Samsung Galaxy NotePRO 12.2 vs TabPRO 12.2 vs iPad Air: specs comparison

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Samsung Galaxy NotePRO 12.2 vs TabPRO 12.2 vs iPad Air: specs comparison
Among the more intriguing new tablets that made an appearance at this year's Consumer Electronics Show is the Samsung Galaxy NotePRO 12.2. Actually, the same can easily be said about its relative, the TabPRO 12.2, which tends to be identical, except for the lack of an S Pen stylus. However, when the topic is 'tablets', there's one device that's still way up there, above all others, and that's Apple's iPad. Its latest edition, the iPad Air, not only brought the state-of-the-art A7 SoC, but also introduced a brand new, thin and light design that can make almost any other 10" tablet out there look and feel chubby.

That said, Samsung's latest slates are decidedly high-end. Both the NotePRO and the TabPRO have high-resolution screens (2560 x 1600 pixels), along with the tried and true Snapdragon 800 chipset (though in some markets that's going to be replaced by Samsung's Exynos 5 Octa). Add a complete set of connectivity features, loads of RAM and easy memory expansion, and you've got some pretty solid products here that could make some people consider substituting their iTunes-powered tablets with something a bit more Samsung-ish. Well, if you're one of those people standing at a crossroad, perhaps we can help you out with a useful specs comparison, such as the one below? Sure, we can't comment on how the overall user experiences compare yet, but at least we can have a nice and informative overview of how the hardware stacks up, right? OK, then, let's do this!

Samsung Galaxy NotePRO 12.2 Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 12.2 Apple iPad Air

Design

Dimensions
11.64 x 8.03 x 0.31 inches
295.6 x 204 x 7.95 mm
11.64 x 8.03 x 0.31 inches
295.6 x 204 x 7.95 mm
9.45 x 6.67 x 0.30 inches
240 x 169.5 x 7.5 mm
Weight
26.56 oz (753.0 g) 26.10 oz (740.0 g) 16.86 oz (478.0 g)
Materials
Back: Aluminum
Features
Stylus
Keys
Right: Volume control, Other
Colors
Black, Gray, Silver, White

Display

Size
12.2-inch, 71.57% screen-to-body 12.2-inch, 71.57% screen-to-body 9.7-inch, 71.65% screen-to-body
Type
Super Clear LCD Super Clear LCD IPS LCD
Resolution
1600x2560px, 247 PPI 1600x2560px, 247 PPI 1536x2048px, 264 PPI
Colors
16 777 216 16 777 216 16 777 216
Features
Oleophobic coating, Ambient light sensor

Hardware

System chip
Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 Apple A7
Processor
Quad-core
2300 MHz
Krait 400
Quad-core
2300 MHz
Krait 400
Dual-core
1400 MHz
Cyclone
GPU
Adreno 330 Adreno 330 PowerVR G6430
Memory
3GB (LPDDR3)/64GB
3GB/32GB
3GB (LPDDR3)/64GB
3GB/32GB
1GB (LPDDR3)/128GB
1GB/16GB
1GB/32GB
1GB/64GB
1GB/128GB
Storage expansion
microSDHC up to 64 GB microSDHC up to 64 GB
OS
Android (5.0 Lollipop, 4.4) Android (4.4) iOS (12.x, 11.x, 10.x, 9.x, 8.x, 7.x)

Battery

Type
9500 mAh 9500 mAh 8820 mAh, Li - Polymer

Camera

Rear
Single camera Single camera Single camera
Main camera
8 MP (Autofocus) 8 MP (Autofocus) 5 MP (Autofocus, BSI sensor)
Aperture size: F2.4
Focal length: 33 mm
Flash
LED LED
Video recording
1080p (30 fps) 1080p (60 fps) 1080p (30 fps)
Time-lapse video, EIS, Video calling
Front
2 MP
Video capture: 1080p
2 MP 1.2 MP
Video capture: 720p (30 fps)

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
4.0 4.0 4.0
WLAN
a,b,g,n,dual-band,ac
MIMO, Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
a,b,g,n,dual-band,ac
MIMO, Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
a,b,g,n,dual-band
Multiple antennas, MIMO, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n
USB
microUSB, USB 3.0 microUSB, USB 3.0 Lightning
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Ambient light sensor Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Ambient light sensor Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Ambient light sensor
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass GPS, A-GPS, Glonass A-GPS, Glonass, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning
Other
ANT+, Infrared, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync, ANT+, Infrared Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync, AirDrop

Multimedia

Headphones
3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack
Speakers
Multiple speakers Multiple speakers Multiple speakers
Features
Album art cover, Background playback Album art cover, Background playback Album art cover, Background playback
Screen mirroring
Wireless screen share TV-out
Additional microphone(s)
Yes

Cellular

4G (FDD)
Bands 8, 3, 1, 7 Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26
3G
Bands 5, 8, 2, 1 Bands 5, 8, 2, 1 Bands 5, 8, 2, 1
Data Speed
LTE Cat 4 (150/50 Mbit/s), LTE, HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s, UMTS LTE, HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s, UMTS LTE, HSPA, UMTS
SIM type
Nano SIM

Phone Features

Notifications
Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone Flight mode, Silent mode
Other features
Voice commands, Voice recording Voice commands, Voice recording Voice commands, Voice recording

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Oct 22, 2013
FCC ID value: BCGA1475
Measured SAR
Body: 1.19 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.33 W/kg

Availability

Officially announced
Jan 06, 2014 Jan 06, 2014 Oct 22, 2013
MSRP
$ 929

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