Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is a member of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 lineup consisting of Tab 3 10.1 and Tab 3 7.0. As you can see, Samsung has considered and manufactured all the possible combinations of the sizes of tablets in the hope of one becoming the hit in the tablet market. However, it is rather doubtful whether Samsung has given much thought about their new tablet lineup because all of them are mediocre at the best. They are not the worst tablets we have seen in the market, but they are not the best tablets either. They fit in to a middle class tablet range with a laggy feeling to it and a premium, yet plasticky look. The price points are rather at the high end as well which makes us wonder what Samsung is trying to achieve here. So we thought of comparing these three tablets against the industry’s best benchmark tablets. Today we are going to compare Tab 3 8.0 against Apple iPad Mini which makes a suitable pair with the same screen sizes and similar performance matrices. So here’s our take on these devices.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 Review
At a glance, this tablet looks like a boosted version of Galaxy S 4 with the same outlook with a bigger display panel. But the similarity ends there. Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is powered by 1.5GHz dual core processor on top of Samsung Exynos 4212 chipset along with Mali 400MP GPU and 1.5GB of RAM. It runs on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. Although this is not the worst setup we’ve seeing in a Jelly Bean tablet, it did feel rather laggy. Moderate games can be played without a delay, but demanding games are just not cut out for Tab 3 8.0. This tablet comes in White and rather a peculiar Gold color, as well. It is rather thin and feels sturdy on your hand. If you are used to holding a device in one hand, Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 would be ideal for you. But, I’ve got to say that the capacitive touch buttons at the bottom are way over sensitive and have a high tolerance. It’s more likely to press them accidentally compared to actually wanting to press them which is somewhat annoying. Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 includes the multi windows functionality which works pleasurably in the bigger screen, but I’d prefer if the user experience was much smoother. This tablet also has an IR blaster on the left edge which lets you control your media center along with the ability to browse the upcoming TV shows.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 has 8.0 inches TFT capacitive touchscreen featuring a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels at a pixel density of 189 ppi. It is not the most pleasurable display to look at although the colors look sufficiently live. We would have preferred an IPS display panel for this ideal 8.0 form factor, but Samsung seems to have neglected that sentiment. Fortunately it comes with 4G LTE connectivity which enables you to access the internet at blazing fast speeds. Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n ensures you have constant connectivity along with DLNA and the ability to set up a Wi-Fi hotspot easily to share your internet connection with your friends. The internal storage ticks at 16 GB or 32 GB but with the ability to expand it using microSD card, you won’t run into much problem. The optics is the usual 5MP camera with autofocus and LED flash which is capable of capturing 720p videos at 30 frames per second. The front 1.3MP camera can be used for video conferencing using Skype. This device has 4450mAh battery that will let you last a day of moderate use, but we have to say that it has relatively low capacity battery compared to other similar tablets in the market which may or may not be a hindrance to you depending on your usage pattern.
Apple iPad Mini Review
Apple iPad Mini hosts a 7.9 inch IPS capacitive touchscreen display that features a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels at a pixel density of 163ppi. It is smaller, lighter and thinner than Apple new iPad. However, this no way compromises the look and feel Apple’s premium grants you. It comes in several versions. There is also a 4G LTE version which can cost as much as $660. Let us look at what Apple has included in this mini version of their all-time favorite Apple iPad.
Apple iPad Mini is powered by Dual Core A5 processor clocked at 1GHz along with preferably PowerVR SGX543MP2 GPU and 512MB of RAM. This is the first reason that worries us about purchasing the iPad Mini given that it features a last generation processors of Apple A5, which went out in circulation two generations before with the introduction of Apple A6X. However, we can’t predict the performance without taking it for a lengthy test run given that Apple can now modify their processors in-house. It seemed to work seamlessly at light tasks, but games seem to take some time to initialize which can be an indication of the performance it can offer.
This miniature version of iPad has dimensions of 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.28 inches that can fit in to your hand very well. Especially the keyboard feels way more comfortable compared to the Apple iPhone line. The basic version only has Wi-Fi connectivity whereas the more expensive and higher end ones offer 4G LTE connectivity as an addition. It will come in different sizes ranging from 16GB, 32GB and 64GB. Apple seems to have included a 5MP camera at the back of this miniature version that can capture 1080p HD videos which is a good improvement. The 1.2MP from facing camera can be used with Facetime for video conferencing. As speculated, it uses the new lightening connector and comes in either Black or White.
A Brief Comparison Between Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 and Apple iPad Mini
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is powered by 1.5GHz dual core processor on top of Samsung Exynos 4212 chipset along with Mali 400MP GPU and 1.5GB RAM while Apple iPad Mini is powered by 1GHz Dual Core A5 processor with PowerVR SGX543 GPU and 512MB of RAM.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 runs on Android OS v 4.2.2 while Apple iPad Mini runs on Apple iOS 6.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 has 8.0 inches TFT capacitive touchscreen display featuring a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels at a pixel density of 189 ppi while Apple iPad Mini has 7.9 inch IPS capacitive touchscreen featuring a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels at a pixel density of 163ppi.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 has 5MP camera that can capture 720p videos @ 30 fps while Apple iPad Mini has 5MP camera that can capture 1080p HD videos @ 30 fps.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is lengthier but narrower, slightly thicker and heavier (209.8 x 123.8 mm / 7.4 mm / 314g) than Apple iPad Mini (200 x 134.7 mm / 7.2 mm / 312g).
Conclusion
These two tablets have a striking resemblance to each other. Perhaps not in the outlook, but with the hardware elements inside, they are quite similar. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 takes a more elongated approach while Apple takes a wider approach to morph their display panel. Both have their pros and cons although Samsung’s tweak has made it much easier to hold the tablet in one hand, which is convenient. Other than that, the performance from both of these devices linger at the same range although the specs on the sheet looks drastically different specially the RAM. Both has the slightly laggy performance with the ability to use for any moderate task but iPad Mini certainly excels in battery life where Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 has a relatively smaller battery lasting much shorter time span. Both provides you with 4G LTE connectivity, which eliminates any advantage there, and the optics in iPad Mini is much better than that of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0. So we’ve laid down all the major differences in these two tablets giving you the chance to pick up what you’d prefer for giving a clear cut objective conclusion on these two tablets is going to be biased on the writer’s opinion. Henceforth it’s better to bias it with buyer’s opinion taking the facts in to consideration.