2014年8月28日星期四

Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Nook evaluate: Advantage designed for recital, but hardly the top funds tablet

Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Nook evaluate: Advantage designed for recital, but hardly the top funds tablet

Nearby was a point as soon as Barnes & decent was so vast, so dominating, so as to even Tom Hanks managed to look like a jerk as soon as he played a book-chain executive. But time retain untouched, and in the role of group began to order their books online -- before even download them -- B&N found itself struggling to keep up. Once down a grouping of money end time, the company firm it was point designed for a switch: It vowed to discontinue making its own remedy, and as a substitute team up with round about third-party company to better take on Amazon and its Kindle Fire line. Turns shown, so as to third gang was nobody other than Samsung, and the fruits of their association, the $179 Galaxy Tab 4 Nook, is basically a repackaged version of the existing Galaxy Tab 4 7.0. Well, almost, anyway. The 7-inch slate comes pre-loaded with $200 worth of gratis content, and the principal Nook app has been redesigned to the sense so as to it truly offers a better recital experience than the regular Nook machine app. But is so as to a advantage adequate sanity to obtain this as a substitute of a Kindle Fire? Before several other machine tablet, designed for so as to difficulty?

In the role of you've already gathered, this is the same hardware you'll locate on the 7-inch Galaxy Tab 4, which came shown four months in the past. Since we in no way got around to reviewing so as to, though, I'll make a thorough walk-through at this point in the role of if it were a brand-new device. What's funny is so as to depending on how you look by the side of it, you truly retain seen this tablet facing: The Nook (available in the field of black and white) has the same textured plastic funding in the role of other current Samsung procedure. In the role of I've assumed approximately other products, like the Chromebook 2, the gristly plastic and chrome accents turn a extensive way in the field of making an otherwise generic device look new expensive than it is. In the role of a bonus, the textured plastic doesn't pick up fingerprints, and it's pretty scratch-resistant, too. For the duration of my hard, I routinely tossed the tablet in the field of a bag with pointed items like pens and keys, and it in no way emerged worse designed for wear.

The Galaxy Tab 4 Nook is a 7-inch device, so of lessons it's undersized, trivial and uncomplicated to accommodate. By the side of 0.35 move slowly thick, it's a not very overweight compared to other small-screen slates, like the 8-inch Galaxy Tab S. Even so, it weighs in the past few minutes 0.6 buffet, so let's not nitpick to the sense anywhere we're calling this matter "heavy." It's not. And likewise, you might even locate so as to individuals spacious, unexciting edges reach the tablet easier to accommodate.

Designed for a funds device, the screen is truly quite lovely. Effective, the 1,280 x 800 decree translates to a not-so-great pixel density of 216 ppi, but so therefore again, I beg your pardon? New did you expect on a $179 tablet? Designed for the money, you persuade a intense panel with advantage viewing angles that's well-suited designed for recital and movie-watching. Even by the side of half-brightness, I had nix problems using it on a extensive rail stumble, with daylight streaming in the field of through the window after that to me.

Flip the device around and you'll locate the usual epidemic of ports: A earphone jack up top, a micro-USB charging socket on the floor, a loudspeaker and 3-megapixel camera around back and a 1.3MP single up front. The proper tiptoe, meanwhile, is habitat to a volume rocker, power button and IR blaster -- a literally uncommon item on a funds tablet. Nearby, you'll and locate a microSD slot underneath cards up to 32GB. It's a embarrass, so as to -- you'll need each end spot of luggage compartment liberty to augment the device's sparse 8GB of built-in remembrance, no more than 2GB of which is user-accessible.

The way Samsung and Barnes & decent slanting the device, this is Samsung hardware assorted with B&N's Nook software. That's a not very misleading: This is a Samsung tablet, with Samsung's user interface, but with round about Nook apps scattered in the field of, too. I beg your pardon? We retain at this point is the same TouchWiz experience -- everything from the icons to the onscreen piano to the settings menu is the same in the role of on other Samsung remedy. Too, there's Samsung's signature Multi Window item, allowing you to observe two apps elevation by elevation. It even has Google dramatic piece access, so you can download all the apps you'd install on several other machine device -- of course, with Amazon Kindle. What's careful, though, is so as to unlike other Samsung remedy, this single doesn't include Sammy's pushy My Magazine -- vast panels so as to sit to the gone of the habitat screen and can't stay uninvolved. I don't really like the Galaxy Tab 4 Nook, in the role of you'll envision, but I make desire other Samsung products had this scaled-back UI.

Other than so as to, the biggest difference is so as to Sammy pre-loaded the Nook tablet with round about secret Barnes & decent applications, with Nook Apps, Nook files, Nook Search, Nook Settings, Nook store, Nook in the present day (a custom-made recommendation engine) and Nook Highlights (useful if you elect to underline stuff in the role of you're reading). You'll and locate (removable) widgets designed for your files and the Nook stockroom -- in the field of actuality, both were waiting designed for me on the habitat screen as soon as I booted up the device.

Additionally, Samsung and Barnes & decent tossed in the field of round about gratis content -- a motley collection of books, magazines, movies and television shows assumed to stay worth $200. There's something designed for each person at this point; the flip elevation is so as to much of it long for probably register in the role of scrap. On your bookshelf, To destroy a Mockingbird sits alongside a Danielle Steel romance and the kid's title Pete the Cat. Designed for film and television, there's the pilot episode of Veep, with other shows, in the role of well in the role of The Lego film. (Fortunately, the Nook has a parental control item allowing designed for distinct user profiles.) If it's magazines you're once, you retain a top-notch of three: Us Weekly, public Geographic and Sports Illustrated. Decisively, you'll persuade $5 in the field of Nook stockroom acknowledgment. It's a careful gesture, but it won't turn far: Five bucks isn't adequate to obtain on the whole e-books in the field of B&N's log. Again, I'm effective the two companies inevitable well, but if it were a top-notch relating specially content and a tablet with closer performance and longer battery life, I'd elect the latter in the field of a heartbeat.

What's surprised me is so as to this is not a copy-and-paste of the regular Nook designed for machine app. Where the Nook product on my Moto X combines the files, search and stockroom functions into single place, the Galaxy Tab 4 Nook contains distinct apps designed for all individuals things. Whichever you apply, the principal functionality is the same: In the field of addition to recital content, you can access the stockroom, highlight passages and rate/review stuff. But at this point, the icons are distinct, and you don't until the end of time retain to drill in the role of far into menus to persuade I beg your pardon? You would like (see: Font options, search, catalog of contents). Highlighting text is and easier in the field of the Samsung app than the regular machine single. If no matter which, the UI feels new analogous to Barnes & Noble's e-ink e-readers, which is funny as so as to would seem to stay an entirely distinct caste of upshot. Certainly, this is a new pleasant Nook experience than I beg your pardon? You'd persuade on other machine procedure. Something to keep in the field of mind if you're already a loyal Barnes & decent customer.

Beside the various Nook apps, Samsung installed a little other third-party programs in the role of well, with Dropbox, Hancom function 2014, Netflix, OfficeSuite 7 (the new robust of the two function programs here) and the game Rayman Jungle Run. You'll and locate a shortcut to Samsung's own curated app stockroom -- you know, be supposed to Google dramatic piece not stay adequate. Apparently, this is a spot of a assorted bag, but to every his own. You can by the side of smallest amount uninstall no matter which so as to doesn't suit you.

This be supposed to go in the role of a shock to nix single, but the Galaxy Tab 4 Nook is no more than a advantage theory if you're already a loyal Barnes & decent customer. Setting aside the actuality so as to it comes with gratis content (a device, if you ask me), this tablet is appealing as it offers a better recital experience than even the regular Nook designed for machine app. Until Barnes & decent redesigns its standard machine product, this is the top Nook experience you're ready to persuade, to the point of import single of B&N's standalone, e-ink e-readers.

Even so therefore, that's a stretch: It's not like the regular Nook app is so bad so as to you shouldn't consider other machine remedy. If you're not even a Nook customer, so therefore there's without doubt nix sanity to obtain this. Effective, the design is careful, and the screen is intense, but the battery life is to the point compared to competing procedure, and the performance is slower. Addition insult to injury, you persuade not as much of built-in luggage compartment designed for apps, books, photos and song, and the microSD slot doesn't officially support cards superior than 32GB. Designed for group who in the past few minutes would like a funds machine tab, and don't assiduousness anywhere they obtain their books, you can make better, even designed for $179.

Tags : Samsung , Galaxy , Tab 4 Nook , tablet



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