Real talk about the Tab S7 and S7+

[z28camaroman]

I don't know about anyone else but I am not happy with the S7 and S7+. It only really addressed 2 complaints I had with my S4 (and would have had with the S6), which were the battery size and selfie camera position, while not making good on anything else. Let me break it down:

1. There is no reason to buy the normal S7, period. Much like with the Note 20, it's a gimped version of its bigger sibling and really offers no reason to get it over an iPad. The biggest selling point for me on the Tab series is the Super AMOLED panel. Moving to a TFT LCD, not even a QLED IPS panel, was a cheap and disgusting move. At this point, why not just get an iPad? Same screen technology but better apps and longer software support.
2. The updates. Samsung did mention that the S10/S20 series and Note 10/20 series will now get 3 OS upgrades instead of 2, but they didn't mention the Tab at all. They didn't even mention whether it will get monthly or quarterly security updates. I can't justify buying another Tab if they're not going to commit to basic and reasonable updates.
3. IO. It's bad enough we don't have the headphone jack on devices as big as they are, but for something intended for "productivity", 1 USB C port is not enough. It's not as though it doesn't have room for more. When you see the S7 and then look at a similarly priced Windows Machine, it's just infuriating.
4. The cameras are still garbo. We get two bargain bin rear cameras and a SINGLE 8MP front camera. Why it's only 8MP instead of the 10MP used on almost every Samsung flagship this year is beyond me. Worse yet is that it's alone: with all the bezel, they can fit an ultrawide camera for group chats with family members or business partners. But no, just 1 sad little camera. Boo.
5. Why does it start at 6GB of RAM and only go up to 8GB? You can argue all day that phones don't need more than that but this is a tablet designed for "productivity", which involves having multiple apps open and many services running in the background. What were they thinking? Why does my S20+ have 12GB of RAM but the tablet I was considering only have 8GB? What sense does that make? Why can't I upgrade it in some way?
6. That $200/$230 keyboard is not a Magic Keyboard. When you charge ridiculous money for something that really should be included in the price, it better be good. It looks like the exact keyboard from the Tab S6. Not great, not terrible, but not worth more than $50 IMO.
7. How is either screen HDR10+? I know OLED has true blacks but only a peak brightness of 420 nits? That's it? HRD10+ OLED certification requires 540 nits of peak brightness! Samsung phones can hit a peak of over 1000 nits! What is going on here?
8. Did Samsung suddenly get a ton of app developers to make real work apps on Android? Productivity means a lot more than Word documents and spreadsheets, which you do not need a $650+ tablet to do. A $100 laptop will suffice. I suggested it months ago and will reiterate that without proper apps that can take advantage of the power on tap and the screen real estate, an Android tablet makes no sense to buy at such a price. If people just wants something to do light gaming and web surfing on, there are cheaper alternatives, including from Samsung. However, if the S7 and S7+ are to be taken seriously, there needs to be a work related selling point.
9. ADDENDUM: They only come with a 15 Watt charger in the box despite allowing up to 45 Watts. Are you serious? How cheap is Samsung to nickel and dime the consumer for an extra $50 from their site (don't buy it there, get the official one for about $30 on Amazon or a third party one for $25) ? That's so cheap on their part.

All in all, I am very disappointed. If the S7 and S7+ were cheap AF, as in like $400 and $500 respectively, I could look past all of this. As is, these devices are supposed to be "flagships." If that means charging more, perhaps $750 and $1,000 respectively, in order to get ALL the flagship specs, flagship software support and actual apps to get serious work done on, then I would gladly pay it. What I see here is a half-hearted, half-assed effort that is the jack of many trades and master of none.

What are your thoughts?

[CrazyTom2k2]

I'll be honest, I literally just got the Tab S5e and I love it! I can easily get through 2 days, it can take my phone calls from my phone, and there's not a lot I'd change. Performance isn't amazing, but I can play Minecraft and Fortnite pretty well, and I can also use XCloud/XBox Game Streamimg without an issue.

The Tab S7 looks awesome, but there's nothing that really grabs me to upgrade. Maybe the Tab S8 will convince me.

Also, IMO, Samsung should match up their Tab S numbers with their phone numbers, so really, they should call this the Tab S20, calling it the Tab S7 makes me think back to the S7 edge days (that phone was elite though 😁)

[z28camaroman]

Funny you mention that last part. I made another post about what Samsung should do next year with their flagships. One suggestion was making all of them the "30's Series", so Galaxy S30, Note 30, Fold 30 and Flip 30 (instead of 3), and of course the Tab S30.  

[CrazyTom2k2]

It'd just make the whole product line easier to understand, and maybe even do the same with the A series phones, maybe go for A301-A390 so you can sorta work out what year a handset's from, just kinda put the 3 in there somewhere maybe 😉

[Heppy]

Also very disappointed with the s7+ its completely useless for gaming and Samsung support is terrible

[Stanley Gao]

Yeah I use tab s7+ about 2 yrs and really unsatisfied about the brightness    Not even 500 nit wtf?   When I buy sumsung I m looking for the best screen.