News - Samsung Galaxy Note 8 tablet announced

[HEXUS]

Is it every inch an iPad mini beater?

Read more.

[3dcandy]

Just might be with the S-Pen stuff. Should be pretty smooth with a quad-core @ 1.7ghz

[jnutt]

Can't help thinking it looks pretty stupid when being used as a phone. "I'M IN THE LIBRARY"

[j.o.s.h.1408]

Looks cool

[RAJA666]

I had 4.7", 7" and 10.1" Android devices, I find 4.7 and 7 are too small for eBook and 10.1" to large/heavy. Perhaps 8" may fit the bill this time round.

[Sy7ygy]

Is this thing a joke?

[Stu C]

Specs are very 2012 IMHO. I would like to see higher spec resolution and processor, otherwise I'd rather have a Nexus 7 - probably cheaper and immediate OS updates.

[sykobee]

The specs on this look pretty good, and balanced for the device's capabilities. Hopefully the lack of quad-core A15 and super-high-resolution display mean the price won't make your wallet cry.

[Biscuit]

Is this thing a joke?

Why would it be?

[crossy]

I had 4.7", 7" and 10.1" Android devices, I find 4.7 and 7 are too small for eBook and 10.1" to large/heavy. Perhaps 8" may fit the bill this time round.

Hmm, 7" always struck me as a bit of a daft size - more unwieldy than a phone while not being large enough to do web etc "properly" (i.e. without a lot of zooming/panning)

I've got a Note 10.1 and yes it's large, but heavy? Nope. And the large screen is ideal for being able to view electronic magazines (eMags?) - I get one of my Linux magazines "delivered" as a PDF and it's great.

The specs on this look pretty good, and balanced for the device's capabilities. Hopefully the lack of quad-core A15 and super-high-resolution display mean the price won't make your wallet cry.

Agree totally. No doubt there'll be folks saying that they just have to have the latest cpu spec and retina+ display. So far I've never managed to get an answer to why this should be the case for either - okay, latest cpu's are more power efficient (so longer battery life) and high resolution displays make sense on large tablets. But the whole point of these "highly portable" sizes is to keep costs down (so no new - and therefore expensive - processors) and the screen size surely means that a "super high res" display is also wasted effort.

PS, Am I the only person who is starting to suspect that Samsung have given up on designing new products, and just use Photoshop to scale up the S3 enclosure to whatever size they decide they need this month?

[kingpotnoodle]

I had 4.7", 7" and 10.1" Android devices, I find 4.7 and 7 are too small for eBook and 10.1" to large/heavy. Perhaps 8" may fit the bill this time round.

I had an 8" Archos for a while, seemed like the perfect size to me and was lighter the all the 10.1" tabs which I consider a little heavy for one handed use, reading etc. As if you'd hold it up to your head to use it as a phone... get a headset ffs!

If Samsung can produce these at the right price I don't really see much room for many other Android tabs outside Samsung/Nexus/Amazon/Asus. They've all got some USP and are good products, this is a way better announcement the HP's me-too cheapy tab.

[Spud1]

I really wish Samsung (or well, almost any quality manufacturer) would stop making their tablets out of cheap plastic - it just completely removes any notion of being a quality, high end product.

This sort of tablet seems almost perfect for an Android tab - the perfect size, S-Pen included, latest software, good hardware specs..and assuming that its priced at £269 or less, a good price point.

But then they choose to make it out of cheap plastic..i'll never get why. Madness.

[Biscuit]

Perhaps because plastic is a more appropriate material to use for a mobile device?

Aluminium dents and scratches really easily and is usually heavier than a good plastic compound, the 'quality feel' of aluminum has been created by Apple and is just downright false. Its more expensive and wasteful (especially if its unibody) to manufacture.

[Spud1]

Perhaps because plastic is a more appropriate material to use for a mobile device?

Aluminium dents and scratches really easily and is usually heavier than a good plastic compound, the 'quality feel' of aluminum has been created by Apple and is just downright false. Its more expensive and wasteful (especially if its unibody) to manufacture.

Each of their own then - I completely disagree on the quality feel of say an iPad mini being "downright false" - sure it's fairly easily damaged if you are not careful but plastic is just as bad, just in different ways (so it tends to crack or scuff rather than dent for example). I would go the opposite way and say that plastic damages more easily, and that metal is more more appropriate for a mobile device..we are entitled to disagree though

It's used moreso than metal as it's a heck of a lot cheaper and easier to produce.

It would be nice to have the option at least...

[Biscuit]

Each of their own then - I completely disagree on the quality feel of say an iPad mini being "downright false"

Well i personally think it was an idea that was created by them, if they had chosen to use carbon fibre or some other exotic material and used their 'quality material' halo effect, i reckon everyone else would have followed suit. Its all in the marketing.

sure it's fairly easily damaged if you are not careful but plastic is just as bad, just in different ways (so it tends to crack or scuff rather than dent for example). I would go the opposite way and say that plastic damages more easily, and that metal is more more appropriate for a mobile device..we are entitled to disagree though

Very much depends on the plastic used. My One X for example, i have had so many 'mishaps' with this thing its untrue and visibly, it looks untouched.
Equally it is possible to make alloys that are very strong and very light but they use much more exotic materials (The magnesium alloy used on the surface springs to mind) and are much more expensive.
This isn't so much opinion as it is science.

It's used moreso than metal as it's a heck of a lot cheaper and easier to produce.

It would be nice to have the option at least...

Cost is definitely a factor, but the plastic in Samsung phones is generally of a reasonable grade, certainly a few steps ahead of the china-tab crap.

[crossy]

I really wish Samsung (or well, almost any quality manufacturer) would stop making their tablets out of cheap plastic - it just completely removes any notion of being a quality, high end product.

Much as it pains me to do so, I'm going to agree - we've got two Sammy phones in the house (S3 and Mini 2) and both have battery case designs that are worryingly flimsy.

This sort of tablet seems almost perfect for an Android tab - the perfect size, S-Pen included, latest software, good hardware specs..and assuming that its priced at £269 or less, a good price point. But then they choose to make it out of cheap plastic..i'll never get why. Madness.

Hmm, November last year I got a Note 10.1 from Tesco's for £279 once Tesco's and Samsung's discounts were figured in. I'd argue that the bigger screen makes my purchase better value for money. Oh, and despite Samsung making it from plastic, it's so far survived six trips through airport security and being stuffed in a bag careless thrown into an overhead bin on a flight. As "biscuit" says - just because it is made of plastic doesn't necessarily mean it has to be cheap feeling/fragile.

Actually, I got hands on off an iPad Mini - and that DID feel cheap. Maybe it was a bad demo model but the KindleFireHD next to it felt a heck of a lot more solid.