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iTech: The Samsung Galaxy View

Is it a computer, is it a cinema? We get to grips with this tablet

IN SIXTY YEARS we've gone from the majority of entertainment consumers imbibing content from one platform, the local cinema screen, and witnessed the subsequent transition to TV, computers (both PCs and laptops) and most recently handheld devices. Homes around the country can now possess upwards of three bits of kit per person upon which to stream movies, YouTube or however you wish to keep up with House of Cards (pictured).
Now Samsung has brought out the Galaxy View to offer yet another option.
The View aims to fill the gap an old portable TV may have. Except that description doesn't really cover it. And that's the problem. The View is extremely difficult to describe. Samsung call it a TV, but in its essence it is an enormous Android touchscreen tablet. It measures 18.4 inches and weighs 2.2kg.
Upon the View you can complete everything you'd enjoy on a tablet: apps, Internet browsing etc., although it is predominantly set up to play videos. It's light enough to take from room to room -fun to prop up on the kitchen counter while cooking - and you can just about have it on your chest when lying on the sofa despite it being larger than a 17-inch laptop. You could feasibly travel with it, but we really don't see the point and we weren't enamoured with the built in handle that didn't offer much grip.
Simply for watching programmes, it does admittedly work well. A 1,920 x 1,080 resolution is perfectly adequate for your needs and the sound quality is excellent. So it does its job. As a design piece it also looks good. We're just not sure why you'd go for it over your existing purchases. As a novelty it's okay, but it's too small to be a main household TV and too large to be a tablet. 
david@khaleejtimes.com