Samsung releases Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet with S-Pen stylus

Samsung has been prolific with the amount of Android tablets they have released in the past year, with 6 options and 3 different screen sizes to choose from. However, with the remastered Galaxy Note 10.1 Samsung finally has a tablet that stands out from the crowd and brings something unique to the table. Just like the Galaxy Note 5.3 inch “phablet” that came before it, the Galaxy Note 10.1 comes with a S-Pen stylus that brings about entirely new use cases for the tablet, making it more of a content creation device then being used solely for content consumption.

Samsung has given the Galaxy Note 10.1 the best specs any tablet has out there today: it combines the same monster 1.4GHz quad core Exynos that is in the international Galaxy S III with 2GB of RAM found in the U.S. version of the S3. The Galaxy Note 10.1 is available in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB versions expandable with a micro-SD card slot that can expand storage space by up to another 64GB. The display remains the same as other Galaxy Tab models with a 1280×800 resolution that has good color reproduction, but doesn’t match the clarity of the new class of higher resolution tablets.

Samsung has used software as a major piece of what the Galaxy Note 10.1 is meant to represent. They have installed the TouchWiz UI over Android 4.0 ICS and included some unique features and useful apps meant to take advantage of the S-Pen and aid in your ability to get work done.

They have outfitted a small number of apps that can be used side-by-side as shown in the above screenshot with S Note on the left, which is the note taking application used with the S-Pen, and Polaris Office on the right, which is a word processor. The S Note application can take notes that you write with the S-Pen and convert them into typed text, math problems, and shapes.

Another included app is Photoshop Touch which is made to interact with the S-pen and its pressure sensitive digitizer. Also available is a feature introduced in the Galaxy S III, which allows you to play a video in a floating window while you do what you want in another app and it is a great feature when used on the larger screen tablet.

Overall Samsung has provided a quality tablet with the Galaxy Note 10.1 and they are trying to capitalize on the success of the original Galaxy Note and build another line of devices meant for content creation. They outfitted it with a powerful digitizer that makes other stylus seem like children’s toys. The jury is out on whether this tab will be a success like its smaller sibling but it certainly has the potential. Of course the question still remains if Galaxy Note 10.1 will be able to challenge the iPad. For some, the new iPad’s superior battery life and hugely better screen will be the key factor; for others, the content creation capabilities of the Galaxy Note 10.1 are more important.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 is available in WiFi-only and 3G/2G (HSPA+/EDGE/GPRS) versions. The WiFi-only 16GB version costs $499 and WiFi-only 32GB version costs $549. There is no information on the pricing for 64GB version and 3G/2G versions.

So what do you think of Samsung’s new Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet? Let us know in the comments below.

[via Android Central, The Verge]

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