Samsung Galaxy View Review

Introduction

Samsung’s tablet line has always been a diversified one catering to an assortment of consumers. Recently, however, they’ve scaled back the amount of models they manufacture, focusing instead on a select few that are more meaningful. Still, it shouldn’t by any surprise to see them experimenting every once in a while – and this latest one surely proves that!

The Samsung Galaxy View is just that, a ginormous tablet that never goes unnoticed anywhere it’s brought because of its larger-than-life 18.4-inch display. Considering that many people associate tablets for being portable alternatives to consumer-grade laptops, it begs the question of what’s the intent of this one.

The package contains:

• Samsung Galaxy View
• Proprietary Wall Charger
• microUSB cable
• Get start guide
• Warranty Information

Design

Big, boring, and old-school Samsung design.

Instead of following the newer, more premium design language of its current Galaxy Tab S2 line, the Galaxy View resorts to employing Sammy’s older design principles. Its chassis is pretty much comprised out of plastic, giving the entire package the boring and dull look that for the longest of time gave Samsung the stigma of a company incapable of good designs. Despite the subdued approach, its size is what undoubtedly makes it a standout wherever we bring it – the kind of thing that generates buzz from curious strangers.

This isn’t easy to carry around, that’s for sure! Not only is it large and heavy for a tablet, but it’s nearly impossible to shove into a backpack due to the way the kickstand articulates and how it can’t be collapsed to make it flush. Rather, moving it around is achieved by just holding onto the handle on the kickstand. It’s obviously not convenient, but it’s the best way of traveling around with it.

Speaking of the kickstand, there are basically two ways of positioning it – one that allows it to stand freely by itself, and another that tilts it slightly for better use on a flat surface or on our lap. Unfortunately, the kickstand doesn’t articulate any more than that.

Display

Plenty of real-estate, but don’t look at it too closely.

In matching its Herculean size, the Galaxy View isn’t shy about showing off its 18.4-inch 1920 x 1080 TFT display. Needless to say, it’s vast beyond the majority of Android tablets in circulation, so that in itself is something that procures curious glances from people. Even though 1080p resolution is sufficient for smaller sized screens, it’s simply not effective here because it makes the entire thing appear pixelated. Sure, while we have no major issues in reading passages of text on a web site, it clearly doesn’t achieve the same sharpness we find in smaller sized screens.

Aside from its generous real estate, there’s really nothing that profoundly stands out with the display. For starters, it’s a bit cold with its 7168K color temperature. However, we will certainly attest that it’s visible outdoors, partly due to its potent 441 nit luminance. All told, the display mainly generates interest from its sheer size.

Interface and Functionality

TouchWiz undersells itself and misses an opportunity to become desktop-like.

Samsung’s TouchWiz UI is known to be incredibly powerful in contrast to other custom Android experiences, so it’s no shock that the Galaxy View taps into it. Power users will especially like the multi-tasking element in play with the interface, since the tablet’s screen size makes it more effective to enjoy two apps running side-by-side to one another – it’s far more enjoyable than doing it with a Galaxy smartphone. However, we feel that the interface isn’t fully utilizing tablet’s potential.

Nowadays, we have these bridge devices, like the Apple iPad Pro and Microsoft Surface Pro 4, which offer desktop-like experiences in a tablet form factor. Taking its size into consideration, we would think that the Galaxy View would follow the same route. However, that’s unfortunately not the case because the interface is selling itself short by underutilizing the screen’s vast real estate. Many of the native apps are optimized to take advantage of the extra real-estate, but many third party ones just scale up from what we’re used to getting from a smartphone.

To that degree, there’s just too much dead space in many of the apps. It’s even maddening when it comes to surfing the web, mainly because neither Chrome nor Samsung’s browser pulls up desktop sites first – choosing instead to load mobile versions first. Even crazier, there’s not an option to always load desktop versions of sites from the onset.

System Performance

Choppiness and delays make it a test of patience.

Compared to the rest of the field, the Galaxy View’s processing performance in several synthetic benchmarks are worse than some tablets from a year ago. That’s a shame, considering that its octa-core 1.6GHz Exynos 7580 chipset coupled with 2GB of RAM sounds good on paper. In reality, though, it doesn’t achieve the same level of zippiness we get out of Samsung’s prized devices. Sure, it’s effective at handling basic tasks, but it’s marred by some slower responses and delays when things become too intense. Worst yet, it crumbles under the pressure when it comes to casual gameplay.

Camera

There’s only a front-facing camera here, which is suitable for video chats.

Understandably, the Samsung Galaxy View only features a front-facing 2.1-megapixel snapper that’s largely relegated for video chat sessions – or for selfies, if you dare. The task of lifting it up to capture a selfie is challenging on its own, so we’re hardly inclined to believe it’ll be used a lot for that.


Honestly, there’s not much else to say about the camera aside for its practical use with video chatting. Fine details are non-existent, but we’re certain that’s the least of our worries when video chatting with someone.

Multimedia

Video watching is its prime directive.

Okay, it’s not meant to be a laptop replacement. It’s not even meant to replace a traditional tablet either. So what’s exactly the Samsung Galaxy View’s intent? Well, as its name so happens to imply, it’s a beast of a multimedia viewing device – thanks to its kickstand and incredibly large screen. The tandem, naturally, makes it practical for watching all sorts of video, which it does in an effortless manner. The multi-tasking aspect is there of course to ensure you won’t skip a beat in responding to a message or something else, while watching something simultaneously.

The AT&T bound version of the tablet, in fact, comes preloaded with the DirectTV app, which allows subscribers to stream content. Even with its focus on video consumption, we struggle to believe that it’s the best solution because it competes against other items that might be more ideal. At home, we have television sets for that purpose – while on the road, smaller sized tablets are more suitable. It’s unlikely that we’ll carry this into to a café just to watch a video, so it’s extremely tough deciding if it’s more appropriate to use for the occasion.

Complementing the video watching experience, its pair of speakers, which are fashioned onto the rear sides of the tablet, ensure that the audio never goes unnoticed. Rivaling the iPad Pro’s performance, the Galaxy View’s speakers deliver superb tones that impress with their richness and veracity. There’s no shortage of volume either, thanks to its peak output of 79.5 dB.

Battery

The battery capacity doesn’t match its goliath size.

The svelte profile of the tablet is deceiving because the kickstand somehow manages to mask the pronounced hump on its back. For something beyond grandiose in size, you’d think they would’ve somehow stuffed it with a capacity beyond 10,000 mAh, but that’s not the case. Endowed with a 5700 mAh battery cell instead, it’s an underwhelming size that just doesn’t really match its stature. Regardless of that, the Galaxy View delivers average battery life by providing us with all-day juice under normal usage. Alternatively, it achieves an on-screen time of 7 hours and 9 minutes in our custom benchmark test. That’s not exceptional by our standards, but nonetheless puts it in that ‘average’ category. Finally, its 213 minute recharge time isn’t particularly terrible when we factor in its beefier capacity over smartphones.

Conclusion

From the office, to the home, we’re exposed to an assortment of mobile computing devices that cater to the occasion. The Samsung Galaxy View isn’t your conventional, mainstream tablet meant to bridge that smartphone and laptop experience into one – it just doesn’t, even though it works nicely as a productivity-centric device. It’s certainly a conversation piece that will surely get it noticed wherever it’s brought, but we struggle to believe it’s the most suitable thing.

Thankfully, though, the cost isn’t too grossly out of proportion, seeing that it can be picked with LTE connectivity through AT&T for $599.99 outright – or $499.99 with a 2-year agreement. Honestly, we’d go with the former just because the $100 in savings doesn’t seem like an ample discount for something you’ll have to lug around for 2 years. And the more we think about it, you’re paying mostly for its huge screen.

Few tablets ever eclipse the 10-inch mark, seeing that anything bigger prevents them from being as easily carried around. This one proves that point poignantly, but again, its sheer size is arguably its strongest asset in garnering attention. Sure, it’s advertised to deliver the ultimate mobile video experience, which it does, but only because of its larger-than-normal sized screen. As much as Sammy wants it to succeed in being the ultimate mobile viewing device, we just don’t feel there’s much of an incentive to choose it over other, more compact and discrete things.

Software version of the review unit:
Android Version: 5.1
Build Number: LMY47X.T677AUCCU1A0JA
Kernel Version: 3.10.61-6071021