We are all aware of the all out battle between Apple and Samsung to rule the mobile and tablet market. While Apple has been on top ever since the iPhone 3 came out Samsung looks like its finally going to displace Apple from the top with its Galaxy S4. The iPhone 5 simply doesn’t have enough improvements to match up with the Galaxy S4. In the tab market too, ever since the iPad was released, Apple has been on top. But, Samsung has been catching up rapidly and with the Tab and Note series doing so well, it seems that it’s just a matter of time before Samsung move ahead here as well. So what is in the Samsung Tabs? Let’s compare a couple of their best Tabs against each other, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 (P5100) and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (P3100). But considering both these Tabs were released in April/May 2012, you shouldn’t expect too much out of either of them.
1. Size – While the Tab 2 (10.1) measures 256.6×175.3×9.7 mm the Tab 2 (7.0) measures 193.7×122.4×10.5 mm. Even in terms of weight, the Tab 2 (10.1) is much heavier than its counterpart weighing it at 588 grams as opposed to the 345 grams of the Tab 2 (7.0). No surprises here. The (10.1) is obviously a lot bigger than the (7.0).
2. Display – In terms of display resolution, both these devices are pretty similar to each other. While the (10.1) has a 800×1280 pixel resolution the (7.0) has a 600×1024 pixel resolution. But while the (10.1) has just a PLS TFT capacitive touch screen with a pixel density of 149 ppi the (7.0) has a PLS LCD capacitive touch screen with a pixel density of 170 ppi. Basically, the display on the (7.0) is a lot better than the (10.1). But the (10.1) does have a much larger screen at 10.1 inches as compared to the 7.0 inch screen of the (7.0). Both devices have a TouchWiz UX User Interface as well.
3. Memory & Storage – As far as memory is concerned, both these Tabs are quite similar too. Just one minor difference. While the (7.0) comes in 8, 16 and 32 GB versions the (10.1) comes in only a 16 and 32 GB version. Both devices support memory expansion up to 32 GB and run on 1 GB of RAM.
4.Camera – Remember that both these devices were released in 2012 and thus, we can’t expect much in terms of photography from either. Both devices sport the same 3.15MP camera on the back that shoots photos with a maximum resolution of 2048×1536 pixels. In terms of video recording, both offer a 720p @ 30fps. The front of the Tabs too just have VGA cameras.
5. OS & Performance – Both these devices are running on the exact same operation system, Android 4.0.3 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Both devices are also upgradeable to Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean). In terms of performance, Samsung has powered both it’s Tabs with a 1 GHz dual core processor which will give you a decent enough performance.
6. Battery – Samsung has never let down its customers in this area and this quality assurance continues with both these Tabs as well. While the (10.1) has a 7000 mAh Li-Po battery that boasts of standby times bearing 2000 hours the (7.0) has a 4000 mAh Li-ion battery that has a standby time of 1190 hours. You can rest assured that you will never have a problem with the battery when using either of these Samsung devices.
7. Price – With the massive competition among mobile manufacturers today pricing has become a major issue. But, both these Tabs are priced quite competitively. The Tab 2 (10.1) is available at INR 25,900 onwards and the Tab 2 (7.0) is priced at INR 15,699 onwards.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 vs 7.0 – which is better ?
Taking into account the fact that the only real benefit you get from a Tab 2 (10.1) is the increased display you might want to consider the Tab 2 (7.0) as it is more than INR 10,000 cheaper. Apart from this there isn’t much more that can be done to compare both these devices or to choose a winner from among them. Both products do well in their product classes without really being outstanding. You may be a little concerned when it comes to the camera though as 3.15MP is a little low by today’s standards. There is nothing about either of these Tablets that sets them apart from the rest and this might make people reconsider spending on either of them considering that there are much better tabs available around the same price. We feel that these Tabs will soon be phased out of the market and if you are looking at a Tablet for yourself your best bet would be the Samsung Note Series or Apple’s iPad 2/mini.
