Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 slates official thread...

jackycar

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can someone give an honest review of whether this s2 8" is worth picking up? the 2016 version seems to have a slight upgrade with the OS and chip but is the battery/charging bad?

disappointed that they didn't have a 8" for s3 so i'm searching for the best 8" tablet around...

Using the 9.7" now switched from ipad air 2. Other than vainglory I have to switch to low settings for absolutely smooth game play, I'm very happy with this tablet.

Charging is ok because the battery doesn't drain so fast, speed overall is ok, can install kodi and exodus plug in and stream and download shows to watch on plane.

Can patch the tablet to make your SD card adopted storage so I now have a total of 128gb + internal of storage and my exodus can download movies straight
 

maumu

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Using the 9.7" now switched from ipad air 2. Other than vainglory I have to switch to low settings for absolutely smooth game play, I'm very happy with this tablet.

Charging is ok because the battery doesn't drain so fast, speed overall is ok, can install kodi and exodus plug in and stream and download shows to watch on plane.

Can patch the tablet to make your SD card adopted storage so I now have a total of 128gb + internal of storage and my exodus can download movies straight

thanks mate. actually i'm not using it for gaming :) just normal web surfing but occasionally need to use the office apps for work (word, excel) and email.

online reviews seem to suggest that it has poor battery life but i'm not sure how poor is poor in real life. do I have to keep switching it to airplane mode overnight just to save battery? can it be a tablet that can be left on its own (standby) for a couple of days or must it be switched off when not in used to ensure we don't get a shock when we wake the device to see that the battery has drained out?

also, is charging a problem? some sites seem to complain that charging is slow... does the 2016 version support quick charge?
 

jackycar

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thanks mate. actually i'm not using it for gaming :) just normal web surfing but occasionally need to use the office apps for work (word, excel) and email.

online reviews seem to suggest that it has poor battery life but i'm not sure how poor is poor in real life. do I have to keep switching it to airplane mode overnight just to save battery? can it be a tablet that can be left on its own (standby) for a couple of days or must it be switched off when not in used to ensure we don't get a shock when we wake the device?

also, is charging a problem? some sites seem to complain that charging is slow... does the 2016 version support quick charge?

Nah it's fine. And there are powerbank nowadays.

I just charge mine nightly so quick charge or not doesn't matter.

I never run out of juice within a day
 

Chirashi

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can someone give an honest review of whether this s2 8" is worth picking up? the 2016 version seems to have a slight upgrade with the OS and chip but is the battery/charging bad?

disappointed that they didn't have a 8" for s3 so i'm searching for the best 8" tablet around...

So far no issues with my tablet. Lightweight and handy, just the right size for work and play. Battery life sufficiently lasted me a day at the office. Glad I got this instead of waiting for the S3 as the later doesn't have 8".
 

maumu

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So far no issues with my tablet. Lightweight and handy, just the right size for work and play. Battery life sufficiently lasted me a day at the office. Glad I got this instead of waiting for the S3 as the later doesn't have 8".

thanks for your opinion. yes, i'm attracted by the size and weight. also, the full ms office apps + dropbox is a bonus as I need to work on documents on the go sometimes.

just waiting for IT show to see if there's any good promotion. currently the lowest I find outside is $490 while the book cover is $39.

but I wonder if there's a lighter (but not thicker) cover as I heard the original cover is quite 'heavy'.
 

mackie8

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So far no issues with my tablet. Lightweight and handy, just the right size for work and play. Battery life sufficiently lasted me a day at the office. Glad I got this instead of waiting for the S3 as the later doesn't have 8".

i switch to ipad mini 4 from this... after the update sound become very soft even on max volume.. if u need it for watching movies on a quiet room is fine... but on a busy room.... volume is very soft.. i almost cannot hear it..
 

b0h3mian_summer

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can someone give an honest review of whether this s2 8" is worth picking up? the 2016 version seems to have a slight upgrade with the OS and chip but is the battery/charging bad?

disappointed that they didn't have a 8" for s3 so i'm searching for the best 8" tablet around...

Im using S2 Tab 8 inch.

What I do with it:

The built is solid, feels really good in my hands. I have gotten the official cover for it too. It's pretty premium as well.

My usage are simple, it is predominantly for media consumption. I read PDFs on it, and watch videos too (on earphones).
The 4:3 ratio is great for my magazine PDFs, the screen crisp and it is a joy to look at. I don't mind the cropped videos because of the 4:3 ratio.

When I'm travelling, I use it to backup my photos to google drive. Managing files across Internal Memory, SD Card, Google Drive, OneDrive is a breeze with Solid Explorer. The S2's screen makes it easy to look at files when it is in horizontal mode in Solid Explorer (Spilt Screen). Do check out the software. It's like Explorer on Windows, Finder on Mac.

I use it for presentations too, showing people videos and pictures. Its a little smallish, but for its size, its a tradeoff. But it fits very well on airplane trays if you want to watch videos.

I do not game on it, and hence Im unable to comment much. I do not use the sim card slot as well. I have seen people using it as a phone though.

What I dont like:

Battery life doesn't seems to be that great, but I switch on Ultra Power Saving when I do not use it. It lasts longer.

It is considered lightweight, but again, holding it up for an extended period of time is still a little tiring.

There are still some apps that are not optimized for tablet usage (this is an android issue also lah). Its kind of awkward to use those.

This is a problem for a small segment of people: I have a Sony camera, that uses an app called "PlayMemories" to wifi-transfer photos to an Android device. The PM app just doesnt work on the Tab (sony's fault). I had to transfer photos to my Xperia, then Xender the photos to the Tab. Its kind of long winded but it works.

Other than the above, I cant really find fault with it at all.

What I hope to do on it, but decided not:

I want to sketch and draw on it, but stylus support for it is not that great.

For this, I'm looking to get a iPad Pro for its Pencil. Will see how. (this is another topic altogether)

So...

It depends what you want to do with it loh, I have no idea, so I can only relate based on my own experience.
 
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maumu

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do u guys shut down the tablet when not in use? or just blank the screen (by closing the cover)? is that a big factor when talking about battery life?

i'm used to switching off/on when not using... but then again so far my tablets have been windows OS. for android i'm not sure if it's recommended to switch off when not in use or just let it be on standby. I believe the battery life will be much affected, no?
 

b0h3mian_summer

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I turned on the "Ultra Power Saving" when I do not use it for a prolonged period of time. That setting will shut off all wireless connections, and change the display to black&white.

I think it lasts longer, but its just anecdotal.

When I sleep, I would just shut it off.
 

maumu

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I guess it's a mindset thing. when it comes to windows OS i'm used to turning it off when not using.

but for android I would usually keep it on standby (blank screen). just like phone.

but if switching it off will save substantial juice for the s2 I will probably have to make it a habit to switch off each time.
 

maumu

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Hi folks, can I check whether it's safe to buy from those shops like kasia and whymobile? They are cheaper but I wonder what's the risk of me getting a lemon set.
 

dilphinus

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Tab S2 8 Wifi 448 LTE 548

Tab S2 9.7 Wifi 498 LTE 598

Free Samsung level u
Bookcover
5.1k Fast charge pbank

Wifi version also entitled to the same free gifts?

The brochure on Samsung website only indicates aboved mentioned items for the lte version.
 

Fitforfun

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Using the 9.7" now switched from ipad air 2. Other than vainglory I have to switch to low settings for absolutely smooth game play, I'm very happy with this tablet.

Charging is ok because the battery doesn't drain so fast, speed overall is ok, can install kodi and exodus plug in and stream and download shows to watch on plane.

Can patch the tablet to make your SD card adopted storage so I now have a total of 128gb + internal of storage and my exodus can download movies straight

Hi Bro

Interesting comment on the patch to increase the tablet storage. Can PM me how you do it?

Can the Kodi view BPL matches live?

TIA. :)
 

dilphinus

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Freebie level u out of stock.

Not sure if I wanna get or wait. Want to replace my current Samsung tablet. Not urgent though.
 
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