The state of the Android tablet market in 2019 isn’t a pretty one, so much so that Google has decided not to bother making any more of them, but this isn’t stopping Samsung from plowing ahead with its latest release. The popularity of 7 and 8-inch tablets has likely declined because we’re all using huge phones these days, which makes the announcement of a new Samsung Galaxy Tab A (8.0″) all the more perplexing.
Not to be confused with the S Pen-equipped version came out back in March, this new variant sports a 1280×800 (16:10) WXGA TFT display measuring 8 inches diagonally and includes a quad-core 2.0GHz processor (Snapdragon 429 according to XDA) with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. There’s also a microSD card slot for you to add up to 512GB if you need it. It runs Android 9 Pie out of the box.
The tablet features two cameras: 8MP on the rear with autofocus, plus a 2MP selfie cam. The battery has a capacity of 5,100mAh, described only as “long-lasting” by Samsung. At 345g, the thing is at least fairly light and easy to handle, but that’s no less than you’d expect from a small tablet.
In an attempt to encourage sales, the Tab A comes with a 2-month free YouTube Premium subscription as well as 3 months of Spotify Premium. A child-friendly Kids Home mode is said to make it easier for parents to hand the device off to children without worrying. Whether this will be enough to persuade consumers that an 8-inch Android tablet is a good purchase right now… well, we’re not optimistic, to say the least.
WiFi only and LTE options will be available in due course, but there’s currently no release date or pricing information.
https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/07/05/samsung-announces-another-uninspiring-8-inch-android-tablet-the-galaxy-tab-a-8-0-2019/
