The Tablet thread

[TheBatsEar]

I got a new tablet recently and wanted to share my experience, but there was no thread, so here is a new one.

I have this aging Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Pro. I took it on longer bike tours as a navigation device and it got a bit hot a few times, which apparently seems to have degraded its battery. So i went looking for a new battery, but instead bought a new tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 9 Ultra.

In terms of software and features it's basically the same as the 6 Pro, except it will get a few more years more updates. Both come with a well working stylus.

The S9 Ultra is 14.9 inches large, a good amount larger than the S6 Pro which was a good amount larger than 10 inches. It's almost comical.
However, it's awesome to watch movies in bed with it .

The S9 sound is far better than the S6. I found voices sometimes hard to understand, but that isn't a problem with the S9 Ultra, apparently the speakers have 20% more membrane area, whatever that exactly means.

I have bought the Ultra Book Cover and it's exactly as well made as the Cover for the S6 Pro. I also bought a Ultra Keyboard Slim. There are two keyboards, the regular one with a mouse pad, and the one i have. There is a price difference of about 100€ too. The keyboard is well made and works well. The stand for Slim keyboard only has one position, the one with the mouse pad has a better mechanism. Still, i think the Slim is the right choice for me, i use it rarely and i also use an external bluetooth mouse. The keys and the layout are the same anyway.

Battery time appears to be the same as the one in the S9 when it was new, as is the speed of the CPU.

Both have SD-Card support. I have a 1TB card from Sandisk and it works flawless.

You can use the S9 Ultra as a second screen for a Windows PC, not sure if this was possible with the S6 Pro as well. Sadly, the feature doesn't work with Linux.

Both have the DEX software, connected to a monitor or TV, you can have a Windows like Desktop experience and either mirror the screen or use both or just the external one.

Transfer of my information from one to the other devices was flawless with some tool they provided.

 

[DLS79]

Both have the DEX software, connected to a monitor or TV, you can have a Windows like Desktop experience and either mirror the screen or use both or just the external one.

I have a Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (2016 model) that while still going strong, it needs to be replaced. I've been strongly considering the the S9+, because with a keyboard cover, a USB mouse, & a USB-C to HDMI cable, I can ditch my laptop while traveling (less weight and bulk).

Honestly I'm shocked Apple and Google haven't released a competitor for DEX. Imo the average member of the general public doesn't really need the power of a personal desktop or laptop anymore, so giving them a way of casting to a larger screen and using a keyboard and mouse would allow them to do away with them.

 

[TheBatsEar]

Galaxy Tab A 10.1

I had that same model, it was great, but the CPU was kind of weak in the end.

I'm shocked Apple and Google haven't released a competitor for DEX

Me too, it's a mystery.

 

[voodooless]

Honestly I'm shocked Apple and Google haven't released a competitor for DEX.

 

[Blumlein 88]

Me three on the connect to external devices. For most people even a phone is plenty if you use an external monitor, mouse and keyboard. I see people do things like apply for a job on a phone, and I'm thinking, why don't you cast it to your TV and use a bluetooth keyboard.

 

[just1n]

Me three on the connect to external devices. For most people even a phone is plenty if you use an external monitor, mouse and keyboard. I see people do things like apply for a job on a phone, and I'm thinking, why don't you cast it to your TV and use a bluetooth keyboard.

Watching the TV while applying for a job.

I used to cast to a TV but it wasn’t enjoyable. I no longer have a personal laptop or computer. Phone and tablet is all I need most of the time. Every once in a while there is a Windows only application (Dirac or REW) that forces me to pull out a 5yr old laptop to do something.

Wish Dirac developed a full version of their app to iPad. If only someone far smarter than I could port REW too. That would be fun and I’d be for more likely to use it.

I do love the iPad because it’s dead silent, powerful, and a nice screen. Next option is a mini PC or Mac Mini to remote into from my iPad, but I do not have time to do that. Maybe next year.

 

[DLS79]

@voodooless I didn't know this existed till now.

With that being said, support for stage manager with an external display is pretty limited. From what i can tell via some quickly google it's not available on any iPhone model yet.

iPad User Guide

Dex is supported by a lot of Samsung phones and tablets (23 in total).

https://www.xda-developers.com/samsung-galaxy-devices-support-dex/

 

[DLS79]

Me three on the connect to external devices. For most people even a phone is plenty if you use an external monitor, mouse and keyboard. I see people do things like apply for a job on a phone, and I'm thinking, why don't you cast it to your TV and use a bluetooth keyboard.

I work with someone who did their taxes online via a phone.....

 

[voodooless]

From what i can tell via some quickly google it's not available on any iPhone model yet.

It’s an iPad Pro feature.

And yes, it’s limited. If you want a desktop experience, buy a laptop. I also would not want a poorly performing Android tablet to pretend to be a desktop replacement.

 

[Blumlein 88]

I work with someone who did their taxes online via a phone.....

My sister did that. I would have let her use a laptop I had.

 

[Blumlein 88]

It’s an iPad Pro feature.

And yes, it’s limited. If you want a desktop experience, buy a laptop. I also would not want a poorly performing Android tablet to pretend to be a desktop replacement.

I think for 90% or more of the general public an Android phone or tablet is a desktop replacement. They don't have a desktop. What it would do is let them have a large screen and keyboard so that filling out forms like for a job, medical forms, insurance forms or filling out taxes online they are way better off than using a touchscreen of 5 inches or so. They would likely not benefit with a real desktop in any other way than the better user interface.

 

[DLS79]

I think for 90% or more of the general public an Android phone or tablet is a desktop replacement. They don't have a desktop. What it would do is let them have a large screen and keyboard so that filling out forms like for a job, medical forms, insurance forms or filling out taxes online they are way better off than using a touchscreen of 5 inches or so. They would likely not benefit with a real desktop in any other way than the better user interface.

I agree, the most computationally expensive things your average consumer does today is video streaming, photo editing, and in rare cases video editing, everything else is web browser based.

If you set aside video editing, modern mid tier or higher smartphones and tablets already handle those workloads with ease. They are only held back by the the lack of keyboard, mouse, and screen size.

 

[TheBatsEar]

For most people even a phone is plenty if you use an external monitor, mouse and keyboard.

There was one years ago that had a HDMI connector and you could get a Display/Keyboard combo for it. Motorola something?

I no longer have a personal laptop or computer.

Few month ago i upgraded my PC to what was the latest and greatest then, i7-14700, 4090 VGA card, all the finest.
It was very much worth it to me, got me back into gaming. Right now i'm enjoying sim racing.

And yes, it’s limited. If you want a desktop experience, buy a laptop.

You can do that with DEX, no need to buy another device if you don't want one.

But i rarely use it. I still need a laptop for REW ;-).
Well, it's Android, i probably could run Windows in a virtual machine or something, if i really wanted to.
Something entirely inconceivable by iToddlers.

 

[voodooless]

You can do that with DEX, no need to buy another device if you don't want one.

But i rarely use it. I still need a laptop for REW ;-).
Well, it's Android, i probably could run Windows in a virtual machine or something, if i really wanted to.
Something entirely inconceivable by iToddlers

No it’s not:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ipad/comments/xbrqt7

 

[ThatM1key]

Almost a couple years ago I bought a Fire HD 10 Plus (2021 Ad version). Mainly because of the Type C, 1080p display and Ability to install Google stuff. It aged very well and its still a good value compared to today's offerings. I think I hate about Fire tablets in general is that you cannot view the SD card like any other Android device, you can only install apps. Any file app will not see the SD card and not even Windows will see it.

I initially thought of getting a better tablet but Amazon's offerings was just not that great. The Fire Max 11 just isn't much better then mine. 1 inch bigger, Barely better then 1080p but under 2K display, Android 11, stylus supports, that's it. No Wifi 6E, no extra ram, just meh improvements.

Those Samsung tablets are nice but the price of one of those tablets, you can get a powerful Samsung phone. Samsung DeX does sound amazing on tablets but nothing is stopping me from using my S21 Ultra in DeX mode on a normal monitor.