Tablets Samsung prepping Galaxy Note 8.0 8-inch tablet to compete against iPad mini?

[The Game 161]

Despite already having 7-inch tablets out in the market, Samsung is supposedly at work on a new 8-inch model that would compete more directly with the Apple iPad mini. According to the SamMobile online fan site (take the source for what it's worth), the Galaxy Note 8.0 could pop up at Mobile World Congress next month.

The 8-inch slate would have a resolution of 1,280×800, which is slightly better than the iPad mini's 1,024x768, and come with 2GB of memory and either 16GB or 32GB of storage. It would also run Android 4.2, the latest version of Jelly Bean. Like other Galaxy Notes, it would include a stylus, which may or may not be a draw for buyers, depending on how useful they find using the digital pen.

Of course, how well the purported Galaxy Note 8.0 would do against the iPad mini will come down to price. Unfortunately, that's one piece of info that did not leak to SamMobile, so we'll just have to wait to find out how aggressively Samsung would price the tablet. $249 and I think we'd have a potential winner, right?

http://www.zdnet.com/samsung-preppi...blet-to-compete-against-ipad-mini-7000010003/

Anybody think it will be a tight comp with the ipad mini?

 

[rhinosrcool]

Well, if it's priced at $249, it could be.

From the specs, it's a little wider. Possibly, this could make it less easy to grip. Also, it's a tad heavier. Both of these could hurt it's appeal (we will have to see how it is to hold, comfortably).

Neither the Note nor the mini have the latest specs. If it runs well, it could take mini customers.

For me, the s-pen is the determining factor. For others, it may not be.

Unfortunately, Samsung has several tablets to choose from; the mini has only one other.

I am anxious to see how it really feels and works. We'll see...

 

[The Game 161]

Well, if it's priced at $249, it could be.

From the specs, it's a little wider. Possibly, this could make it less easy to grip. Also, it's a tad heavier. Both of these could hurt it's appeal (we will have to see how it is to hold, comfortably).

Neither the Note nor the mini have the latest specs. If it runs well, it could take mini customers.

For me, the s-pen is the determining factor. For others, it may not be.

Unfortunately, Samsung has several tablets to choose from; the mini has only one other.

I am anxious to see how it really feels and works. We'll see...

I think the option of SD card usage is a big plus too you don't get with the mini. Being able to download whatever you want and drag it on will be a big positive for me.

 

[AppleRobert]

It has potential to compete but with a mini 2 upcoming, I think lots of folks may just wait it out to tell the truth.

The small nook hd has that resolution already beat for $199.

 

[jamojamo]

I have a Nexus 7 right now and I like it a lot for the many things it offers. My one nitpick is that it is just a tiny bit too small for reading on the web as effortlessly as I'd like. I find myself zooming or moving it landscape on some pages, portrait on others. I don't know if the form factor of a 7.x - 8.x would ever give me what I'd like to see but the specs outlined for the Samsung 8 almost to me look like they are putting a "me too" tablet out there vs. trying to move the needle on the smaller tablet space, even if it meant I had to pay a little more.

With the general population thinking of tablets as 10" flat devices, I think the smaller tablet market is still building it's fanbase outside of "an e-reader replacement and then some" so I think they are still hampered by that to some extent when it comes to pricing.

I wonder if there just isn't enough space between the price of the smaller vs. larger tablets to really allow them to push some heavier specs. Most people probably think, if I am going to spend more, why not get the full size?

But I like the competition because that makes the whole space more interesting.

I'd love to see a heavier spec'd small tablet, I am a big fan of the form factor for portability.

 

[The Game 161]

Confirmed by Samsung now..

 

[hyteckit]

That would be awesome. Just what I wanted. Was probably hoping for a higher resolution though

I don't like the size of the Note 2. Too big for a phone and too small as a tablet.

8" like the iPad Mini would be awesome. That would have more than twice the screen area as a 5.5" galaxy Note 2.