Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 New technology Gadget

In 2013, Samsung is very much positioning itself as the
alternative to Apple as it bundles Android in more new
features and custom apps. It is increasingly going its
own way, breaking away from the Android pack. The
Galaxy Tab 3 is still an Android tablet, but is it a good
Android tablet?

new technology gadget

Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 Specs

Processor: Samsung Exynos 4412, dual-core
1.5GHz
RAM: 1.5GB
Storage: 16GB with microSD card slot
Display: 8-inch 1280x800 LCD
Dimensions: 209mm x 123mm x 7.4mm
Weight: 314g
Battery: 4450mAh
Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, 2.4 and 5GHz
Software: Android 4.2.2 with Samsung
customizations
The Good
Slim form factor
Lightweight
Sturdy build
Multi-window mode is very cool on an 8-inch
device
Screen has good viewing angles
Solid battery life
The Bad
Screen is only 1280x800
Software seems sluggish in places
Physical buttons make the tablet harder to hold
and are less convenient
Slippery, cheap-feeling plastic shell
Typically bad tablet cameras
Overpriced
The new Nexus 7 exists now
Physical Design
Look at the Galaxy Tab 3, then look away. Are you sure
that wasn’t just a Galaxy S4 being held right up next to
your face? It's hard to know for sure, because the Gtab
3 is a dead ringer for a bigger GS4. The shape is almost
exactly the same, the screen ratio is the same, and it
even has that faux-metal band around the edge. Oh, and
there are physical buttons... on a tablet.
The device is built from the same slippery plastic
Samsung has been using on devices since time
immemorial. It allows for the Gtab 3 to be light – only
314g. That compares favorably to most smaller 7-inch
slates. It’s also very thin at 7.4mm, which is even
slimmer than the new Nexus 7.
The entire back is make out of smooth plastic, so you
can really tell when oils from your hands start to build
up. I find myself wiping off the front and the back of the
tablet to make it a little less unpleasant to hold.
If you're playing a game that heats up the device, then
you have slippery oils warmed by the internals and it's
just kind of gross. Having soft touch material, or even a
little texture makes this effect much less troublesome on
devices. The slipperiness feels extra noticeable because
the back of the Gtab 3 is just a huge, smooth
uninterrupted surface.
So I'm not crazy about how the device feels, but it does
seem solid. Despite being made out of plastic, there is
no creaking or give, and the seams are tight. Samsung
knows how to assemble a tablet, I just wish they'd use
nicer materials.
Like most Android tablets these days, there is a power
button near the top on the right side with the volume
rocker right below it. These are made from the same
plastic-doing-a-metal-impersonation as the band
around the middle of the device. The buttons are clicky
and responsive, though.
On the bottom edge are the stereo speakers and a
microUSB port. Circle around to the left side and you
find the microSD card slot. A lot of Android devices are
abandoning the SD card, but Samsung still has your
back. The door covering the slot seems a bit flimsy, so
be careful there. On the top all we have is a headphone
jack.
Something I quite like about the overall design is that
it's balanced well. The Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is just the right
width to hold in one hand and it doesn't feel like it's
going to topple out. However, holding it with two hands
is actually a bit awkward due to the very slim bezels and
button layout.
Those Buttons
If you've got average size hands, it's possible to wrap
your fingers around the edges of the Gtab 3 8.0, and
that’s fine for short stretches. The slim bezels that make
that possible also make the device more difficult to hold
comfortably by one side. If you try to grasp the tablet by
the side bezel, there just isn’t a lot to grab on to. Your
thumb will touch the screen often, which will get
annoying.
So hold it by the bottom bezel? Oh, don't I wish.
Samsung has chosen to use the phone-style buttons
from the GS4 on all of its tablets. So beneath the screen
there is a home, menu, and back button. Menu and Back
are capacitive, very sensitive, and right where I would
like to rest my thumb while holding the tablet.
Even after using the Gtab 3 for a week I’m still triggering
menu and back without meaning to. These areas are
just a comfortable place to grab a tablet, especially
when the side bezels are too narrow.
The capacitive buttons are actually so sensitive that
I’ve occasionally triggered them simply by resting the
end of device on my stomach or lap. It makes me feel
like I have to hold the Gtab 3 at arm's legth to avoid
triggering these buttons. You kind of want to be able to
snuggle up with a tablet You know... get comfortable.
Not with the Gtab 3. That's not how it rolls.
The use of phone buttons in general seems like an odd
choice. It requires too much reaching and is less
consistent in use. It's not the end of the world – you can
adjust, but it’s a step in the wrong direction.
Screen
A year ago – or even a few months ago – the 1280x800
LCD display on the Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 would have
seemed totally reasonable. Now it’s a soft spot. It’s a
good quality panel, for what it is. The brightness and
colors are nice, and the viewing angles are excellent.
It’s just that resolution.
1280x800 is not terrible – let's not forget how amazing
that was a few years ago. However, this screen fails to
match up with the competition. I don’t know if a small
tablet needs to pack a 1920x1200 panel like the new
Nexus 7, but somewhere north of 1280x800 would be
nice for a premium small tablet. And make no mistake,
Samsung is pricing this device like a premium tablet.
Cameras
I'll be brief here because you can probably guess what
the cameras are like on this tablet – yes, mediocre. The
rear camera is 5MP, and the front is 1.2MP. The front-
facing sensor is fine for a quick video chat, but
produces predictably grainy still images. For some
reason, the default setting on this device is 3.2MP for
the rear camera.
The rear sensor is maybe okay in a pinch, but there’s a
lot of noise and fuzziness around the edges in images.
The colors also look very washed out, even in bright
natural light.
The camera app does include the new "Sound and Shot"
and "Beauty Face" modes. Other than that it’s the
standard Samsung camera app with a few things
missing. There are no HDR shots for example, and Dual
Shot front and rear video mode is not present.
Software Features
The Gtab 3 8.0 comes with Android 4.2.2, but it’s under
a few layers of Samsung's Nature UX-TouchWiz-mish-
mash. There are some good things, and some bad
things going on here, but don' expect all the crazy
features from the Galaxy S4 – the Gtab 3 lacks the IR
sensor that many of the phone’s new tricks rely on.
You can swipe around, change the number and order of
home screens, and do all the other things Samsung
devices have been doing for the last few versions. No
real complaints here, other than the aesthetics of some
of Samsung’s icons.
The app drawer defaults to a custom view, which makes
it impossible to find anything. I don't know why OEMs
do this, but it's easy to switch to alphabetical.
The notification shade takes up the entire screen when
pulled down, like a phone and not a tablet. It’s kind of
strange-looking and just re-enforces the "giant phone"
vibe. The Quick Settings panel seems a bit redundant on
Samsung's devices because there is already the toggle
bar in the regular notification shade. Although, it
doesn't really get in the way, and you can move buttons
around in the settings.
Samsung has built some of its Smart-branded features
into this device, but the only one I've been able to get
working reliably is Smart Stay, which keeps the screen
on while you're looking at it. And that's only useful in
reasonably good light. Smart Rotation is supposed to
keep the screen orientation locked with the angle of your
head. So you can supposedly lay down on your side,
and the screen won’t flip to landscape. This works
about half the time – just enough to be annoying to deal
with.
One place the Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 has a chance to regain
some ground is with multi-window mode. You can
activate this by long-pressing the back button. The
sidebar lists compatible apps, which is sadly not all of
them. Then just drag one app to the top and one to the
bottom, and you can interact with both.
The times multi-window works, I love it. Managing my
email while browsing Reddit destroys my productivity,
but it's just plain neat. If there was wider support for
this feature, it would be an amazing selling point. Why
Samsung hasn’t worked tirelessly to get Netflix to
support multi-window I’ll never know.
S Voice is accessed with a double tap of the home
button, but it's still junk compared to Google Now voice
search. To make matters worse, it causes lag when
pressing the home button because the device is waiting
to see if you press home again to call up S Voice. It
makes the tablet feel less responsive. S Voice can be
turned off, but it’s time for Samsung to throw in the
towel on that front.