Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0- How does it Stack up Against iPad Mini?

The tablet war is once again getting heated up with new tablets being launch. There was a time when iPad was the only superior tablet available, but now the competition is getting tougher for Apple with Samsung stepping into almost all tablet segments. Samsung has unveiled a new tablet at the MWC 2013, the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 which is targeted for the iPad Mini segment. The new 8.0 inch tablet runs on a 1.6GHz quad core A9 processor with 2GB of RAM, along with Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean. It is a direct competitor to iPad mini in terms of specifications, so how does it stack up against the popular Apple iPad Mini. Lets take a closer look.

When it comes to size and weight, there is any clear separation as both of them are similar size and weight with Note 8.0 marginally heavier. Both the devices sport an 8 inch screen (7.9 for Mini) and the screen on both the devices aren’t revolutionary, but Note 8.0 has better density with 189 PPI when compared to 163 of Mini. When it comes to fit and finish, probably Apple iPad Mini will be the winner with better quality.

Note 8.0 has the more powerful processor, with its Exynos 4 Quad chip when compared to Apple’s A5 processor. Note 8.0 comes with 2GB RAM when compared to 512 MB of Mini.

Note 8.0 comes with Android 4.1.2 Jelly bean and we expect Samsung to release 4.2 Jelly bean some time later, while Mini runs on iOS 6. While the popularity of Android based tablets is increasing the real deal breaker will be the number of apps. iOS boasts of over 275000 app specifically developed for tablets and Android (tablets) is no where near it.

On the camera, both devices has similar spec camera offering 5MP rear and 1.2MP front.

While Note 8.0 and Mini are similar in specs, Galaxy Note 8.0 does have some unique features, like it can make phone calls (for the international 3G versions), and it has a stylus or the S- Pen which Samsung says is one of the best features of the tablet. S Pen has great level of integration with the OS with Touch Wiz UI of Samsung. The S Pen on Galaxy Note 8.0 has better performance and sensitivity. When you pull the stylus out, the Note automatically shifts into pen detection mode. It even lets you perform certain tasks while only hovering the pen over the screen.

Now the important factor is the price, iPad Mini is a premium priced product and many feel that it is over priced. We will have to wait for the official pricing of Note 8.0 to decide which is really worth the money.

Specifications in Detail:

Here is a side by side comparison of Note 8.0 with Mini.