14 DAY TRIAL // As was expected for some time now, Samsung has finally taken the opportunity to introduce its anticipated duo of AMOLED tablets, the Galaxy Tab S family.
Putting aside the beautiful crisp display, which is certainly the biggest highlight of these products, we should also mention the new device will be super thin, stylish and be bundled with a host of new software and services.
Sammy will be selling the larger 10.5-inch Tab S in the US starting in July with $499 / €368 while the 8.4-inch model will arrive in retail with a $399 / €294 price tag, reports AndroidOS. LTE enhanced models will soon follow, probably under the umbrella of carriers such as Verizon or AT&T.
The new Galaxy Tab S tablets could compete with many smartphones out there in terms of thinness and they certainly are more anorexic than the iPad Air, with its 6.6mm / 0.26 inches thin.
Don’t be fooled by the extreme sleekness, the tablet still manages to bundle a battery big enough to deliver up to 11 hours of life juice.
The 10.5-inch model weighs 1.1 lbs / 490 g while the 8.4-inch one is just 10.4 ounces / 294 g. Depending on the version we’re talking about, the tablets draw power from either Samsung’s own Exynos 5 octa-core chips (for the Wi-Fi variants) or Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processors (for the LTE ones).
The most touted aspect of the devices remains the amazing Super AMOLED WQXGA display that boasts 2560 x 1600 pixel resolution and which is said to have a wider color range and contrast.
Both the 8.4-inch and 10.5-inch variations will arrive with two cameras (8MP on the back and 2.1MP front-facing camera), 802.11ac Wi-Fi, 3GB of RAM, either 16GB of 32GB of internal storage (expandable via microSD card slot), IR ports, Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS.
As for coloring options, Samsung abolishes the drab black options and throws in bronze and white instead. But wait that’s not all. You also get to choose between a variety of swappable covers in a variety of colors, plus optional accessories that include cases and Bluetooth keyboards.
The slates are equipped with an adaptive display software which is capable of adapting the white balance based on ambient light conditions.
The two tablets run Android 4.4.2 KitKat out of the box and they include the company’s special feature, SideSync 3.0 that allows customers to pair the slate to their phone, thus allowing them to make phone calls on the tablet.
On top of that, Samsung has thrown Kids Mode software, its own Milk Music services and Papergarden (a new subscription-based magazine services that draws content from the likes of National Geographic, Conde Nast and so on).
The Tab S duo will also be one of the few Android tablets arriving with support for 1080p content from Netflix.
