Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5″ Review

Product provided for review. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

My family is pretty much obsessed with technology. We love the convenience of our portable electronic devices and I can’t imagine a world without them. Life with them is more streamlined and gives us the opportunity to constantly be connected to everyone, all at the same time.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5″ Review

When I received the Samsung Galaxy Tab S last month for review, I was skeptical that it could compare to our other tablets. But once I took it out of the box and turned it on for the first time, the impressive screen and brilliant display blew my doubts out of the water.

The Tab S 10.5″  is available in Dazzling White and Titanium Bronze. The one I received is Titanium Bronze, but to me it looks more gray than bronze. There is a thin bronze trim, but definitely not enough to justify its name. The majority of the tablet is a gray, including the dimpled back.

This tablet is their thinnest tablet measuring in at only .26″  and the lightest yet weighing in at only 1.02 lbs. I found the tablet to be very easy to hold and it felt comfortable in my hands.

The top left edge is home to the power/lock button and volume rocker, and there are dual speakers, one on each side of the tablet. Above the speaker on the left edge, there is also a headphone jack. The right side edge is home to the microSD card slot and micro-USB port.

On the front along the bottom bezel you’ll find a recent apps button, home button and back button.

On the dippled, plastic back there are two circles that are used to easily attach one of Samsung’s optional cases onto the Tab S (which I highly recommend by the way). There are also other cases you can use if you want a little more protection.

The pixel-packed AMOLED display boasts rich colors and deep contrast levels to give you an impressive user experience. I’ve owned many tablets, and played with some that I haven’t owned, and by far, the Tab S features the best display to date. It’s stunning, crisp and leaves nothing to be desired.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S is an Android-powered device and offers software such as Paper Garden, Samsung’s new magazine service and Milk Music, a free streaming music radio service. If you own a Samsung Galaxy S5, SideSync 3.0 allows you to sync your Tab S with your smartphone. Since these are Samsung’s software, you won’t find these available on other Android devices.

The Tab S features a fingerprint scanner for unlocking the device. It’s easy to setup and offers an additional level of security. In addition to the fingerprint scanner, you can also use an alternate passcode to unlock the device. I found that the fingerprint scanner was a little testy at times. It did not work consistently for me.

You can take multi-tasking to a new level with the multi-window function. Although it doesn’t work with all apps, you can check email and browse the web at the same time. For the most part, the Tab S runs smoothly. But if you are running heavy apps in the background, it can get sluggish. You can usually fix this by only keeping apps that you’re using running.

If more than one person will be using the Tab S, it is family-friendly with Multi User Mode. Everyone in the family can create a private and personalized tablet experience that can be secured with the fingerprint scanner (it will store three fingerprint scans per user). You can also customize and add parental controls with Kids Mode.

And the battery life is pretty impressive, almost as impressive as the vibrant display. It’s advertised as getting up to 9 hours of battery life, but even with moderate use I am able to get more. When it’s not being used, I’d guess you could get a few days out of the battery. And if you turn on ultra power-saving mode, you can get weeks!

Samsung Galaxy Tab S owners are entitled to “Galaxy Gifts,” which include premium app subscriptions worth over $600!

Overall, I really like this tablet. It’s intimidating if you’ve never used an Android device, but with time and patience I’ve been able to learn my way around. It looks sleek, has a impressive display and a battery that lasts for days.

Buy:

You can purchase the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5“ for the suggested retail price of $499.99.

I’ll be adding a giveaway for a Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5″ soon so be sure to subscribe and follow me on Twitter and Facebook so you don’t miss the announcement. [UPDATE: The Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5″ Giveaway is now live!]