14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung has been competing with the iPad lineup for years, but few of its products have been great alternatives to the Apple's tablets.
In the last couple of years, though, the South Korean company has managed to refine its Galaxy Tab family to the point that many customers have decided that these are better than an iPad.
The latest additions to the Galaxy Tab family, the S2 8.0 and S2 9.7 tablets, are aimed specifically at Apple's iPad family in their spec range.
Specifically, Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is the real competitor to Apple's iPad lineup, and judging from its look and feel, it does better than any other tablet ever launched by Samsung. Also, it's lighter and thinner than Apple's impossibly thin iPad Air 2 by quite a lot.
Design-wise, Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 shares a few traits with some of Apple's iPad models, like the size of the display, which is unusual for an Android tablet.
Even though there have been Android tablets with a 9.7-inch display in the past, this isn't the norm in the Android tablet world.
But since Samsung targets Apple fans with the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7, it had to adopt some of the iPad lineup's traits without being accused of copy.
The good news is Samsung has improved on some of these traits, such as size and weight, which might make it more appealing to customers.
| Operating system | Android 5.0.2 with TouchWiz UI on top |
|---|---|
| Display | 9.7-inch with QXGA (1536 x 2048) resolution |
| Processor | octa-core Exynos 5433 clocked at 1.9GHz |
| RAM | 3GB |
| Cameras | Dual 8MP as primary; 3264 x 2448 pixels, autofocus 2.1MP secondary, 1440@30fps |
| Storage | 32GB expandable via microSD up to 128GB |
| Battery | 5,870mAh |
| Dimensions | 237.3 x 169 x 5.6 mm; 389 g |
Design - Ultra-slim body, uncanny lightness
Overall, Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 features the same form factor as most of other Samsung tablets, but it's the size of the display and the rest of its measurements that set it apart in the end and bring it close to the Apple iPad family.
As mentioned earlier, a 9.7-inch display is quite unusual for a Samsung tablet, and the same goes for the 4:3 aspect ratio of the screen. Because of the latter, the slate features its navigation buttons in portrait mode rather than landscape.
When it comes to weight and size, the Galaxy Tab S2 is the pinnacle of Samsung's team of designers. Apparently, Samsung took the iPad Air 2's measurements and tried to improve the size and weight of the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 based on Apple's tablet.
They managed to do that since Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 measures 237.3 x 169 x 5.6 mm and weighs only 389g (battery included). By comparison, Apple's iPad Air 2 has 240 x 169.5 x 6.1 mm and weighs 437g.
The Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 features a solid build quality and manages to grab customers' attention thanks to its ultra-slim body. It feels very light when you handle it, although Samsung could have worked a little bit more on the premium aspect of the slate.
Samsung has placed the trio of navigation controls below the display. The Home button in the middle features a metal ring and fingerprint scanner underneath. On the front, right above the display, there's a modest 2.1-megapixel camera for selfies and video calls.
The left side of the tablet is left bare whereas the right side features the power/lock button, the volume key, and the microSD card slot. The 3.5mm audio jack, microUSB port, and dual speakers are positioned on the bottom side of the slate.
The Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 comes with an 8-megapixel camera positioned on the back. If you happen to get your hands on one, you will notice two dot-like receptacles on the back side, which are meant to be used to attach various accessories to the tablet.
Unfortunately, the main camera lacks LED flash, so there's no way to capture photos in low-light environments.
Display and camera - Compromises are made, but performance is decent
Samsung offers some of the best mobile displays on the market, but the Galaxy Tab S2 doesn't benefit from the highest quality screen. Still, I have been content with what the tablet has to offer regarding display, and here is why.
The 9.7-inch display supports 1536 x 2048 resolution (264ppi), which has become the standard for high-end Android tablets. Its predecessor comes with an amazing 2560 x 1600 pixels resolution display, so you could say that the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is a step down.
However, Samsung has chosen this display in an attempt to provide users with better battery life. It's also a great display that doesn't put so much pressure on the battery.
The Super AMOLED display offers perfect view even in strong sunlight, not to mention that contrast and colors are of the highest quality. The picture quality is bright and dynamic while the colors are deep and rich.
Since this is an adaptive display, it adjusts to light conditions, so you will be able to read it regardless of the environment.
Samsung has included an 8-megapixel camera inside the Galaxy Tab S2, which is no wonder since most of its predecessors have a similar photo snapper.
Here is another compromise that Samsung made to keep the price lower than Apple's iPad Air 2. The 8-megapixel camera lacks LED flash, so there's no point trying to take pictures in low-light conditions. On the bright side, the camera can capture Quad HD (2560 x 1440) video at 30fps.
Quality-wise, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 would be better used as a video recorder, but you should still capture your daily photos using a smartphone rather than the tablet.
The 8-megapixel camera features f/1.9 aperture, which will let in more light, translating into better low-light photos but also overexposed daylight pictures.
Even though the 8-megapixel shooter captures more than decent pictures (we've attached samples), it's no match for today's flagships or high-end smartphones.
It's also worth mentioning that the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 camera is quite fast, but it will only produce good results in great light conditions. Otherwise, your pictures will be full of noise.
The secondary 2.1-megapixel camera on the front is just there to provide users with a few more features, like the possibility of taking selfies and making video calls.
Overall, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 camera is good for an 8-megapixel shooter, especially when it comes to video recording, but the lack of LED flash and the inability to take good pictures in average light conditions don't recommend it for daily use.
Power and performance - Slight improvement over the last year's model, but not a flagship
The Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 features a 64-bit Exynos 5433 chipset, the same that's included in one of last year's Samsung Galaxy Note 4 models.
The chipset packs a 1.9GHz quad-core Cortex-A57 CPU and a 1.3GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 processor, accompanied by 3GB of RAM and a Mali-T760 graphics processing unit.
While Exynos 5433 is still a decent chip that offers great performance in the high-end range, it's no match for the latest Exynos 7420 that powers the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy Note 5.
We've put the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 to the test and noticed that the tablet is outperformed by the HTC Nexus 9 and Apple iPad Air 2 in almost every benchmark that we throw at it.
But that doesn't mean you won't be able to run just about any app or game included in Google Play Store, so gamers can be sure that Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 will the provide much-needed performance for a smooth gameplay experience.
When it comes to internals, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is available in two flavors: 32GB and 64GB. However, both versions pack microSD card slot for memory expansion (up to 128GB).
Menu and software - Android 5.0.2 on board, but Marshmallow incoming
Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 ships with Android 5.0.2 Lollipop right out of the box, but an upgrade to Lollipop 5.1.1 is already available for download.
Also, many rumors point to a Marshmallow update in the coming months, so if you decide to go for this tablet, you shuldn't have to worry that you won't have access to the latest version of Android.
Obviously, you will get TouchWiz UI on top of Lollipop, which isn't such a bad thing, especially that Samsung tweaked Android to include some features that Google pulled, such as the option to silence the tablet from the volume key.
The Galaxy Tab S2 offers split-screen mode and multitasking. Simply press the “Recent” touch key below the display, and you will have your screen divided into two. There are plenty of apps compatible with the split-screen mode, aside from Flipboard and a few others.
The only thing that you might feel a bit disappointed with is the bloatware that Samsung continues to add to its devices.
Flipboard, as I've mentioned, does not seem to miss its spot among the major apps included in Galaxy Tab S2. Internet, Email, Memo, Galaxy Apps and a few more apps come preloaded on the tablet, even though you also get the Google suite of apps and services.
The good news is you also get Microsoft's Office package for free, but also useful apps like Skype and OneDrive.
If you have previously owned a Samsung smartphone and tablet, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 will feel very familiar to you.
Battery life - Unexpected results, but it could have been better
The Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 packs a very small, non-removable 5,870 mAh battery, so, in theory, it should provide less battery life than its predecessor, the Galaxy Tab S1, which comes with a much larger 7,900 mAh battery.
In day-to-day use, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 performs quite decently, battery-wise. Our battery drained by 13% after watching a 1.5-hour movie. Another 1 hour of gameplay took it to 65% while browsing, emailing and reading for another hour left us with 50% of the battery.
According to Samsung, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7's battery should provide up to 12 hours of multimedia playback or up to 30 hours of talk time (3G mode). It should also offer up to 109 hours of music play, but with the display turned off.
I feel that the tablet's battery will provide even better continuous usage times when Android 6.0 Marshmallow gets released. Doze mode can do wonders for battery life, and Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 should be no exception.
On the downside, it would have been wonderful if Samsung had included fast charging or wireless charging. Right now, it takes around 4 hours to charge the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 to full battery, which is quite a lot in comparison with today's flagship smartphones.
Connectivity
The Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is one of the many Samsung tablets that include cellular connectivity, so you will be able to use it to take and make calls.
Also, it comes in two variants: Wi-Fi only and 4G LTE. The latter costs a lot more, but it's a well-worth investment. Aside from that, both versions of Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 share the same connectivity options: Bluetooth 4.1, microUSB 2.0, GPS with AGPS and GLONASS, and Wi-Fi.
