Samsung tablets. Samsung Tablets Sound and Formats

Samsung's tablet strategy hasn't always been clear. At times, the number of options offered was simply confusing. To help you understand the situation, let us inform you that the Galaxy Tab S is the flagship line of Samsung tablets, and now it includes two models - with diagonals of 10.5 and 8.4 inches. We are testing the smaller one - and in our opinion, this is the company's best tablet to date.

The equipment of these two models is completely identical; Tab S boasts an 8-core Exynos processor, 3GB random access memory and a Super AMOLED screen.

The body is predominantly made of plastic; he can't keep up with the luxurious aluminum shell of the iPad Mini and its Retina display, but the Samsung gadget is quite strong and of high quality, besides it is quite thin (6.6 mm) and light (294 grams).

In some ways, it surpasses the competitor from Apple - for example, a microSD card slot allows you to add another 128 GB to the existing 16 GB of internal memory, and it will cost you much less than buying an iPad Mini with that amount of memory. Owners of large collections of videos and music will appreciate this.

The fingerprint scanner has migrated from the Galaxy S5; and it works the same way - you need to slide your finger over the "Home" button. You can set up to three fingerprints for each device. It mostly functions correctly, but much slower than TouchID on Apple gadgets; Entering a PIN on a tablet would be faster. But we love the ability to use it to authorize payments through PayPal.

The Tab S's screen is one of the most eye-catching we've seen on a model of this size. The 2560 x 1600 matrix and 360 ppi leave many competitors far behind; But what is most impressive is the brightness of the Super AMOLED panel, which at first glance makes the Samsung tablet stand out. It works great in full sunlight and is ideal for browsing the web, delighting in the clarity of the letters and the richness of colors. However, the Tab S's video prowess is inferior to the iPad Mini with Retina display.

If you include the same clip in HD on both devices, you'll find that the iPad's color palette is much more balanced, and the tones and textures of objects and faces are more subtle. Samsung's palette is more sophisticated than before, but the balance is still not neutral enough.

In terms of contrast, the Tab S's AMOLED screen is capable of producing much darker blacks than the iPad; however, white objects, for all their brightness, are slightly poorer in detail and suffer from a bluish cast — especially when viewed from the side.

Overall, the Tab S has very crisp, detailed, and enjoyable video - much better than previous Samsung tablets - but the balance of the iPad mini seems to be better.

The sound quality has also increased compared to the previous ones Samsung models... The Tab S supports HD audio playback, pioneered by the Galaxy Note 3. WAV CD copies show a fuller transmission of information, better rhythm and better energy.

Michael Jackson's Thriller in 24-bit / 176 kHz format delights with increased detail and elaboration, however, the sound is generally less rich than that of the iPad mini, and is inferior to it in the severity and severity of the attack.

The convenience of work deserves special mention. The Tab S's battery is quite robust, with active use at a comfortable brightness level, it is enough for a day or more.

Of course, if you play several HD videos in a row, the charge will run out faster; but to notice the "drawdown" of the tablet, you need to look at at least a couple.

Navigating through the menu items and turning applications on and off are fast - this is not surprising, given such and such computing power. The new Multi View screen allows you to run two applications on one display at the same time; we've seen this before, but programs have always worked independently - now they can exchange texts and pictures, which is very convenient.

The Tab S's camera is one of the best we've seen on a tablet (though generally not very high). The 8-megapixel rear camera captures great photos in good lighting - crisp, detailed and balanced - and features an LED flash.

The Galaxy Tab S 8.4 is the best Samsung tablet and definitely one of the best Android tablets we know. However, the almost one-year-old iPad Mini with Retina display outperforms it in sound and video playback quality (although it is inferior to it in the possibility of increasing the memory capacity), and this cannot be denied.

Being one of the best Android tablets and the best small tablet after the iPad mini is not bad, but not enough to get the highest score.

Price: $550

Grade: 4

PER: Nice design; bright and lively screen; deep black color; HD audio support; battery life

AGAINST: Slow fingerprint scanner; not the most advanced sound and video

VERDICT: Best Samsung tablet, but would like to improve the audio and video quality

Since Android is on the rise now, it is worth cramming it literally everywhere and everywhere. Most likely, this will affect the line of Samsung players as a whole, which is a clear plus for consumers - given how the company likes to play with prices, a whole scattering of mini-tablets with Android on board may soon await us. Accordingly, the cost will be different. While the principle is simple, the smaller the display, the lower the price tag, but here, after all, different branches are possible. A mini sports tablet (rugged) is just one possible example. The experience with Samsung G50 showed that timely deliveries mean a lot, many wanted to buy this model, but it simply wasn't on the shelves. Now two gadgets are coming out, with displays, the number in the name is different. Four inches and five inches. While I wanted to start with the big brother, I ended up with a smaller member of Samsung's tablet lineup. Let's take a closer look at it.

Design, construction

The tablet is very similar to Samsung phone Galaxy S, the company did the right thing by using this popular device as a prototype. So I can imagine how sellers will say to shop visitors: "This thing is like a" galaxy ", only it cannot call."

The display protection is suspiciously easy to clean of fingerprints, it seems that an oleophobic coating is applied. The plastic is smooth, white. The tablet is slippery, I almost dropped it a couple of times, it is especially dangerous to take it out of your pocket, and it strives to fall out. On the other hand, it fits right in the hand, the size is well matched. There is a microphone on the bottom, a speaker above the display, everything is ready for using Skype. To the right of the speaker is a camera window, to the left is a light sensor and a light indicator. The body is made of plastic, the dimensions are 64.2 x 123.7 x 9.9 mm, the tablet weighs 121 grams. Display protection without oleophobic coating, prints are noticeable. From the back, of course, nothing is visible, the lacquered white plastic looks good. The cover can be removed, a replaceable battery, there is also a slot for a memory card. In my opinion, this is not very cool, it would be better to make the slot in such a way as to get the card out without removing the cover. A 3.5 mm jack on the top, that's right, it's convenient to carry the tablet in a pocket with headphones. Nearby there is a microUSB connector covered by a sliding cover.

Display

The diagonal of the display is four inches, the resolution is 800 x 480 pixels, the screen has good viewing angles, it is responsive, by and large, it did not encounter incorrect processing of clicks. There are a lot of words in marketing materials about Super Clear LCD technology, I can do without it. The automatic brightness control works well, the viewing angles are excellent, and the black is exactly black. The icons seem to be drawn with a very thin brush, such a screen is very cool to photograph. It is worth picking up a wallpaper with a high resolution, the default pictures are very stretched. Information is discernible in the sun, this is another plus, especially considering that there are four months of warm weather ahead and, I hope, warm.

Control

At the end there is a volume rocker, on the other side there is a power button. When you take the device in your right hand, it is just under the thumb, which is good. What's wrong is touch buttons under the display, the set is traditional for Android, menu, Home, return. Call button search application has become an atavism for quite some time. So, touch controls are less convenient than traditional ones. Home button usual, but with Menu and return you sometimes have to fight, and it's impossible to get used to it until the end. I don’t think it will be important for the majority - buttons, after all, are there and work. Let's call it taste.

Memory

There are two versions, with 8 and 16 GB, each model has a microSD card slot, so the storage can be expanded depending on your needs.

Nutrition

Removable lithium ion battery at 1200 mAh, the claimed battery life is 36 hours in music playback mode, 5 hours in video playback mode. In everyday use, the tablet behaves quite differently from Android smartphones, there is no 3G, and therefore data transfer is carried out only in the zone Wi-Fi coverage... It is common truth, but the use case is different. For example, with the Galaxy S II, you will think a hundred times more before reading a book in a traffic jam (if there is no charge for the car). With a tablet, the situation is different, if you listen to music for a couple of hours a day, read the same amount, watch a couple of episodes of a series, use a browser, play, then the charge can last for three days. With intensive use, the tablet lasts a couple of days. But, here everything very much depends on your preferences. Of course, compared to many Android smartphones, the Galaxy Wi-Fi S 4 is a true long-liver.

Operating system

The operating room is used Android system 2.2 (2.2.1, to be more precise), that is, a long-familiar "robot" named Froyo. An update to Android 2.3 is planned. I will not talk about the features, you can read a separate material on this topic.

There are also special widgets, this is a counter of active applications with the ability to close unnecessary ones, a control panel for wireless interfaces. The main menu contains a file browser, you can select and play music right from here. For some reason, a regular player opens, a standard one.

Sound and formats

The tablet comes with good headphones with a playback control unit and a microphone; if you wish, you can replace it with any other model. The sound quality is good, the SoundAlive function is supported - however, I cannot call myself a fan of various effects, I would listen as it is. WITH complete list You can see the supported formats by looking at the screenshot. In fact, the model is omnivorous, you can immediately download movies, music in almost any form. The SoundAlive function can also be turned on for video, here it is useful, especially if you use closed headphones.

The tablet has very loud speakers, you can use it as a small music center. The player is unusual, there are buttons for switching on the Shuffle mode, activating repeat of all or one song, selecting a section of the song for playback. Volume control is possible both using the buttons and directly in the player. At the top left is the icon for selecting an equalizer preset, there are eight ready-made plus two custom ones. You can play with EQ, volume, clarity and clarity, room for the enthusiast.

Performance

A 1 GHz processor is used, I did not notice any brakes when using the tablet.

Wireless interfaces

Wi-Fi (802.11 b / g / n) and Bluetooth 3.0 are supported, there is GPS - the usual gentleman's set, but only Bluetooth 3.0 is rarely found even in the most modern devices. If you often transfer something wirelessly, then a tablet here will make your life much easier.

Camera

Nothing special, 3.2 MP, no flash, autofocus (you need to press and hold the virtual button). Geotags are supported, there are various settings for certain conditions. The maximum video resolution is 720 x 480 pixels, autofocus does not work very well, the recording quality is satisfactory for a non-specialized device. The clips look good on the screen of the device.

I remember very well the dawn of the compact Android tablet segment: the first Galaxy Tab, HTC Flyer and a bunch of Chinese people with terrible screens and build. And nevertheless, the potential buyer had no choice, because Steve Jobs did not even want to look in the direction of compact tablets. After the release of the first iPad with Retina display, I could only once again complain about the lack of a compact version with an equally wonderful display. But when Apple finally decided to release the first iPad mini, there was no limit to my disappointment, because the company installed a display with a resolution of 1024x768 pixels! Of course, the next year the situation was corrected and I still consider the iPad mini 2 one of the most successful models. The third generation, in my opinion, is a pass-through, it could easily be called the iPad mini 2s, but the latest iPad mini 4 is a miracle. But the market for Android tablets did not stand still either: screen resolutions grew, time autonomous work, the speed and stability of firmware, in general, now the choice between Android and iOS tablets is not as obvious as two or three years ago. It will be all the more interesting to compare the two best compact tablets of the end of 2015.

Appearance, body materials

Let's start with the design of iPad mini 4. There are three different body colors available to the user: silver, dark gray and gold, I personally recommend the silver model to everyone, it reminds me of the company's MacBook and looks the best. However, lovers of traditional strictly black will appreciate the dark gray body. There is not much to say about the design of tablets in general, most of them have rounded edges, most of the front side is occupied by the display, so manufacturers for "games with the appearance" can only back cover... Apple traditionally uses aluminum for its manufacture: it looks practical and cool, it's not for nothing that some companies copy this approach.

The case in the Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 is made of matte soft-touch plastic. Unlike most devices that use such plastic, the S2 8.0 case does not get soiled so much, and the fingerprints themselves are less noticeable. I had a black model in my hands, it has a calm design without pretentious elements, which, in my opinion, is a plus.

From point of view appearance a slight advantage on the side of the iPad mini, and aluminum is still more practical than soft-touch plastic, but this does not mean that the Tab S2 is significantly inferior in materials or design.

Sound

Both devices are equipped with high-quality stereo speakers with excellent volume headroom. In my opinion, the iPad mini 4 places more emphasis on the performer's voice, while the Tab S2 focuses on the instrumental part.

Control elements

Now I will not consider the power buttons and volume rockers, but focus only on the central button under the screen (and two touch buttons next to it in the Tab S2). D of both tablets, fingerprint scanners are inscribed in the center button, operating at +/- the same speed. A small advantage of the iPad mini scanner is its integration into the system and the ability to access it third party applications, this is very convenient for the same 1Password, unfortunately, this control has not yet been unified in Android.

Galaxy Tab S2 has two touch-sensitive buttons on either side of the center key: "recent applications" and "back". This is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the rejection of on-screen buttons in favor of touch buttons allows you to increase the usable screen area, and on the other hand, when using the tablet in landscape orientation, you will touch the touch buttons with your thumb, and this is a big minus, which Samsung does not pay year after year. attention.

In iPad mini 4, the absence of touch keys allows you to easily hold it in any orientation, the chance of accidentally pressing a physical button is much lower than a touch one.

Dimensions (edit)

As you can see from the plate above, in terms of size and weight, we have a clear leader - Galaxy Tab S2, the tablet is slightly thinner and lighter. In everyday use, the difference is almost imperceptible, but if you take both tablets in hand, you immediately feel that the S2 is, albeit slightly, but lighter.

Screen

Before we move on to the comparison of displays, I would like to draw your attention, dear readers, to the fact that we have two tablets with the best screens in the market, so when I say that one of them wins / loses in some qualities, it is important to understand that we are talking about a 5-10% loss, and not about a two-fold difference. For comparison, I used adaptive mode on the Tab S2.

It is customary to scold SuperAMOLED matrices for poor rendering of white color, well, let's start our comparison with it. I was surprised to find that even the white display on the Tab S2 is better than the iPad mini 4. A direct comparison shows that the mini 4's display is slightly yellow and not as bright.

When displaying black, the iPad mini 4 shows very good results for the IPS-matrix, but with this color, the advantage is traditionally on the side of SuperAMOLED. If you open a completely black picture, you get the feeling that the display is completely off, while on the mini 4 the image looks like a dark-dark gray screen.

Galaxy Tab S2 on the left, iPad mini 4 on the right

If we talk about a color image, the difference when comparing identical photos, although it was minimal, but still the advantage is also on the side of the Tab S2, the colors on it look a little brighter, a little juicier.

Galaxy Tab S2 on the left, iPad mini 4 on the right

The viewing angles of both tablets are close to maximum, and in terms of brightness, the Tab S2 also wins: both the maximum and minimum brightness are adjusted in a larger range.

Galaxy Tab S2 on the left, iPad mini 4 on the right

Another small advantage of the S2 screen in front of mini 4 is a separate reading mode, which can be turned on in the settings or directly from the notification bar.

In theory, the iPad mini 4's screen should have won out when comparing small text, due to the PenTile in SuperAMOLED matrices, but even with very small font I could not see the characteristic red halos on the S2.

In defense of mini 4, I will say that although the screen in it is inferior in all parameters to the S2, it is still very good, and if it were not for a direct comparison, I would not even have noticed that this display is at least something bad ...

Operating system

I could compare every little thing in Android 5.1 with the installed TouchWiz and iOS 9.2, but I will not do this, since this is unlikely to help you make the right choice, so I will tell you about my general impressions.

In my opinion, Android is suitable for more advanced users who understand what they want from a tablet and appreciate its ability to customize and replace standard applications. I will not deny that the possibilities of working with file system much higher in Android than in iOS. Plus, now there are many good applications specifically for the Android tablet and the difference between it and iOS is no longer so noticeable.

On the other hand, iPad mini 4 and iOS 9.x is a solution for unassuming users who will work with a tablet out of the box and are unlikely to notice any restrictions on the part of Apple.

It is also worth considering your previous user experience, of course, it will be easier for an iPhone owner to get comfortable with an iPad, and an Android user with a Galaxy Tab S2.

Performance

There are three parameters by which I measure device performance: speed of desktops and settings menus; browser speed and work with the most productive games.

I deliberately simultaneously flipped through desktops on devices, launched various pages in the browser and played the most powerful toys on them. And it just so happened that we have parity for all three devices. However, there is one "but" on this moment there are more beautiful and powerful toys for iOS, more for now.

Autonomous work

The battery capacity of the Galaxy Tab S2 is 4000 mAh, the iPad mini 4 - 5124 mAh. The difference of 25% in capacity is also clearly visible in everyday use: for example, the Tab S2 in everyday use is discharged in about two to three days (one and a half hours of active screen per day at automatic brightness), and iPad mini 4 under the same conditions - in three four days. But everything changes when we compare the runtime in video mode, here the Tab S2 lasted 12 hours versus 7 hours for the iPad mini 4.

Camera

I believe that tablets are filmed much less often than smartphones, but on trips I increasingly see tourists with iPads or the same Galaxy Tab, so I asked Roman Belykh for a small comment on the quality of the shooting.

The quality of the photos is roughly the same when it comes to detail. The main difference is noise. The Galaxy Tab S2, due to its high-aperture optics (F1.9 aperture), produces a relatively clear picture compared to the iPad mini 4 (F2.4 aperture). The viewing angle is wider in the Samsung camera. In general, for Galaxy tablet Tab S2 module and optics are very good, and iPad mini shoots at the level of iPhone 4.

iPad mini 4	Galaxy Tab S2

Yes, version 4.0 LE, all popular profiles are supported, incl. A2DP Gps A cold start takes about five seconds Mobile data GSM / 3G / LTE, voice calls GSM / 3G / LTE USB On-The-Go There is No

As you can see, the Galaxy Tab S2 has a more recent version of Bluetooth, support for USB OTG, and of course the presence of voice calls. You can argue for a long time about the need or unnecessaryness of phone calls from the tablet, but the fact remains: with the Tab S2 you can call if something happens, but with the iPad mini 4 you can not.

Also, for the sake of interest, I compared the speed of both tablets in LTE mode, the same SIM card was used, the measurements were taken from the same place.

Conclusion

First, let's take a look at the prices of the tablets: iPad mini 4 is sold in six different variants: 16, 64 and 128 GB with LTE and Wi-Fi Only:

• 16 GB Wi-Fi - 33,000 rubles
• 64 GB Wi-Fi - 41,000 rubles
• 128 GB Wi-Fi - 49,000 rubles
• 16 GB Wi-Fi + LTE - 43,000 rubles
• 64 GB Wi-Fi + LTE - 51,000 rubles
• 128 GB Wi-Fi + LTE - 59,000 rubles

Have Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 only two versions:

• 32 GB Wi-Fi - 32,000 rubles
• 32 GB Wi-Fi + LTE - 36,000 rubles

First of all, I would like to note that we have two excellent tablets, personally I could use any of them as the main one without any problems without any problems. Therefore, some particulars play a role, for example, in the Apple iPad mini 4, the design is more interesting, there are more productive toys for it, the aluminum case can also become an advantage for someone. The Tab S2 has a slightly better display, a much higher operating time in video viewing mode, there is support for voice calls and it is cheaper with a larger memory capacity, plus let's not forget about the microSD card slot, because now there are already 200 GB cards.

To be honest, I am a loyal user of Apple technology, but if in a direct comparison with the Tab S2 tablets +/- are similar, then you expect a similar pricing policy, but in fact we see that the 64 GB iPad version with Wi-Fi costs 9000 more 32 GB of the S2 version, and for the modification with LTE you will have to overpay 15,000 rubles. Unfortunately, the restrictive pricing policy makes Apple technology less attractive to the mass user, it remains the lot of wealthy buyers who love the company's products, but this is a much smaller niche of consumers. Of course, the Tab S2 is also more expensive than last year's generation, but the increase in the price tag in the case of this model is not so radical, and the high prices for the iPad make this model one of the best among compact tablets for reasonable money.

It remains to be seen how the iPad mini fits into Apple's long-term plans.

Tablet sales declined, and this year Apple decided to invest all of its new chips in the iPad Air.

As for the iPad mini 3, little has changed compared to last year's model.

Let's see if it holds up this device comparison with Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4, its main competitor.

Dimensions (edit)

This is the first of many (more precisely, most) options in which iPad mini 3 is similar to its predecessor, iPad mini 2 (formerly known as iPad mini with Retina display).

The Galaxy Tab S 8.4 is 7 percent taller and 7 percent narrower than the iPad mini 3. The Tab S is very thin, about 12 percent thinner than the Mini.

Weight

The Tab S is also incredibly lightweight, 11 percent lighter than the iPad mini 3.

Body material

iPad mini 3 has the same solid aluminum construction as the last two iPad mini models. Tab S has a plastic construction with perforated back panel which is similar to the one we've seen on the Galaxy S5.

Colors

The Tab S models come in bronze and dazzling white, while the iPad comes in the same colors as the current iPhone crop.

Screen dimensions

IPad mini's screen is 95 percent of the screen Tab size S.

It should be noted that the iPad has a more square shape, the ratio is 4: 3, while the Tab S is more oblong, with a 16:10 ratio. I think a 4: 3 ratio is more suitable for portrait mode, and from tablets 16:10 the video looks better.

Display resolution

Both tablets have crisp screens, but the Tab S, with its Quad HD resolution, has more advantages in this regard.

Display type

The Tab's AMOLED screen features high black levels, high contrast, and rich colors.

Random touches

The iPad mini's screen has a tremendous twist: when you pick up your tablet, your hand may accidentally touch the edge of the screen, but these touches are not fixed. I really miss this when I have to use other narrow tablets, like the Tab S, where this is not possible.

The fingerprint scanner

Apart from the gold color scheme, this is the only difference between the iPad mini 3 and its predecessor. The update turned out to be rather weak, but at least you get the best fingerprint scanner at your disposal: Apple's Touch ID is easy to use, but Samsung's more solid sensor requires a swipe gesture, and at a certain angle.

Built-in memory

iPad mini has three versions of internal memory, while the Tab S has twice the storage capacity in the second case.

MicroSD memory card

The Tab S allows you to expand your internal storage using microSD.

Camera

The Tab S cameras feature higher resolution. At the same time, no tablet that exists today has cameras, the quality of which would be identical to the camera of the leading smartphone model.

Battery

Both tablets have amazing battery life. In this sense, they can be considered one of the best devices in this category that we have only ever tested (we assumed that the performance of the iPad mini 3 can be comparable to that of the iPad mini 2, since Touch ID should not affect the battery life).

The ability to make phone calls

If you own a Galaxy S5, you can receive calls that are forwarded to the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 using SideSync 3.0. As of iOS 8, the iPad has a similar forwarding feature that iPhone owners can use.

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