Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 :an 8-inch S Pen tablet that's also a phone
An updated, larger Galaxy Note from Samsung was inevitable. Given the undeniable popularity of mid-size tablets (see: Apple iPad mini),
it's no surprise the Korean electronics giant would want to strengthen
its foothold in a category it helped create. It was just three short
years ago that Samsung introduced the Galaxy Tab and now, three Notes
later, it's ready to perfect the one-handed experience. With this new
Note, the company's culled the best of what's around its Galaxy into an
8-inch form factor, housing a 1,280 x 800 TFT display, Exynos 4 Quad
with 2GB RAM (clocked at 1.6GHz), TouchWiz-skinned Android Jelly Bean
4.1.2 OS, S Pen (and suite of associated apps), as well as radios for
HSPA+ and WiFi into that familiar, lightweight plastic body.
But that extra inch alone isn't the Galaxy Note 8.0's
main attraction. Samsung's wisely made use of the additional screen
real estate to bundle two extra features. Building upon market research
that indicates over 80-percent of tablet use takes place within the
living room, the company's partnered with Peel for its Smart Remote app,
a visual programming guide with remote control functions baked-in that
comes pre-loaded on the tab. And, in keeping with its portrait oriented
design, the Note 8.0 also incorporates what the company calls "reading
mode," effectively optimizing the slate's display for comfortable e-book
use.At 338 grams (11.9 ounces), the Note 8.0's not much heavier than the iPad mini and as it's made to be held one-handed, you shouldn't feel much wrist strain with extended use. We were able to comfortably grip the entire back of the 7.95mm thick tablet, which measures 210.8mm x 135.9mm (8.3 x 5.4 inches), in our hand while navigating with the S Pen in the other. The Note 8.0's back is non-removable, but that bit's rendered moot by the accessibility of the microSD and micro-SIM slots on the tablet's left edge and a sealed 4,600mAh battery.
Reading mode and Smart Remote are clearly the Note 8.0's two biggest software features, but to make the tab just a bit more alluring, Samsung's pre-loading two other applications suited to the Note 8.0's form and function. Out of the box, users will have access to an S Pen-optimized version of Flipboard which enables Air View hover functionality and headline previews from the main tile page (up to three, in our experience). Also, as a first for Android and Samsung, Awesome Note (a cloud-based annotation app previously available only on iOS) has been integrated into the device as a free service, exclusive to the OEM for one year.
Details on pricing and regional release dates are still be announced. Just don't hold your breath for that news to come this week. What we do know for certain is that there'll be two storage configurations -- 16GB and 32GB -- for the global unit's launch sometime this second quarter. So while you wait for the Note 8.0 to make its slow crawl to market, check out our demo video above and feel free to sound off in the comments below.
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