Android tablets as a laptop replacement? Most manufacturers have given up on that hope by now. However, Samsung continues with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4, which focuses on business use.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S4
Price From € 649,-Colors Black gray
Website www.samsung.com 6 Score 60
- Pros
- Build
- Screen
- Specifications
- Negatives
- Price
- Expensive accessories
In any case, there is nothing to criticize about the construction. A physical home button has been omitted for thinner screen edges around a beautiful 10.5-inch (26.7 centimeters) AMOLED display with a crystal-clear resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels. This is truly a luxury product and that is also reflected in the price. The device is twice as expensive as the comparable Huawei MediaPad M5 and for the money you can also buy a great laptop. Is it a good alternative?
Pens and cables
The Galaxy Tab S4 comes with an improved S-Pen, which can still be used for quickly opening favorite apps or taking notes. It is nice that this also works when the screen is off. If you want to quickly write something down, you don't have to look up the note-taking app first. The extra productivity pretty much ends there. If you really want to use the tablet for work, then the expensive keyboard cover (149.99 euros) is a must anyway. To then use the Dex mode on an external display, a DeX cable is needed for about 35 euros - plus possibly a bluetooth mouse. Converting the tablet completely into a work PC therefore quickly becomes a burden.
Android as Windows
The DeX mode works very simply. Via the USB-C to HDMI cable, the Tab S4's screen changes into a large touch-sensitive surface, while Android adopts a Windows-like environment on the screen. Multitasking works a lot better that way. Apps can run side by side in separate windows. As soon as it is possible to type in, for example, the browser or in a Word document, a digital keyboard will appear on the tablet. That just doesn't work as smoothly as physical keys. All in all, it is very nice to work with DeX, but it is still a lot of hassle and a lot of extra costs for what a laptop can actually do better. Especially if we add up all the costs.
