Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The Galaxy Tab E is just what I wanted in a large screen tablet for my everyday use that was not very expensive but still perfectly capable. I realized a while ago that even though I love tablets my actual use in no way justified spending hundreds of dollars on a top of the line model - not for browsing the Internet, watching YouTube videos, writing, and reading. I also like to take my tablet with me everywhere - trips, work, and places I can sit and do some writing - so an affordable one is just way more practical. I’ve used small size tablets for a while but found myself missing a big screen, something in the around 10 inch size, but finding something with good enough performance at that size without spending quite a bit was difficult. Enter the Tab E. From my use of it I feel Samsung has struck a good balance between price and features with this one. There are a couple of areas where you can tell compromises were made for the sake of affordability but for a general use tablet if a big screen matters to you this one is hard to beat. Great things about the Tab E: -The screen is big, colorful, and responsive. -Performance is absolutely stellar considering the price. Everything is smooth, apps open quickly, switching between apps is fluid, and even running two apps at once works with minimal slowdown. It has handled everything I have thrown at it with no problem and never a freeze or even a hiccup. I was able to use it while it was installing and downloading multiple apps and updates when I first got it and not really notice. -It is running a very recent version of Android - 5.1.1. You have all your Google applications and everything you would expect from the operating system. -The shape is really nice. This is a very rectangular tablet. Widescreen is great for video watching and it is comfortable to hold. It is not a big square slab like my old Tab 4. -It looks good and feels very solid. It has some substance to it. Some might call it a bit thick or bulky but I like its solid feeling and it certainly does not seem cheap. It is missing the usual bright metal strip around the outside edge of the tablet but I like the more uniform all black matte look used here. The back has a grippy textured molding. Mine is in a case so I don’t notice this much but it would not be slick or easily dropped without a case. All buttons (home, volume, power) feel solid and very clicky. -Battery life has been excellent. I charged it full the day I got it and it was not until three days later I needed to charge it again and this was after considerable use. -There is an SD card slot for video storage to supplement the 16GB of internal memory. I think 16GB it a little limited but expect it at this price. The SD card slot makes it workable. -Wifi connection is strong. It gets full signal anywhere in my apartment and it both loads websites and downloads content quickly. Is is for Economy. Less good things to keep in mind: -While the screen is big and colorful it does not seem as high a quality overall compared to other tablets I’ve owned from Samsung. The resolution is not bad at 1200x800, which is really what I expected for the price. However, you can basically see a pattern of thin lines throughout that just says budget display. It is hard to describe what this looks like and it is not a defect as I’ve seen three of these tablets (my own and two local display units) and the screens all look the same. The screen is fine, just seems like cheaper/older/etc. tech. -The speaker… Every review has mentioned the sound. I was expecting worse, considering. The sound really isn’t THAT bad, a little tinny, but the problem is with the placement of the speaker. There is one speaker and it is on the back of the tablet near the camera facing away from you. I really won’t get why it was designed this way. I have a case that folds over and I find this helps redirect the sound towards the user. If you want to seriously listen to music I would recommend headphones or a bluetooth speaker, It is fine for streaming video as far as I’m concerned. -Some might find this tablet too thick or heavy. It is not super thin and weighs a little over a pound. Overall I would absolutely recommend this tablet if you want something budget friendly but a large screen is important to you. I did not really discuss camera but I just don't use the cameras on tablets, especially large tablets, so I don't really have an opinion. Keep in mind it is a bit heavy and the sound is average. At this price for a well performing tablet from a name brand like Samsung the Tab E is a very good choice. This is a basic tablet experience - no bells and whistles but smooth performance and function. I am very happy with mine.