What's good
- Vibrant, punchy colors and excellent contrast
- Smooth performance
- Incredibly thin and light for better ease of use and comfort
What's bad
- Mediocre battery life
- 4:3 aspect ratio not great for movie viewing
- Some flexing when twisted
A year after the Galaxy Tab 2 10.5, Samsung released the Tab S2 9.7 – an updated and redesigned version of the popular tablet and direct rival to Apples iPad Air 2. It is actually both thinner (0.22 inches) and lighter (390 grams) than the iPad Air 2. Like other Samsung devices, it comes with a matte, plastic back and a metal trim. For the most part experts call the overall look and design "professional" though they add the build quality leaves much to be desired as they noticed some flex when applying pressure or twisting. Still, they add they'd rather have it thin and compact as it improves comfort and overall ease of use.
The 9.7 part of the Tab S2 comes from the 9.7-inch, Super AMOLED display. The 2048 x 1,536 resolution only works out to around 264ppi due to its large size. While not as sharp as its predecessor, critics still described it as very crisp and clear. Like other Samsung products, the AMOLED screen on the Tab S2 9.7 provided experts with vivid albeit oversaturated colors, excellent contrast and dark, inky blacks. They also were impressed with the screen brightness with Stuff.TV states, "…you can reach eye-searing levels, bright enough for outdoor reading on a sunny day." Perhaps the biggest change is in the aspect ratio from 16:10 to 4:3. This means the screen is squarer, which experts preferred as it made it easier for them to browse the web and improved their experience with productivity tasks like spreadsheet work. Still, they found movie viewing experience better on a 16:10 as this size matches most TV screens.
Samsung equipped the S2 9.7 with an octa-core processor – four cores run at 1.3GHz for battery saving and the other four run at 1.9GHz for enhanced performance – and 3GB of RAM. While not as fast as the iPad Air 2 during benchmark tests, experts found it to be incredibly fast during real life tests as it provided smooth performance handling any tasks they threw at it. Multi-tasking was a breeze for them and it played even the most graphics intensive games without stutters or frame rate drops. The biggest issue is battery life. The 5,870mAh battery lasted critics around a day of moderate use, which is average at best. With that said, they were hoping for a little more, especially since Samsung touts this as a multitasking tablet.
Tablet cameras aren't a major selling point for most people, but Samsung manages to provide what reviewers consider a serviceable 8MP shooter. They were able to take decently detailed pictures in bright light settings though they did notice colors were not always accurate and moving objects often became just a blur. Indoor pictures surprised experts as they were able to produce pictures with only minimal noise. Besides the main camera, it also comes with a 2MP front camera for selfies and video calls.
Despite some qualms with the battery life, most reviewers highly recommend the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7. PC Mag states, "The Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is one of the best Android tablets on the market." Expert Reviews add, "It's slim, light and has a generally excellent screen…It wins a Recommended awards."
What the Critics Are Saying...
- Ian Barker, Beta NewsWith the 32GB Wi-Fi only version costing £399 direct from Samsung, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is priced on a par with the 16GB 9.7-inch iPad Air 2. It has the same screen resolution in a lighter and thinner package, and of course more storage, so it’s clear to see what the target is here. The...
- Cosmin Vasile, SoftpediaIf you already own an older Samsung tablet, there are plenty of reasons to upgrade to Galaxy Tab S2 9.7. It's one of the best-looking tablets available on the market and it offers more than decent features.It's a lightweight tablet that's very easy to carry around. Due to its size and shape, it is p...
- Shruti Dhapola, The Indian ExpressIf you’re bored of the iPad and want a stunning Android tablet and money is no bar, the Tab S2 is no doubt the tablet for you. It looks good, offers a stunning display and has no performance issues. But tablets by nature have a limited purpose and unless you are sure you will use a tablet to c...
- Stephen Lambrechts, APCThough it’s perhaps a little disappointing that the Galaxy Tab S2 doesn’t pack Samsung’s latest Exynos CPU, it’s by far the most attractive tablet the company has ever made, and also the most pleasurable to use. It feels as though Samsung’s finally nailed its iPad compe...
- Chris Hall, Pocket-lintThe Samsung Galaxy Tab S2's strongest aspect is its size and the weight, giving you plenty of display, while remaining light and slimline. There's lot to like about this tablet.There's a great deal of vibrancy to the display and while that looks good in many apps, it can be a little over-bearing dep...
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