Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 hands-on

By on Sep 27, 2011 at 3:25 PM
Tablets September 27, 2011

We received our Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 review unit on Tuesday, and we’ve spent the better part of this afternoon tooling around and getting a feel for the smaller cousin of the Galaxy Tab 10.1. The tablet has an 8.9-inch screen with 1280 x 800-pixel resolution, and it is also equipped with a dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor clocked at 1GHz, 16GB of storage (a 32GB model will also be available), a 6,100 mAh battery and a 3-megapixel camera capable of recording HD video. We definitely appreciate the smaller screen size of the Galaxy Tab 8.9; it feels much more portable and yet does not sacrifice any of the power that was offered by the Galaxy Tab 10.1. Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) runs smoothly and Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface adds plenty of useful widgets without slowing the system down. We think Honeycomb still needs a lot of work before we really get excited for Android on a tablet, however, but the Galaxy Tab 8.9 is shaping up to be our favorite Android tablet yet. Of course, we’ll have to wait to see what Amazon has in store on Wednesday before before we jump to any conclusions. We’ll get started on our full review shortly but in the meantime, be sure to check out our photo gallery below.

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34 Comments

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  • Anonymous

    Bad Copy

  • Lawrence of Arabia

    Great Size.

    • Scott Duffy

      That’s what she said!

  • Anonymous

    Really was looking forward to this… Until they showed off the 7.7 lol

  • Bryguy

    iPad killer.   Just kidding.  Not trolling just wanted to be the first to say it.

    I’m looking forward to playing around with this and seeing what it can do.  Still can’t bring myself to committing to a Tablet yet.

  • http://www.droiddoes.com/ Norm

    More bezel than the iPad. Genius. Original. DROID!

    • Ronnie Mund

      Cool avatar Boy Geller!

  • Anonymous

    Please tell me Samsung didn’t for get an SD card slot this time.

  • Anonymous

    I don’t understand why Todd Haselton/BGR claims that “… Honeycomb still needs a lot of work before we really get excited for Android on a tablet”. Have they really used Honeycomb long-term? What does Honeycomb lack that they are looking for? I have used numerous mobile OSes and find that Honeycomb is by far the best in speed, ease-of-use, functionality, customization and presentation.

    • http://profiles.google.com/mitch.rodia Mitch Rodia

      They don’t like it because it isn’t iOS.

      BGR loves anything and everything made and designed by Apple, even if it is garbage.

    • Anonymous

      Then you disagree with pretty much every major reviewer out there. There’s nothing wrong with that, you’re just in the minority.

      • Anonymous

        My question is what dont they like about Honeycomb? Is it just the lack of apps or is there something particularly missing or bad about it?

  • Anonymous

    What is the deal? 
    8.9 is still big for pocket (lol), same market point as 10.1
    Why?

    • http://www.droiddoes.com/ Norm

      So fandroids like me can shout freedom and choice.

      • http://twitter.com/cyberb0b Bob Autrey

        LOL :-)

  • Rezetor

    Look as an iPod touch 10.1…

  • Guest

    Could you snap a picture of the 8.9 next to the 10.1 (and next to the original smaller tab)? Maybe holding the 8.9 to add another dimension. A size comparison picture would be really handy.

  • Anonymous

    I dunno, I really like the looks of this.  As long as it doesn’t cost the same as a freakin gaming laptop, I’m going to give this some serious consideration.

  • http://twitter.com/NICKVALENTIN0 Nick Valentino

    Another Android device. yawn

  • Jessman

    This thing is a freakin iPad copy down to the dock connector… commm’on! Really? Everyone says that iOS copied Android, yet Android OS came AFTER it… and you have to admit, this thing looks EXACTLY like an Apple iPad/iPod.

    • Chris

      Nigga you gay

    • Anonymous

      BITCH, PLEASE

  • Booboolala2000

    It is a laughable to say that Honeycomb or Android in general needs more work to be a viable tablet OS. If you want to compare directly to ios then just open the App Launcher. That would be a more acceptable comparison.

  • Bringit

    Why do they keep making Android tablets?  There is no market for that junk.

    • Anonymous

      Why do you keep on crying, bitching, pissing and moaning about android all the time, Are you on your period, are you a bitch?

  • Anonymous

    Other sites reported that that Tab 8.9 actually has faster CPU than 10.1 (I believe it’s 1.5 GHz vs 1.0).

    • Anonymous

      I think it’s the 7.7 that woll have the faster processor, in addition to its better screen.

  • Scott Gold

    I have always thought the 8.9 inch form factor is the perfect size for a tablet.  I love the 10.1 screen size, but as far as how it feels when I’m holding the device in one hand, and 8.9 inch tablet just feel right.

  • Anonymous

    I like this size.  The iPad isn’t that comfortable one handed. 

    “We think Honeycomb still needs a lot of work before we really get excited for Android on a tablet,”

    I don’t understand that comment.  What work?   To make it like IOS which is basically a GUI app launcher and closer?  It lets you do more than iOS so with power there is a bit more complexity, but you can use the app launcher and it is basically the same thing.

  • http://MobileGenius.wordpress.com JM

    LOVE the size of this one. I just need one of those with 3g/4g access. It is the closest thing to the G-Slate but from a company I can actually respect.

  • Anonymous

    I can’t keep track of all of Samsung’s craplets. 7, 7.58, 8.9, 10.001.

    • Anonymous

      You’re doing it wrong.

  • http://www.facebook.com/zubie7a Santiago Zubieta

    Pricing is a bit off, I mean, 30 dollars from 8.9 to 10.1? I don’t know if I’m demanding too much, but I’d get the 16GB 8.9 at 399.

  • Guest

    “We think Honeycomb still needs a lot of work before we really get excited for Android on a tablet”

    How can you say that? Both OS’s have their strenghts. Android totally has traction and is really doing great things. When you compare iOS to Android all I can say is widgets in favor of Android. Yes iOS is simple but almost too simple. The iPad is a big iPhone with no additional functionality. The reason I believe iOS has done so much better is simply marketing. Apple is awesome at that. Don’t get me wrong. I own Apple products as well and I like them. Don’t sell Android short though.

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