Design
+++ slim form factor
– Samsung has swapped out their touch Menu button in favour of a multitask button. This speaks volumes about their confidence in the tablet’s multitasking capabilities (in multitasking memory management terms), and rightly so.
The menu button is now an on-screen overflow button usually near the top right hand corner where ever it is required. The reason why this design choice receives a negative from us, is because you’re far more likely to use the menu than you are to switch apps using multitask.
— because the tablet has to house a display in a 16:10 aspect ratio, the general shape is elongated. The problem here is, if you’re holding the tablet in both your hands, in landscape mode, typing becomes very much a chore as you’ll most likely be required to stretch your palm and fingers beyond their comfort zone to reach some of the middle keys.
While Samsung has made a somewhat resizable keyboard, the options are rather limiting and there’s no split keyboard mode.
—– Samsung could have made a more efficient use of all 8.4 inches of the tablet. It’s not particularly light to start with, and the weight isn’t in the build material, obviously. Together with an advantage in the overall size of the tablet, Samsung should have been able to put a higher capacity battery in there and thereby significantly raising the battery life rating.
Build quality
—– I have no problems with Samsung using plastics as stated above. But at least it’s got to adhere well to the chassis itself. The unit I had clearly has a faux metal rim that has a slight gap off the body, perhaps due to a combination of flex and quality of adhesives used.
—– the faux leather back is also another offending item. Again, not necessarily because it’s plastic. But the circular bonding areas on the internal side of the non-removable back cover are visible from an angle.
—– the faux metallic rim is not going age well. Our review unit gained a scuff mark within a few days, and it was never dropped.
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