Terrific screen, fast processor, slim but sturdy build, expandable memory, good battery life, reasonable price
TouchWiz might be a bit busy for some, not a lot of on-board storage, not waterproof
For the latest incarnation of the Galaxy Tab, Samsung has beefed up the processor, improved the screen and managed to make it even thinner. But is it still the best Android tablet out there?
Chassis & screen
Tablets are always getting thinner and lighter but it still comes as a bit of a shock to feel just how wafer thin and feather light the Tab S is. At 6.6mm it's slimmer than the iPad Air and while some previous Galaxy models have had flimsy casing, this one feels sturdy and durable. It also manages to be more than 30g lighter than its predecessor, the Galaxy Tab Pro.
The rear plastic casing has the dimpled, textured feel of other recent Galaxies which makes it easy to hold (and marks another improvement on the Tab Pro) and there are two recessed buttons on the back which allow you to clip on Samsung's proprietary case, for which you'll pay extra.
The 8.4-inch Super AMOLED screen is the jewel in the Tab S's impressive crown. It offers the same higher-than-HD 2,560x1,600-pixel resolution as its predecessor, but the Super AMOLED makeup means its brighter, more vivid, with more pronounced contrast. Incidentally, the resolution is the same as its 10in cousin, but this one looks even sharper, with 359ppi. It's not just the sharpness that impresses either. Colours are rich and vibrant without appearing over saturated and the viewing angles are very broad too, making it great for sharing.
Software & processor
It's running the latest Android 4.4.2 KitKat overlaid with Samsung's latest TouchWiz interface. TouchWiz has plenty going on, and probably won't win you over if you tend to think that standard Android is too busy. Still, it has some useful features, like the menu bar that comes in from the side from which you can choose multi-window options, allowing you to keep several apps open at once -- so you can watch a video online while checking your emails.
There's also the Flipboard-style My Magazine media and message aggregator, Papergarden, Samsung's new magazine subscription service, WatchON TV and video on demand.
For watching movies Samsung has added an extra enhancement that beefs up the colour even more -- it won't be to everyone's taste but it certainly helps make the experience more involving. The stereo speakers are well placed to the left and right if you're viewing in landscape mode.
Performance is top-notch. The octa-core processor uses two quad-cores depending on what's being demanded of it, and it's backed by an impressive 3GB of RAM. Apps open in a trice and there didn't seem to be any sign of lag, even with a fistful of apps open and running. Our AnTuTu benchmark test gave it a score of 34,758, which puts it very close behind the high-powered likes of the LG G3 and OnePlus One.
Photography
The camera is only a slight let-down in comparison with some other Samsung snappers. As a tablet camera however, it's pretty decent, with 8 megapixels, autofocus, LED flash and a host of modes and settings. Picture quality is pretty good too, plus you get a 2.1-megapixel camera facing forwards for video calls. It's available with 16GB of memory on board but you can also add up to 128GB via microSD card.
The large 4,900mAh battery held up pretty well, seeing us through almost two days of steady use. The ultra-power saving mode can help extend this even further, reducing the screen to greyscale, dimming brightness and cutting back on non-essential apps.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S sets a pretty high standard for Android tablets. It's sleek and slim, with an outstanding screen and powerful processor, plus a few genuinely useful extras from Samsung. If you have the cash, and don't require a stylus (in which case you'll need the Galaxy Note), then it's the one to go for.
Software: Android 4.4.2 KitKat
Processor: Quad-core 1.9GHz Cortex-A15 and quad-core 1.3GHz Cortex-A7
Memory slot: Yes
Display: 8.4in Super AMOLED, 2560x1600 pixels, 359ppi
Connectivity: Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0
Ports: microUSB, 3.5mm headphone jack
Camera: 8 megapixel with autofocus, LED flash; 2.1 megapixel front-facing camera
Video playback: MP4, DviX/XviD, H.264, H.263, WMV
Audio playback: MP3, WAV, FLAC, eAAC+, WMA
Radio: No
Battery: 4900mAh
Size: 213x126x6.6mm
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
