The Tablet market has been declining for the last couple of years, but Samsung has still reaped a consistent year-on-year growth in sales of its large display tabs, and that’s why the South Korean giant introduced its new mid-range Galaxy Tab A 8.0 in India.
Designed for both parents and kids, Samsung calls its Tab A (2017) “an everyday, versatile tablet designed for the entire family.” The product retails in India for Rs. 17,999, which makes it one of the low-cost tablets from Samsung. But, is it the most convenient tab in its class? Let’s explore and find out in our detailed review of the new Samsung Galaxy Tab A.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab A (2017) Specifications
| Model | Samsung Galaxy Tab A(2017) |
| Display | 8-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) TFT LCD |
| Processor | 1.4GHz quad-core Snapdragon 425 |
| RAM | 2GB |
| Internal Storage | 16GB expandable up to 256GB |
| Software | Android 7.1Nougat |
| Primary Camera | 8MP, f/1.9 aperture |
| Secondary Camera | 5MP |
| Dimensions | 212.1 x 124.1 x 8.9mm; 164g |
| Battery | 5,000mAh |
| Others | 4G LTE, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, and 3.5 mm audio jack |
| Price | Rs. 17,999 |
Samsung Galaxy Tab A Design and Build Quality
The design of Samsung Galaxy Tab A is not radically different. It sticks the famous Galaxy design legacy that is a sleek design with smooth rounded edges, which makes it extremely comfortable to hold.
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Looking from the front, one will notice a large 16:9 screen underlined with a navigation bar that includes a physical home button. The offscreen navigational buttons aren’t backlit, and the missing fingerprint sensor makes the tablet a bit difficult to operate, but its slim (7.4mm) and lightweight (364g) body makes it quite comfortable to hold.
The rear-end is almost a clean slate. There is a primary camera and LED Flash with Samsung branding just below it. Just so you know, the chassis of Tab A is not entirely metal – it has got plastic edges and a metal plate on the rear panel.
Along the side edges, we have got Sim-ejector tray, Volume rocker and power button placed. The speaker grill and USB type-C port are at the bottom and the 3.5mm audio jack is at the top.
Overall the design looks very premium but the tab requires constant wiping as the faux metal body attracts fingerprint and grime easily.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A Display
Although Samsung is known for making the world-class displays – their AMOLED displays are an evidence to that – yet our experience with the Tab A isn’t very satisfactory.
The Galaxy Tab A features an 8-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) TFT LCD display, surrounded by thick bezels. On the bright side, the display is bright and immersive but it isn’t very sharp, crisp and vivid. If you are used to sharper and high contrast smartphone screens, you might be left wanting for more.
There is also an optional blue light filter on the tab that balances display brightness and reduces reduce eye strain, making it easier to view content at night and in dim lighting.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab A Performance and Software
The budget Galaxy Tab A is equipped with an entry-grade Quad-core Snapdragon 425 processor paired with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of built-in storage. You can further add 256GB of microSD storage as well.
Now, that’s a configuration comparable to entry-level smartphones, but since people don’t use Tablets half as aggressively as their phones, the configuration won’t be an absolute deal breaker. The Tab A is certainly not meant for heavy lifting or heavy gaming, but other than that it could handle our multimedia consumption appetite without much issue.
The Android Nougat on the tablet is well optimized with the company’s custom Experience 8.5 UI skin. The UI transitions are smooth and the interface is simple to navigate. The Tablet also has a Bixby Home screen integrated, but that isn’t very useful at this point in time.
There is also a kids mode on the tablet, which features exciting games, videos, and content for the younger users. The mode gives parental control to the guardians who can limit the tab usage and obscure their loved ones from malicious content.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A Camera and Battery
Cameras are not the forte of Galaxy Tab A. It will give you quality images in good lighting condition but struggles in areas with low-light.
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In our testing, we found that the images clicked by the 8MP back camera weren’t ideal and were missing the sharpness and clarity you’d expect from compare price phones. In low light, image quality took a further beating in details as noise crept up, colors appear dull. Even the 5MP selfie camera seems to be missing out on a lot of details.
But, what holds the edge for the new Tab A is the monstrous 5000mAh battery that can last up to 2 days on a moderate to heavy usage.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A Camera Samples
Samsung Galaxy Tab A Verdict
The Galaxy Tab A seems to be a decent offering from the South Korean tech giant. The device won’t please the gamers, and the cameras on Tab A are just workable, but consumers will primarily buying it for the large display, and not many branded alternatives are available in the same price range. Also, we find the tab a bit over-priced for the specs it offers, even considering the fact that Samsung will be selling it in the offline market.
The Tab A will suit the general needs of a family with an expansive offering of entertainment media and kids content. The long-lasting battery with fine speakers and decent display make it a multimedia device worth considering.
