KUALA LUMPUR, Jan. 24 – Samsung Malaysia has introduced the Galaxy Tab A8, its new budget tablet priced under RM1,000. It appears to be a refresh of their previous Galaxy Tab A7, but it now runs on a rather unknown processor.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 Malaysia Price and Availability
The Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 is officially priced at RM999 in Malaysia. You can buy it from the official online store as well as e-commerce platforms such as Lazada and Shopee. As part of Samsung Malaysia’s introductory offer, Galaxy Tab A8 buyers will receive a free Clear Edge case worth RM99 and a 1-year Samsung Care+ worth RM110 for free until February 28, 2022, while supplies last.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 is currently offered as a Wi-Fi only device with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. It is available in rose gold or dark grey.
Specifications of the Samsung Galaxy Tab A8
Compared to the previous Galaxy Tab A7, the new Galaxy Tab A8 comes with a slightly larger 10.5″ TFT display that pushes a resolution of 1920×1200 pixels (WUXGA) in a 16:10 aspect ratio. Instead of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 chip, the updated tablet runs on an unspecified 2GHz Octa-Core processor that Samsung says delivers 10% better CPU and GPU performance.
There’s a good reason why Samsung doesn’t disclose the processor on its official product page and global press release. According to Sammobile, the Galaxy Tab A8 runs on a 12nm Unisoc Tiger T618 chip, which is slightly better than the T610 that powers the Nokia T20 tablet. If you haven’t heard of Unisoc, you’re not alone. The company makes low-cost SoCs that are typically found on very low-budget devices.
Similar to the Galaxy Tab A7, the Galaxy Tab A8 comes with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage expandable via microSD card up to 1TB. In the camera department, it has a single 8 MP main camera on the back and a 5 MP front camera for selfies and video calls. For audio playback, it still gets a quad stereo speaker setup with Dolby Atmos support and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Despite being a budget device, the tablet still offers several notable features, including Samsung Kids, multi-active window with drag-and-drop support, as well as the ability to copy and paste to other Samsung devices logged into the same account. Out of the box, it runs on Android 11 with Samsung’s skin on top.
The tablet is powered by a 7,040mAh battery and supports 15W adaptive fast charging via USB-C. Unfortunately, the faster 15W charger is not included and Samsung seems to offer a slower 7.8W charger. The device supports 802.11ac 5GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0. Overall, it weighs 508g and is 6.9mm thick.
For the price, it’s disappointing that Samsung isn’t giving its sub-RM1,000 Galaxy Tab A series tablet a major upgrade for 2022. With its decision to switch to a Unisoc processor, it’s not unclear if the Galaxy Tab A8 would be able to get long term software updates.
If you plan to spend RM1,000 for a tablet, it would make more sense to get an entry-level iPad which starts from RM1,499 for the 64GB WiFi version. Not only do you get a more powerful processor, but you can also be assured of iPadOS and continuous security updates for at least 3-5 years. If you are a student, Apple also offers student pricing and the iPad 64GB WiFi costs RM1,409. — Soya Cincau
