At the smaller end of the range is the Note 2, which with its SIM-card slot and 5.5-inch screen make it more phone than tablet. The Note 8 doesn't have a SIM card slot, so, like the larger Note 10.1, it's an out and out tablet.
It comes with an 8-inch display, a quad-core processor, Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and of course the all-important stylus. With an asking price of £340 in Samsung's Westfield Stratford City store (it's not yet available online), does it do enough to steal sales from the cheaper iPad mini?
Do you love writing all your notes by hand? Fancy yourself as a bit of a sketch artist? Crave overpriced 8-inch tablets? If your answer to all those questions is "yes, yes, oh good Lord, yes!" then the Galaxy Note 8 is probably for you.
Spec-wise, it's not a bad piece of kit. Its screen is bright, it's very powerful and the stylus makes writing and drawing a breeze. It's let down, though, by its cheap, plastic design and its high price.
The iPad mini is a similarly sized slate and its metal construction feels infinitely more luxurious than the Note. Its screen is similar and, although it's not a quad-core beast, it's powerful enough for anything you're likely to throw at it. Most importantly though, the mini can be had for £70 less than the Note 8.
If the stylus is an absolute must, or if you've already spent a small fortune on Android apps, the Note 8 is worth a look. Otherwise, plump for the mini.
It comes with an 8-inch display, a quad-core processor, Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and of course the all-important stylus. With an asking price of £340 in Samsung's Westfield Stratford City store (it's not yet available online), does it do enough to steal sales from the cheaper iPad mini?
Do you love writing all your notes by hand? Fancy yourself as a bit of a sketch artist? Crave overpriced 8-inch tablets? If your answer to all those questions is "yes, yes, oh good Lord, yes!" then the Galaxy Note 8 is probably for you.
Spec-wise, it's not a bad piece of kit. Its screen is bright, it's very powerful and the stylus makes writing and drawing a breeze. It's let down, though, by its cheap, plastic design and its high price.
The iPad mini is a similarly sized slate and its metal construction feels infinitely more luxurious than the Note. Its screen is similar and, although it's not a quad-core beast, it's powerful enough for anything you're likely to throw at it. Most importantly though, the mini can be had for £70 less than the Note 8.
If the stylus is an absolute must, or if you've already spent a small fortune on Android apps, the Note 8 is worth a look. Otherwise, plump for the mini.
