Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 LTE hands-on and unboxing [Verizon]

March 2, 2012

Samsung has just released yet another Android tablet to their ever growing list. With almost every size under the sun I’m sure many are wondering what separates their latest 7.7″ model from the pack. We have all the details in our hands-on and first impressions with the new Verizon 4G LTE-powered Galaxy Tab 7.7 so read on below for our thoughts and video.

Is this just another size that Samsung has thrown against the wall to see what sticks? Or can this compete with the iPad 3 that is surely coming soon? The only downside to the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 is the fact that they still managed to launch with Android 3.2 Honeycomb and NOT 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. If they had the latest and greatest this tablet would probably be at the top of my list for portable tablets — under the quad-core Prime for top spot of course.

Now for the specs, Samsung has equipped this with slate with a 7.7″ display. What makes this important is although many Samsung tablets had impressive AMOLED panels, this is the first tab with a Super AMOLED Plus HD display — just like the Galaxy Note. What does this mean? It means the screen looks freaking awesome! With a 7.7″ Super AMOLED Plus HD panel with a full 1280 x 800 resolution it is powered by the Samsung Exynos 1.4 GHz dual-core processor (not a Qualcomm) 1 GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage. It also has a micro-SD slot for extra storage, micro-SIM for the Verizon 4G LTE, and a pair of cameras. Front being 2 and rear being 3.2 megapixels.

I’ll save my detailed thoughts for the full review coming early next week but my initial impressions are extremely favorable. The bezel is smaller than previous Samsung tablets making for a small device, while still having 7.7″ of screen real estate. Performance is swift, build quality is top-notch and the slight redesigns to the buttons and rear body are welcomed changes.

Samsung and Verizon are calling this the thinnest 4G LTE tablet available being just 7.8mm thin (0.31″) and weighing only 12 ounces. Hopefully they plan to update this to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich within the next 2-3 months — and if they can do that they’ll have a real winner. Released yesterday it can be yours for just $499 and a new 2 -year contract at Verizonwireless.com or $699 outright (for the LTE). Enjoy the video and pictures below and stay tuned for a full review shortly.

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