Galaxy Tab 4 is an upgraded version of Samsung Galaxy Tab 3. The Tab 4 (Model SM-T231) comes powered by a quad core processor and runs Android KitKat with 1.5GB RAM. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 SM-T231 is available for a price tag of approx Rs. 17,700.
Box Pack (Inside the box) – the 7 inch Tab 4 tablet, user guide, warranty card, data cable and travel charger. There are no earphone included.
Design and Display
The tablet weight is 282 grams with battery and is about 9.5mm thick. The back is made of plastic with leather finishing, it look great and gives a very good grip. On the front facing there is the silver outline along the edges that makes the tab look more attractive and unique.
This is a single SIM supported tablet (you need a micro SIM). 3G is supported and you can also use this tab as a phone. When using the tab as a phone, you can use the in-call speaker, earphone or a compatible Bluetooth device.
There is micro SD card slot too (32GB cards supported). The 3.5mm audio jack is placed on the top, power / volume rockers / micro SD card slot and micro SIM slot are placed on the right side. Screen is 7 inches with WXGA (1280 x 800 pixels) resolution. Viewing angles are pretty good and touch is smooth and responsive.
There is only one sensor – accelerometer. There is no proximity sensor and no light sensor, you will need to manually adjust the brightness.
Memory
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 model SM-231 comes with 1.5GB RAM and 8GB internal storage. Free RAM on the first boot is 762MB and 4.5GB is the user space available for app and for general storage.
Apps cannot be installed on the external storage and OTG is also not supported.
Performance
The tab 4 is using the Marvell PXA1088 quad core cortex A7 SOC with Vivante GC1000 GPU. Performance is smooth, though it takes some time launching the applications/moving between apps etc, it’s not instant. Apart from that no other issues.
Benchmark scores
- Quadrant Benchmark : 4164.
- Antutu Benchmark : 13360.
- Vellmo Benchmark : Browser – 1258, Metal – 682, Multi Core – 902.
- Nenamark2 : 57.7fps.
- Multi Touch : 5 point.
Gaming
There is 4.5 GB of limited internal storage space and you cannot install / move apps to external storage. I installed the MC4 and Asphalt 8 on the internal storage. MC4 (Modern Combat 4) played pretty smooth, but Asphalt 8 was not that smooth when set to the highest visual quality mode. However in low mode the game did well.
Entertainment and Camera
This Galaxy Tab 4 can play full HD videos. I tried it in MX player in both Software and Hardware modes.
There are dual cameras, a front camera of 1.3MP resolution and a rear camera of 3.2MP resolution. Both the cameras are fixed focus. Video calling is supported. The rear camera is without LED flash. The camera output is good enough for mid and long shots.
The rear camera can also shoot videos in 720 pixel resolution at 30fps. The video quality is okay. Check the sample images at the end of this Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 SM-T231 Review.
Others
The tab sound (loudspeaker) is a bit low, but it’s clear. In call sound is good enough. There is 3G, Wi-Fi with hotspot / Wi-Fi direct, Bluetooth (smart ready), APT X CSR that gives CD type quality via Bluetooth and GPS with GLONASS. No issues found with any of these features.
There are Motion controls for smart alert, palm motion and also the smart stay option wherein the screen stays on as long as you are looking at it. Popup videos are also supported, you can watch videos while working with / or checking other apps.
4000 mAh battery
The Galaxy Tab 4 SM-T231 comes with 4000 mAh non-removable battery. I used it for 25 minutes, battery dropped by 8%. I played the high end games for 15 minutes battery dropped by 6%. I then played a 720p video in a loop for about 28 minutes battery dropped by 5%.
The temperature at the max was stuck at 36 degree, I think the temp was higher than 36, I could feel the tablet getting warm, but not hot.
For moderate to heavy usage battery will last for up to 5 hours. When playing high end games you can expect usage time of up to 4 hours. You can watch videos for almost 9 hours (loudspeaker, Wi-Fi on and with full brightness).
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 SM-T231 is no doubt a better option than the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 SM-T211. The Tab 4 is more powerful, comes loaded with more RAM and runs KitKat out of the box. There is built in phone functionality with 3G support.
There is limited storage space and when it comes to gaming the tab 4 can play many high end games but in lower resolution. For the price and the brand value this is a option.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 SM-T231 is currently priced at Rs. 17,825.
Image Gallery
Sample Images
Front camera