Read our hands-on of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 Battery Life
On a single charge from its proprietary cable, the Galaxy Note 10.1 with its 7,000mAh battery should last you all day. In a mixed scenario of browsing, video and productivity, it lasted us well over eight hours, though that was with the Power Savings setting activated.

This might not sound like much compared to the 9-plus hours from the iPad 3 or the likes of the Asus Transformer Pad 300, but don’t forget that the digitizer draws a wee bit, and there’s that quad-core CPU to feed…

To be honest we were hoping for a little more from the new Note – considering its premium positioning and the fact that Samsung’s usually pretty good at squeezing long battery life from its devices – but at least the Galaxy Note 10.1 doesn’t embarrass itself here.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 Value
£399. That’s how much the fastest Android slate in the world will set you back, and this includes a Wacom pen solution that often seems to add at least £100 to any device it’s included with. However, that’s also the price of a better-looking, quad-core Asus Transformer Pad 300 with keyboard dock that will perform almost as well.

The Note additionally gives you an IR blaster to make it a universal TV remote and comes in a 3G version, while the 300 with dock offers better connectivity, more native storage, and up to 14 hours of battery life.

In the end, we guess it all comes down to two main questions: do you need 3G? And which is mightier, the pen or the keyboard? We’ve been told Samsung is considering a portable keyboard folio solution for the Galaxy Note 10.1, and the Transformer Infinity already has a 3G version in the works.

Here and now though, it’s a tough choice, made no easier by the fact that the new iPad with its gorgeous Retina Display also costs around the same. The other option, of course, is to see what Windows 8 tablets will offer come October – but that’s a whole different kettle of fish.

Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 is ugly and innovative, powerful and limited, a success and a disappointment. With its superb quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM, it’s the most powerful Android tablet yet, while its stereo speakers mean it’s the best-sounding. Its Wacom-based S Pen and tailored apps/interface make it an amazing creativity tool, and it comes with some great pre-installed software like Photoshop Touch. On the other hand, its connectivity is restricted, while its looks, screen and battery life are merely average. However, at under £400 the Galaxy Note 10.1 is still an excellent buy if its feature set appeals.