Guide and Manual

It seems that Samsung have taken it upon themselves on literally making a tablet for everyone. With all of the Galaxy Tab variants out there, the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 it seems like systematic attempt by Samsung to put a unique tablet variant in the hands of every living person on the planet.


After just 6 months since the release of the original Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, the Tab 2 7.0 has hardware which is, frankly, not much of an upgrade in most cases. It features the same 7 inch (obviously) PLS LCD display, and the connectivity features are identical as well. The processor has been downgraded from a dual-core 1.2GHz to a dual-core 1GHz silicon.

From software standpoint we have a different story, as the Tab 2 runs an improved Android build compared to its predecessor. The Android ICS build 4.0.3 on the Tab 2 is much more responsive than Honeycomb and actually makes for a user-friendly experience. And of course, the Tab 2 7.0 is more affordable than the Tab 7.0 Plus as well.

For now, here are the features and downsides of the new Tab 2 at a glance:

Key features

7.0" 16M-color PLS TFT capacitive touchscreen of WSVGA resolution (1024 x 600 pixels)
Weighs 344 g
TI OMAP 4430 chipset: Dual-core 1GHz processor; 1GB of RAM; PowerVR SGX540 GPU
Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich with TouchWiz UX UI
Optional quad-band GPRS/EDGE and tri-band HSPA connectivity (HSDPA, 21 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps)
Support for voice calls, texts and MMS for the 3G version
8/16/32 GB of built-in memory
3.2 MP camera, 2048x1536 pixels, geotagging
Front-facing camera supports video calling
1080p HD video recording @ 30 fps
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi Direct, dual-band, Wi-Fi hotspot
Stereo Bluetooth v3.0
microSD card slot
Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
Adobe Flash 11 support
GPS with A-GPS support; digital compass
1080p DivX/XviD/MKV video support with subtitles
Accelerometer and proximity sensor; three-axis Gyroscope sensor
Polaris office document editor preinstalled
4000 mAh Li-Po rechargeable battery
Main disadvantages

Front-facing camera is only VGA resolution
No LED flash for primary camera
Has a non-replaceable battery
Uses a proprietary 30-pin connector port for charging and connectivity
One of the lowest-capacity batteries in the range
No USB charging
For whoevers keeping track, it also doesnt have an infrared port, but were not really sure if anyone even used the one on the original Tab 7.0, or its preloaded Smart Remote app, so its not that great of a loss.

One thing to keep in mind is that in the 7" Android tablet market the name of the game is affordability rather than features. The slate is essentially Samsungs answer to the hot-selling Amazon Kindle Fire. It offers an entry into the Android tablet realm at a highly affordable price (the 8GB Wi-Fi only version costs $249.99).