Which tablet should you buy?

• 

  Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite

  The cheapest option

  Good for watching Netflix

  The Galaxy A7 Lite is worse in every category than the newer Tab A8; However, if you’re looking for a tablet that can stream your favorite content, this is a decent Netflix machine, especially since it only costs $160.

  Benefits

  • Cheaper
  • Same maximum charging speed
  • Same rear camera

  The inconvenients

  • Very low performance
  • Smaller and less sharp display
  • Smaller battery

• 

  Samsung Galaxy Tab A8

  A solid basic tablet

  A little more power to perform basic tasks

  If you can afford the $230 MSRP, you should get the Galaxy Tab A8. The battery performance is quite good, it has a nice larger 1080p screen, and the Android experience is a lot less clunky. It’s a great affordable tablet for doing those basic daily tasks.

  Benefits

  • Slightly more powerful
  • Best front camera
  • Bigger 1080p screen

  The inconvenients

  • More expensive
  • No LTE version in the US

While many expensive Android tablets are great for productivity and running the latest and greatest games, they aren’t exactly budget-friendly, especially if you don’t need all that power. Fortunately, Samsung makes some of the best cheap android tablets you can buy that are great for watching content or browsing the web.

The Galaxy Tab A7 Lite and Galaxy Tab A8 are affordable tablets that offer great value for anyone looking for a basic tablet with a bigger screen around the house. Here’s how they stack up.

Price, availability and connectivity

Both tablets are widely available through the usual retailers you’d expect – Amazon, Best Buy and the Samsung Store. And while both are somewhat affordable, the A7 Lite is the more budget-friendly model with an MSRP of $160 as opposed to the Tab A8, which sells for $230.

In terms of connectivity, the Galaxy Tab A7 Lite and Tab A8 have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0. The A7 Lite also has an LTE cellular option in the US, while the A8 only has a cellular model available in Europe and India.

Design

THE Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 looks a bit more modern at first glance, thanks to its uniform bezels and square edges, whereas the A7 Lite has uneven bezels that make the chin and forehead look larger than the sides of the device. Of course, the A7 Lite is smaller overall (just 8.7 inches), making it lighter and easier to carry or hold in one hand. Still, the Tab A8 will feel nicer due to its slightly more premium design and heavier weight.

The good news? Although both models are Bluetooth 5.0 compatible, you do not need to connect to wireless headphones for audio, as a headphone jack is present on every tablet – a saving grace in these times.

Display

There is no doubt that the Galaxy Tab A8 has the better display. Not only is it bigger, but it also has a higher resolution – a full 1080p. This makes it ideal for watching Netflix or streaming your favorite Twitch channels, as you should get decent picture quality.

The A7 Lite only has a 720p display, which certainly isn’t ideal; however, as we mention in our review of the Galaxy A7 Lite, it doesn’t look too bad on a screen of this size. It also has a 5:3 wide aspect ratio, which is nice for viewing content without giant black bars on your screen.

Neither screen is very bright, so watching videos in direct sunlight is not recommended. However, the 327 nits on the A8 and 315 on the A7 Lite are fine for most situations.

Software

The Galaxy Tab A7 and Tab A8 come with Android 11 out of the box; however, they can be updated to Android 13 – and there’s no reason not to.

As for future support, the Galaxy Tab A7 Lite has finished receiving all major updates as it has already received both promises. The Galaxy Tab A8 is probably in the same boat.

When it comes to software experience, budget Android tablets can be a little rough around the edges. For example, multitasking leaves a lot to be desired on both models, with no taskbar at the bottom and only a pop-up view available instead of showing both windows side-by-side. Of course, it’s not like these tablets were meant for that, but something to keep in mind.

Performance

If you look at the A7 Lite or the A8, you might already know that performance is the top priority for both tablets, although the Galaxy A7 Lite is noticeably lacking in power. It’ll stream your Netflix and let you browse the web, but expect app load times to be jerky and jerky whenever you do something that takes a bit longer.

The Galaxy Tab A8’s Unisoc Tiger T618 chipset performs a bit better. It can handle most of your basic app needs like social media scrolling or even some light gaming. But it won’t impress if you’re trying to do some serious work. Still, less stuttering when updating apps and moving around the UI, in general, is a good thing.

Both models come with either 3GB or 4GB of RAM. You’ll want to get the one with 4GB to squeeze every bit of power out of these underperformers.

Battery life

Even though the Galaxy A8 has a much larger battery, its larger form factor means it doesn’t save too much battery compared to the A7 Lite, making them both comparable in terms of charging times. screen.

The Tab A8 will easily last you a full day with average mixed use, and if you’re constantly streaming you should still get around 9 hours. That’s better than the A7 Lite’s 5,100mAh battery, which only lasts around 6-7 hours on screen and around 10-12 hours with average use.

Charging on either device takes a long time. With only 15W of wired charging available on each device, it will take you a good few hours to go from 0 to 100%.

Cameras

If you’re looking to take photos with your Android tablet, these aren’t the devices for you, as the Tab A8 and A7 Lite only have an 8MP sensor on the back. They’re a far cry from anything you see on smartphones; even in perfect lighting, photos are average.

The fact that Relativity is lightweight and easy to carry is what makes tablets like these so good for video calling. If you like it, you’ll look much better to friends and family using the Tab A8’s 5MP front camera. It’s by no means immaculate, but it’s definitely better than the A7 Lite’s 2MP selfie camera.

What’s right for you?

The Galaxy Tab A8 is the clear winner in almost every category. It’s got a little more power to make using the tablet a little less cumbersome, better battery life to keep you going all day, a larger, higher-resolution display, and the list goes on. stretch again and again. If you’re looking for a tablet that can do the basics well, the Tab A8 is a solid option.

On the other hand, if you are looking for a device to stream your favorite content and carry it wherever you go, the Tab A7 may be worth its very affordable price. Yes, the screen is only 720p, but on such a small screen, that resolution doesn’t look so bad. Plus, its 5:3 aspect ratio helps smooth out the black bars around your Netflix shows, which is always a bonus.