Apple iPad 3 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1

Ever since the first iPad came out in 2010, tech companies around the world have tried to match its success, in about the same manner that many tech companies have tried to match the success of the iPhone ever since the first version came out in 2007. But, unlike the iPhone situation, and despite the abundance of Android tablets that have hit the shelves since 2010, Apple has managed to stay ahead of everyone else in the tablet market. But, as was the case with the iPhone, Apple is now starting to feel the heat from Android manufacturers.

With that being said, I find it very curious that Samsung was not able, up until now, to manufacture a proper competitor to the iPad. Basically, no Galaxy Tab model was able to match the experience offered by the iPad, despite the fact that some models are priced almost equally with the Apple tablet. Samsung is not only the biggest smartphone manufacturer in the world by number of smartphones sold, but their Galaxy S line is also constantly beating the iPhone when it comes to hardware. In addition, they also manufacture both the CPU and the Retina display that Apple brags about when marketing the iPad. From where I’m standing, Samsung has all the resources needed to make a tablet that’s better than the iPad.
Could this be the moment that Android fans have been waiting for? Is the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 a decent competitor to the iPad? Are there any areas where the Note 10.1 is better than the iPad? Let’s find out, shall we? As always, we’ll break down our Galaxy Note 10.1 vs Apple iPad fight into five equally important rounds: Display, Internal Hardware, OS & Features, Design & Extras and Pricing and Availability.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 vs Apple iPad Round 1: Display

As I’ve mentioned above, Samsung is the company that manufacturers the best display currently available on the market, namely the Retina display of the new Apple iPad (third generation). At 9.7 inches in diagonal, the iPad three’s IPS LCD display uses an impressive 1536 x 2048 pixel resolution to bring up the Pixel Per Inch (PPI) density to 264. Under these circumstances, you would expect that the Galaxy Note 10.1 offers at least a 200 PPI ratio, right? Wrong, as the biggest downside to buying a Galaxy Note 10.1 is the poor resolution of its 10.1 inch display.
The Samsung Galaxy Note tablet uses a 800 x 1280 pixel resolution (actually, the same resolution used by the Galaxy Note’s 5.3 inch display), bringing down the PPI ratio to just 149, equal to that of the ASUS Transformer Prime (released back in October 2011). By comparison, the Google Nexus 7 has a PPI ratio of 216, while the ASUS Transformer Prime Infinity has a PPI ratio of 224. The original iPad showcased a PPI ratio of 132. If you’re looking for a tablet with a crisp display, the Galaxy Note 10.1 just isn’t it.

If you ask me, this is a very weird situation, seeing as Samsung is the ultimate leader in the mobile display market. The South Korean giant basically owns the entire SAMOLED market, and it also manufactures the best LCD display on the market (the Retina display). We talked about the reasons why Samsung will not equip its tablets with “Retina displays” here, but I’m sure a lot of us expected a better quality display for their top-end tablet. Are there any conspiracy theorists amongst you guys that can imagine some sort of an agreement between Samsung and Apple?
The picture below shows the iPad 2 display on the left and the iPad 3 display on the right. Notice how sharp the icon is? That’s why the new iPad wins this round by a couple of lengths!