At just £299 the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 is cheaper than its predecessor - but is this 10 inch tablet a bargain? Find out in our Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 video review.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 is marginally thicker and heavier than the first generation Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, and has a metallic finish to its back. It’s thinner and lighter than the iPad.
The speakers are front-facing, forming part of the bezel. The Tab now has an SD-card slot which can be found on the top, to the left of centre, just next to the power and volume switches. To the right on the top is the 3.5mm jack. See also: Tablet Advisor.
The proprietary charging port is recessed at the bottom, below the maker's name.
The Tab has a colourful and bright, 1280x800 capacitative multitouch display. Viewing angles are decent, but the screen is prone to smudges. We could definitely see ourselves enjoying a full HD movie on the Tab’s vibrant display, but don't expect Apple-like levels of detail. It offers 149 pixels per inch, 120 pixels an inch fewer than the iPad.
The Tab 2 has a dual-core processor and 1GB RAM. This pales next to recently launched tablets such as Samsung’s own Galaxy Note 10.1, and the Nexus 7, both of which are quad-core devices.
It's a useable device, however, with a reasonable battery life. But you get what you pay for and this is a budget tablet with budget performance. The sad thing for Samsung is that the Nexus is cheaper yet, and 10in tablets from Asus and Toshiba offer better performance for a similar price.
The Tab has a 3-megapixel camera with no flash. It’s adequate for the occasional snap, but it's never going to replace your dedicated camera. Images are grainy and flat.
However, the 1080p full HD video recording is worth having. The level of detail is good and we found even video captured under the low strip-lighting of our office palatable. Audio capture is decent.
Ice Cream Sandwich offers a level of slickness previously absent from Android devices. It's customisable, stable and consumer friendly. The interface looks neater, crisper and sleeker.
The OS offers new features including notifications that can be accessed from the lock screen, better text input with a spell-checker and enhanced email handling.
We love the bright screen, SD support and 1080p video capture of the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1. The problem is that the competition has moved on, and £299 is no longer a budget price for a 10 inch tablet. You could do a lot worse than the Tab, but also consider the Asus Transformer series, and the Toshiba AT300 which at only £30 more offers a quad-core processor. We award the Tab three and a half stars.
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