After huge success of its Tab 2 tablets, South Korean Giant Samsung has brought in India two tablets Galaxy Tab 3 T211 with 7″ inch display and Galaxy Tab 3 T311 with 8″ inch display. We have reviewed separately Galaxy Tab 3 T311 few days ago. Now, we have the opportunity to share with you our observations about the performance of 7″ inch Galaxy Tab 3 T211. Let’s get on with Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 T211 review.
The sole purpose of bringing out this mid-segment tablet was to address the demand for 7″ inch tablets and limited budget of such customers. There are many 7″ inch tablets in the market and to make this device hybrid, Samsung has added calling feature on this tablet. It is another matter that it looks very odd when you call or receive the call on this device. It is an awful experience to take this tablet near your ear to listen to incoming or making calls. Just imagine, if you are receiving lot of calls at short intervals then not only you will loose patience, but this exercise of carrying the tablet will drain your energies. If you still intend to use this device for calling, then we recommend you to do this with the help of earphones.
Design
Design wise, there is not much to write about. This tablet looks like flagship Galaxy S 3 and Galaxy Grand. Since, I have been using Galaxy Grand for most of the time, it looks as if Galaxy Tab 3 T211 is bigger version of Grand as Grand has 5″ inch display and the Tab has 7″ inch display. This tab has thickness of 9.9 mm, which does not allow it to get the ranking of the thinnest tablet available in the market making it comfortable enough to hold it.
Like Galaxy smartphone, this tab has home button and two touch sensitive buttons below the display of the device. On the left side, there is Micro SD opening and Sim slot; the right side is having the volume rocker and power button. On the bottom of the Tab, 2 speakers, micro USB connector and a microphone are placed, and the top houses the 3.5 mm audio jack. The top front houses a 1.3-megapixel camera, a speaker and the light and proximity sensor. The 3 MP camera is placed on the back of the Tab.
Camera
This Tab comes with 3 mega pixel rear and 1.3 mega pixel front camera. The quality of camera is average and you can shoot mediocre quality images with the shooters provided on the Tab. In fairly good lighting condition, the quality of images are still ok, but in low light conditions, the quality of snaps is very low.
Majority of users do not use the tablets for shooting purpose, but still we feel that at-least 5 mega pixel camera should have been in this tablet. The 1.3-megapixel rear camera is fine for video chats and self-portraits, but produces grainy images. Both the cameras are not recommended if one has the desire and need to shoot high quality images.
Software – User Interface
This tab runs on runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, with company’s TouchWiz UI on top. On the other hand, its bigger version Galaxy Tab 3 with 8″ inch display runs on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. We are disappointed that the latest Android Jelly Bean 4.3 is already out and this device should have carried Android 4.2.1 if not the latest version. Hopefully, Samsung will update this Tab with new version of OS, at the earliest possible. Unlike Galaxy Tab 3 T311, even Samsung’s own Touch Wiz UI is not of latest version, which we fail to understand why it is so. As a result, the icons are not that sharp as it is the case with the Galaxy Tab 3 – 8″ inch version. Probably, this is a small sacrifice to cut the cost.
The Galaxy Tab 3 T211 comes with pre-loaded apps like ‘My Education’ , ‘My Offers’, ‘My Games’ , ‘My Music’ and ‘ My Movies’. While ‘My Education’ gives consumers access to 2000 e-books , 1000 Learning Videos, educational content for school children and preparatory material for entrance exams to professional courses , ‘My Offers’ make available best local offers from 350+ brands and 25000+ merchants in India. 25 Edutainment Games and 20 HD Games are available for the users to download on the Tab 3 Series. ‘My Music’ application gives users access to 500,000 Bollywood and International Songs while ‘My Movies’ allows Tab 3 users to stream trailers , videos and movies from over 2000+ selected catalogs. These apps are not much, but sufficient enough to while-away your time in free time.
Display
The Galaxy Tab 3 T211 comes with a 7″ inch TFT display with a resolution of 1024 x 600 (WSVGA). To keep the price low, Samsung had to put mediocre screen on this device. The screen is difficult to read in direct sunlight but this is a known problem with every TFT screen, and this tab is ideal for indoor use only.
Movie and video watching on this Tab is good experience and you can enjoy your favorite movies in good quality. However, when you run your movie for long and stream the content for longer duration, this Tab heats up a bit. Slimmer design ergonomics means direct contact with heat sink capability of device. Nothing to be concerned about.
Performance
It is powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor alongside 1 GB of RAM. The tablet has 8 GB internal storage, which can be expanded up-to 32 GB via microSD card. It also comes bundled with 50 GB dropbox offer for cloud storage. Because of powerful processor under the hood, we did not face any problem while navigating the apps or loading any app. Despite our constant use for few days, we didn’t experience any problem of any sort and it performed trouble free.
We can’t call it the fastest tablet, but considering its mid-segment target, it is performs well. Surprisingly, smart functions of Samsung are missing on this Tab. The quite popular smart functions like Smart Stay which puts the device to sleep mode if not used, and Multi-Window, which enable users to work on two apps by splitting the screen in two etc., have been emitted in this Tab, probably for cutting the price.
On the audio front, the sound quality is loud and clear and with earphones, it becomes more clear. As is the practice with Samsung, they have also omitted FM radio function on this Tab.
Battery
This tablet is packed with 4000 mAh battery, which is quite powerful. We used it for about 18 to 20 hours with single charge and our usage included Wi-Fi turned on for all time, casual web browsing, a handful of calls, gmail account sync, 2 Bollywood movies and whatsapp. This tablet has a standby time of up-to 1000 hours and this is quite good.
Conclusion
Galaxy Tab 3 T211 has some flaws like low resolution display, average camera, absence of smart function, and older version of Android Jelly Bean. This Tab is priced at Rs. 17,700, which is bit higher. But, still this Tab has many plus points like ease of operation, smooth running of apps, good audio output, sturdy design and is more comfortable to hold in your hand. Although, the customers have many options to consider other tablets in this price range, but we still recommend to go in for this Tab, if you are looking for mid-range tablet as Samsung product always prove good value for money for its existing features and upcoming upgrades.
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