iPad mini 3 vs. Galaxy Tab 8.4: The Apple-Samsung Tiny Tablet Tussle
Apple has taken the lid off its newest tiny tablet, the iPad mini 3, and it’s, well … pretty much an iPad mini 2, or as you might know it, the iPad mini with Retina display.
With its 7.9-inch display, the iPad mini 3 is what is considered to be a small-screen tablet — bigger than the biggest phones, but smaller than the full-sized iPad. So the iPad’s closest competitor in terms of size and quality is probably Samsung’s wonderful Galaxy Tab S 8.4.
So how do the two match up? Let’s check them out.
Size
The iPad mini 3 is the exact same size and weight as the iPad mini 2. Measuring 7.9 × 5.3 × 0.29 inches and weighing 11.6 ounces, the tablet is definitely small and lightweight, though not as small and lightweight as Samsung’s tablet. (We were surprised that Apple didn’t slim down the newest iPad mini the same way it did for the iPad Air 2.)
That’s right; the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 is both thinner and lighter than the mini 3, measuring just 0.26 inches thick and weighing 10.4 ounces.
Unfortunately, the Tab S 8.4’s chassis is made of plastic. Apple’s tablet, on the other hand, is made of aluminum, which gives the tablet a more premium, solid feel.
Display
The iPad mini 3 sports the same 2048 × 1536 Retina display as the previous-generation mini, which means that everything from text and photos to videos will look just as crisp as before.
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S 8.4 rocks a gorgeous 8.4-inch, 2560 × 1600 Super AMOLED (active matrix of organic light-emitting diodes) display.
When we put the iPad mini 2 up against the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 in our previous face-off, we found that, though the Samsung’s screen exaggerated some colors, overall, it offered a better viewing experience.
We’ll have to see if the iPad mini 3 can steal the crown from Samsung’s tablet when we get our hands on a review unit in the coming weeks. But given that the screens are basically the same, we’re expecting the Galaxy Tab to hold onto this title.
Camera
The iPad mini 3 gets the same 5-megapixel camera as the previous-generation mini. The original iPad mini 2’s camera was wonderful, and we’re expecting the same out of the iPad mini 3.
The Galaxy Tab S 8.4, for its part, comes with an 8-megapixel camera around back and a 2.1-megapixel camera up front.
During our testing, we found that the iPad mini 2’s camera captured more accurate colors in photos than the Tab S’s, though details were roughly the same with both tablets’ cameras. We’ll give the slight advantage here to the iPad — if you must take photos with your tablet, that is.
Special features
Like Apple’s new iPad Air 2, the iPad mini 3 gets a new Touch ID fingerprint reader, which you can use to unlock the tablet and even pay for things online.
Unfortunately, that’s all the new slate gets, as Apple didn’t do much in the way of revamping its tiny tablet.
The Tab S 8.4 also has a fingerprint sensor, though in our testing, it wasn’t very accurate and required several swipes to register our prints. Apple’s Touch ID is far more reliable than Samsung’s feature.
One thing the Tab S 8.4 has on the mini 3 is its microSD card slot, which lets you expand the slate’s storage capacity by inserting a cheap storage card. That’s something you won’t find on any iPad, where 16 GB is 16 GB.
Outlook
Both the iPad mini 3 and the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 are impressive tablets in their own rights. For $399, you can get a 16 GB iPad mini 3, which is exactly what you’ll pay for the Tab S 8.4 with 16 GB of storage. So which is the best? We’ll have to wait until we can fully review the new mini 3 to find out. Stay tuned.
Email Daniel at dhowley@yahoo-inc.com; follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley or on Google+ here.
