Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 review: The Professional

Design, build quality, controls and handling

Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 utilizes the popular faux-leather-look plastic for the back, which Samsung premiered on the Galaxy Note 3 phablet. This may as well spiral into another wave of overused designs but we are still fond of these looks and we don't mind it being reused (for now).

Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4

The Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 is the first mid-sized tablet from Samsung we meet in a really long time and its main rival is the latest iPad mini 2. The Tab Pro 8.4 footprint is close to that of the Apple's slate, with the different display aspects causing most of the difference. The Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 spreads at 219 x 128.5 x 7.2 mm, which is 19 mm taller, 6 mm narrower and just a notch thinner than the iPad mini 2. The Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 and iPad mini 2 both weigh exactly 331 g and that might be more than just a coincidence.

The Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 introduces an important control change compared to the Samsung slates of old - the capacitive Menu key is gone, replaced by Android's standard Task Switch control. Samsung has completely overhauled the task switcher and task manager, taking the tablet's multi-tasking capabilities to a whole new level.

The new Android control deck • The 2MP camera above the screen

The rest is pretty much the same and the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 looks like an upsized Galaxy Note 3. The default orientation of the slate is assumed to be the portrait one, just like with a phone.

Above the screen you get the ambient-light sensor and the 2MP front-facing camera and bellow, there's the Android control deck.

The Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 controls

The 3.5mm audio jack is on top, while the microphone, Lock/power key, the volume rocker and the IR blaster are on the right. The right side also accommodates the lonely microSD port, covered by a small plastic lid.

The microSD card slot is on the right

The bottom of the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 has the microUSB 2.0 port, flanked by the stereo speakers. There's no microUSB 3.0 port here, unlike the Note 3 smartphone. Still, the 2.0 port on the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 is MHL-enabled so it can serve as a TV-out and also supports USB On-The-Go for connecting external USB accessories.

The microUSB 2.0 port at the bottom

Finally, the 8MP camera and a LED flash are at the back of the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4. There is a metal frame around the camera lens.

A peek at the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 back

The Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 can be held comfortably with one hand and operated with the other. It's thin, light and provides great grip because of its faux-leather plastic back. The material also feel great to the touch. Even though it's no actual leather, the feeling is quite close, taking the overall experience up a notch.

Samsung also deserves praise for not compromising on the build quality. We think everyone will appreciate the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 great handling and solid construction.

Handling the Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4