All quiet on the Windows 7 tablet front? Well, no, but we haven't exactly seen many shots fired lately. Sure, HP recently refreshed the Slate 500 with the Slate 2, but for the most part, products like this have been eclipsed by excitement around Windows 8. Of course, Redmond's tablet-friendly OS won't ship for another year, so for now tablet makers are releasing Windows slates with little fanfare. Not Samsung, though. While its mobile team has dug its heels into the consumer tablet market with devices like the Galaxy Tabs 10.1, 8.9 and 7.0 Plus, its PC division is taking a different tack. The Series 7 Slate PC was built by the same team behind the striking Series 9 laptop, making it one of the slickest business tablets we've ever beheld. It rocks an 11.6-inch display that handily dwarfs pretty much everything else out there. It runs a Core i5, not Atom, processor, and is offered with a custom dock and Bluetooth keyboard. The Series 7 Slate isn't just a rare Windows 7 tablet; it's also one of the most memorable. But are all of those things worth the $1,099 starting price? Could be, but we can think of a few caveats. Allow us to explain.
If you were to take our last few reviews of Samsung tablets and scoop out the paragraphs where we talk about design, they'd be more or less interchangeable. The Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus looks kind of like the Galaxy Tab 8.9, which reminds us of the 10.1. Heck, we've even fallen into a pattern describing Samsung's phones: they're plasticky, we say. Not premium-feeling, exactly, but lightweight and solidly built.
But the Series 7 is no Galaxy product. In fact, it comes from an entirely different division within Samsung: not the mobile group, but the team responsible for the Series 9 and other laptops we've been ogling lately. Unsurprisingly, then, it feels more like a keyboard-less PC than the kind of consumer tablet we tend to review. Which is to say, it's a serious-looking thing, with full-sized ports, a charcoal, brushed aluminum lid and three vents hinting at the powerful Core i5 CPU that lies beneath. It has style, to be sure, but also the kind of gravitas that makes even the Transformer Primelook like a toy in comparison.
Here's the thing about gravitas, though: it connotes weight. Dignity, yes, and in this case, a stunning 2.06 pounds (934.4g). It's not just that the Series 7 is heavy, or thick, at 0.51 inches (13mm): with an 11.6-inch, display, it's simply outsized. Particularly because of that 16:9 screen orientation, it feels like a cousin to most other tablets, not a member of the same species. That said, though, it's not as unwieldy as you'd think. It's surprisingly easy to cradle in landscape mode -- much more so, certainly, than theGrid10, another of the few 16:9 tablets we've seen. Samsung was also smart to put the vents toward the top of the back side, near the three megapixel rear camera; even though the vent is quick to spew out warm air, it sits high enough that you're unlikely to graze it with your fingers. Still, we tended to avoid using the tablet in portrait, as the weight distribution at the other end made it uncomfortable to hold up (viewing angles became an issue then, as well).
We'd add that the 16:9 aspect ratio makes it easy to slip under your arm and carry hands-free. It also helps that the metal surface is blessedly scratch- and fingerprint-resistant (those wide bezels are another story). And as hefty as it is, we regularly slipped it into a shoulder bag and toted it to and from the office without any real burden. Still, pile on the keyboard, dock, charger and a Bluetooth mouse and that journey turns into a schlep.
Samsung Series 7 Slate PC Full Specifications
- Manufacturer:Samsung
- Part Number:XE700T1A-A01US
General
- Built-in DevicesWireless LAN antenna,
Stereo speakers,
Bluetooth antenna - Width11.7 in
- Depth7.2 in
- Height0.5 in
- Weight2 lbs
- ColorBlack
- LocalizationUnited States
- Notebook typeConvertible laptop
Processor
- ProcessorIntel Core i5 i5-2467M / 1.6 GHz
- Multi-Core TechnologyDual-Core
- 64-bit ComputingYes
- Chipset TypeMobile Intel HM65 Express
Cache Memory
- TypeL3 cache
- Installed Size3 MB
RAM
- Installed Size4 GB
- TechnologyDDR3 SDRAM
Storage
- Hard Drive64 GB Solid State Drive
Card Reader
- Card reader typeCard reader
- Supported flash memory cardsmicroSD
Display
- Display Type11.6 in Yes TFT active matrix
- LCD Backlight TechnologyLED backlight
- Max Resolution1366 x 768 ( WXGA )
- Widescreen DisplayYes
- Image Aspect Ratio16:9
- FeaturesMatt,
SuperBright Plus
Video
- Graphics Processor / VendorIntel HD Graphics 3000 Dynamic Video Memory Technology
Audio
- Audio OutputSound card
- Audio InputMicrophone
Notebook Camera
- Camera TypeIntegrated
- Sensor Resolution3 Megapixel (back), 2 Megapixel (front)
Input Device(s)
- Input device typeTouch-screen
Networking
- NetworkingNetwork adapter
- Wireless LAN SupportedYes
- Data Link ProtocolBluetooth 3.0 HS,
IEEE 802.11b,
IEEE 802.11n,
IEEE 802.11a,
IEEE 802.11g - FeaturesIntel Wireless Display (WiDi)
- Compliant StandardsIEEE 802.11g,
IEEE 802.11a,
IEEE 802.11n,
IEEE 802.11b,
Bluetooth 3.0
Expansion / Connectivity
- Interfaces1 x Audio / video - HDMI - 19 pin mini HDMI Type C,
1 x Hi-Speed USB - 4 pin USB Type A,
1 x Microphone - Input - Mini-phone 3.5 mm
Miscellaneous
- FeaturesSystem password,
Hard drive password
Power
- Power DeviceExternal
- Power Provided40 Watt
Battery
- Technology4-cell Lithium polymer
- Installed Qty1
- Capacity5520 mAh
Operating System / Software
- OS ProvidedMicrosoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Edition
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support1 year warranty
- Service & Support DetailsLimited warranty - Parts and labor - 1 year
Sustainability
- Greenpeace policy rating (Oct 2010)
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