Support Voiture Samsung Galaxy Note 4

The Samsung Galaxy Note eight.0 inspires inventiveness merely has it got what information technology takes to vanquish the iPad Mini or Google Nexus 7?

In a earth where it takes something special to stand out, Samsung has the Due south-Pen to wave at its competitors and under the noses of prospective 7-inch-ish tablet owners weighing up whether they should go for the iPad Mini, Google Nexus 7, Kindle Burn Hard disk and now the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0.

Nosotros thought the S-Pen-toting Milky way Annotation ten.i was a good tablet merely it didn't blow us away by whatever stretch of the imagination so now bridging the gap between the Samsung Galaxy Note two and the Samsung Milky way Note 10.ane, the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 has been ushered out with similar multitasking prowess and the capability to make Dom Joly-style phone calls.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0: Size and build

Line this up against the Samsung Galaxy S3 or Samsung Milky way S4 and yous can see where the design inspiration is taken from with the curved plastic body and white bezel set against a grey bezel which is not as thick as it was on the Note 10.1.

Information technology's a welcome change aesthetically, just ultimately doesn't change the fact that it still looks cheap when compared to the iPad Mini or Nexus seven.

We tested the Us Wi-Fi model (which meant no phone call functionality) and weighing in at 345g with a 7.95mm thickness it's both heavier and more portly than the smaller Apple tablet. It'south actually slimmer than the S3 (eight.6mm) and the Note 2 (9.4mm) and is comfortable and nicely weighted to use in one mitt.

Thankfully, the Note 8.0 ditches the proprietary charging cablevision for a micro USB port with a microSD card slot on the left edge and volume and on/off button squeezed together over on the correct with the IR blaster just below.

Up top, there's the headphone jack while stylus pocket and speakers sit below the three main buttons and instantly become an performance issue when using the tablet in landscape mode.

Samsung Galaxy Annotation 8.0: Features

If you lot're afterward that pen on paper feel on a tablet, and so the S-Pen is notwithstanding by far the closest to delivering that experience and information technology'southward improved since its implementation on the Note ten.1.

There's a similar set of uniform apps with the improver of the disruptive Awesome Notation HD and the fun Paper Creative person simply we found taking notes on S Notation even so the nigh productive tool to utilise. That's not to say that we didn't occasionally have issues with the palm recognition that nosotros managed to avert on the larger Note device.

Of all of the Notation features, it's the Multi-Window that we actually love for the ease with which running ii apps simultaneously in mural or portrait mode tin be achieved without performance issues.

Accessed by holding down the Back button which launches a customizable side loading app tray, you can only drag apps onto the screen. We institute using S Note and browsing the web the most useful merely information technology'due south as well great for watching video and works well inside the confines of the 8-inch brandish.

The IR blaster inclusion means the Note 8.0 can be used as a universal TV remote via the pre-installed Skin app and despite being relatively pain-complimentary to set upwards if you have a modern set, the response to change channels or access recommended shows was so deadening that we quickly reverted dorsum to the standard remote.

Among the other notable new features is the eReader view illuminates the screen to make reading more comfy and at that place are a few S4 features that also make the cut including the Smart Stay function which uses centre tracking technology to turn off the screen when y'all're not looking at information technology.

There's as well move support to let you to swipe the screen with your hand to take a screenshot and mute the book by placing your entire hand over the screen simply nosotros had little success getting the latter to work.

Samsung Galaxy Notation 8.0: Camera

It'due south the same five-Megapixel rear-facing camera as the Note x.1 minus the LED Flash simply information technology seems like Samsung can't decide on a standard for the front-facing camera dropping from one.9 on the biggest Annotation to 1.iii Megapixel.

Again you lot shouldn't look spectacular results and despite the inclusion of Auto Focus, the pictures we took delivered noisy images defective the vibrancy and detail to warrant taking this out to snap over a smartphone. On the video front the Annotation eight.0 shoots 720p Hd quality movies merely like the Notation 10.i it's largely underwhelming, offer dull and ordinary footage.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0: Screen

With a resolution of 1280x800 the screen display is exactly the same as the Samsung Milky way 2 10.ane, a device that's ii years former which is both surprising and disappointing as we hoped in that location might be a display comparable to the Nexus x.

The screen is bright and vibrant enough for watching video and the 189 PPI pixel density means it does have improved levels of clarity compared to the Notation x.1 and the iPad Mini. On the whole information technology volition serve up a decent enough display for multimedia consumption and browsing.

Samsung Milky way Note 8.0: Performance

Powering the Note 8.0 is an Exynos one.6GHZ quadcore processor with 2GB of RAM that comfortably takes care of multi-tasking features like Multi-View and running multiple apps in the background.

The skinned Android Jelly Bean four.two.two means it'south a slick operator to navigate around and the extra cores really prove its value when browsing the internet which is extremely rapid particularly when using Chrome.

Samsung Galaxy Notation 8.0: Battery

A 4,600maH bombardment means its halfway house between the Note two and Note 10.one in terms of chapters and Samsung claims you lot can get upward to viii-9 hours of fourth dimension with it.

We have to say that the device dropped battery life quite quickly after an 60 minutes of streaming merely did brand information technology through a day of heavy usage. On much lighter utilize it lingered for a few days, but we'd say it averaged effectually seven hours earlier it needed charging again.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0: Verdict

It feels similar we've said this about many Samsung tablets before, but the Note viii.0 is almost a bang-up tablet. The inconsistency of features throughout the Samsung tablet range is frustrating.

While we can reserve praise for the S-Pen and its brilliant multi-tasking prowess powered by its quadcore innards, we can't be as glowing near the uninspiring design, bombardment life and a display that we hoped would've been a higher resolution.

If you love the thought of a traditional writing and drawing feel and prefer the more portable appeal over the Note 10.1 (or think the Note 2 is too pocket-sized) then this is for you. If you're not really sold on the idea of brainstorming ideas with an Due south-Pen, simply want a smaller sized tablet, the Nexus vii or iPad Mini are cheaper options to get for instead.

Samsung Galaxy Annotation 8.0 release date: Out now

Samsung Galaxy Note viii.0 cost: £340