Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Tab S5e just a couple of days ago earlier than the Samsung Unpacked event which is to be held on 20 February.
The new tab from Samsung is aimed at providing a great tablet experience at an affordable price. Past Galaxy Tab’s haven’t been very well received since the competition from the iPad Pro simply leaves much to be desired from any Android tablet.
Samsung now aims to take on the budget tablet market with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e that comes with a price of $399. If you’re looking to purchase a great tablet which wouldn’t break the bank, then the Galaxy Tab S5e is definitely a worthy option.
Let’s take a look at why should you buy the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e.
Six reasons to buy the Galaxy Tab S5e
Tablet with all the essentials
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S5e isn’t meant to blow your socks off or introduce groundbreaking features or hardware capabilities. The Tab S5e is a tablet that offers all the essentials one could need from an Android tablet, which for $399, is simply out, very fair.
The tablet has a great industrial design and does resemble the iPad Pro a bit which is great considering the price of the device. Gone are the bulky bezels which have now been replaced by thinner bezels all around.
We also get the USB Type-C port on the Galaxy Tab S5e which is a bonus since you wouldn’t have to carry around two separate cables if you already own a Samsung S8 or any 2018 flagship smartphone.
Fortunately, Samsung hasn’t thrown in a low-end processor either as the device is powered by mid-range, fairly capable Snapdragon 670 chipset — strong enough to breeze through everyday tasks.
The Tab S5e would be available in two configurations; 4GB RAM + 64GB storage and 6GB RAM + 128GB storage, which is just enough since Android devices still do not utilize more than 6GB RAM in most cases.
The tab also has a fingerprint scanner within the power button and you could also use the face unlock feature that comes with the tab. The Galaxy Tab S5e is also available in 3 different colors; Gold, Silver, and Black.
Samsung has packed in four speakers tuned by AKG and the tab also supports the Dolby ATMOS audio enhancement feature that really improves the audio experience by a long shot.
Apart from all that, the Galaxy Tab S5e also supports expandable storage of up to 512GB via a microSD card.
Lightweight and slim
The Galaxy Tab S5e is super lightweight and sleek measuring just 5.5mm thick which is pretty impressive while the weight of the device is just 400grams, making it one of the lightest tablets in the market.
This makes it a convenient portable device since it’s feather light and won’t weigh you down while on the move. Since the tablet is pretty light, your hands wouldn’t be fatigued easily while holding onto the device for longer periods of time.
Even though the tablet is fairly thin and light, we do get a 7040mAh battery that’s capable of fast charging as well.
The best display in class
Samsung produces some of the best AMOLED displays in the world — even the Samsung Galaxy S7 still has a better display than a few recent flagships.
Fortunately, Samsung hasn’t skimped out on providing a great display and the Galaxy Tab S5e comes with a 10.5-inch WQXGA Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels.
The Galaxy Tab S5e is perfect for those who consume a lot of media on their devices since the Super AMOLED display offers practically infinite contrast and vibrant colors. The 10.5-inch screen should offer a way better media watching experience than what you’d get while on a smartphone.
Good battery life
While we haven’t managed to get our hands on the device just yet, we do expect to see some good battery life since the device comes with a large 7040mAh battery which should be enough to last a day even with moderate to heavy usage.
The Galaxy Tab S5e also comes with Android 9 Pie preloaded which means you’d be getting all the battery optimization features that come along with Android 9 Pie and Samsung’s One UI software.
Apart from Android Pie’s battery optimization features, Samsung provides a few battery saving features as well which would allow you to squeeze out a couple more hours if the need be.
Sync with Galaxy smartphone
If you already own a Samsung Galaxy smartphone, then the Tab S5e would be a great sidekick to carry around with your smartphone since you would be able to sync your data including contacts and other account information from your smartphone to the tablet by simply signing into your Samsung account.
This would make a way easier to set up the device since you wouldn’t have to waste much time setting up the device. The tab also supports Wi-Fi Direct hence you’d be able to transfer files and media easily from your Galaxy smartphone to the Tab S5e without having to use third-party applications.
What’s more? Well, using SideSync software on the tablet, you can even make and receive calls, and send and receive text messages right on your tablet once set up to connect with a Galaxy phone. Make sure SideSync in installed on both the mobile and tablet, and you have logged in with the same Samsung account on both of them.
Great software
The Tab S5e comes pre-installed with Android 9 Pie, topped with Samsung’s One UI, which is a great piece of software, to be honest.
We usually give full marks to Pixel’s stock UI only, as well as nearly-stock UI on OnePlus devices, but Samsung’s One UI has won our hearts in equal proportions.
Even though Samsung isn’t the quickest to update to new version of Android, it’s surprisingly better than most of the other Android OEMs in updating its devices to new Android OS updates. For example, the company prepared updates for even some of its 2+ years old handsets, something with almost no other OEM does.
Though, the update was released about 10 months later than Google’s rollout, which says a lot about slower updates. But it’s not a worry, overall. In fact, we appreciate Samsung stance on updating even old devices to the new version of Android.
So, you can be sure that the Tab S5e is eligible for an update to Android Q and Android R over time, though you will have to be very patient.
One reason to not buy the Tab S5e
The Galaxy Tab S5e is a great device and offers various impressive specifications and features; however, much like any other device currently available, the Galaxy Tab S5e does has a few flaws; however, only one is worth noting.
Average cameras
The Galaxy Tab S5e comes with a single 13 MP rear camera with an F2.0 aperture and 1µm pixel size. One the front we’ve got an 8.0 MP single camera with the same F2.0 aperture lens with a 1.12µm pixel size.
The cameras produce some decent shots in well-lit situations; however, there’s much to be desired in low-light situations since the F2.0 aperture simply cannot let in enough light into the sensor, to add to this, there’s no LED flash as well.
Nonetheless, given the price, the Galaxy S5e cameras are average and the images are usable most of the time. An average camera is no reason not to consider the Galaxy Tab S5e since most users simply do not use a tablet to capture images in any case.
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