Basic observations - not necessarily "pros" or "cons":
- Screen does not extend to the very edges of the device
- Device is somewhat heavy for its size
- Volume buttons are on opposite side as the Galaxy S3 Phone
- There is no "home button" built into the device (it is on the bottom of the screen)
- The process to change the main screens (home, etc.) is different. You need to do a "pinch" to any screen and it gets you to the area for manipulating these screens. If you are familiar with the Galaxy phones, this will make sense to you.
Cons:
- Connection for battery and computer connection is not the same micro USB as the Samsung Galaxy S3 phone.
- The connection to the device is nearly identical to an iPhone connector...but it is not. (learned that quickly)
- There is a USB 2.0 on the other end. This makes for simple connectivity to your computer, though I haven't found a need for that.
- The charging plug is bulky. You have to use it for charging. No, the device will not charge whilst plugged into your computer's USB 2.0 - not enough juice. No, you cannot just plug the USB 2.0 end into any other charging plug.
- Battery life is rather low. However, there are settings to help with this. Also, if you keep your screen off while streaming music, etc., you can get 8 hours out of it.
- Keyboard is different than the S3 phone and I am struggling with it. You have to put in the "." at the end of sentences, the buttons are laid out goofy. However, there is a row above the letters for all numbers which is very helpful. I am going to try out other aftermarket keyboard apps - sure to find something better. There are "swipe to type" keyboards with high ratings, but I am not a fan.
Pros:
- Very smooth swipe action and scrolling. I would argue that it is better than my S3 Phone!
- Interface is so much like the S3 phone that it makes the learning curve minimal.
- Sync for Google / Gmail is uber simple and easy, as you would expect.
- Play store is just as good as with S3 phone.
- Built in microphone allows for voice to text and works very well.
- Easily pairs with BlueTooth headsets.
- Note: I had an issue with my Jawbone ERA headset and at first blamed the Tablet. Yeah, I had to update the firmware of the Jawbone. Fixed.
- EverNote App works great!
- I use this for work so that I can sync between Tablet, PC and Phones.
- Screens are able to be customized far more than Apple/Mac/iPhone/iPad. You can easily add screens, apps and widgets.
- The Widgets are my favorite part about Android v. iOS. If you don't know what these are, ask someone with an S3 phone to show you.
- IR (Infra Red) on the side of the device!
- This is by FAR my favorite feature of the device. I was able to simply turn my tablet into a Universal Remote for my Sony TV and Cable Box
- Ability to change channels, volume and power for TV
- Same for the Cable Box
- Ability to browse all channels with visuals, genre categories and scroll to different time slots for shows.
- Ability to create favorites
- It also "learns" as you tune to shows, regularly
- There are likely many other uses for this, but I have only had it for a few days and have not yet explored the other uses.
Summary:
Great device that I highly recommend to anyone - especially if you are a current user of an Android Phone and want a Tablet that won't cost you over $200. If I knew about the IR capability, I would have done this sooner.
Please feel free to post any comments / questions on FaceBook page or below this blog!
Cheers!
- Robb D. Myers
