It is no secret that the tablet market has been declining, people seem to have lost interest in these devices as they don’t offer significant changes or improvements compared to the tablets from a few years ago. Some manufacturers have been focusing on offering some of their tablets with very powerful processors. The idea would be that these tablets replace laptops, offering better performance and more portability. Samsung took a different approach and released a humongous tablet running Android on mid-range specs, so it’s clearly targeted towards media consumption rather than productivity.
The tablet is called Galaxy View and after several leaks and rumors, the tablet finally became official last week. It features a screen that measures 18.4 inches and while its Full HD resolution is quite low for today’s standards, this, being an AMOLED panel, should provide vibrant colors and excellent contrast levels. The tablet is so big, that it even has a handle so it can be transported around more easily. That handle is part of a stand so the tablet can be viewed in two positions, one meant to watch videos and another one in a more horizontal angle meant to read magazines or play games. The hinge is in a fixed position, though, so users won’t be able to make it completely flat. The tablet is made entirely of plastic, possibly to make it as light as possible.
The rest of the specs include an octa-core Exynos 7580 processor clocked at 1.6 GHz and 2 GB of RAM. There are only 32 GB of internal memory, but it can be expanded with Micro SD cards. The tablet includes stereo speakers, each one with 4W of power. The large integrated 5,700 mAh battery, should last for 8 hours of video playback. TouchWiz is running on top of Android 5.1.1, and some of the apps have been optimized to be used on its larger screen. Just as expected, the tablet is now available to pre-order from many retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, B&H and Samsung’s own website, among others. The price with only Wi-Fi connectivity starts at $599 and there should be a variant featuring LTE connectivity, but there’s no word on when will that become available.
