Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 review: A good all-rounder with a high price tag

With the Milky way Tab S4, Samsung has made information technology clear it has no intentions of backing out of the tablet market place. While tablet sales take been dipping constantly, Samsung has come out with withal another flagship Android tablet. And, this time around, Samsung is making productivity a major goal. That's why the Galaxy Tab S4 can run Samsung's DeX interface right on its beautiful AMOLED screen, in addition to featuring an Due south Pen and an optional keyboard. Merely the Tab S4 is also more than suitable for entertainment than its predecessors because of the widescreen format (16:10), fixing the criticism the Tab S2 and Tab S3 received over beingness inspired past the iPad's form gene.

Of course, you lot besides need to part with a lot of coin to get your hands on the Galaxy Tab S4, with the base model (Wi-Fi-only) priced at $650 in the Us and €699 in most European markets. The LTE variants add another hundred bucks to the toll and the keyboard costs an additional $150/€150, so the cost rises for anyone wanting the full package. The Galaxy Tab S lineup has never been good value for coin, but does the Tab S4 do enough to brand the high toll less hard to stomach?

Let'south find out in our Galaxy Tab S4 review.

Galaxy Tab S4 review: Design

The Milky way Tab S4, just put, is a larger version of Samsung'south flagship smartphones when information technology comes to design. It's got glass on the forepart and back and metal on the sides. This yr, Samsung has gone back to a sixteen:10 display ratio, simply despite the 10.5-inch display on the Tab S4, information technology isn't much bigger than its predecessor as Samsung has managed to trim downward the bezels. The fingerprint sensor has been removed and, while this isn't an Infinity brandish, y'all also have software navigation keys. Sadly, there's no IP rating for water resistance here, which doesn't sit well with us given the toll tag.

Just the Galaxy Tab S4 feels quite premium overall. And, despite all the drinking glass, it isn't too heavy for short bouts of one-handed usage even in landscape mode. Of course, that doesn't mean you will use this thing with ane hand too often. That 16:ten course factor makes the Tab S4 very suitable for content consumption and also for getting work done when you want information technology, and information technology's simply fitting that you get a beautiful and stunning AMOLED display for belongings in your hands.

Display and Sound

Yes, the Super AMOLED display on the Galaxy Tab S4 is every bit good as they come up. It'south large, vivid, vivid, and just downright enchanting. This is the kind of display you need to lookout man the latest TV shows and movies on a tablet, and at that place'due south aught else that compares. One thing that we felt was a disadvantage was that the Galaxy Tab S4 doesn't support zooming into a video to make information technology fill the screen. Some videos tin accept black bars on the tiptop and lesser that y'all cannot remove by zooming in as you can on Samsung's flagship smartphones with Infinity displays. The 10.5-inch brandish is big enough for some wasted space to not affair, but information technology'southward unclear why Samsung tin can't proceed things uniform in this regard across its devices.

Accompanying that stunning display are iv speakers, aforementioned equally the Galaxy Tab S3. These speakers sound quite good, just the add-on of Dolby Atmos doesn't seem to make much of a departure. There'southward maybe a 5 percent increase in the richness and volume of the sound output with Dolby Atmos enabled. The speakers could also do with higher thump in the lower frequencies (bass), peculiarly when you're listening to music. Thankfully, Dolby Atmos can make a noticeable bear upon over earphones, but unlike its phones, Samsung doesn't packet any AKG earphones with the Galaxy Tab S4.

DeX Mode

Permit'due south be articulate from the very offset: The option to enable DeX style correct on the tablet display can be handy, but it besides comes with the same limitations that we mentioned in our review of Samsung DeX last year. Not many apps really support DeX even a year after its debut, so you have to force them to run in full-screen mode. This extends to apps such as Netflix, which is far from an intuitive feel. If you want to scan the web, y'all have to apply the Samsung Internet app considering Chrome will open mobile versions of webpages. The same goes for the YouTube app, which besides runs in mobile format.

And that's really the problem with DeX. It looks like a desktop environment, merely at its cadre, it's merely Android on a big screen. So unless apps officially back up DeX, most stuff is not really that intuitive to use. Thankfully, Microsoft'southward Office apps all run fine in DeX way, although you should proceed in heed that since the Tab S4 has a 10.5-inch display, you cannot use the complimentary version of Office (that is only available for screens less than 10.one inches in size).

The Tab S4 fires upward DeX way when y'all attach the keyboard cover, which you lot have to purchase separately for $150. It's non the best keyboard you tin can get for that kind of money, with average tactile feedback from the keys and no backlighting for apply in the dark. Information technology'due south also rather cramped thanks to its overall size. And Samsung should have added a touchpad to the keyboard, since you lot otherwise accept to use the S Pen equally a mouse replacement as touch doesn't exactly work well in DeX mode. You can connect a Bluetooth mouse to get effectually this, but that's an boosted cost for anyone who doesn't already own a Bluetooth mouse.

Yous also demand to spend additional money if you desire to utilise the Tab S4 in DeX way on an external monitor, since you need to buy a USB Type-C to HDMI adapter. Nevertheless, what'south nice is that you tin can apply the Tab S4's brandish every bit a second screen and also every bit a touchpad if you don't accept a Bluetooth mouse. But, again, the overall feel of DeX isn't that great, then information technology's squeamish for the times you have to get some work done while on the motion but is simply non an alternative for proper notebooks.

South Pen

Well, here's where we can go along things really short and sweet: The Milky way Tab S4'due south S Pen is every bit practiced every bit the one on the Note flagships and works very well on that large brandish. Functionality-wise yous get the usual Air Command menu with the tools we know from the Galaxy Note lineup, including Live Message for sending blithe custom messages to your friends and family. You can also start writing when the screen is off by pressing the S Pen button and tapping the brandish with it. The South Pen, naturally, does not fit within the tablet, although information technology does get a slot on the keyboard cover. But if you aren't going to buy that, you will have to be conscientious yous don't misplace or, worse even so, damage the Due south Pen. It might be thicker than the one y'all get with Samsung's phones, merely information technology's not whatever less delicate.

Software

The Galaxy Tab S4, along with the Milky way Note nine, is one of the starting time Galaxy devices to run Android 8.i Oreo out of the box with version 9.5 of the Samsung Experience UX. It'southward got the usual fare of Samsung features, such as Secure Binder, but you don't go support for themes. You tin can customize the software navigation keys, although like we mentioned in our easily-on experience, it would be swell if we could access the navigation keys by swiping in from any side of the tablet, as otherwise they tin be hard to reach. Apps like Samsung Notes come up preloaded so you can take advantage of the S Pen, and aye, you too go access to Fortnite for Android without needing an invite like owners on not-Samsung devices. Bixby Vocalization will too be coming to the Tab S4 in the future, but there's no verbal engagement for the release yet.

Performance

With a Snapdragon 835 octa-core chipset and 4GB of RAM, the Milky way Tab S4 isn't as modern equally a flagship device should be, just that has been standard fare for Samsung'southward high-end tablets. Despite the twelvemonth-erstwhile internals, the Tab S4 performs admirably in twenty-four hours-to-day usage and even in heavy tasks such as gaming. Withal, the 4GB of RAM can exist a disadvantage in DeX way with too many apps open. This was likewise a trouble with the Milky way S8, which had merely 4GB of RAM, and it'southward disappointing that Samsung didn't make the spring to 6GB of RAM for the Milky way Tab S4 given the focus on productivity with the born DeX mode. And, well, given the higher price tag too.

Since there'south no fingerprint sensor on the Tab S4, Samsung has equipped it with an iris sensor and facial recognition. Cheers to Intelligent Browse, both iris and facial recognition can exist used together for faster unlocking, although the Tab S4's size makes things less intuitive than they should exist. As expected, that's considering y'all have to hold the tablet up and line it with your optics and face for the biometrics to piece of work. Not a big business concern in regular usage, but it tin can be a nuisance when yous have the tablet propped upwards on a desk with Samsung's Book Embrace example. The speed and accurateness of both iris and facial recognition is the same as the Galaxy phones when your eyes and faceare lined up, though.

Battery Life

With a vii,300 mAh battery under the hood, the Galaxy Tab S4 has splendid endurance. Samsung says you can watch continuous video for 16 hours, and while we weren't able to go then high, one bout of viewing over v 50-minute episodes of a Television show at loftier brightness left us with 50 per centum of accuse. With a mix of standard and heavy usage, including browsing the web, watching YouTube videos, playing a couple of games, and using the tablet in DeX manner a fleck, the Galaxy Tab S4 tin can last all day. Idle battery drain is low at effectually four-v per centum charge lost overnight on a Wi-Fi connection, and thanks to fast charging, the battery charges from 0 to 100 in around two hours.

Cameras

The Galaxy Tab S4 comes with a thirteen-megapixel rear camera with an aperture of f/i.nine. As expected, it'south not great. The rear photographic camera can exercise well in proficient lighting, but darker scenes come out quite poor. And we as well don't like how Samsung doesn't take a proper Pro way for the rear camera. Sure, a tablet, particularly one with a ten.five-inch display, isn't meant for taking pictures. But would information technology kill the company to offering the complete package for a flagship tablet? The camera sensors aren't very high-end on a tablet, yes, but that's no reason to leave a full-featured Pro mode out of the software.

The 8-megapixel f/1.9 front camera, meanwhile, gets the job done for video calls and is an upgrade over the 5MP camera of the Galaxy Tab S3. Selfies accept sufficient detail too, only you would be meliorate off using your telephone for taking pictures of yourself. Not that any of this should surprise anyone, but still, don't expect to exist impressed by the images taken by the Galaxy Tab S4.

Conclusion

So is the Galaxy Tab S4 worth the asking toll? Well, information technology'southward hard to say. If you are someone looking for a tablet for entertainment and leisure purposes, the Tab S4 has the best display on the market and the specs to keep up for gaming and other such use cases. The S Pen is also great and allows y'all to be artistic, but DeX fashion doesn't offering the best experience for productivity. Samsung's official keyboard cover also drives upwardly the price too loftier to be justified. Y'all tin can certainly get some work done with Samsung DeX, only mayhap a cheap Windows notebook or a Chromebook would be a better option in that regard.

At the end of the mean solar day, it all comes down to how much money you take lying around. If you lot don't mind the Milky way Tab S4'southward price tag, become ahead and take hold of one. If not, the Milky way Tab S3 is a cheaper culling, although its 4:3 attribute ratio makes information technology less than ideal for binging TV shows on Netflix or communicable the latest movie trailers on YouTube. The Tab S4 is the best Android tablet you can buy today, specially for content consumption, simply the overall experience only isn't enough to get a recommendation for anyone who isn't pond in money.

Pros	Cons
Stunning AMOLED brandish with small bezels	DeX has many limitations
Premium, classy design	No IP rating for water resistance
DeX mode on the device itself is dainty	Only 4GB of RAM, no themes support
S Pen remains as good as e'er	Dolby Atmos doesn't make a huge difference
Quad speakers with Dolby Atmos	Boilerplate cameras
Long battery life	Pricey, especially with keyboard embrace

Source: https://www.sammobile.com/2018/08/27/samsung-galaxy-tab-s4-review-price-features

Posted by: sanchezalks1965.blogspot.com

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