Galaxy Tab 4 10.1 Recensione

Samsung's latest flagship tablet packs a superb screen and fingerprint scanner but can it conquer the iPad Air? Read our Samsung Milky way Tab S review

Have you idea of buying a tablet? Well, then, chances are that you'll have been tempted by an iPad. The truth is that however practiced the rival Android or Windows tablets have been, it's Apple that has been calling the shots with the all-time-designed tablet around. Until now.

Samsung's new tablet is slim, stylish and powerful. The Milky way Tab S marks a new first for the company. After all, before now even Amazon's keenly priced Kindle Burn series and the well-specced Google Nexus seven haven't been able to unseat the iPad Air and iPad mini 2 from their thrones.

The iPad outgunned rivals when it added a Retina display. Samsung and others upped their screen resolutions to compete, only to exist outdone again by the super-slim, preposterously lite iPad Air. Apple stayed out in front.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S: Size and build

The Tab S at final gives the iDevices a serious challenge. The Milky way Tab Due south comes in 2 sizes and both are easily the snazziest tablets Samsung has ever created - a night-and-solar day improvement over earlier models which had grey plastic as their well-nigh dominant style motif.

That'due south gone, replaced past metallic-way edging and perforated soft-touch back. The event is a loftier-terminate premium-feel pattern, even if they're still plastic rather than aluminium. These are arguably the all-time-looking tablets anyone'due south made outside of Cupertino.

The Tab S comes in two screen sizes, 8.4 inches and 10.v inches. Both, like their Apple tree rivals, accept the same number of pixels on the large screen as the small. And both are lightweight, catwalk-sparse gadgets.

Of the two tablets, the 10.5-inch screen is comparable in size to the iPad Air, though the display is near an inch bigger. Even so, it's lighter (past a whisker) as well as thinner by almost 1mm. So that featherlight, slender quality Apple went for is matched or beaten - non least because plastic is lighter than aluminium.

And unlike the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet which is even thinner and lighter, the Tab S doesn't accept a huge bezel round the display, at to the lowest degree non on all four sides. Design-wise, this is a real triumph and anyone wanting a stylish alternative to Apple has plant it.

The smaller of the pair, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.four-inch edition, feels great in the paw. The smooth sides and curved corners, combined with the soft, grippy back create a tablet that nestles in the palm and never feels like its going to slip out. While it doesn't have that premium stop and feel you become with an iPad mini, information technology always feels a chip safer and managed to come away unscathed from a couple of drops.

While the 10-inch version is swell for big screen apps and productivity, the smaller Tab Due south is meliorate put to use watching Netflix, clearer out your Instapaper queue and the like. It'south has a more pixel dense brandish, which is superb and video watching is peak notch. If y'all're more of a media consumer, who's looking for a portable slate the 8.iv-inch version is a bully pick.

Samsung has designed a range of cover accessories with 'Elementary Clickers' attachments. These popper-way plastic fittings take the form of jump-loaded holes on the rear of the Tab S. They're secure and effective though take careful placement to click in.

Similar the Samsung Galaxy 5, the Samsung'south new tablet likewise features a fingerprint scanner - information technology's not every bit slickly washed every bit on the iPhone 5s but it's a cool style to unlock the screen without a password.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S: Screen

The display - similar on the Samsung Galaxy S5 phone - is bright and gorgeous. It'southward higher-resolution than the iPad Air'southward Retina display and the Super AMOLED applied science makes it stunningly vivid and colourful - sometimes most likewise dazzling. But at its best, this is a screen that you can't take your eyes off.

Expect no further than the 'Wonder of Nature' video that comes supplied. It looks jaw-droppingly good with punchy, sharp colours. Thankfully the tablet is powerful plenty to ensure butter-smooth playback, too.

Its glorious visuals are non quite matched past audio. There are stereo speakers, one on each of the shorter edges, but you could comprehend them up with your hands if yous don't agree the tablet just right. This is abrasive, though it's easy to learn how to concur information technology best.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S: Features

This being a Samsung tablet, there are plenty of innovations built in, likewise. Similar the fingerprint sensor found on the Samsung Galaxy S5, which offers a simple way to unlock the screen as well as a neat PayPal authorisation method.

The truth is it's but non as enjoyable as Apple tree's version: to use yous have to swipe your finger exactly down the dwelling house button rather than simply resting your finger or pollex on it as you lot do on the iPhone 5s. It's good, but not as well-executed equally information technology should be - but this is a welcome addition to a tablet, accomplished on the bigger screen before Apple could.

The tablet also has those Samsung staple features imported from Galaxy S phones: the front-facing camera watches your eyes to know if y'all're reading the screen and plough it off if you're non. An infra-red blaster in the top edge of the tablet ways you can apply it as a sophisticated Tv set remote that you actually can't lose down the dorsum of the sofa.

Yous'll too go an 8-megapixel rear camera so that you lot can accept photos, should you lot really desire to.

Samsung Galaxy Tab Southward: Interface

There'due south Samsung's dedicated TouchWiz menu which swipes in from the side of the screen to offering quick shortcuts to Contacts, Email, internet and more - though frankly information technology's nigh as quick to tap the apps icon that sits on the lesser of the display.

And there's the Flipboard personal magazine home screen popularised on earlier Galaxy devices (and still bettered on HTC's phones). Like other Samsung tablets, you can display two apps side by side, which adds to the tablet's versatility.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S: Performance

There's no shortage of grunt nether the bonnet here, either, making it a fluent, speedy tablet to use. That's downwardly to a Quad-core one.ix GHz processor matched with 3GB of RAM: more than enough to ensure a whizzy experience that doesn't stutter or slow downwardly however much is going on. The power also means the touchscreen is fast and effective, feeling intimate and responsive.

You needn't run out of storage infinite, either. Although the tablet just comes in 16GB and 32GB capacity models, there's a memory card slot here and then you can add an actress 128GB of space on top. This means that even the highest-chapters iPad can't friction match what's on offer here if you invest in a reasonably priced card.

Samsung Milky way Tab Due south: Apps

Samsung is generous with its included software. As with the Sasmung Milky way S5, the tablet comes with a bunch of free software - non the bloatware the visitor was criticised for in the past but genuinely desirable stuff. So in that location'southward three months' subscription to Curiosity comics and vi months of free Deezer among other offers.

These and free games and other apps are constitute in a widget called Galaxy Gifts, sitting on the home screen just next to the Samsung own-brand offerings such every bit a video editor, scrapbook, exclusive football app and more. Fifty-fifty hither, this feels different from earlier Samsung products because the apps are downloadable rather than stuffed into the gadget already.

Of course, it'southward nevertheless hard to avert the fact that Android but isn't as advanced app-wise as Apple tree is on tablets.

Many apps are sophisticated enough to know how to stretch to bigger screens simply few are optimised in the style iPad apps are which reformat in radically different means. This superior way that apps work on the iPad are 1 of the things that keep Apple out in front and there'due south not much Samsung tin can do to address that.

Samsung Galaxy Tab South: Software

Samsung's Newspaper Garden is a neatly organised magazine store which tempts you lot with a wide range of titles (there are some gratis issues on offer to tempt you more). Some are interactive, with blithe covers and furnishings. All are carefully formatted to fit the 16:9 screen ratio. The pivot-sharp screen makes text look as sharp as on paper.

Side Sync is a clever feature. Desire to run across whatís happening on your telephone screen without having to dig into your handbag for it, or cross the room to where it's charging? Evens answer calls or texts from your phone on your tablet? Side Sync makes that happen. But it's non every bit smooth equally it should be and can stutter to a stop. You tin can utilize it with a PC (though not Mac) as well, but again the concept is better than the execution. For now.

Kids' style is Samsung's fashion of limiting what your kids tin utilize your tablet for is brilliant. Information technology's painfully simple to set upwards and has enough variety and customisation options to suit the most demanding of parents - or kids. Listen you, you might still prefer to buy them a inexpensive tablet rather than let them become their smeary mitts on yours.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S: Verdict

There's no question about it: this is the best tablet Samsung has yet made and it's arguably the slickest, most effective Android tablet bachelor. There are enough of innovations, from the fingerprint sensor to the click-in covers to protect your hardware. The slim, light styling is a revelation, especially from a company whose blueprint language was limited in its tablets before.

Will it be plenty to take a chunk out of iPad sales? Apple'due south sublime ease of utilise and improve range of optimised apps are tough to beat, but this tablet has the all-time take a chance of causing a sea change of any Android motorcar all the same.

Samsung Milky way Tab S release date: Out now

Samsung Galaxy Tab Southward price: £399 (ten.5-inch, Wi-Fi only), £319 (viii.4-inch, Wi-Fi simply)