77
Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9
9.0
final rating

reviewed on
this review has been viewed 362 times

Criteria Comments Rating
  • Features Operating on the android ecosystem. Comes with Honeycomb (Android 3.2) future update to ICS. Decent mix of average specs. good
  • Display Same screen resolution as the 10.1 but on a slightly smaller screen resulting in a higher pixel density. Crisp text, good brightness, good viewing angles. good
  • Battery life I find myself constantly picking it up to check things (news, email, banking etc), or just trolling the net. Averaging about 12 hrs of up time between charges. good
  • Ease of use If you are familiar with android you should be right at home. great!
  • Storage capacity 16gb is fine for most. More than enough options for cloud storage as well as an optional proprietary usb adapter. Should have microSD slot. so-so
  • Design and form factor As easy to hold in one hand as it is with two. 8.9 form factor gives the best of both worlds. Portable with good realestate. great!
  • Portability (size / weight) Skinny but still feels solid. Weight is not an issue. Can write reviews while lying on my back on the couch and not feel fatigued ;-) great!
  • Durability Solid build, no flexing. Gorilla glass is amazing stuff. great!
Detailed review
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 is a great tablet for any type of user. Most people are well acquainted with the Android operating system so there should be no surprises there. With a dual core processor & 1gig of ram it runs smooth. The tablet comes with either 16gb or 32gb internal storage but no card slot for expansion. You can buy an optional usb adapter to hook up portable drives/thumb drives but a simple microSD card slot would have been best. The 1280x800 resolution screen offers rich colors & brightness & hd video playback but is not so great in direct sunlight. The weakest part of the hardware is definitely the cameras. If you have used mediocre cameras on a smartphone, then you know what im getting at. Poor in low light conditions, bad with objects in motion etc etc. You know the drill. Size is what matters here. Samsung hit a sweet spot with the 8.9 and i hope people notice. It just feels right. You gain added portability & a comfortable weight without any of the drawbacks of the 7in form factor. This is most evident when web surfing. Text remains legible while still seeing the pages in a large pane, buttons/links are not annoying.

Just go to a store and put one in your hands, you will immediately be impressed with the 8.9.