 |  |
|---|---|
| Tab S5e | Tab S6 Lite |
| BUY NOW | BUY NOW |
| PROS | PROS |
| Impressively lightweight. Bright, colorful display. Dex and Bixby included. Great audio. | Robust design. Plentiful UI customization options. S Pen stylus included. |
| CONS | CONS |
| No headphone jack. Average cameras. | Some issues with S Pen. Can be a little sluggish in use. Android not perfectly optimized for tablets. |
DESIGN
| Tab S5e | Tab S6 Lite | |
| Dimensions | 9.65 x 6.30 x 0.22 inches (245 x 160 x 5.5 mm) | 9.63 x 6.07 x 0.28 inches (244.5 x 154.3 x 7 mm) |
| Weight | 14.11 oz (400 g) | 16.47 oz (465 g) |
| Materials | Back: Aluminum | Back: Aluminum |
| Biometrics | 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch) | – |
| Features | – | Stylus |
| Colors | Black, Gold, Silver | Oxford gray, Angora blue, Chiffon pink |
Tab S5e:
This all comes in in a very thin and light package. In fact, it’s 5.5 millimeters thin, it’s also only 400 grams in terms of weight. It is too light that it wont hurt you arms and hands while reading e-books or streaming content.
I am shocked that Samsung is shipping this tablet with full metal body at very low price. Other aspects of the design are great too. Its black bezels around the screen are very slim and I think it looks modern. We get a power button and volume controls on the right side. There is a fingerprint scanner built into the power button.
Tab S6 Lite:
Design of this tablet is very beautiful. I like the rounded corners. The build quality is very solid coming from Samsung.
On the right side, there is power buttons, volume rockers, and MicrSD Card slot. There is 1 speaker and USB-C charging port at bottom. And at the top, you will see another speaker and 3.5mm audio jack.
Front camera is used for face unlock which unfortunately does not work properly, so you have to use the PIN or Pattern lock. This year Samsung makes a weird decision of removing fingerprint sensor.
The tablet is quite thin at 7 millimeter and the weight is 453 grams.
DISPLAY
| Tab S5e | Tab S6 Lite | |
| Size | 10.5 inches | 10.4 inches |
| Resolution | 2560 x 1600 pixels, 16:10 ratio, 288 PPI | 2000 x 1200 pixels, 16:10 ratio, 224 PPI |
| Technology | Super AMOLED | IPS LCD |
| Screen-to-body | 81.50 % | 81.63 % |
| Features | Ambient light sensor | Ambient light sensor |
Tab S5e:
Now to me, the star of the show has to be it’s 10.5 inch Super AMOLED display. It’s a high-resolution display with a resolution of 2560 x 1600, that’s 288 pixels per inch.
Samsung have managed to slim down the bezels enough to make it look good but also functional as a tablet, you won’t get those accidental touches.
It’s also a very bright display coming in at 614 nits, making this great for both indoor and outdoor use.
Because the display is so sharp and crisp, it’s really good for watching Netflix and YouTube. In fact, watching YouTube in 1440p is excellent on this, you’re not limited to 1080p.
Tab S6 Lite:
No, the display isn’t as vibrant and you don’t get those blacks like you see on an AMOLED screen but it’s still a good-looking display. It gets bright enough to use outdoors and for streaming Netflix or YouTube, it does the job.
The main reason you’re likely drawn to the Tab S6 Lite is that it includes the S-Pen and all its functionalities. It’s a redesigned battery free S-Pen that magnetically attaches to the side of the tablet.
HARDWARE & PERFORMANCE
| Tab S5e | Tab S6 Lite | |
| System chip | Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 SDM670 | Samsung Exynos 9610 |
| Processor | Octa-core, 2000 MHz, ARM Cortex-A75 and ARM Cortex-A53, 64-bit, 10 nm | Octa-core, 2300 MHz, Arm Cortex-A73 and Arm Cortex-A53, 64-bit, 10 nm |
| GPU | Adreno 615 | Mali-G72 MP3 |
| RAM | 4GB LPDDR4 | 4GB LPDDR4 |
| Internal storage | 128GB | 64GB |
| Storage expansion | microSDXC up to 512 GB | microSDXC up to 1000 GB |
| OS | Android (9.0 Pie), Samsung One UI | Android (10), Samsung One UI |
Tab S5e:
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e is running the snapdragon 670 chipset. Now this is a mid-level chipset, they didn’t go with a faster higher-end chipset. And performance is actually pretty good and snappy.
The OS is very fluid and it did very well. Now of course, it’s not gonna do well as well as the iPad air 2019 which is running a much faster processor or the Galaxy Tab S4 which has a more flagship like processor from last year.
I don’t play too many games on a tablet but I did test out a few games on this. PUBG actually worked really well I was surprised on how fluid I was smooth everything turned out and it was very good, so gaming is definitely possible with this. Again you’re not running the fastest processor as far as a tablet is concerned but for what it needs to do it can definitely get the job done.
When it comes to audio, the quad speakers are AKG tuned and they’re Dolby Atmos. Speakers sound great, get loud, and overall sound output is excellent.
Speaking of productivity, this has the Dex mode and you don’t necessarily have the keyboard case or actually have to attach a monitor or Mouse to use dex mode. You can use it directly on the tablet screen itself for those wondering.
Tab S6 Lite:
In terms of overall performance, the Tab S6 Lite is not as snappy as Tab S6. My unit has 4GB RAM, so that should be able to handle multiple tabs while browsing.
If you are a gamer then don’t expect good results with this thing. Yeah, you will able to play Fortnite but at 30FPS only. While playing demanding games, your tablet will start heating and you will see some lags. Overall, light casual games are fine, just don’t expect much more than that.
If you are a normal user and just want to stream content or read e-books then this tablet is great for you. One good thing about this tablet is that you won’t see any stutters while launching or using apps.
Audio quality of the two-way speakers on the Tab S6 Lite is actually quite good. It just sounds a bit poor to me.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite ships with Android 10 and the One UI 2.1. Samsung has added too many features this year. You can open two apps side by side but also in free-floating windows. Just like with a desktop operating system which is great when using it with a keyboard and mouse. It does not support the Samsung DeX desktop mode though.
CAMERA
| Tab S5e | Tab S6 Lite | |
| Rear | Single camera | Single camera |
| Main camera | 13 MP (PDAF) | 8 MP (Autofocus) |
| Video recording | 3840×2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps) | 1920×1080 (Full HD) (30 fps) |
| Front | 8 MP (Autofocus) | 5 MP |
Personally, I really don’t like taking photos or videos with a tablet but here is mini overview of both tablets.
Tab S5e:
Tab S5e really surprised me, on how good the front-facing camera and the rear camera. The lighting conditions of course in this shot are not that great. For a tablet, this is probably the best one I’ve seen so far. You will get a 13MP as a rear camera and 8MP for selfies. You can record videos upto 4K at 30FPS.
Tab S6 Lite:
You will get a 5-megapixel front-facing camera and an 8-megapixel camera on the back. I would say that imaages are average but if you click images in great light then maybe you will be satisfied with the results. I have one complaint that there is no flash light, so you won’t get great results in low light. If you want to record videos, you’re limited to full HD.
BATTERY LIFE
| Tab S5e | Tab S6 Lite | |
| Capacity | 7040 mAh | 7040 mAh |
| Type | Li – Ion, Not user replaceable | Not user replaceable |
| Charging | Fast charging |
Tab S5e:
When it comes to battery life, the Samsung Galaxy Tab s5e doesn’t disappoint, in fact, it did very well on my continuous web surfing test, it did 10 hours which was very good. So all day battery is possible with this tablet.
If you do need to plug in, they do supply with an adaptive fast charger and will give you a full charge in 2.5 hours.
Tab S6 Lite:
Battery life has been pretty good. I’ve been averaging about 8-9 hours of screen on time. To fully charge up it takes just under 2.5 hours. You can use the Tab S6 Lite off and on for several days without recharging it.
WHICH GALAXY TAB YOU SHOULD GET?
If you don’t want to spend extra money on S-Pen, then I think you should go for Tab S6 Lite. You don’t get a good display and gaming performnce, if you buy Tab S6 Lite. If your needs are gaming and watching content on a good display, then Tab S5e is a better choice. And it has lots of other features that might be useful to you like its fingerprint scanner, its four speakers, Samsung DeX, and the optional keyboard dock. Overall, I think that Galaxy Tab S5e is a better choice with better specs cross the board.
