Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (Quad-core Processor 1.4GHz; 10.1-inch display)

When we first saw the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 at Mobile
World Congress
earlier this year, it resembled the company’s Galaxy
Tab 10.1 slate, but
with a stylus. It felt like a concept device where engineers were told
to slap something together using existing parts and make it work–there
wasn’t even a slot to keep the stylus.

Samsung has since gone back to the drawing board, and the
Galaxy Note
10.1, that will launch this month, looks nothing like that early
version. Instead, it sports a similar design as the Galaxy
Tab 2 10.1. And you can store the stylus
within the tablet.

Upside

The
redesigned Note 10.1 resembles the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1. There’s no
way you’ll ever mistake it for an iPad this time round.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

The
back of the tablet is rather glossy.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

For the Galaxy Note 10.1, it’s all about the stylus or the
S-Pen as the
company calls it. It’s hidden within the device on the bottom
right and the stylus was quite secure. While Samsung refused to confirm
if the built-in
digitizer is based on Wacom’s technology, the company did reveal that
it supports up to 256 levels of pressure sensitivity.

The
embedded S-Pen stylus.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

Samsung’s custom S Note app, designed to take advantage of this input
method, has been improved with a Formula Match feature that the company
claims is better
at recognizing and converting handwritten formulas. It also taps
directly into Wolfram Alpha’s database if you need more information
about the formula. This makes it even
more useful for students as a learning tool.

Users can configure a specific stylus-optimized app to launch
automatically once the tablet detects that the S-Pen has been removed
from its slot. The company has also
supplemented its own apps by bundling Adobe’s Photoshop Touch app.

Of course, the biggest difference from the 5.3-inch Note is
simply the
screen size–the larger canvas is so much more conducive for pen
inputs,
be it an idle doodle or taking notes at a meeting.

The other addition on the Note 10.1 is the “Multiscreen”
feature, where
certain apps can run side-by-side in a windowed mode. It works pretty
well on a 10.1-inch tablet, which makes you wonder why it hasn’t been
done before. It certainly gives the device a multitasking dimension
that isn’t native to the Android platform. The downside is that the
list of supported apps is
rather
short at the moment.

Here’s
how the S Note app looks in a splitscreen view with the browser.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)These
are the only apps that support the Multiscreen feature.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

Besides, the Note 10.1 only has a couple of months before
Windows RT slates
with this native feature become available.

The tablet comes with Android 4.0 (Ice Cream
Sandwich)
installed,
though Samsung’s TouchWiz interface is layered on top as usual. For
those who are used to Samsung’s blend of colorful icons and proprietary
apps, the Galaxy Note 10.1 will seem very familiar.

Everything that was great about Samsung’s flagship smartphone,
the Galaxy
S III, has been ported over to the Note 10.1. This means that
you’ll get a fast quad-core 1.4GHz Exynos processor along with
2GB of RAM. You can even make phone calls and send short text messages on this slate.
Apps opened quickly and the tablet was responsive during our short time
with it.

Even some of the new software features on the S III are on the
Note 10.1. Samsung Smart Stay is supported–this app uses the
front-facing camera (the Note has a 1.9-megapixel version, along with a
5-megapixel rear shooter) to detect if the user is still looking at the
screen and hence keeps the screen bright. Pop
Up Play, which plays videos in a small window while
allowing users to run other apps at the same time, is another. It even
gets a slight tweak on the Note as you can now adjust the size of the
video.

Short of upgrading the Note to Jelly
Bean–Samsung couldn’t provide a timeline for such an
update–we don’t see how the company could further improve the
performance.

The
microSD card slot on the Note 10.1 supports up to 64GB. It also
comes with an infrared blaster for Samsung’s universal remote control
app
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

Samsung’s
Smart Remote app works as a universal remote control for home
entertainment devices such as TVs and media players. It isn’t
restricted to Samsung-branded gear, but it won’t control your aircon
like the version on the Sony
Tablet S.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

Downside

At 8.9mm thick and weighing around 600g for the 3G version
(the Wi-Fi
model is only 3 grams lighter), this tablet is slightly heavier than
many competing Android slates. The 7,000mAh battery onboard probably
contributed to this
heft, though the Note 10.1 still weighs less than the Apple iPad.

The
Galaxy Note 10.1 is slightly thicker than the Tab 10.1.
(Credit: Vincent Chang/CNET Asia)

With the iPad and other recent tablets sporting
high-resolution displays, the 1,280 x 800-pixel resolution on
the Note 10.1 isn’t as competitive. Don’t get us wrong, this screen
resolution is still more than adequate for most users and the viewing
angles seemed perfectly fine for a tablet.

Samsung has yet to divulge the retail prices for the device,
though we were told that it won’t come cheap. Given that previous
attempts at stylus-toting slates have been quite pricey, the HTC
Flyer
was priced at around S$1,000, we believe that it won’t just have a
slight
premium over the typical Android slate. An online retailer has even
listed the Note 10.1 for preorders at a whopping US$750.

Outlook

The original Galaxy Note sold millions despite its relatively
large
screen and higher price, but it was still a smartphone that is arguably
more essential than a tablet. Given that no Android tablets of its size
could be deemed a success, the Note may find it rather more difficult
to
replicate its smartphone predecessor. It’s definitely not going to be
an impulse buy like an
inexpensive 7-inch Android tablet.

The Note’s focus on improving
productivity on the tablet form factor may appeal to some users who
can’t wait for Windows RT, though its stylus will likely be the biggest
draw.

Samsung told us to expect both the Wi-Fi-only and the 3G versions
sometime this month globally–it also plans to launch an LTE version
later this year.

The News Source: http://asia.cnet.com/product/samsung-galaxy-note-10-1-quad-core-processor-1-4ghz-10-1-inch-display-45869682.htm