What tablet should I buy: S3 Tab, Tabs dying out, but AMOLED for Media consumption any good?

Ok I need a small notebook for Web Browsing, YOutube, Netflix, Prime video.

I know android tabs are dying out. They are really under powered SOC sd820 vs the CPUs in iPads, which for some reason dont run much faster, kind of shows how poor iOS or the App devs are considering the a10x would give some good intel cpus a run for their money. They really should think about getting OSX on the iPads. Then we could actually use them as notebook replacements using real full fledged versions of software. AND having cross platform OS with no syncing, like MS did with MS10 on its Notebook, tablet and then phone, although they killed the phone off to concentrate on making one device to replace 3 instead of one OS to work on 3 platforms. HURRY UP ANDROMEDA.

Anyway, I mostly do the above. My Mrs has an Asus zenbook for Word etc if I really need it (never do). But for in bed watching netflix, was wondering if I should go the s3 tab or a S8 Note, as I will need to replace my phone. The S8 note is smaller, but in bed 5.5" I find to be quite nice to watch netflix, so 6.2" in 16:9 will be about 6" so....... Also its PPI is immensely higher.

I feel the Tab S3 could have gone a higher resolution without making things to small. As it is 4:3, the ppi of 16:9 content is quite low, but due to being AMOLED and HDR it still looks nice.

Im just confused whether I should get the phone as I need a new one (rocking a 4" 2012 Win10 Phone lol). Or get the S3 Tab as I no longer have my own notebook.

Any positive thoughts on how to resolve which way to head would be appreciated. Im not sure if the Tab S2 used an AMOLED but they are half price used now, I could afford the phone and a used S2.

I really want an Alienware 13 OLED, but just hurt myself so cant work, so money is tightish.

 

Help.

 

I own a Galaxy Tab S3 with the S-Pen. It isn't a bad tablet. The screen size is an upgrade from my previous Galaxy Note 8.0 (not 8) as well as quality.

You say you want to replace your phone with the S8 Note? It depends what you need most. Personally I'd go the way of the phone and S2, and I've seen S2s here in the UK in PC World and they definitely had that AMOLED contrast, so it must be AMOLED. My only worry is with these as not all are perfect.

Hope you fully recover, by the way.

 

Im in love with my Lenovo YOGA Tab 3 Plus. I would grab one~ insane battery life + it has SD652 which is faster than the 625 everyone loves using...

 

There are a lot of rumors of a a Galaxy Tab S4 coming later this year, if you want a traditional Android tablet.

However, I think one reason for their decline is the growth of ChromeOS 2-in-1s that can run Android apps, like Samsung's Chromebook Plus and Chromebook Pro.

 

Thanks Vaardu, its pretty serious but Im being positive and fighting.

Yes that was my real question, does the S2 have that AMOLED look. Mind you the S3 is HDR compliant, but so would the Galaxy Note 8 if I buy that and there isnt that much HDR content yet. HDR definitely makes a bigger difference than 4k, 1440p and HDR is the sweet spot for sub 40" displays imo.

Yes the decline of tabs, especially Android was just a matter of time.

Microsoft will release Andromeda eventually which will replace a phone, tablet and notebook in one device.

Meanwhile Apple are aiming their pads at Artists, but what they refuse to understand is said artists and photographers want full fledged desktop applications like Photoshop. And whats even more frustrating is the A10x is nearly as powerful as the new i5-8250u quad core intel. What they should be working on his how interface touch with OSX so they can do what Microsoft did with Win 10 and 1 OS for 3 devices. Syncing is so 1999. Im not saying it would be easy but there is no way Adobe are going to create a whole verson of CS just for the ipad pro. The macbook hasnt been refreshed in 10 years and also looks long in the tooth design wise. The 13 was poor industrial design, especially thermally, when it was first launched and it hasnt gotten better. I dont know how they get the nerve to call a dual core 15w CPU with a cruddy IGP Macbook 13 Pro and do nothing about it for a decade now. They will eventually catch up with variable wattage quad cores and one can only hope they will put an mx150 or similar inside. Its a terrible device for productivity and Im not bias, I quite like OSX.

Anyway iphone is what will be saving Apple, one can only hope they actually do refresh the macbooks before the last hardened fan bois abandon them too. If they put OSX across all 3 devices they will be more competitive and Ipad Pro will no longer just be a tablet but a productivity machine. Its 120HZ variable HDR screen deserves that OSX. So do the people struggling with half baked apps and no file management trying to use the device. This has always been apple, form over function. Any designer knows function takes precedence. If you create a beautiful notebook but it overheats, thats not good design.

The same could be said of Android, it should be running Chromium on the tabs, but honestly, qualcom SOCs are pretty piss weak.

Anyway a lot of this is way off in the future, MS bought LUmia and have let it die off for a reason, they achieved the 1 OS for 3 devices, but 1 device makes a lot of sense. Of course there will still be WIn10 etc and hardcore computers, but Andromeda is aimed at the majority of people who really only use their phone as their primary device, and I was shocked to realise how many people do, Im a notebook person and only use my phone as a phone generally. So I can see MS's thinking there, once again 1 step ahead love them or hate em. Interesting to see TV shows and Movie now having Surface Books and the Surface Studio showing up instead of the usual fruit machine. Is hard to disagree the Surface Book set the standard for 2n1s and nobody has come close to matching it yet. And the Studio, if you are a designer like me, its like somebody wrote a book of requirements with use cases for designers and then built it to perfection. If I had the money Id buy one.

I do digress lol, only because platforms are getting so cross platform now, which is why the android tablets are dying off, but the ipad pro could become something much much more, if apple had ambition and foresight. Id buy an ipad pro today if I could run desktop photoshop and my system design software on it.

Ok so Ive seen an as new S2, he wants 1/3 the price of a new S3, thats not too bad? I wont get HDR, but if the AMOLED still give you that over saturated inky black look Im all for it. I also know its CDM brightness doesnt come close to the S3 but I would only be using in bed while Im sick for the next 6 months.

 

Oh that chromebook plus looks awesome, if only it was amoled, it would almost be perfect (16:9 for me is perfect as I prefer it for my media consumption)

Cheers

 

I did consider the galaxy book 12, but its too closely priced here to the Alienware 13 2018 which is now edr compliant for HDR streaming media. So tempted just to buy the AW, its big and chunky but it looks sooooo good on movies.

 

What about the Galaxy Tab Pro S Windows 10 ? Its like an Amoled Surface Pro

 

Could you please kindly try it with Spacedesk and Windows 10 PC?

 

It worked buttery smooth. At first I had issue with pointed not aligning with finger but I manually set the res to 1080p like laptop and it fixed it. The tab3plus can also act like a widi display to be another monitor which is cool with the kickstand if you dont need touch input.

 

@Kittys thank you very much!

You mean using Windows Connect feature?

 

In the side tab of windows 10 if you click "project" it uses that. Im not sure if its the same

 

@Kittys yeah, that's the same. Thank you, that's exactly what I've been looking for! Thought only Windows tablets could do that...

 

Kewl. you need to open Lenovos "Media cast" app and select "Cast Screens" option and -then- go into windows to make it an external display but thats only drawback if you do grab one~

 

@Kittys so with Windows Connect it works great, right? I'm about to pull the trigger on one; also considering Windows Chuwi Surbook Mini, which will cost me up to $50 cheaper.

 

Yep it works great for me. Chuwi are ok too...i had a Hi10pro but tossed it for the lenovo :/ not really the greatest long term

 

I would just get the ipad and be done with it. windows 10 is crappy at tablet'ey stuff. Ipad is crappy at computer'ey stuff. Better to have a dedicated laptop/2 in 1 and an ipad. Best of all worlds then. No compromises then. The new ipad has pen/pencil support too!

 

@Kittys long story short I was deliberately outbid on auctions, and ended up ordering a Chuwi on sale for ~$240. Hope I won't regret it - but if I do, will sell it locally and get myself a Yoga.

@kojack iPad can't do wireless display well, it still has noticeable mouse lag AFAIK. I have to admit if I could tolerate wires, iPad would have been a no-brainer.

 

I'm still rockin' Tab S 10.5 for media playback, one of the few 16:10 amoled devices. I probably have to source another one from the used devices market...

 

If you are using it in other ways other than a true tablet, yep. there are much better solutions. I would only buy at tablet to use as a tablet. If I was going to be doing any type of keyboard work, etc, I would get a surface type device of some sort. You loose tablet function in the lack of software / apps that I use on my ipad, but you gain things like being able to be productive. I went to my website, and tried to edit a few things while sitting in my living room with my wife this weekend, and could not do anything. I had to get at my desk and use my Dell. That is why I mentioned having both devices. One is NOT good for everything. You have to see if the trade offs are worth it. For me, NO. I edit photos, videos etc, design custom motorcycles etc. I also build websites for people around here who want them. So, I would be lacking if I had ONE device, as I want to use texture and other apps not available on the windows ecosystem.

 

I actually have single device that's great both as a laptop and a tablet, and just switch between the two modes by rotating the screen whenever I want; there's nothing a tablet can do that a good convertible can't, and weight difference is often negligible at similar display size. However, sometimes I need second device to complement the convertible for particular tasks - and this is where I have to make some compromises.

Sometimes I need a secondary display - not only at home, but on the go as well. For whatever reason, buying a fully functional tablet with decent IPS display is cheaper and much easier than trying to find a portable monitor that doesn't outright suck. Since I generally dislike wires, Windows tablets win by far in this task, exclusively due to superior wireless display software support; very few Android tablets have the necessary software baked in, e.g. Yoga Tab 3 Plus - while iPads can only rely on third-party software and deliver worse results.

Sometimes I need a midi-controller. Physical controllers are expensive and inflexible, and nowhere near as portable as a thin&light tablet. iPad is best suited for this task since it's very popular and most layouts are designed with 4:3 aspect ratio in mind for that very reason. E.g. 16:10 10.1" Yoga Tab 3 Plus provides me only 8.4" effective workspace - compared to 9.7" on iPad and 9.6" on 3:2 10.8" Chuwi Surbook Mini. Aspect ratios aside, Windows devices are worst for this - production-grade software is only available for Android & iOS, so on Windows devices I have to use an emulator.

That pretty much sums up my usage scenario for a tablet. Other tasks - browsing, reading, media consumption, inking, gaming, etc - maxed-out convertible performs much better.

 

If your convertible is windows based, It cannot use Textures app...(not in Canada anyways) which is what I use my tablet for alot. Reading magazines. Therefore that's one big one for me. If that app worked, I would still have my surface 3.

 

@kojack there's Android version of this app, thus you can run it on Windows PC easily (and bypass whatever regional restrictions). Not exactly sure how will it affect battery life, though.

I read reviews of some Chinese tablets advertised as dual-boot while actually running emulators about a year ago, and the experience was described as good.

 

Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 release date, specs rumors: 2018 tablet won't move up to Snapdragon 845 chip
Juan Miguel Salonga Sun 18 Mar 2018 12:41 GMT
https://www.christiantoday.com/arti...ke-the-jump-to-snapdragon-845-chip/127505.htm

The arrival of the next-generation Samsung Galaxy Tab S device is already overdue, given that the Galaxy Tab S3 was unveiled by the South Korean tech giant more than a year ago. While the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 was not present at the previous Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018, it is expected that the high-end tablet's launch will happen soon. However, the users should not expect too much from the next Galaxy Tab S series, with the latest reports suggesting that the Galaxy Tab S4 will stick with last year's Snapdragon 835 processor.


Samsung websiteThe 9.7-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 with S Pen
The specs and features of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 were leaked in the latest GFXBench benchmark listing. The device is listed with the model number SM-T835. It is easy to assume that this Samsung gadget is actually the Galaxy Tab S4, given that the previous Galaxy Tab S3 goes with the model number SM-T825, while the Galaxy Tab S2 uses SM-T815. The public's expectation is that the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 will have an upgraded mobile chipset from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 845. However, the GFXBench listing shows that the Galaxy Tab S4 will still use the Snapdragon 835.

Samsung's recently launched Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus smartphones were among the first devices packed with the Snapdragon 845 chip. The next-gen Galaxy Tab S device is expected to follow suit, but it looks like Samsung has chosen to delay the upgrade to next year. Specifically, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 is listed to have a 2.3 GHz octa-core Qualcomm chip with an Adreno 540 graphics processing unit (GPU) under the hood. The tablet also has 4 GB of random-access memory (RAM) and 64 GB built-in storage.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 is shown to sport a 10.5-inch display with 1,600x 2,560 screen resolution, making the device slightly bigger than the previous Galaxy Tab S iteration. Going to the camera department, the Galaxy Tab S4 is expected to receive a 12-megapixel (MP) rear camera. The tricky part is that the GFXBench listing shows a 7-megapixel front-facing shooter for the device, and GSMArena states that the Galaxy Tab S3 already has an 8-megapixel front camera. Last year's premium devices from Samsung like the Galaxy S8 smartphone received 8 MP front cameras as well, and it is possible that the Galaxy Tab S4 will have the same."

Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 release date, specs news: Next-gen tablet to use Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset with 4GB RAM
Juan Miguel Salonga Wed 28 Mar 2018 20:40 BST
https://www.christiantoday.com/arti...napdragon-835-chipset-with-4gb-ram/127823.htm

 

I have Memu on my dell 2 in 1, but the application is wonky when you want to read in "tablet" mode.

 

Hmm. Same as the original Tab S 10.5... Interesting.
If that is true, flipping tablet on its side would provide nice movie device once again. Gotta keep my tabs on this one...

 

Granted the tech has improved and lifespan depends on usage style, AMOLED inherently is prone to color shift and burn in. The uneven color shift over time is due to the significantly low life of the blue phosphor which is like 20,000 Hrs to half brightness while red and green have half lives that are over 100-300,000 hours. Especially static whites and blues with thingslike in wall papers would accelerate local burn in which basically means the blue phosphors there would be less bright than other areas over time. In addition AMOLED uses more battery with white backgrounds like during web browsing as to create white you need all 3 subpixels on. In terms of videos and photos though it would save more battery over LCD screens.

If you are a hardcore user who spends hours on end on your tablet then burn in will occur faster, like it could be months. Granted it would be very faint at first only visible with like a solid blue background then it will get worse and more visible. Also high brightness would also accelerate this. This is why display model AMOLED phones/tablets always have burn in within like 2 months as they are on 24/7 at max brightness though that is extreme and no one would do that in real world use.

 

I want a screen big enough so i can see a pdf page full size, I am sick of having to zoom in all the time.

 

If you want PDF support, I would go with a surface pro/book 13".

 

Does you imply that Android tablets don't support PDF? Haha!