Comparison: Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 vs. A7

Samsung is releasing new Galaxy Tab A tablets every year. The newest one is the Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 which is the successor to the Galaxy Tab A7. How much can change in a year and is it worth it to upgrade? That’s what you’ll learn in this Galaxy Tab A8 vs A7 comparison.

What’s different?

Hardware & Performance

Let’s check out their differences first and that starts with the internal hardware. The Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 ships with a Unisoc Tiger T618 processor with 3GB or 4GB RAM and 32GB to 128GB internal storage. Inside the Galaxy Tab A7, on the other hand, runs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 processor with 3GB RAM and 32GB or 64GB internal storage. Both can be bought with LTE 4G.

Even though the Qualcomm processor is better known, in benchmarks like Geekbench 5 and the 3D Mark Wild Life Test, the Galaxy Tab A8 with its Unisoc processor is faster. Especially in GPU tests, so the graphics performance is better than on the A7.

Great Value

Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 64GB

$279.99 $190.58

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 is a cheap entry-level tablet that should get long software updates. It offers a good performance for its price, a metal body, and four good speakers. Sadly, the battery life is not the best and it does not support an active pen.

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03/26/2024 10:03 pm GMT

My gaming test confirms this. While you can play PUBG Mobile with balanced graphic settings on the A7 only, you can select HD graphics on the A8. It runs smoothly with these settings and looks nice.

The performance of other tasks like browsing the web, watching YouTube, and light multitasking is pretty much the same on both.

Display

Their displays are different too. With the A7’s 10.4 inches and the A8’s 10.5 inches, there’s a small difference in size and with 2000 x 1200 and 1920 x 1200 pixels there’s a small difference in pixel density too. But both are too minor to really notice. We get laminated screens on both.

So, in direct comparison, both look equally sharp. However, while the A7 has a bit of a blue tint compared to the A8, it’s noticeably brighter than the newer tablet. So, if you want to use your tablet outside a lot, the A7 is the better choice.

Software

While both are running Android 11 with the same OneUI right now, regarding software, the A8 is the better choice. That’s simply because it’s about a year newer which means it should get about a year longer updates.

Battery Life

The battery life is different too. Here the older Galaxy Tab A7 is a bit better with 7.5 hours compared to the 6.25 hours of the A8. For this, I’m always looping an HD YouTube video at maximum brightness.

What’s the same?

Everything else is mostly the same. Yes, with 508g the Tab A8 is a bit heavier than the 476g Tab A7. But besides that, the basic design is almost the same. We get pretty premium-feeling metal bodies on both, four speakers that sound almost identical, as well as USB C 2.0 ports, microSD card slots, and even standard 3.5mm headphone jacks on both.

Galaxy Tab A8 vs A7 Comparison: Final Words

So, which one is the better tablet? Well, as you’ve seen, the newer one is not necessarily the better one. If you need a cheap tablet with a bright screen, the Galaxy Tab A7 is the better choice and it has a bit longer battery life too. With that being said, especially the gaming performance of the Galaxy Tab A8 is better and it should get a year longer updates. If you need a new tablet, I would get the A8 because of the longer updates. But if you have the A7 already, it’s not worth it for you to get the A8.

9

Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 10.4

Read now: Our Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 10.4 Review

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 offers a fantastic value for its price. We're getting a fast processor, up-to-date Android 10, four speakers, and a good 10.4-inch display. It's missing most premium features but it's a great choice if you're looking for a basic tablet for surfing the web and watching movies.

Positive

• Very affordable
• Fast processor
• Android 10
• Four speakers
• Decent screen

Negative

• No fingerprint scanner
• Active pen not supported

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