When the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 was launched last weekend, it suddenly made the still new Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus irrelevant, or did it? Those who were thinking of buying the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus are now thinking whether to get the Galaxy Tab 7.7 instead. Is the 7.7 a worthy upgrade over the 7.0 Plus?
Let’s take a closer look at the two.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus (left) and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 (right)
The obvious difference between the two is the size of both the tablet and its display. The Tab 7.7 may be bigger but not by much due to its narrower black bezel as compared to the 7.0 Plus. The Super AMOLED Plus display on the 7.7 is a huge deal as well providing deeper contrasts and more vibrant colors. It made the display on the 7.0 LCD looked washed out in comparison.
On the aesthetic side, the Galaxy Tab 7.7 is thinner by 2mm and lighter by 10 grams. In practicality, that’s not a lot and you won’t really feel the difference between the two.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus (left) and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 (right)
What you will feel, and see, is the difference of the back panel. The Tab 7.0 Plus has a glossy plastic back while the Tab 7.7 has a combination of plastic and metal with a brushed finish giving it a premium, solid look.
Now let’s look at the specs comparison between two:
| Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 P6800 | Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus P6200 |
|---|---|
| 7.7-inch Super AMOLED Plus display @ 800 x 1280 pixels | 7-inch PLS LCD display @ 600 ×1024 pixel resolution |
| Android 3.2 Honeycomb | Android 3.2 Honeycomb |
| 1.4GHz ARM Cortex-A9 dual-core processor | 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A9 dual-core processor |
| Mali-400MP GPU | Mali-400MP GPU |
| 1GB RAM | 1GB RAM |
| 16GB internal storage, microSD up to 32GB | 16GB internal storage, microSD up to 32GB |
| WiFi 802.11 b/g/n | WiFi 802.11 b/g/n |
| HSDPA 21Mbps, HSUPA 5.76Mbps | HSDPA 21Mbps, HSUPA 5.76Mbps |
| Bluetooth 3.0 w/ A2DP | Bluetooth 3.0 w/ A2DP |
| 3.15MP camera with LED flash | 3.15MP camera with LED flash |
| 2MP front camera | 2MP front camera |
| 720p HD video recording @ 30fps | 720p HD video recording @ 30fps |
| Call and Text feature | Call and Text feature |
| 5100mAh Li-Po battery | 4000mAh Li-Ion battery |
| 7.89mm depth | 9.96mm depth |
| 335 g | 345 g |
| SRP: Php32,990 | SRP: Php23,990 |
For performance, the main difference is just the .2GHz advantage of the 7.7 Plus. And according to a recent testing by Engadget, here are the benchmark scores between the two.
| Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 | Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus | |
|---|---|---|
| Quadrant | 1,947 | 2,700 |
| Linpack single-thread (MFLOPS) | 53.76 | 28.98 |
| Linpack multi-thread (MFLOPS) | 81.07 | 69.47 |
| NenaMark 1 (fps) | 59.5 | 59.3 |
| NenaMark 2 (fps) | 37.9 | 41.8 |
| Vellamo | 1,220 | 1,198 |
| SunSpider 9.1 (ms, lower numbers are better) | 1,488 | 1,679 |
The Quadrant score on the 7.0 Plus looks bogus but it has something to do with Quadrant’s algorithm favorite screens with lower res. But for the most part, there’s no significant advantage in terms of performance coming from the Tab 7.7.
Also, based on the same test by Endgadget, we learned that the Tab 7.7’s 5100mAh battery boasts of a class-leading 12-hour life. Well past the 10.5-hour life of the iPad 2 and very well ahead of the Tab 7.0 Plus’ 8-hour battery life.
Lastly, with all of these perks of the Galaxy Tab 7.7 over the Tab 7.0 Plus, there’s also a huge price difference to the tune of Php9,000. The Tab 7.7 is indeed pricey for its size.
Now the decision. Tab 7.7 or Tab 7.0 Plus? If you have the money to burn and want the best of what the 7-inch tablet market has to offer, definitely go with the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7. And if you’re fine knowing that your tablet’s display isn’t the best out there, or has a fragile plastic build, or can work with the 8-hour (which is not bad at all) battery life, then the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus should suffice for you.
