Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite review: The Android alternative to Apple iPad

Brand: Samsung Key specs: 10.4-inch display, 7040mAh battery, 8MP rear camera, 5MP selfie camera, Wi-Fi and LTE support. Price: ₹27,999 (starting) Rating: 3.5/5

Unlike smartphones or laptops, you do not get a wide range of options for tablets. Apart from Apple’s iPads, you have very limited Android alternatives that come close in terms of experience and quality.

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S series is among the top that clears the said benchmark. Just like Apple’s premium iPads, Samsung’s tablets come with stylus support and attachable keyboards.

Samsung’s latest tablet offering is the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite. It is available in two variants with LTE and Wi-Fi. The Wi-Fi-only Galaxy Tab S6 Lite costs ₹27,999, while the LTE variant retails for ₹31,999. As the name suggests, it is the lighter version of the Galaxy Tab S6, which is available at ₹59,990.

The price difference between the main and the Lite variant is evidently huge. Does this mean you have to compromise in terms of experience? How much of a downgrade is the Lite tab? Is this the elusive affordable Android alternative to the iPad? Find out in our detailed review.

Design & display

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S6 Lite comes with a refreshed design that entails slimmer profile and bezels. The blue, grey and pink colour models look quite good. While the tablet scores high on the looks scale, it is not all perfect. During our usage, we found it to be quite slippery. Since the review unit did not come with a case, I had to be very cautious while using it and carrying it around. A case should definitely solve the grip problem. But, if you have sweaty palms, do not forget to invest in the case.

As far as the display goes, there is a big difference between the main and Lite version. The cheaper model has an LCD whereas the premium one has an AMOLED panel. As in the case of smartphones, LCDs do not have that AMOLED’s range of colour vibrancy. The display experience on the Tab is not bad though. One of the workarounds we implemented was keeping the brightness higher than usual.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite has an LCD display. (HT Tech) Performance

The Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is great for entertainment and it is quite a treat to stream content and videos on the tablet. It also comes with AKG powered speakers and Dolby Atmos. You will not need a Bluetooth speaker for the tablet, and there is even a 3.5mm headphone jack which seems pretty unique these days. Adding to this is the 7,040mAh battery which lasted for around three days on regular usage. This included around one to two hours of streaming and a little bit of gaming. Samsung says the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite can go on for up to 12 hours on Wi-Fi. There is no fast charging though which can be a disappointment for some.

Gaming on the tablet is a slightly different experience than on mobile especially for games like COD: Mobile and PUBG Mobile. The controls were something I could not really get used to. That said, we did not encounter any lag when gaming. The graphics are on par if not better.

Multitasking on the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite was smooth. The split-screen mode takes advantage of the large screen and there was no problem switching between apps either. The tablet does tend to heat up after using it for around 40 minutes or so. But nothing too unbearable. Still, a cover is highly recommended.

S Pen

The Galaxy Tab S6 Lite comes bundled with the S Pen. This one, however, is not Bluetooth enabled so you won’t be able to use those fancy Air Actions. Even so, the S Pen on the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is well optimised, and the palm rejection is pretty impressive. You can use it for illustrations, taking notes, highlighting texts and more. There is a shortcut menu for S Pen features which appears when it is near the tablet. You can also press the button on the S Pen to pull up this menu. Samsung’s handwriting-to-text recognition still needs a lot of improvement, and only if you write notes very clearly will it convert to text properly.

Verdict

At this price range, the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite does not really have any competitors. You can go for the iPad 2019, but you’d still have to shell out for the Apple Pen. Samsung ships the S Pen with the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite. There’s no Dex Mode on this so you miss out on the PC-like experience. Otherwise, for a quality Android tablet experience on budget, Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is your best bet.

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