Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 review: almost the best Samsung tablet

> Abstract

Characteristics Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1

Design and appearance

Functions and features

Tablet display

Software

Component performance

Cameras and photos

Autonomy Galaxy Tab A 10.1

Total

Should I buy?

Benefits

disadvantages

In terms of value for money, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 is the company's best tablet in recent years. It's much cheaper than the iPad and has a better display.

After years of domination in the budgetThe segment of tablets with HD Ready of dubious quality finally has a worthy replacement for the Amazon Fire HD 10. At the same time, the Galaxy Tab A has smaller dimensions, a metal body, better cameras and, most importantly, it has full access to Google Play and other Google services. The Fire HD 10 does not have all of this.

The only issue is performance. The GPU in this model is rather weak, so it's better to buy an iPad for games. But, for a price of 14 thousand rubles, this is rather a slight drawback.

Read also: Chuwi UBook Pro Review: Windows Transformer Alternative to Surface

Characteristics Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1

Screen: 10.1-inch 1920 x 1200 LCD.
Processor: Samsung Exynos 7904.
RAM: 2 GB.
ROM: 32GB.
Cameras: 8/5 MP.
Metal body.
System and Software: Android 9 with One UI.
Battery: 6150 mAh, USB-C connector.

Design and appearance

Samsung Galaxy Tab A is currently the moststylish tablet in its price segment. There are two versions, 8 "and 10.1", which I tested. The back cover is made mostly of aluminum and feels a bit like an iPad. At the top, there is a horizontal plastic strip approximately 2.5 cm wide, which spoils the design a little and creates a feeling of cheapness.

However, plastic is better suited for fastdata transmission over a wireless network, and thanks to it, the production costs of the Galaxy Tab A are likely to be significantly reduced. More expensive models of tablets and phones use the same plastic strips for this purpose.

Samsung has slightly improved the design by reducingbezels around the screen, they are much narrower than the 2016 model. Here they are even thinner than the 10.2-inch iPad 7, and the tablet itself is smaller overall. When you consider the 7.5mm thickness of the case, the design of the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 is arguably the best tablet in this price segment. We also have a 3.5mm headphone jack, unlike the Tab S5e and Tab S6.

Functions and features

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 has everything you need, and you don't even remember about the absence of any functions. Yes, we do not have a fingerprint scanner, but this is not critical for a tablet, although many disagree with me. There is also no protection from water and dust, which was quite expected.

The only thing belonging to budget modelshere it is noticeable in the amount of memory and the quality of the speakers. The internal memory is only 32 GB, so it's better to buy a microSD card right away. There is only one connector for it, and unfortunately, it is impossible to combine it with the internal memory.

The sound from the speakers is also far from greatsound like the Tab S5e. However, there are two transducers, and both are located on the bottom edge. For an inexpensive tablet, they sound good, but there is no stereo immersive effect when you hold the Galaxy Tab A in front of you and watch a movie or video on YouTube.

Tablet display

The Galaxy Tab A tested has 10.1-inch display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels. Apart from the size of the diagonal, its quality is noticeably different from the more expensive Samsung tablets. Here the display is made using LCD technology, and not OLED, which has already become familiar to Samsung. This also means that blacks will not be completely dark. The brightness is also not at the level of the best panels, however, this is only noticeable against a completely white or black background when compared.

Be that as it may, for its price Samsung GalaxyTab A 10.1 has an excellent display. It has great detail, is bright enough for indoor use, and colors are rich and natural. Display problems are not critical, as is the plastic strip on the back cover. Plus, the smaller bezels make the screen feel bigger.

Software

In the software section of the Galaxy Tab A 10.1, you can see the main differences with competitors on the Android OS. Here, the interface is similar to Samsung phones. Google apps are a key advantage of the Galaxy Tab A, and this is especially true for Google Play. For example, the Amazon Appstore does not have the same set of games and applications as the Play Store. Perhaps for most users this will be the main reason for choosing a tablet from Samsung.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10 interface.1 also resembles other stock Android devices. There are standard home screens and paginated application menus. The pre-installed apps are much less intrusive than competitors, where the user is literally trying to get the user to use them.

Component performance

Alas, performance is the Galaxy Tab's weak pointA 10.1, especially in terms of the processor. It has an Exynos 7904 chipset with a Mali-G71 MP2 graphics accelerator, supported by 2 GB of RAM. For many tasks, this set is barely enough. Often there are slowdowns in the system, applications take a long time to load, and in demanding games the lack of graphics performance becomes obvious.

Even in ordinary games, there are always lags whenloading objects on the screen. The situation becomes acceptable only at low graphic settings - with low resolutions, the simplest textures and small drawing details. If you increase it in the same Minecraft, the drop in the frame rate will immediately become noticeable.

PUBG works pretty well on"Balanced" settings. However, if you set it to HD quality, there will be much more drawdowns. Fortnite cannot be launched - the game is not supported, and will not be, because according to its requirements, the device must have at least 4 GB of RAM. Asphalt 9 performs surprisingly well, but it's more of a credit to the Gameloft developers who have been able to optimize it for almost any device.

However, it cannot be said that this SamsungThe Galaxy Tab A 10.1 is totally unsuitable for gaming. You can play almost anything, but the experience will be spoiled by problems with the frame rate. Many competing devices have much more powerful chipsets and GPUs, although support for games there is severely limited. Of course, you can take a risk and put some kind of firmware on them to install third-party applications, but this is fraught with security problems and does not always work.

Cameras and photos

Compared to fairly simplecharacteristics, the cameras in the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 are surprisingly high quality. There is an 8-megapixel one with no flash on the back and a 5-megapixel one on the front. They are much better than their counterparts - especially the main one at the back. Of course, they cannot be compared with most smartphones, but they will cope well with their tasks in applications and games.

We even have autofocus for the main sensor,that the lenses of budget tablets are very rare. Thanks to this, you can take good photos at close range. The front camera, as expected, works with some blur in artificial lighting, although it does not shine in other conditions. However, compared to the competition, both modules are excellent despite being slow. Alas, the camera application takes too long to load and seems to be stuck.

The quality of the shooting could be quitedonate for more internal storage or a better processor. But, everyone has their own preferences, so such a variety will not hurt here. Cameras on tablets seem like an optional extra, but for some users they are important. Plus, the Galaxy Tab A 10.1 can shoot 1080p video with both lenses.

Autonomy Galaxy Tab A 10.1

Inside the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 has a 6250 mAh battery, which is charged via the USB-C port. According to Samsung, the battery lasts an average of 13 hours, and this statement is true.

This model will last longer on a single charge than last year's iPad 9.7 or Fire HD 10. It also charges slightly faster than its competitors.

Total

The reason the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 may not like it - it's poor performance. Here is not the most powerful processor, a modest amount of RAM and internal memory and a far from ideal screen, otherwise this model has shown itself perfectly. If you want a more powerful tablet, there is another obvious choice on the market - the Galaxy S5e.

As a base device, the Galaxy Tab A 10.1 is a viable alternative to the iPad, given its detailed and rich screen, and a design very similar to tablets costing 2-3x the price.

Should I buy?

Yes. Overall, this is one of the best value for money Android tablets right now - especially if you don't like the software limitations of Chinese devices.

Benefits