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MWC 2017: Samsung Focus on New Tablets in Absence of Galaxy S8

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With reference to the upcoming Galaxy S8 at this year's Mobile Wold Congress limited to a March 29 launch date confirmation, Samsung chose to put the focus on two new tablets, the Android-powered Galaxy Tab S3 and the Galaxy Book, which runs Windows 10.

Aiming to compete with the iPad Pro, the Tab S3 comes with a 9.7-inch HDR-ready Super AMOLED display running at 2,048 x 1,536 resolution. On the back is a 13 megapixel camera, while a 5 megapixel camera sits on the front, where a fingerprint sensor lives on the home button.

samsung tab s3 thumb
The new metal and glass-backed design is 6mm thick, and houses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 4GB of RAM, 32GB of storage (expandable up to 256GB with a microSD), built-in LTE, and a 6,000 mAh battery with Fast Charging support using the USB-C port. A new Note7-like S Pen stylus is also included.

The Galaxy Book was Samsung's other big announcement at MWC. The hybrid tablet-laptop, positioned as a Surface Pro competitor, comes in 10.6-inch and 12-inch versions, with 1,920 x 1,280 and 2,160 x 1,440 resolutions, respectively.

samsung galaxy book official render 1
The 10.6-inch size features a 2.6GHz Intel Core m3 dual-core processor, 4GB of RAM, up to 128GB of storage, and has a 5 megapixel front-facing camera. The 12-inch Galaxy Book has a 3.1GHz Intel Core i5 dual-core processor, up to 8GB of RAM, and up to 256GB of storage, with a 13 megapixel camera on the back and a 5 megapixel one on the front.

Samsung has not yet announced any pricing information for the Tab S3 and Galaxy Book. Meanwhile, Apple is expected to launch new 12.9-inch iPads and a new flagship 10.5-inch model in March. The latter is said to have an edge-to-edge display on the same footprint as the current 9.7-inch iPad.

Top Rated Comments

Gorms Avatar
119 months ago
Huh, they've switched from 16:9 to 4:3 ratio to match the iPad. When did they start doing that? Good for them, 16:9 suuuuucks for tablets.

Apart from that, the Book shows how close Apple are to having the iPad be this mythical computer replacement as soon as they make the few productivity tweaks that it requires.

Did anyone see Steve Troughton Smith's Finder app demos on iPad over the weekend? Interesting to see a version of Finder app on iPad (also, seeing Finder using UIKit).
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
119 months ago
The difference is the Galaxy Book, like the Surface it competes against, runs Windows. No one wants a "laptop replacement" running a mobile OS.
I agree. If becoming a true "laptop replacement" is the actual goal as is has been touted by Apple's marketing machinery, then vainilla iOS simply is not enough.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KieranDotW Avatar
119 months ago
Apart from that, the Book shows how close Apple are to having the iPad be this mythical computer replacement as soon as they make the few productivity tweaks that it requires.
The difference is the Galaxy Book, like the Surface it competes against, runs Windows. No one wants a "laptop replacement" running a mobile OS.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
maflynn Avatar
119 months ago
With phone footprints on the increase the phablet market will merge at some point
I'd also say the high costs of phones is another factor, spending nearly a 1,000 dollars for a phone that does everything a tablet does, means there's less justification to a tablet imo.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Abazigal Avatar
119 months ago
Android apps aren't blown up. They fit the screen normally. iOS apps are blown up and pixelated. Source:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ipad-pro-blows-in-many-respects-i-just-sent-this-to-apple-feature-request.1948220/

@Abazigal, in the thread I just linked, you admit iOS apps are blown up, stop pretending ios isn't like that. Straight up liar.

@MacFan23, if you use apps that are iOS exclusive, stay on iOS. Easy descion for you.
By blown up, I mean the android apps aren't designed specifically for a tablet resolution or layout. They continue to sport a smartphone interface, and have simply been resized for a lager display.

With the iPad, most tablet apps are coded specifically with the resolution of the iPad in mind, and so they tend to sport a better interface and design. Yes, there are apps like Instagram which still don't have tablet apps, but those are more the exception than the norm.

You want to call someone a liar, I suggest you take a cue from your namesake and get your own facts right first; and take a look at who you are responding to.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
119 months ago
Node + RX 480.
I keep posting on all this stuff at https://egpu.io/forums/activity/menneisyys/
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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