Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world, there have been some major lifestyle changes. Our homes became offices and schools all the same, with working professionals taking their meetings in front of a laptop and students trying to concentrate in a digital classroom. The pandemic happened all of a sudden and new ways had to be adopted in order to survive these changing times. It is natural people were without necessary resources, required to work from home or take online classes. If the latter is still a concerning matter, there's something worth checking out.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite was recently launched as an affordable tablet, trying to live up to the requirements of education and entertainment. The new tablet comes in two models, Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi+LTE, which are priced at Rs 11,999 and Rs 14,999, respectively. The tablet comes with 3GB RAM and 32GB expandable storage. Here's a look at what works in the favour of the Galaxy Tab A7 Lite and what doesn't.
Design and Display
Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite is a compact tablet with a Samsung-esque minimalistic design. For a tablet, it can be handled with one hand as it is quite light. Our review unit was a Grey shade, but there's also a Silver one if that's more suited to your taste. Taking cues from the Samsung Tab family, the Galaxy A7 Lite is an elegant looking model with flat sides.
On the plastic rear panel are Samsung's logo at the centre and the rear camera on the top left corner. At the bottom, there's a USB Type-C port for charging and a 3.5mm headphone jack. You can also find speakers at the bottom and at the top as well, which means it is designed for multimedia consumption when the tab is facing landscape orientation. The power and volume controls are on the top right side, which might not be as easy to reach while holding the tablet in the same hand.
The display on the Tab A7 Lite is an 8.7-inch TFT display with 1340x800 WXGA+ pixels. For indoor use, we found the display to be quite great. We primarily used it for video conferencing, online classes and multimedia consumption, all of which seem to be handled with ease. The display is bright and rich in colour and usable even outdoors, all prepared to be used once the pandemic is history.
Overall, the design and display of the Tab A7 Lite are best suited for the masses given the current reliance on digital modes of communication and entertainment.
Performance
The Galaxy Tab A7 Lite is powered by a humble MediaTek Helio P22T processor, which is paired with 3GB RAM and 32GB onboard storage. The spec sheet itself should be enough to set your expectations light. If you're looking at playing CoD or PUBG games, this might not be the best tablet out there. However, simple games like Candy Crush, Ludo are more like it.
Our usage with the Tab A7 Lite was mainly limited to the consumption of media, taking online meetings/classes, social media and internet browsing and some mild gaming. As long as you do not push the limits, the tablet will work just fine throughout the day. And if you have a Samsung household - the Tab A7 Lite fits right in.
The tablet, despite being affordable, has Knox security, so taking those important emails and editing some assignments while picking out your groceries is without concern. With tablet had both Wi-Fi and LTE and both seem to work as promised. We were mostly connected to Wi-Fi during the review period.
The dual speakers with Dolby Atmos are a nice touch. Watching your favourite TV shows and movies without earphones fills the room with its audio, good enough to be viewed by two or three people when comfortably snuggled in. The limited storage on the device is a major letdown, but there's 1TB storage expansion, so it's not all a dead-end.
The rear 8MP camera is good enough and mostly came in handy to click photos of documents, take quick pictures of projects and homework. As for the front camera with a 2MP sensor, it is primarily for video calls and not so much for selfies. Phones do a far better job at that.
Battery
The Galaxy Tab A7 Lite is packing a 5,100mAh battery with 15W Adaptive Fast Charging. The monstrous battery easily lasts a day with mixed usage, but the only solution to fully charge the tablet is by leaving it plugged in to the charger overnight. With 7+ hours of screen on time, your kid can finish the online class, you can catch up on your shows and even get-together for some light games like Ludo.
Pros
- Perfect for online classes/video conference
- Easy to doodle notes
- Good speakers for multimedia consumption
- Dual speakers and 3.5mm jack are equally useful
- Lightweight durable design
- Affordable price point
Cons
- No 64GB option
- Lags while loading heavy apps
- Multi-tasking can be a strain on CPU
Who is the tablet for?
Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite is for both students and working professionals. For students, it can be a good investment as it is priced low and configured to do just as much. For professionals, it is a good device to take you away from your laptop and smartphone to catch up on your TV shows or some new flicks. Samsung has the price advantage here and the long-lasting battery is surely a boon.
Don't expect the goodness of Samsung's high-end tablets or even compare it to an iPad. The Galaxy Tab A7 Lite is for those who cannot afford either. It's a good way to jump the tablet bandwagon if you really must.
