Last month, we were given the opportunity to review the global version, and definitely liked what we saw. It's an understatement, then, to say that we were ecstatic to give Verizon's LTE version a run for its money (which, at $500 with a two-year commitment and $700 without, is a lot). What did Big Red choose to tweak? How's the battery life once you factor in that next-gen network? These answers and more are coming your way after the break.
Hardware
When we reviewed the HSPA+ Galaxy Tab 7.7, we were actually a bit surprised at how different it is from the rest of the tablets in Samsung's stable. It isn't just a me-too tablet, and the design choice is absolutely refreshing. We must say that brushed metal spanning the back of the device makes for an elegant look, not to mention a clear departure from Samsung's usual all-plastic build. Granted, the Tab 7.7 still takes advantage of plastic on the top and bottom to allow each antenna the ability to do what it does best, which actually makes the device look as though Sammy has taken a page out of HTC's design book.
When it was Verizon's turn to make its own changes to the tried-and-true tablet and offer the device on its own LTE network, Big Red didn't try to reinvent the wheel. If it's not broke, why fix it, right? Aside from the obvious -- it swapped out the original HSPA+ / EDGE radios with LTE / EVDO / CDMA -- we noticed the addition of an IR sensor similar to the one found on the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, which is mainly used in concert with Peel's Smart Remote app. This version also sports a different color scheme, with the light gray plastic ends replaced by a darker hue.
Adding LTE to the tablet also translates into a microscopic increase in thickness. We're talking an extra .11mm, or .004 inches for all the Americans reading this. For a device that is already amazingly thin at 8mm (.31 inches), this extra padding shouldn't have any bearing on your opinion of the device. It also puts on some more weight, but just as we noted regarding the thickness, five grams (340g compared to the original's 335) isn't going to dissuade potential buyers.
Taking a tour around the 7.7, Samsung made use of all four sides. The left edge features a microSD and Micro-SIM slot, each one veiled by a flimsy cover that feels like it's just barely hanging on for dear life. External memory may be an important factor here, since the Tab only comes with 16GB onboard. On the bottom you'll see Samsung's proprietary tablet charger flanked by two speakers that offer superb audio quality -- provided you don't care about a stereo sound experience when watching movies in landscape mode, that is, since these are the only speakers found on the device. The right side is blessed with the all-important power / screen lock, volume rocker and aforementioned IR emitter, placed smack-dab in the middle. How about the top? Not much besides a mic and 3.5mm headphone jack.
When taking a look at the back, your attention is going to be held captive by the copious carrier branding plastering the device. Since Verizon adds its own pair of logos to the top-center of the tablet, it's awfully hard not to notice. Add in the Big Red logo on the front and there's absolutely no denying which network this tablet runs on. Sammy's own name shows up, too, but in more modest fashion. You'll find the 3.2-megapixel camera in the top left corner, along with an LED flash. Flipping the tab over to the front won't reveal any surprises except for the 2-megapixel front-facer located near the top of the left landscape bezel -- an ideal, out-of-the-way spot for all those times you'll be using the 7.7 in portrait mode.
And while this should go without saying, we'll make this crystal clear, given that it seems to be a hot topic at the moment: the Tab 7.7 doesn't come with a Wacom digitizer built-in like the Galaxy Note does. As a result, the S Pen doesn't work on it. Sorry, folks -- you'll just have to keep using your finger or rubberized stylus.
Camera
Cameras don't get much respect on tablets. Truth is, front-facing shooters typically make more sense on slates than rear-facing ones, since it's much less awkward to conduct video chats than it is to snap a picture -- or worse, a home movie -- on the thing. Add to this the fact that the camera here is low-grade even compared to other tablet cameras, and you have yourself plenty of mediocre images. Allow us to emphasize that this doesn't mean your pictures will be horrid, but the lower resolution -- combined with the struggle of keeping such a large device still long enough to get a photo that doesn't wind up blurry -- makes it pretty difficult for us to recommend that you grab this over your five or eight megapixel smartphone cam.
These unpleasantries out of the way, the 7.7 is smattered with tons of settings (panorama mode, macro, metering, white balance, etc.) that can at least increase your likelihood of taking a lovely shot. It offers autofocus and the ability to change the point of focus by tapping on different parts of the viewfinder. Night mode is able to capture some extra backlight to help produce fairly reasonable low-light results, although a lot of noise is still present. We rather like the detail in our macro shots, including texture, particles of dust and so on, but again you shouldn't expect to see anything better than your average Galaxy S II here. For what it's worth, the LED flash works well, capturing plenty of color when taking shots in the middle of the night.It is Review Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 review (Verizon Wireless LTE)
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