Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2021 Review: A Budget Tablet with 4G Connectivity

Samsung has launched a new budget tablet in Nepal, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2021. It is the successor of the Tab A7 2020.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2021 price in Nepal starts at Rs. 35,000.

So, what can we expect from the Samsung Tab A8 2021? I’ll tell you all about it in this review of the Samsung Tab A8 2021.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2021 Review

Design

• 246.8 x 161.9 x 6.9 mm
• 508 g
• Nano-SIM (LTE)

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2021 has a slightly different design compared to Samsung’s previous tablets. It has a circular single camera on the rear giving it a clean look.

The front bezel remains thick and it doesn’t have a fingerprint sensor. The right side houses a volume rocker and a power button whereas we can find a hybrid slot on the bottom left. Yes, the LTE variant comes with nano-SIM support for cellular connectivity.

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I like how Samsung has gone for a quad-speaker system on the Tab A8 2021. There are two speakers on the bottom along with a USB Type-C port and the other two speakers are on the top.

Samsung Tab A8 2021 looks premium thanks to the metal body and metal frame. The body feels sturdy and the smooth finish on the rear gives it a premium vibe. It does feel slightly heavy as it weighs around 508 gm but it surely has been built like a tank.

Display

• 10.5 inches TFT
• 1200 x 1920 pixels
• 16:10 ratio
• 216 PPI

Upfront, it has a huge 10.5 inches TFT panel with a screen resolution of 1900 x 1200 pixels. It is a normal 60Hz display with a 16:10 aspect ratio.

The display is not its most interesting feature as it is a TFT panel. However, it is a good TFT panel with more than enough brightness, I did not have any problem using this tablet outdoors.

The viewing angle is also pretty good but the color reproduction is just average. On top of that, it doesn’t support Widevine L1 and only has Widevine L3 support which limits playback to SD quality on popular streaming services like Netflix.

Another thing to note is its sharpness, A8 2021 has a decent resolution of 1920×1200 pixels but it is not sharp enough for a 10.5-inch display. The icons and the home screen look a bit dull and pixelized. But, that won’t be a problem while streaming YouTube videos.

Having a big display has its perks though. It is handy for online classes, meetings, and video calls. The extra screen real state does provide you with more flexibility.

Performance

• Unisoc Tiger T618 (12nm)
• Octa-core (2×2.0 GHz Cortex-A75 & 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55)\
• Mali-G52 MP2 GPU

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2021 rocks a Unisoc Tiger T618 SoC. It has a Mali-G52 MP2 GPU and an octa-core CPU with 2x 2.0GHz Cortex-A75 cores and 6x 2.0GHz Cortex-A55 cores.

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Our review unit was paired with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage but you can also get a 4GB RAM variant with 64GB storage.

Even though this chipset uses the same configuration as MediaTek’s Helio G80, it is behind the G80 interms of performance. Also, it uses the same GPU as G80 but it has been undercooked. The Mali-G52 MP2 on the Unisoc chipset is underclocked at 614MHz whereas it runs at 950MHz on the G80.

The difference in the chipset is apparent in real-life performance too. While we have tested plenty of mobile phones with Helio G80 and all of them have good performance, the Unisoc T610 cannot match that.

The Tab A8 2021 feels sluggish even in general usage. The app loading time is slow and it struggles to run the apps smoothly. This performance drop could also be due to low 3GB RAM, the 4GB RAM variant could have slightly better performance.

In terms of gaming, we played Asphalt 9 and FreeFire. These games can be played at the lowest settings but it won’t be a smooth experience.

Battery Life

• Non-removable Li-Po 7040 mAh battery
• Charging 7.5W
• 15W Fast charging support

Samsung Tab A8 2021 boasts a big 7040mAh battery. With moderate usage, it was able to get 2-3 days of runtime.

For charging, I did not receive any charger with my review unit but it comes bundled with only a 7.8W charger. This charger takes almost 4 hours to fully charge the A8 but it does have a 15W charging support.

Cameras

• Rear Camera: 8 MP , 1.12µm
• Front Camera: 5 MP

Tab A8 2021 has an 8MP rear camera and a 5MP front camera.

They are usable cameras for video calls and occasional snaps of documents. But, that’s about it. You won’t be taking amazing photos with this tablet. Well, tablets were never meant to offer impressive cameras.

Software

• Android 11
• One UI Core 3.1

Tab A8 2021 comes with One UI Core 3.1 on top of Android 11 out of the box.

The software experience is similar to what you expect from a flagship Samsung smartphone with One UI. There have not been any major changes to One UI for tablets. One of the major issues is the app compatibility with orientation as some apps do not support landscape mode.

Samsung has not added bloatware to this device and you do not get features like DeX and Wireless Display. But, you do get Quick Share with Tab A8 2021.

While the Android experience on a tablet is not as good by default. Samsung probably provides the best experience you can get on an Android tablet.

Should You Buy Samsung Tab A8 2021?

Samsung Tab A8 2021 is a tablet that is focused on general usage like online classes, video calls, and media consumption. To be fair, it can do all of those but the lack of performance makes it an average tablet.

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One of the good things is that it provides cellular connectivity which is not easily available in this segment. So, if you are looking for an average tablet with cellular connectivity then this can be your choice.

What do you think about Tab A8 2021? Let us know in the comments!

Also, check out our review of the LG C1 OLED 4K TV in Nepali.