Samsung Galaxy TabPro S review – CNET

The Good Samsung wisely includes a keyboard cover in the box. Battery life is excellent, and the AMOLED display is better than the screens in much more expensive systems.

The Bad The single configuration is stuck with a sluggish Core M processor, and the keyboard cover allows only two screen angles, neither of which may be right for you.

The Bottom Line Samsung builds a lot of value into the Galaxy TabPro S, including a keyboard cover and advanced display in a very slim Windows tablet.

Samsung’s latest PC takes the name of its Galaxy line of Android phones and tablets, despite running the Windows 10 operating system. The Galaxy TabPro S is a new tilt at one of the most persistent windmills in technology — crafting the perfect Windows tablet.

Cracking the Windows tablet code has been a quest that computer makers have obsessed over for years. It’s a quest that goes back to the days before Windows 10 or even Windows 8, and even before Apple’s iPad made slate-style tablets everyday household objects. Some would say it’s less of a quest and more of a fool’s errand, full of false starts and overhyped promises.

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Most of the time, the Windows operating system and the PC apps that run on it just aren’t designed with the same single-tap access, consistent navigation, and optimal screen scaling as apps that live in the walled garden of iOS and the iPad. Even when Windows 8 introduced a tablet-friendly interface, it failed to scratch that particular itch, and instead just made everyday computing tasks more cumbersome.

Why is it so hard to make a Windows tablet that feels both useful and intuitive, while also providing the kind of instant gratification the best gadgets offer? It’s because we still need these devices to do double duty as everyday workstations for email, office documents and shopping, on top of the easy tap-swipe-flick of media watching and games. Most PC makers have settled on hybrid machines that are full-time laptops and part-time tablets, such as the Lenovo Yoga series, but these are not iPad alternatives and never will be.

Microsoft has come the closest to date, with its evolving Surface line. Over the course of four generations, the Surface tablet has become an excellent overall product, thanks to extensive work in tweaking the physical design, including perfecting the adjustable kickstand and magnetic keyboard cover. I’d recommend the latest Surface Pro 4 as the go-to Windows tablet, but it has a fatal flaw — it’s expensive. That’s because the keyboard cover — by every account a required accessory for even basic everyday use — doesn’t come with the Surface. It instead must be purchased separately, for a not-insignificant $129, on top of a tablet that runs from $899 (£749 or AU$1,349) to $1,799. That puts even the most affordable Surface Pro 4 north of the thousand-dollar mark, an important psychological and practical barrier.

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The Samsung Galaxy TabPro S sets out to emulate the best parts of the Surface line, while also correcting some of its flaws. The biggest news here is that the single currently available configuration, combining a 12-inch AMOLED display (more on that in a minute) with an Intel Core m3 CPU and a 128GB solid-state drive, is $899 (£849, not currently available in Australia), which includes a very familiar-looking and -feeling keyboard cover. With that simple move, including the keyboard in the box, Samsung earns a tip of my virtual hat for showing some respect for consumers.

Samsung Galaxy TabPro S

But the Galaxy TabPro S isn’t perfect, even though it represents an excellent overall value. The keyboard cover, while solid-feeling and very usable, isn’t as evolved as the one on the latest Surface, the Surface Pro 4. The Surface keyboard has moved to island-style keys, closer to what you’d find on a traditional laptop, while the Samsung keyboard has tightly packed keys that do not feel as natural to use.

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Samsung’s new Galaxy TabPro S comes with a snazzy keyboard case that offers two comfortable typing positions.

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The Samsung keyboard is also loud and clacky, as opposed to the soft-touch quiet keyboard on the Surface (maybe that’s why Microsoft insists on charging an additional $129 for it). Both have strong magnetic connections that hold the two halves securely together, but the Samsung cover wraps all the way around, covering the front and back of the tablet, while the Surface version is a front cover only, leaving the back of the tablet exposed. That offers more protection, but the slate also popped out of its cover a few times when I was snapping the screen into place.

You’ll miss the kickstand

Ergonomically, there’s one area where the Galaxy TabPro S beats the Surface Pro 4, and one where it falls behind. Removed from its cover, the actual slate portion of the TabPro S is amazingly thin and light, weighing just 1.52 pounds (689g), versus 1.76 pounds (798g) for the Surface Pro 4.