you can watch movies and play games without headphones. Headphone volume is also good.
The 10-inch model has a TFT screen with a resolution of 1280 × 800 (150 pixels per inch), which is familiar to such a diagonal, displays 16 million colors, the matrix type is PLS-LCD (one of the varieties of IPS matrices is Plane to Line Switching). It has good viewing angles and brightness. The brightness control range is wide: you can, for example, set it to a very low one, at which it is comfortable to read a book at night. But still, I want to slightly “sharp” the picture and make it more contrasting. And in the sun, the screen fades and generally turns into a mirror (useful for girls!). Sensor type - capacitive with support for up to 10 simultaneous touches. Sensitivity pleased.
Included with the tablet is only a charger - a USB cable + an adapter for an outlet.
In terms of hardware, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1) has not received a major upgrade. Manufacturers did not pursue the cosmic number of processor cores and use the newfangled Nvidia Tegra 3 chip. They took the TI OMAP 4430 as the basis. And rightly so, because apart from the high temperature, one cannot expect much from the tegra. The new product has 2 cores at 1 GHz. This is enough for comfortable work and at the same time the battery does not run out unnecessarily. But the video adapter is still quite outdated - the PowerVR SGX540 chip. The RAM is 1 GB, and the built-in memory is either 16 or 32 GB (16 in the one provided for our test).
The operating system is a “sandwich with android”, version 4.0.3. Traditionally, all navigation is arranged through "soft" keys, of the hardware buttons, only power and volume control. All the basic points of this version of Android are in place, there are few improvements from Samsung. The proprietary TouchWiz is used as the shell design. The new version almost does not differ from the old one and works quite tolerably, although, at times, it traditionally slows down, but this is no longer new.
Battery - 7000 mAh. The charge lasts up to 6 hours. Wireless interfaces include Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth, 3G and voice communication in the GSM network. Tab 2 is equipped with a GPS navigator. Its characteristics are the same as those of most "tablets".
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1) has a whole arsenal of useful programs. Fingers are not enough to list. The device, as already mentioned, has a pre-installed Touch Wiz add-on, a file manager, a note taking program, a chat, an S Planner task scheduler (a calendar with various options for displaying and scheduling upcoming events, very convenient, beautiful), a Polaris Office package for working with documents , convenient video and photo editors. And a lot of common things. There are also several applications from Yandex - Market, Weather and Movie Poster.
Tab 2 (10.1) has its own trump cards that persuade buyers, after all, to buy it, not the iPad. Galaxy supports Flash. For many users, it is of great importance that all pages open correctly when going online, and, as you know, Steve Jobs himself noted that Flash is not reliable, reduces performance, and does not support touch control well. Therefore, "apples" are not adapted to it. On the other hand, Adobe themselves recently announced that they are ending support for mobile platforms, so this advantage will not live long.
I think Samsung once again turned out to be a good tablet. It does not have any interesting features, but it does not lag behind competitors. For the price, this device offers good functionality. If the main purpose of the Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1) is to surf the Internet, work with notes, video chats and other boring, ordinary work fuss, then this device will be able to pleasantly surprise you with the level of autonomy and ease of use.
All the best, drink your milk, be a keddrYachk!
After a series of reviews of Samsung smartphones, we decided to somewhat diversify and expand our review activities and review the tablet, which today is considered one of the most popular devices in its segment - Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1.
To be honest, I would have continued to look at this wonderful little box, and I would have had enough of it if not for the review (joke). Having opened the box, the hero of the occasion immediately appears in front of us - the tablet itself. At first glance, I liked the tablet, but we will look at it later and more closely, but for now I will tell you what else is in the box.
In addition to the tablet, the box contains: a user manual, a USB cable and a charger. As for the charger, it is made of two parts (not at all like the iPAD - sarcasm). This completes the set. It is worth noting that the headphones are not included with the Galaxy Tab 2, and if necessary, you will have to buy them separately. Although a tablet is not a smartphone, I think it would be logical to equip a tablet with headphones. The box from under the tablet inside has special compartments in which all the listed things that come with the kit are packed. For well-thought-out packaging, developers can put a solid "five", in contrast to the same Samsung Galaxy S3. At this stage of unpacking is over - let's move on to the tablet itself.
visual inspection
The design of the tablet is very nice, the plastic is of good quality, there are no gaps. The gray metal side inserts look somewhat interesting, which are very in harmony with the white color of the tablet. The back cover is also made of plastic, which bends a little with a little pressure with a finger, but this is not scary.
What surprised me was the presence of two speakers on the sides of the screen - on the front panel. I think this is very correct and worthy of all praise, since the sound from the tablet is directed at the user, and not to the sides, while this will create a stereo effect, which is necessary for listening to music and watching videos.
There is a video camera and a light sensor on the front. There are no mechanical buttons on the front panel. On the upper side part there are: a tablet power button, a volume rocker, a slot for inserting a memory card, a headphone jack (3.5) and a slot for a SIM card. On the bottom panel in the center there is a connector for connecting a USB cable, to the right of which there is a microphone. On the back, centered at the top, there is only the camera, no flash or sensors. The sides of the tablet do not include any connectors or buttons.
The screen is quite bright, but in the sun it becomes a mirror. As for the sensor, it is quite clear, and recognizes up to 10 simultaneous touches, which allows you to control the tablet with all your fingers. But with the active use of the device, when scrolling through some elements, the tablet thought a little. To understand the logic of why Samsung makes smartphones more powerful than tablets remains incomprehensible to me. In other matters, we smoothly moved on to the characteristics of the tablet, which are appropriate to talk about before touching on the very operation of the tablet.
The screen of the device has a diagonal of 10.1 inches (symbolically), the screen resolution is 1280×800 pixels. Screen type TFT PLS, glossy. The number of pixels per inch is 149.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 includes a 2-core processor, clocked at 1 GHz. The RAM of the device is 1 GB. The gadget has 16 GB of internal memory and allows the owner to expand it using memory cards up to 32 GB.
The tablet has an operating system Android 4.0, which is complemented by Samsung's own development - the graphical shell TouchWiz.
As mentioned earlier, the device includes two cameras: rear (main) 3.2 MP and front 0.3 MP. This time, the South Korean manufacturer decided to increase the number of megapixels in the camera, but removed the autofocus and LED backlight. The maximum resolution of photos taken by the main camera is 2048×1536.
As for the camcorder, it allows you to shoot videos with a maximum resolution of 1280×720 pixels, 30 frames per second. Recording video format: MP4, audio codec: AAC, 128 Kbps.
Networking Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 3.0 HS, availability of GSM telephony. Internet connection: GPRS, HSPA+ and 3G.
Device dimensions: 257x175x10 mm. Device weight 588g. With a mixed load, the tablet worked for me for about 8 hours, which is not a bad result.
The average price of a tablet is from 16,000 rubles.
The Andoid interface cannot but rejoice, especially with the TouchWiz shell. Samsung's proprietary TouchWiz shell in this tablet has been significantly improved and I really liked the changes. It is worth noting the appearance of the application scroll bar, which appears at the bottom of the screen. For some reason, I thought about the question of the meaning of having this shell, is it a way for a South Korean manufacturer to implement its concept, or is it a so-called pen test in creating its own OS. On the one hand, creating your own independent OS is smart, why share profits with anyone, but, nevertheless, it is not logical, because Google has more experience in this matter.
I want to dwell separately on the presence of telephony in the tablet. The closest competitor of this tablet, manufactured by Apple, does not have this. As inveterate eplomanians would say that telephony is not needed in a tablet, there is a smartphone for this. Yes, I agree, if the tablet should be a tablet, then why is there a GPS navigator, camera, etc. Versatility is our everything, and if a tablet is a mobile device, then telephony will never hurt it, especially if it has support for SIM cards for accessing 3G and GPRS, then the absence of GSM telephony is illogical. To make phone calls, the tablet will become completely self-sufficient and will not require additional devices.
After working for several hours on the tablet, and installing some applications, I came across the fact that I do not have enough memory in the device. I installed 4 programs and 5 games - and that's it, I couldn't install the 6th game, because there simply wasn't enough memory. Of the 16 GB available in the tablet, the user gets only 4 - and this is really very little. Yes, I can buy and expand the memory with a memory card, but, nevertheless, the fact of the small amount of internal memory available was somewhat frustrating. The tablet's memory can be expanded in two ways: by installing a memory card and using the Yandex.Disk or Google Drive applications.
The sound of the tablet is quite high quality, especially considering the speakers placed on the front of the device. High-definition video playback has some slowdowns, they are not particularly significant, but there are. As for playing non-HD video files and playing videos online, there are no slowdowns. As for games, the situation is almost the same here - resource-intensive games with high-quality graphics freeze a little, simpler ones go quite well.
Galaxy Tab 2 or iPad 4
Well, how can you not compare two competitors in this review: Galaxy Tab 2 or iPad 4. The screen of Galaxy Tab 2, as mentioned earlier, has a diagonal of 10.1 inches, when iPad 4 is 9.7, which is basically the same. As for the display resolution, the picture is completely different here, the Galaxy Tab 2 screen has a resolution of 1280 × 800 pixels, while the iPad 4 has a resolution of 2048 × 1536, which differs by almost 2 times.
Now let's compare the technical parameters. Both tablets have dual-core processors, with the Galaxy Tab 2 running at 1GHz and the iPad 4 at 1.4GHz. The amount of RAM in both tablets is 1 GB.
In terms of cameras, the iPad 4's camera is 2 megapixels larger than the Tab 2's, while Apple's product has autofocus.
As for the price difference, the iPad 4 costs a couple thousand more. In general, it is very difficult to give an unambiguous answer about which of these two tablets, since these are 2 completely different philosophies.
I liked the tablet. A fairly high-quality device that will replace a computer, let's say, in a mobile format. On the device, you can watch high-definition videos, listen to music and surf the Internet, and moreover, you can work on this tablet.
A sufficiently large number of applications in the Android market will turn this tablet into a functional and very convenient device. In addition, a large number of games will not leave indifferent any gamer.
The vast majority of buyers are satisfied that they bought this tablet. Some users in the reviews point to some disadvantages of the tablet, but after analyzing them, I can say with confidence that all these disadvantages are not serious, and, in my opinion, are unfounded. You must understand that this is a tablet computer before you demand something supernatural from it. For example, many do not like the lack of autofocus in the tablet camera, but again, you need to consider that the tablet and the photo / video camera are completely different devices, and replacing a camera or video camera with a tablet is completely illogical. The existing camera makes it possible to capture something important, but does not replace the camera and video camera.
It remains a mystery to me why Samsung supplied its flagship tablet, in comparison with its current smartphones, with weaker components. It would be quite logical to do the opposite, but we have what we have. In general, the tablet works well, and the parameters of the components are enough for comfortable work on it.
As for whether it is worth buying this tablet or not, it is definitely worth it if you:
Video review Samsung Galaxy Tab 2
We also want to bring to your attention a video review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 tablet, where you can visually evaluate the operation of the device.
Last year, the South Korean company introduced to the market two models of tablets on the Android operating system from the Galaxy line - Tab 8.9 and Tab 10.1. This year the Tab 2 7.0 and Tab 2 10.1 were shown. At the presentation of tablets, almost all journalists were interested in the main differences between “old” devices and “new” ones. I think the same question will arise from potential buyers of Samsung products. Therefore, I will try to briefly explain the difference between Tab 10.1 and Tab 2 10.1.
First, in order not to conflict with Apple once again, Samsung has slightly changed the design: this time, speakers appeared on the front panel, on the right and left. Secondly, the "second" Tab got a slot for a memory card, which was clearly not enough in the previous model. Thirdly, instead of a chipset from NVIDIA, they installed a chipset from Texas Instruments - from my point of view, the decision is correct. Fourth, both Tab 2 7.0 and Tab 2 10.1 can make calls out of the box. What I didn't like was the lack of autofocus on the camera. "First Tab" with Wi-Fi costs from 16,000 rubles, with 3G - from 20,000 rubles. "Second Tab" with Wi-Fi - 15,000 rubles, with 3G - 20,000 rubles.
I think that whatever one may say, the new models look a little better, if only because of the slightly lower price and the presence of a microSD slot.
Unlike the previous version, which looked a lot like an “apple” gadget, the appearance of the front side of Taba 2 was slightly altered: now a thin semi-gloss strip of dark gray runs along the edge, and speakers are located on the sides, covered with a metal mesh. The back side is made of matte light gray plastic.
Tab dimensions - 256x175x8.6 mm, and weight 565 grams; Tab 2 - 256x175x9.7 mm, and weight - 588. As you can see, the novelty has become a little thicker and heavier. It is possible that this is due to the installation of two speakers on the front. For example, iPad3 measures 241x185x9.4 mm and weighs 662 grams.
The build quality, as always, is on top: there is no backlash, no creaks, the back cover does not bend. Since the materials are generally non-marking, fingerprints and other marks remain only on the screen, and they are relatively easy to erase. Unfortunately, I haven't noticed any cases among accessories for P5100 yet, as P7500 most likely won't fit - there are no cutouts for speakers.
On the front panel are the front camera and light sensor. The latter reacts quickly and smoothly adjusts the brightness level of the screen backlight. The power button, volume rocker, microSD slot, standard 3.5 mm audio output and a slot for a regular SIM card are located on the top end. On the bottom there is a microphone and a proprietary Samsung connector. On the back of the device is a camera.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 and iPad2
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, Samsung Galaxy S 3 and LG 3D Max
The screen diagonal is 10.1 inches (physical size 217x127 mm), the resolution is the same as on Tab 10.1 - 1280x800 pixels (150 pixels per inch), displays 16 million shades of color, matrix type - PLS-LCD (one of the varieties of IPS-matrices - Plane to Line Switching), sensor type - capacitive with support for up to 10 simultaneous touches. The sensitivity of the touch layer is excellent. The screen is almost impossible to scratch with sharp objects thanks to the coating made of tempered glass (not Gorilla Glass).
The viewing angles are maximum, but when the P5100's display is tilted, the image takes on a slight purple tint, and the brightness drops a little. It can be adjusted either manually or switched to automatic mode, since the light sensor is located on the front of the tablet. It is tall, but somewhat loses to the tablet from Apple. The brightness control range is large: you can set it to a very low one, at which it is comfortable to watch a movie or read a book at night.
Unlike previous models, the Tab 2 10.1 settings do not have a Screen Mode option. But there is a choice of style and font size (small, small, regular, large, huge).
In the sun, the display fades by about 50%.
Displays at maximum brightness Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 (top), teXet TM-9720 and Ritmix RMD-1030 (bottom):
At minimum brightness:
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 equipped with a 7000 mAh lithium polymer battery. The manufacturer claims that a full charge should last up to 10 hours of talk time and up to 2000 hours of standby time. These numbers are close to what I got in practice. For example, when playing movies at maximum brightness and outputting sound to headphones, the battery lasted 7 hours. In general, the battery life of the tablet is quite good: in the “normal” use mode (automatic backlight brightness, 3G Internet for about 3 hours and the same amount of Wi-Fi, watching an hour and a half movie and two hours of listening to music on the speakers, as well as taking pictures for about one hour) P5100 has been running for almost 8 hours. Even at maximum load (high backlight brightness, games, performance tests, etc.), the battery ran out after 6.5 hours.
The tablet does not charge from USB (a red cross is drawn on the battery indicator icon), and this is logically understandable: you can “fill” the huge battery capacity with a small current all day, and it will take about 3.5 hours from the network.
There are several items in the energy saving section:
Below is a brief description of each item. For a couple of weeks of using the tablet in this mode, I found out that there is not much difference between the power saving function turned on and off.
The tablet works in 2G (GSM 850/900/1800/1900) and 3G networks (HSDPA 850/900/1900/2100). HSDPA+ speeds up to 21 Mbps, HSUPA up to 5.76 Mbps. From the "box" it became possible to make calls. The sound can be transferred to a wireless headset.
A complete “gentleman's” set is available: Bluetooth version 3.0 with support for the A2DP stereo profile, Wi-Fi standards a / b / g / n (Dual-band) with the ability to “distribute” the Internet (“Wi-Fi Hotspot” access point) and USB 2.0 (proprietary connector).
For additional accessories, such as a USB hub, keyboard or mouse, special adapters are sold. Yes, not very convenient, but Samsung, alas, followed in the footsteps of Apple.
For all the time of testing, there were no problems with the networks.
The device has 1 GB of RAM, about 700 MB are available, of which about 400 MB are free. Internal Flash memory - 16 GB (only 4.6 GB is displayed in the settings). The write speed on it reaches 15 MB / s. There is a slot for a microSD memory card (up to 32 GB).
The Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 has two camera modules: front - 0.3 MP with a large depth of field, main - 3.2 MP without autofocus and flash. Let me remind you that in the previous model, the front camera was 2 MP, the main one had autofocus, and there was also an LED backlight.
The main camera is good. The maximum resolution is up to 2048x1536 pixels. The color rendition is natural, the white balance is almost perfect, the picture clarity is satisfactory. The photographed text from A4 sheet can be disassembled.
Movies are recorded in 720p resolution (1280x720 pixels) at 30 frames per second.
Photo Mode Interface: on the right - switching photo / video, activating the shutter, entering the gallery; on the left - switching to the front camera, shooting mode (single shot, smile shot, panorama), timer (off, 2 - 10 seconds), brightness (from -2 to +2), settings. Now you can change the location of the icons.
Photo mode settings:
Video mode interface: on the right - switching photo / video, activating the shutter, entering the gallery; switching to the front camera, recording mode (normal, video for MMS), timer (off, 2 - 10 seconds), brightness (from -2 to +2), effects, settings.
Video mode settings:
You can get full EXIF information from a photo file:
Video file characteristic:
Album:
Sample photos on the main camera:
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Sample photos on the front camera:
 |
 |
 |
 |
This is where major changes have taken place. Samsung abandoned the NVIDIA Tegra 2 chipset and installed the chipset of the American company Texas Instruments - OMAP 4430. The technical process is 45 nm, the CPU instruction set is ARMv7, the graphics accelerator is PowerVR SGX540. The processor is a dual-core Cortex-A9 with a clock frequency of 1 GHz. The chipset belongs to the fourth generation of OMAP, which contains an IVA3 hardware multimedia accelerator with a programmable DSP, which allows you to encode / decode 1080p Full HD video.
The tablet runs on one of the latest versions of Android ICS - 4.0.4. The firmware version is P5100XXLE3, the kernel version is 3.0.8-583334-user, the build number is IMM76D.P5100XXBLE3. You can read more about Google Android Ice Cream Sandwich. As the design of the shell, the proprietary "Samsung" TouchWIZ is used. It must be said that the UI has not yet been "cured" of small slowdowns while flipping through virtual screens. Frankly, it’s not funny anymore - this has been going on since the first versions of TouchViz on tablets, and they still can’t fix an obvious bug. Interestingly, any other shell behaves perfectly, be it Yandex.Shell or Go launcher.
The tablet is equipped with a GPS-navigator. Its characteristics are the same as those of most "tablets". For all the time he worked with him, there were no problems. As applications for joint functioning with GPS, "Addresses", "Maps", "Locator" and "Navigator" are installed.
From the device, you can send messages and make calls in the same way as with a regular smartphone. To enter text, a standard keyboard from Samsung is used. The language is switched by pressing the globe icon. Voice and handwriting inputs are available. There is a separate clipboard start button on the keyboard.
The dialer is huge, appears from the bottom when the tablet is in a vertical position and to the right when landscape. The telephone part contains several tabs: "Keyboard", "Journal", "Favorites" and "Contacts". Almost all items contain the same functions as in the "old tablets". By the way, the slot for a SIM card is normal, i.e. not now fashionable microSIM. There is a vibration signal.
If you're looking for a compact one that's smaller and lighter than an iPad, then there's good news for you. There have already been quite a few 7-inch releases this year that have taken the AV market by storm. Among them were Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9, Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition, and there were even rumors about. It's time to take a look at the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0).
Since the release of the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Samsung has become one of the leaders in Android tablets. And so far, the entire range of add-ons and applications comes with the Tab 2 marker. But, despite the success of the Galaxy Tab, he could not create the same hype around him as the iPad.
Therefore, Samsung decided to try its luck once again and release another 7-inch tablet on the Android 4.0 operating system, nicknamed "Ice Cream Sandwich". We hope that the novelty will be different from the iPad and will cause a new wave of buyers' interest. The tablet will have 8 GB of RAM and access to Wi-Fi, and its cost will vary between 10-13 thousand rubles.
With the new Tab 2, Samsung will be able to seriously compete with tablets such as the Amazon Kindle Fire, Nook, and the leaders in this price category, also based on ICS - Disgo 9104 and Scroll Extreme 9.7.
We've been waiting for the release of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) for quite a long time, and we finally got the chance to test it.
Currently Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) can be purchased for about 10,000 rubles. for the version with 8 GB of memory and 13,000 rubles. for the model with 16 GB of memory.
Despite the creation of a very stylish design of the Galaxy mobile phone, Samsung has still not been able to develop a single concept for the design of all its devices.
For example, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 has a lovely brushed metal finish, while the look and feel of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) is very similar to the Samsung Galaxy S3, whose plastic body looks cheap and unattractive.
From the previous model, the Galaxy Tab 2 has curved edges and a glowing company logo located on the bottom of the case under the screen. The logo clearly indicates that the tablet developers recommend using the device in portrait orientation, unlike the Samsung Galaxy 10.1, which is more adapted to landscape orientation. In this regard, we can assume that the Galaxy Tab 2 is considered by the developers of Ssmsung as a direct competitor to such tablets as the Amazon Kindle Fire and Nook.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 has a nice silver color taken from its Galaxy Tab sibling. There are three buttons in the upper right corner, one of which is for turning on the sleep mode, waking up from sleep and turning off the tablet, and the other two adjust the sound volume.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) measures 193.7x122.4x10.5mm and weighs 344 grams, just over half the weight of an iPad, and just a tiny bit lighter than the Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition, which has a 1-inch larger screen.
The small size of the device is very convenient for reading with one hand. This will be very useful for people who live in a suburban area and are forced to travel by transport for a long time to work or for young mothers who can simultaneously rock their child and read from a tablet.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) is equipped with a TI OMAP 4430 dual-core processor running at 1GHz. Of course, we're already used to more powerful processors, and the quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 has just been released. However, in addition to the processor, the device must have enough speed to handle several tasks at the same time. Therefore, the Galaxy Tab 2 is equipped with 1 GB of internal memory, which will allow the tablet to respond quickly enough and perform multiple tasks at the same time.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 will be sold with 8, 16 and 32 GB of memory. In addition, you can add a memory card up to 64 GB to the tablet, so media lovers don't have to spend more money on a model with 32 GB of internal memory, but only purchase a microSD card for the tablet. In addition, there is a 3G option, the price and availability of which is not yet confirmed.
The 7-inch TFT screen has a resolution of 1024x600 pixels, and there is no hint of the AMOLED screen that was once predicted for the entire Galaxy Tab line. The display itself is quite dim, dull and lifeless, and definitely won't impress moviegoers.
To test the quality of the video, we took the HD version of the Kanye West movie "Runaway", and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) even managed to present such a juicy and varied color scheme in very dull and completely uninteresting shades, and the black color make gray.
For the next test, we chose the game "Temple Run". We recently tested it on the new iPad and Asus Transformer Pad 300, but this time we were disappointed with how the device displayed the incredibly beautiful golden world of the game. Even after we set the screen brightness to maximum, instead of a beautiful bright picture, we got only accelerated battery discharge. But at the same time, we noticed that even a smaller screen resolution than recommended for "Temple Run" does not spoil the impression of the game at all. In addition, we were able to get the highest scores in "Temple Run" and even considered purchasing a subscription for this game.
Compared to the 10-inch iPad, the difference is certainly noticeable, but the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 holds up quite confidently among Kindles and similar smartphones. We were able to fully enjoy apps, reading books, playing games and watching TV series without feeling any or discomfort.
Unfortunately, we can't say the same for the tablet's touch screen. Its sensitivity turned out to be a little lower than we expected. For example, it was difficult for us to register on the site because the sensor did not respond well when trying to follow links or clicking on small browser buttons. Also, while watching video materials, rewinding films became a problem due to the weak response of the sensor.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) is equipped with two cameras. The rear camera is suitable for taking photos, and the front camera is suitable for video conferencing. If we take into account the 3MP rear lens and the VGA quality of the front camera, then we can safely say that photography is not the strength of the tablet. But the Galaxy Tab 2's rear camera can shoot 720p quality video, so you can use it as a camcorder and even add special effects to your footage thanks to the built-in app.
The Galaxy Tab 2 is based on the latest version of the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) operating system, which is a continuation of the Android Honeycomb line. This means that it has all the latest enhancements and benefits of the previous OS.
Ice Cream Sandwich is a more flexible operating system with better multitasking, a better browser, better video processing and more settings.
The Korean company Samsung decided to release Android with its own TouchWiz interface, which has a unique and original look. TouchWiz is a decent and intuitive interface, but it does feel a bit dated in places and doesn't add the same polish as classic Android 4.0.
A good example of this is the screen lock. It looks kind of uninteresting and old-fashioned, besides, Ice Cream Sandwich does not have the ability to quickly bind a button to lock the screen or camera, which would greatly simplify and speed up the use of the tablet. Even the way the time is displayed on the screen still does not arouse admiration and a burning desire to immediately purchase the Galaxy Tab 2.
Let's move on to the main features of the operating system. For ease of use, Android 4.0 ICS has five home screens that you can access by tapping the right or left edge of the screen (recall that the sensor has a rather weak response, so you need to hit the screen quite hard). The main screen is filled with applications for displaying weather, time, a media player for listening to music or watching movies, and many other applications.
Quickly enough, we cleared the home screen of all this garbage and filled it with only the add-ons we needed. To do this, we used the toolbar, which can be called up by pressing and holding the settings icon at the top of the screen.
In addition to the standard buttons that allow you to go back or to the home screen and the button that opens the last closed application, there are several more buttons added by Samsung developers on the bottom panel of the tablet. For example, one of them was a button for taking screenshots, which was especially useful for us for creating this review, and a small arrow pointing up. We didn't notice it at first, but this arrow ended up being a customizable dock for your most used apps that can be called up at any time. This is a great addition and it immediately aroused our sympathy.
Also pleased with the on-screen keyboard, which is especially well suited for such a small device. I especially liked the location of the number buttons from 0 to 9 at the top of the QWERTY keyboard. Keyboard input was very accurate and made it easy to quickly enter passwords, email addresses, and write letters without getting illegible typing of letters instead of text, incorrectly recognized by the keyboard, as happens on most modern tablets.
Navigating the screen, applications and settings of the operating system was also able to please with its loading speed and there was no noticeable delay in response, familiar to Android users.
As for the capabilities of the dual-core Ice Cream Sandwich chip, we tested many applications and games, including editing our library, but could not push the ARM chip at 1 GHz to the limit.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) came out on top with an AnTuTu Benchmark score of 5322. That score is about half that of the Tegra 3-based Asus Transformer Prime, and slightly higher than the Kindle Fire, Asus Transformer, and Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. Moreover, Galaxy Tab 2 wins due to higher performance.
All the games went quite well, and only in "Temple Run" the image trembled a little, which, however, did not interfere with the game itself at all. You could even say that image processing was smoother than on the much-acclaimed Apple iPad, proving once again that the Galaxy Tab 2 doesn't lack performance at all.
As we already mentioned, the quality of the camera on the tablet leaves much to be desired. The resulting images were grainy, blurry and dull, and it was noticeable even before we started viewing them on a PC.
Usually we do not attach much importance to the poor quality of the camera, since this is far from the primary task of tablet PCs, but only a nice addition. But the camera would be very useful in order to capture some important moments of your life when there is no normal camera at hand. And the photo quality of Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) is much worse than its competitors.
The video footage was no different from the photo and also suffered from graininess, especially in low light conditions. And that's with superb frame rates and 720p quality.
When listening to audio recordings, we were also disappointed with the volume level. The speakers were so quiet that there was barely enough sound even in one room. For example, the Samsung Galaxy S3 sounds much louder, so if you want to watch a movie or listen to music in a hotel room or at home, you will need to connect additional speakers to the tablet.
Of course, the Galaxy Tab 2 has Bluetooth headphones, but we still think that this tablet has enough power to play sound at normal volume.
Battery life was very average. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) lasted about 5 hours of YouTube video streaming. This is a very mediocre indicator, and even with light use of the tablet, you still have to charge the device about once every two days.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) has a battery capacity of up to 4000 mAh, which is twice the capacity of the Samsung Galaxy S3, but still significantly smaller than the battery of the Asus Transformer Pad 300. As an excuse, of course, you can take into account the small size of the tablet itself, but in any case, if you need a reliable and durable device, then we would recommend turning your attention to larger models.
By default, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) has the Android 4.0 browser, which has very few settings or options for changing the page display. But, nevertheless, the browser can open several tabs at once, and when you open an empty tab, several previously visited sites will be displayed on the page.
The problem with all 7-inch tablets is that it is very inconvenient to browse the web on such a screen. This is especially true for portrait orientation. All sites are displayed very small, so each time you need to zoom in to read the information from the page. The problem could be solved if the tablet automatically loaded the mobile version of the sites, but, unfortunately, this is not the case. And even in landscape orientation, you will be able to see only part of the web page, and not the whole of it.
Of course, this problem is not only due to the small screen, but also due to the settings of the sites you visit. But if the tablet loaded pages in smartphone mode, it could really make things easier. Therefore, if you are a fan of surfing the Internet, then you should still take a 10-inch tablet model.
We found the Galaxy Tab 2 browser itself quite inconvenient to use. It creates very small tabs and has a slow response time, so you won't be able to close any site quickly. If you still choose the 7-inch model for yourself, then we recommend that you download the beta version of the Google Chrome browser for your tablet, which will work faster and more efficiently than the built-in browser.
We also did not like the process of setting bookmarks in the browser. To save a page and bookmark it, you need to click on the star, then you will have access to all browser bookmarks, which can be opened using the small icon located on the right. In bookmarks you will find a lot of folders that the browser has created automatically and we don’t like it at all, because half of them are not needed and we would not want to litter our bookmarks with all this. In addition, new saved pages are attached to the end of the list, which means that you will have to scroll through the entire list each time to open them.
You can start incognito mode using the button in the upper right corner, then any new tab will open without too much fuss and you can secretly choose gifts for them in online stores or look for some personal information from your family and friends.
To view flash videos, we installed a plug-in that started working immediately, without the need to restart the tablet. After installation, we were able to view all kinds of video materials posted on various sites, which is very pleasing after using an iPad that does not have such a plugin.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) has access to the Google Play Store, which was previously known as the Android Marketplace. In this online store you can find many applications for Android, including games, movies and a large library of books. Of course, the choice is not as wide as in the App Store, but Google Play is also actively working to expand the list of applications, and, quite possibly, will soon be able to compete with Apple. In addition, Google Play developers also focus on relevant video content and popular applications. The purchase process itself will also not be difficult, and the updated Ice Cream Sandwich interface will allow you to save purchased video materials in one folder. And the prices in Google Play differ from the App Store downwards. So, for example, the film "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" cost us 50 rubles less.
Some tablets, such as the Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition, force you to use only the built-in software in order to be able to add photos or video files, and often these programs turn out to be completely unfinished and inconvenient. Thankfully, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) didn't take on that legacy.
All you need to transfer files to your tablet is a PC connection. The computer recognizes the device as a removable disk and will allow you to safely copy or move files without resorting to the use of additional programs.
Android tablets have always behaved very strangely towards various file formats. They can both read and not read any formats, without arguing their choice at all. With the advent of applications, this problem was eased a little and it became possible to expand the list of readable files. But Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) and without additional applications can read almost all formats of audio and video content, including even HD mkv encoded in H.264. Even just a couple of years ago, this was almost impossible, but now we can safely enjoy the smooth playback of high-quality video.
In addition, you can easily read books from your tablet thanks to the Reader Hub application, which is a cross between Kobo and Zinio. The text on the screen can be seen very clearly, in addition, the application has a user-friendly interface. One could even say that the Galaxy Tab 2 is one of the best reading tablets out there, but unfortunately it still can't match E-Ink devices like Amazon's Kindle.
As we have already said, Google Play is used as a source of applications for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0), which can really compete with such a popular iPad due to the presence of free applications and a very impressive catalog of paid content.
The Google Play store shortcut is always located on the tablet's home page and takes only a few seconds to launch. And the process of downloading applications itself requires only pressing the "download" button, and after downloading the application will be ready to run.
Google Play also has a dedicated section for Samsung devices called "Samsung Apps". In this store you will find a mixture of their popular apps from Google and some apps from Samsung developers.
So, for example, we found Angry Birds in the list of free applications, and, perhaps, this was the only familiar name from the entire list. Of course, there are also games such as Tetris or Sudoku, but all of them cannot be weighty arguments in favor of the Galaxy Tab 2.
If you are a fan of simple unpretentious games, then Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) will be a real discovery for you. The tablet has a screen too small to play full-fledged serious games, but it has enough performance to play them unquestioningly. For example, Temple Run and Riptide ran very smoothly and flawlessly, and the 25 seconds that we were interested in playing Angry Birds also did not reveal any performance flaws.
The list of apps is quite impressive, and soon we've filled the entire tablet with free games: Sims, Tower Defense, cricket and cards, as well as the very interesting Color Splash app.
The small screen did not affect the quality of all these games, but, nevertheless, we felt more confident on 10-inch tablets. Although on 7 inches we were able to have fun and pass the time pleasantly.
Samsung developers have done a lot of work to make the Galaxy Tab 2 competitive with models such as the Amazon Kindle Fire and the Apple iPad. And one of these successful steps was the use of the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system and an online application store.
But do not forget about the shortcomings: a dim screen, a cluttered TouchWiz interface and a weak sensor response will not allow the tablet to become a direct competitor to the leading models.
At the moment, there are many models on the AV market, the cost of which varies between 10-13 thousand rubles, but not all of them have the same capabilities as the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0).
Samsung has been able to release a feature-packed tablet that can seriously compete with the Apple iPad and fill a gap in the line of Android devices. In addition, the tablet has a very affordable price.
In addition, despite the rather small screen of 7 inches, we were able to fully enjoy watching HD movies and games on it.
The tablet was able to show all the advantages of the new Android Ice Cream Sandwich OS, including a very easy and simple way to copy and move files from a personal computer. And this is just one of many indicators that bring the Galaxy Tab 2 closer to the iPad.
Throughout testing, we noticed a number of shortcomings that may prevent the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) from becoming a top seller. Most of the shortcomings are most likely caused by an attempt by developers to reduce the cost of the device, but this does not stop them from being unpleasant.
So, for example, the Touch Wiz user interface, which has already proven itself on other devices, suddenly appears in a very boring and old-fashioned light. And the Galaxy Tab 2 screen itself looks very lifeless and pale.
In addition, it is difficult to use a browser that displays pages extremely small and has an inconvenient configuration system.
If you are ready to part with 13,000 rubles for a small, convenient, fun and feature-packed tablet, then the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) will be the best option for you.
However, those who are looking for a reliable quality device with a good screen and excellent build quality should pass by Samsung.
In any case, Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) can confidently occupy a niche among budget tablets and please its users with excellent performance and versatility.
Last year's Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 turned out to be quite a success, selling well compared to other Android tablets. In fact, he had one significant drawback - the high price. Not surprisingly, at the end of 2011, the device could no longer compete with much cheaper and at the same time quite high-quality new products (for example, the Amazon Kindle Fire).
In the winter of 2012, the Korean manufacturer announced the next generation Galaxy Tab. At first glance, we have only a slightly modified Galaxy Tab 10.1 of 2011, but sold at a lower price. Whether the advantages of the novelty are limited only to a democratic price compared to its predecessor, let's see in this review.
Samsung has released two Galaxy Tab 2 tablets - with 7″ and 10.1″ displays. Each of them is available in modifications only with a Wi-Fi module, as well as with Wi-Fi and 3G. The Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 model with only one wireless module came to our testing.
Appearance
If not for a pair of long speakers on the front panel, the novelty could easily be confused with its predecessor. Other differences are noticeable if you look a little more closely. These include, for example, side "influxes" made of gray plastic, no flash next to the main camera, slightly changed design of the lid - the insert in the upper part is now not so pronounced and the eye of the photomodule is located under it, and not on the insert itself, as was the case with the Galaxy Tab 10.1.
The assembly of the model could be called flawless, if not for one thing. "But". The fact is that the protective glass of the display slightly moved away from the body of the device that got to the tests in the upper left corner. Surely this is a problem of a particular instance, commercial samples of the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 should not have such a defect. Otherwise, there are no complaints about the tablet: the buttons are pressed moderately tight, the microSD port cover sits tightly, the non-removable cover does not play.
Display
The novelty is equipped with a 10.1″ display with a resolution of 1280 × 800 pixels. Exactly the same characteristics were on the screen of the tablet of the previous generation. The manufacturer specified that the matrix is manufactured using PLS (Plane-to-Line Switching) technology. In fact, this is a less expensive alternative to IPS, so its main advantage is high viewing angles and good, natural color reproduction. They say that PLS has a lower contrast ratio, but in practice you can’t say that the screen lacks contrast.
In general, the impressions from the display are about the same as from the screen of the Galaxy Tab 10.1. Even the still strangely working automatic backlight was inherited: when the corresponding option is activated, the brightness is objectively not enough. So it's best to set the backlight level to the maximum - then the information is well read both indoors and in the sun.
It makes no sense to dwell on the camera in detail, but it is worth saying a few words about it. For some reason, Samsung decided to install a very modest 3-megapixel photo module in the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, and without autofocus and flash. The camera of last year's model was also not very high quality, but at least it had autofocus and a flash. Apparently, the developer was guided by the idea that there will be very few people who want to take pictures with a tablet.
Interface, functionality
The main difference between the novelty and its predecessor is a new version of the operating system from Google. The Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 model runs Android 4.0.3, while "old man" was content with Honeycomb.
The novelty is built on a dual-core processor TI OMAP4430, operating at a frequency of 1 GHz. IN "arsenal" The tablet also houses a PowerVR SGX 540 graphics accelerator and 1 GB of RAM. Testing took place on the model Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 with a 16 GB drive.
Last year's Galaxy Tab was also based on a dual-core chip, but then it was Nvidia Tegra 2. Did the change in hardware platform greatly affect performance? Judging by the results in benchmarks, the performance of the novelty remained at the level of its predecessor: in some tests, the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 is slightly faster, in others it is a couple of points behind.
Model Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 is equipped with a 7000 mAh battery. Exactly the same battery was installed in the first Galaxy Tab 10.1. Maybe the change in the hardware platform somehow affected the power consumption of the tablet? With continuous playback of the video in Full HD resolution, with maximum screen brightness and Wi-Fi turned off, one charge was enough for almost six and a half hours. Approximately the same result was demonstrated by the Galaxy Tab 10.1.
Thus, in terms of performance and battery life between "old" and new tablets - absolute parity, even despite different chips.
Conclusion
The closer you get to know the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1, the more often the saying comes to mind that everything new is a well-forgotten old. The tablet of the 2011 model can hardly be called old, but over the year the situation on the market for such devices has changed markedly. Samsung has had to adapt to the new rules of the game, and the updated Galaxy Tab is a product that plays by these rules.
In essence, the reviewed model is not much different from its predecessor: the same technical specifications (the change in the hardware platform did not affect the performance and capabilities of the device in any way), identical battery life. Unless the novelty received a worse camera, but this was to some extent compensated by the installation of good speakers - loud and clear sound comes from them.
The main and in fact the only advantage of the tablet is its relatively low price. The first Galaxy Tab 10.1 cost about $1,000 at launch, while the second generation sells for almost half the price. In this case, the user receives a fresh operating system and a slightly updated design. Is it worth it to put a number in the device name for this? "2" to be decided by potential buyers. Samsung decided it was worth it.
A source of information:
