SamMobile was at the BALR. Gear S2 launch yesterday in the Netherlands where we had a few minutes (20 minutes to be exact) with the Galaxy View. Samsung is describing it as a “Movable Display” and not a tablet. They told us that they are trying to set a new category once again, and we weren't allowed to call it a tablet.
We had our hands-on time with a pre-production unit in lighting conditions far from ideal for a proper hands-on, so this is a first impression of the device. A detailed review will arrive once we get a proper review unit at our office.
Our actual first impression is something we can be very short about: this thing is humongous, monstrously big and heavy (2.65 kilos). It has an 18.4-inch Full HD display with a pixel density of around 119 ppi. Of course, the pixel density doesn't matter in this case as the Galaxy View is being pitched as a movable TV. The display is unfortunately a TFT unit and not an AMOLED screen, and Samsung tells us this was a move made to reduce the cost.
The Galaxy View has a hinge on the back which can be used to carry it around; it works quite well, though the device is rather heavy. The stand at the back (the hinge is a part of this stand) can be used in two ways. One is to let the display stand up and the other is to let it lie down. The latter option isn't that great as it can never lay flat on a table due to the speakers at the back (these speakers are quite loud as far as we could tell.)
We had very little time with the Galaxy View, but from what we saw the software was fluid and fast (lags and stutters are no longer a concern on Samsung's software as long as the hardware isn't too low-end, as the company optimized things starting with the Galaxy S6 earlier this year.) There is some kind of TV console built-in with all sorts of TV watching apps; there's a gaming center present as well, with a nice feature that tells you which games are compatible with a gamepad.
The Galaxy View will soon be arriving in our office, so stay tuned for a detailed review of Samsung's largest tablet first movable display.
