“Among popular tablets, there are small ones, with seven-inch screens, and standard-sized ones, with 10-inch screens. But for some users, the perfect combination of portability and usability lies in between, with tablets boasting screens of about eight inches,” Walt Mossberg writes for Re/code. “The best-known product in this segment is Apple’s 7.9-inch iPad mini, which starts at $399 with a high-resolution Retina display. But Samsung, which makes tablets in a wide variety of sizes and types, is mounting its latest assault on the mini with the new $400 Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4.”
“My verdict: Samsung has done a nice job, but not a great job, on this product. Some impressive hardware engineering has been offset by weak battery life and a limited selection of tablet-optimized software,” Mossberg writes. “The biggest disappointment on the hardware front for me came in my battery test, the same one I perform on every tablet. For the test, I set screen brightness to 75 percent, turn off power-saving features, leave on the Wi-Fi to collect email in the background and play videos till the tablet dies. In this test, the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 lasted a pathetic five hours and 11 minutes, less than half the iPad mini’s time of 11 hours and 17 minutes.”
“Like all Android devices, the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 has access to an undisclosed (but relatively small) number of apps that are especially optimized for tablets. Most of the apps that run on Android tablets are stretched phone apps,” Mossberg writes. “By contrast, Apple iPad owners can choose from more than 475,000 apps that have been optimized to take advantage of the larger tablet screens, with added panels and modules and the like. (And the iPad can run all the iPhone apps, as well.) The weak battery life and limited tablet software selection prevent me from recommending the new Tab Pro 8.4 over the iPad mini.”
Much more in the full article here.
So you can have a Cadillac or a Hyundai, but the Hyundai costs exactly the same?
Accept no Korean imitators.
I prefer Hyundai and Apple. I can’t stand Cadillac.
As long as you like APPLE, you are OK!
Aim for big like MERCEDES if you can’t stand Cadillac!
I’ll race your “fill in the blank” with my CTS-V any time on any track. haha
Can CTS-V be treated with penicillin?
You can’t be talking about today’s Cadillac. Awesome cars, competitive with anything Europe has to offer.
Except that they are old men’s cars and ugly as a Samsung watch. (and made in the US)
You see, that’s the ‘old’ Cadlllac you’re talking about.
Look into the CTS VSport, for instance, then get back to me.
That was the 2014 four door old man’s family sedan, right? Same as ever.
See, now you’re just being contrary, especially since that “old man’s family” sedan is competing quite well against the likes of BMW and Mercedes.
And the VSport isn’t the most potent CTS in the stable.
Give up Brian. 313c7ro is talking smack and hasn’t a clue. He’s prefers four door Hyundai’s. He probably has that baby puke green one. haha
The only “old man” car I see on the road is a those tank type Mercedes that all those old folks drive really slow on the road. Obviously not much of a car guy. He’d probably say the same about a M6.
1. It looks like a Mercedes done by an overzealous designer
2. Except it is not a Mercedes
3. Even rappers prefer European, and they have no taste….
Hyundais are nicer than Samsungs.
If you were setting up a comparison between quality and price you could have done better than the overpriced Crapolets being sold as Crapillacs from Obama Motors.
Walt should put a disclaimer at the top of every one of his articles stating that Samsung approached him with payment, but once again he declined because he wanted to continue with some integrity in this industry of payoffs.
He says he likes stolen OS Android.
I wonder if I could ask for some evidence that Samsung is paying for good reviews. I don’t doubt that they are, but when I tell people not to buy a samsung product because of “x”, I like to have something to back up my claim. Does anyone have resources for this claim, particularly more recent info so that it can’t be said,”oh, they used to do that, but not any more,”?
Drops note to Samsung. They’ll put you on the payroll in no time.
Search MDN. You should find several articles on Samsung payoffs and deceptive benchmark practices. If you don’t find what you need in MDN, then try a more global web search.
But but but disingenuous Fandroid with blinders on beg to disagree…
Not surprised, but silly people will still buy Samsung because they are cheap and just good enough
But it’s not cheaper than the iPad mini.
There you go, shows how much I don’t know about samsung. Surprised that the samsung tablet is the same price as an apple ipad mini, so the people buying samsung tablets are really stupid. However I have seen aggressive deals on samsung tablets and I suppose people get them then 😡😡
“Lighter and Thinner”? Mathematically only. 0.01″ thinner and 1/3 oz lighter = the same.
8Mpixel vs 5Mpixel = meaningless specsmanship. The lenses make or break the cameras. A 2006 Nikon D40 at 6 Mpixels will blow either one away.
16 GB running android leaves how many GB for data compared to the Mini’s iOS? No contest. Mini wins in a landslide.
Washed out screen in sunlight.
1/2 the battery life and no apps.
Same price.
Who would want it?
The Retina mini isn’t even Apple at their very best. Considering what they did to the iPad, they’re likely preparing an “iPad mini Air” of sorts that’s even thinner and lighter (and with Touch ID of course). Yet the industry still can’t come close to a product that Jony Ive finished like a year ago.
Samsung wants to charge as much as an Retina iPad Mini for an extra .5″ of screen. That company is fscking delusional.
Nice computer, too bad it’s running Windows, designed by geeks and built out of spare parts.
Nice tablet, too bad it’s running Android, designed by geeks and built out of spare parts.
Nice phone, too bad it’s running Android, designed by geeks and built out of spare parts.
Why is Walt wasting his time on these POS ?
Why are we wasting our time on Walt?
😉
Old farts need attention too.
Dear Mossberg, how much $$ would help make you change your mind and to whom should I sign this check ?
Signed: Your dear friend who loves and respects your work.
It’s less than pathetic. Even an undocumented street trader dealing in blatant counterfeit merchandise would be ashamed to be seen with a galaxy tab pro 8.4
Seems the belief that Android ‘stretches’ phone apps to tablet size is still going strong.. In actuality it is better said that apps are resized proportionately on Android.. The design of app displays are in the majority of cases based on HTML type markup as opposed to that for iOS which uses a more absolute sizing method hence the appearance of pixelized screen elements when you stretch phone apps for iOS on tablets which does not happen for Android in most cases.
Apple leads, Samdungs swallows. Nuff said.
Put it on 75% brightness and remove power saver. And ran video test and some email. Ok I have both device mini with retina, tab pro 8.4 kitkat. Now you do understand that the ipads has a battery saver that can’t be turn off and what did you do for screen on it. I love my mini. But till you run the tab pro 8.4 hard with multi tasking and all. My mini becomes a media unit. Yes I can do work and all, but tell you what I been using the Tab Pro 8.4 more lately than my mini cause I can be watching movies and writing and editing words and excel things. So do this run a movie than hit that button to make it small, then open hword drag it to the left, then open hell drag it to the right and wait my movie still playing, yes it is. So lets drag that to the center. Wait pinch and zoom the movie to make it bigger. Oh my. Yep you are right on this, this tab pro 8.4 can not compare to my ipad mini with retina. So yes I have couple more days before I decide whether to return the Tab Pro 8.4 but you know what. I am keeping this baby. Honestly this thing is SOLID. Hey I still use my mini retina for my movies and safari web. But heck I can do that on my new Tab Pro 8.4 at the same time. Again don’t get me wrong I love my mini retina BUT…………
I have the first ipad mini and was thinking of getting the new retina mini. But may try the new Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro. Mr Gus does it do well on media side also. Like pictures, music and videos. I like your post since you have both device. By the way how is the new mini in your thoughts
The Tab Pro does media not to bad. Not fluid like the mini does. But it does. The tab camera features is like the Galaxy s4 but in a tablet form. Not as sharp as the phone camera but don’t think you be taking much pictures with a tablet and video play back with stock app is not bad at all. All in all I am very impress with the tab. Love the multi tasking. I was able to do 3 things at the same time. And since this is the pro edition it does come with Hword and Hexel which is like Office. Believe me this thing is pretty solid for what it does. I love the new mini, nice sharp screen being that it has the retina now. But when come to doing some things like office and multitasking I love using the tab. The mini does multitask but pressing the home button twice and swipe which app you want. Just not like the tab, which I can have side by side apps at the same time and to top it off I have a video running in the center. But must open the video first than hit the button on the top right to make it small then swipe your finger from the left to right which open the multitask and just choose which app you want than drag it to the right than swipe your finger again from the left to right and choose another app and drag it to the left and there you have it. 2 apps running and still have the video playing at the same time. And that is great. Buy it from BestBuy they have good return policy. If your not happy return it and get the new mini with retina. But for now I am keeping the tab and I think I will be using it more than my mini retina. This is just my take on the two device which I have. Thanks and good luck
Always funny to see biased article. No doubt Moss is not payed by Samsung. But what about apple ?
But….but…WHY would you test it at a blisteringly high 75% brightness? Ive owned 3 Android tablets and I never went beyond 50%…..
Come on now….
I see shades of Apple fanboyism in this article
Totally biased article froman apple fanboy.