With the Galaxy Tab Active, Samsung is offering a particularly robust 8-inch tablet. What does it have to offer besides toughness?
Samsung has smartphones and tablets in its product portfolio for virtually every niche and every use. With the Galaxy Tab Active for a not insignificant 499 euros, the Koreans are now closing one of the last gaps and launching a very special B2B and outdoor tablet into the market.
A quick glance is enough to see that Samsung is serious when it comes to the Galaxy Tab Active. Molded and shock-resistant corner sections, a structured housing enclosure and the ridged back with four metal feet and the metal edging of the camera lens speak for themselves. Should there be any doubts about the purpose of Galaxy Tab Active, a glance into the box will erase them. It contains the Protective Cover+ with a strong plastic back, a device enclosure made of hard rubber and a C Pen stylus integrated into the cover.
Finally, the Galaxy Tab Active also features an IP67 and MIL-STD 801G certification: it is dustproof and resists fresh water for one hour at a maximum depth of 30 centimeters. The tablet in conjunction with the cover survives falls from a maximum height of 1.20 meters without suffering damage. The Android buttons on the front are also designed as sturdy hard keys with a nonslip surface, making operation reliable.
An 8-inch TFT display with a somewhat low resolution of 800 x 1280 pixels is situated above the keys. The presentation is still good, however, and the measured brightness of 378 cd/m2 can is also highly visible. The results of the contrast measurements, however, are rather average.
A special feature of the Galaxy Tab Active is the exchange capability of the 4450 mAh battery: simply remove the back cover and insert the replacement battery. In the targeted business area, this should be a real selling point, as should the pogo pin contacts on the device side, which allow the tablet to recharge via the charging unit.
But this will not be necessary very often during the day, because with a duration of almost ten hours of mixed use, the Samsung tablet is ready for operation for long periods.
Modern technology is hidden under the hard shell. A Qualcomm platform with a 1.2 GHz quad-core CPU does its duty. In conjunction with the 1.5 GB of RAM, this is a powerful combination for business and multimedia applications. Samsung was also not stingy with user memory, and a whopping 11 GB is available for free use. If you need more, you can insert a micro SD card under the battery cover.
When it comes to connectivity, the Galaxy Tab Active is really in its element. The tablet dominates all current standards such as LTE, HSPA+, NFC and Bluetooth. The telephone and SMS function is a point of honor.
In terms of operation, there is no difference from the consumer tablets from Samsung, because the user interface is identical. This means there are a lot of options for customization and you can rely on perfect multitasking by means of the multi-window function, i.e. using two functions equally on the screen.
So if you are looking for a business tablet or a digital tool that is not susceptible to hard use, and if you can accept the high price, the Galaxy Tab Active is just the device for you. MICHAEL PEUCKERT