Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus

Samsung has recently started improving its design for handheld devices to compete with Apple and hence Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus comes with a fairly different look than its predecessor. It is a super slim device, with thickness measuring to a measly 0.48 inch and weighing only 0.76 pounds. It packs a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor with a 1 GB RAM and 16/32 GB of internal memory. The device is powered by Android 3.2 Honeycomb and compared to its predecessor it has an amazing battery life that can last up to 8 to 9 hours at normal use.

Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus has a faux-brushed metal back that gives a cool stylish look and better handling than the original plastic back of Galaxy 10.1.  The back houses a 3 megapixel camera with an LED flash. A 2 megapixel camera is also present at the front which resides at the top-right corner. Though the device is not at all eligible to be used as a smartphone because of its size, it still features a ear-piece on front-top for calls supported by a mic at the bottom.  It loses the capacitive touch buttons that was present in the original Galaxy Tab and hence now only have two physical buttons for power and volume.

On the top there is a headphone jack and on the right side a microSD slot which can boost the storage up to 32 GB. With the 3G version there is an extra tray slot for the SIM. Samsung has not given away its proprietary 30-pin connector which is still very much the only source of connecting devices and charging. There are two speakers on either side at the bottom that produces decent sound quality. Other than WiFi (802.11a/b/g/n at 2.4 GHz & 5 GHz) it features Bluetooth 3.0 and 21Mbps HSPA+ for 3G models.

Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus significantly lacks on screen resolution offering only 1024 x 600 compared to 1280 x 800 of Galaxy Note and same as the original Galaxy Tab which we always felt has the lousiest display. Its Honeycomb interface is customized by Samsung’s Touchwiz adding few useful tools and widgets as always. With the presence of an IR emitter, this device comes with an interesting app called Peel Smart Remote that do require a $100 accessory to work with. This app works as a Universal Remote hooking up to devices just by entering the brand names.

Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus might not be the best that has ever come up, but it surely is a start over the chunky original Galaxy Tab predecessor. It seems that the latest Galaxy Tab 8.9 with adequate size & better display has the potential to cannibalize the sale of Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. Also, the price is a big factor as it is entering at $400 compared to its predecessor that entered at $600+. Seemingly there are lot more 7 inch Android devices today than it ever had been that will surely give a stiff competition to this device. If Samsung doesn’t come up soon with a single all-in-one unit, rather than loosely launched multiple Galaxy models with missing functionalities, they are surely going to dilute their only premium line.