In October, Samsung will be releasing their latest offering in the tablet/slate space, unaffected by legal wrangling. Samsung provided an evaluation unit of the upcoming Series 7 Slate PC for a few fun hours, and I walked away quite impressed with what they have been able to do with a Windows-based tablet.
With Ultrabooks being all the rage, Apple continuing to dominate the tablet market and Android-based tablets showing real innovation, this product definitely needs to have some stand-out features to cut through the noise from all the other computing offerings.
I think this slate device from Samsung not only competes nicely against the incumbents, but keeping in mind what Windows 8 has in store next year, sets the benchmark for a solid out-of-the-box Windows solution.
The specifications actually sound very Ultrabook-ish. A low voltage Intel i5 processor, the same as the one used in some Ultrabooks, with 64GB or 128GB SSD capacity, 4GB of RAM and a choice between Premium and Professional operating systems. The local Australian versions haven’t been confirmed yet. Just like the Ultrabooks, there is no dedicated graphics, relying on the Intel HD Graphics to handle all the video processing requirements.
The screen is a bright (400 nit) 11.6” LCD with a 1366 x768 widescreen resolution. Wireless is naturally built-in, as is Bluetooth for connection to keyboards and other devices. There’s a front and back camera with 2MP and 3MP sizes respectively.
However, the specs are only one part of the story. This is easily the best looking, easy to carry Windows tablet I’ve played with so far. The metal finish across the entire body is striking and would stand out from existing tablets. Those who purchase with design and style in their criteria would be turning their heads in this slate’s direction. The capacitive screen is very responsive, presumably carrying on from Samsung’s experience in previous tablets and smartphones.
Light and thin come to mind as well, with the unit weighing only 860 grams and a tad under 13mm thick.
There’s enough connectivity to satisfy most users on the actual tablet, with Micro-SD card, micro-HDMI, full-size USB and headphone input all present along with the dock connector. Other buttons include power, volume and orientation-lock.
Windows 7 has never been a serious contender in the touch-based environment. Smartly, there is an active electromagnetic pen included, which makes much more sense for standard windows operation. The pen can be floated slightly above the screen and still be detected by the display.
If you want a more touch-friendly interface, Samsung does include a Touch Launcher program, which is essentially a skin for selected programs to be grouped within a one-touch, slide based environment. It’s a small but cool program that gives a degree of familiarity to those already using tablets.
On that topic, Samsung have deliberately called this a “slate”, with no mention of tablets, and it seems that its target market is not the app-based content consuming market – this is definitely a product you would create documents on first, and use as a casual touch screen device second.
The dock and Bluetooth keyboard are included in the box as well. The dock provides charging, Ethernet, USB 2.0, headphone and HDMI outputs, while the slim, metallic keyboard provides a very real notebook feel while the tablet is docked.
And this is the attraction – while docked, the Series 7 Slate offers a high performance PC, perhaps hooked up to a larger HD monitor. Out of the dock and on the road, it’s still capable of running all of the Windows applications you need but in a truly portable form factor. This is no netbook-level Windows tablet. The slate has a claimed 7 hours battery life but I didn’t have it long enough to confirm that.
From the short experience I had, it’s easily one of the best Windows 7 executions of a tablet form factor yet. The stylus may be anachronistic to some but makes total sense in a Windows environment, until Windows 8 arrives sometime next year.
The Series 7 Slate will be priced at similar levels to some of its Ultrabook cousins, but if local sales of the Asus EP121 Windows Slate are any indication, there is a market for those who need to hold on to their Windows-based applications and this complete package may be just the ticket.
Would you consider the Slate as your next PC purchase? How would you be using it?
Bill says
Sounds pretty good to me. I like the active digitizer and I understand it has an instant on feature that sounds really cool. I like the fact it only weighs just 2 pounds and I can put Photoshop on it. The screen size a good compromise, not to big for portability, not to small for everyday use.
This should complement my Macbook Air well.
Ritchie says
@Bill, you’re right, this Slate can’t be directly compared to other tablets in that it can be loaded with true PC applications like Photoshop. The fact you can then take it with you makes it a compelling offer for those that need performance and mobility. The key is in the Touch Launcher skin and the ability to use that in tablet function when away from the dock. I had to search for that app on the Slate but I’d suggest that it should have a desktop shortcut as it will be used a fair bit when in Slate mode.
Corey McCowan says
Just curious if you know when a release date is? I live in Canada and can’t wait to buy one!
Ang says
Looks good. How does the apps compare to Android and iTunes? Are there many available?
What about the map? There is a map right? Is the location accurate and does it require data usage to work the map? As my phone doesn’t require the data usage to work the map, it’s preloaded in the phone and it’s a good idea to not run data usuage having to wait for the map to load gets frustrating especially if you’re on the road waiting for it to load.
Cheers,
Ang
Alztar says
As usual great indepth review. I agree this is one of the better PC/Windows based iPad-esque device even without the touchy feely experience.
MS have already lost the mobile OS war and have a lot of ground to make up in the tablet space. This will be last chance to get back in to the mobile device arena with an OS platform that is not clunky nor only reserved for the IT savy to keep it running “normally”. Strange to say it would be good to see MS back as a third contender.
I guess the maket will categorised this as a tablet however Samsung wants to call it. At the end of the day, if the OS fails the user, it will make the best device on paper not worth considering in anybody’s next x-mas whish list. I think Samsung have taken a gamble with MS, my guess would be that this will be more favoured to the Enterprise market to allow companies to adapt their internal SOE onto a PC/MS based devices.
Ritchie says
@Corey, Australian launch is slated (pardon the pun) for early November.
Tylor Ray Gallagher says
have mine pre-ordered from the microsoft store. SOOO need this for school. can’t waite to play with it a few months befor school starts though. and its all ready for windows 8!!!
Ritchie says
@Ang, my contacts at Samsung tell me that the Slate does not have GPS built-in, so there is no location detection. There are no apps at this stage either specifically for the Slate, but it can run any Windows application as it is a fully functioning PC unlike other tablet-type devices.
Ritchie says
@alztar, I think what we will see next year is a tighter integration of desktop (that includes notebook), tablet and smartphone environments. Windows 8 gives Microsoft its best opportunity to offer the full solution. How they execute and deploy the OS and work with hardware manufacturers will determine that success. The installed base of Windows users is massive, how they have leverage that is what I’ll be watching with acute interest!
Ritchie says
@Tylor, Let us know how you go with the Slate as you use it day-to-day, we’d be interested in hearing your experiences. Did you know that this model is the one that was given out to Windows 8 developers? So it’s certainly the benchmark for the Windows 8 experience down the track.
Corey McCowan says
I believe it will come with GPS and a compass I have read that from a couple sources (my mind is blanking on which ones). Also if you look at the Engadget Gallery of the hands on with the series 7 slate one of the pictures is a map with a compass on the bottom right corner. No guarantees this will be true when it’s released but since Samsung intends to make it “fully upgradeable to Windows 8” I can’t see why it would not have GPS and a compass.
Ritchie says
@Corey, thanks for the heads up. My info did come from the local source here in Australia so there may be variants of the Slate. I’ll keep a look out for more info, thanks again for pointing this out.
Corey McCowan says
@Ritchie no problem I am hoping it has at least GPS since I have been looking forward to this slate for a while and will have to find a new one if it doesn’t have GPS. Since really it’s a feature that by now should be standard in all phones and tablets.
brianchau says
I really like the fact that it runs full OS so that I can use it as a laptop replacement. Ritchie, do you know if the digitzer pen is pressure-sensitive? It would be great for drawing or painting with programs like Photoshop or Illustrator. And how does it differentiate pen from finger input? Does it have palm detection?
Ritchie says
@Brian, the full OS will be a huge attraction – there’s no compromise on funcitonality to meet the dimensions and form factor of the Slate. The digitiser is pressure sensitive, but to how many levels I’m not sure – I’ll ask.
Not sure on the actual method of finger vs pen operation, but you can see the cursor move if you have the digitiser floating close to the screen, whereas your finger needs to be physically touching the screen to be detected. I actually prefer the pen as it is way more accurate than my finger, which has a huge surface area in comparison.
Palm detection would make a lot of ergonomic sense if the digitiser is being used a fair bit. Great questions and I’ll find out and post my reply as soon as possible!
Cmgeston says
Can someone tell me what function the docking station for the Series 7 slate provides; other than additional ports for connectivity, charging and a fancy stand? I am a little confused because some of the decriptions/reviews I have read (including straight from Samsung) seem to indicate that the dock adds some sort of ‘computing power’ to the tablet itself. I want to make sure the tablet can function on its own; i.e. handle OneNote, Explorer, iTunes at once, and keyboard function without dock. I plan to use it for school and do not want to carry the dock around with me. Really, I am debating whether to get the dock at all considering it only comes packaged with Home Premium and the keyboard (which I may replace anyways) … and I’d rather have WinPro. Basically, is the dock necessary?
Ritchie says
Thanks for the question! The dock won’t add any “processing power” unless you are choosing certain power settings via the control panel as with any Windows 7 PC, in which case you may choose a power-saving mode when running on battery and full performance when plugged in. On the other hand, the dock does exapnd your connectivity options, with the additional USB port and ethernet socket. As long as you choose the appropriate power settings through your control panel, then the Slate should perform on par with other PCs of comparable specifications. At the moment, my understanding is that the Slate will come bundled with the entire setup here in Australia – dock, keyboard and digitizer pen. The dock is not necessary from a performance perspective, but is certainly helpful to convert the Slate into a fully funtioning PC. You could imagine setting up a monitor, perhaps different keyboard and mouse, and direct internet and local network connection. It’s then a simply case of taking the Slate off the dock when you’re out and about.
Cmgeston says
Thanks for your reply, it was helpful. One very specific thing that is important to me is that the wireless keyboard will function with the slate un-docked. Again, some of the reviews are confusing on this and seem to indicate that the slate must be docked in order to use the wireless keyboard. I am assuming that the Slate itself is Bluetooth enabled and, therefore, can communicate with the keyboard sans dock. Could you verify one way or the other? Much appreciated!
Ritchie says
I just spoke to Samsung, who confirmed that the dock is not required for the wireless keyboard connection. The Slate itself has the Bluetooth (high speed 3.0 no less) receiver built-in, so you will be able to use the included keyboard without the dock. Cheers, and hope this helps!
Tabitha says
Ritchie – would love more info on the stylus please. Is it a Wacom pen? If not – does it work the same? e.g. Able to press side button and click for right click?
Ritchie says
Hi Tabitha,
I’ve spoken to Samsung and it is indeed a Wacom pen, and the side button does act as a right click. Also, because it’s an Electro-magnetic resonance (EMR) pen, you can do flick gestures without touching the screen – you just need to be around 8mm or closer.
Thanks for the question!
Ritchie
Happy says
I bought the Samsung Slate PC about a week ago and have been very happy with it. PC power with the convenience of a tablet, and a USB port! The only difficulty so far is finding a good stand case (portfolio cover/stand) – neither the stand case shown on Samsung’s US website doesn’t seem to be available through Australian based retailers yet, and other accessory providers don’t seem to have tailored accessories available yet either.
Cheers,
“Happy”
Ritchie says
Hi “Happy”, thanks for your comment, it’s definitely one of the best Windows 7 based tablets in the market. I would imagine the smaller market for this device doesn’t lend itself to many third party manufacturers investing in accessories. I’ll ask my contacts at Samsung when they expect their own accessories to land in Australia.
Have a great day!
mark says
has anyone found a cover stand in Australia yet