Samsung Galaxy Tab A tablet and geocaching

[+sktqch]

We currently use an old Android Nexus 7 to upload gpx files I have massaged in GSAK to give us great osm maps, and a nice sized screen for mapping.  The nexus 7 still fits in one of my bigger pockets and soo is much better for sorting out some of the myriad trails in some of the bigger parks here on Vancouver Island.  The old Nexus however is beginning to get flaky and as a 7 year old machine really should be replaced.  Since it is no longer being made/sold or supported we are looking for a replacement.

Therefore a question.  The 2019 version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1" tablet (lite") looks like a nice size, at a nice price.  Has anyone got any experience with this machine in a geocaching environment?  If so what are the good /bad points?

Stan

[+Viajero Perdido]

Hi.  Coincidentally, I also have an old Nexus 7, now in a drawer as my current tablet is similar to the one you're looking at, a Galaxy Tab S2 with a gorgeously big screen.

 

I've only used the tablet once to actually find a cache, one right next to the campsite while the phone was plugged into the sun.  Impression: Awkward.  Huge.  Need two hands to hold, third hand to bend away branches etc.  Arrow is comically large on such a large screen.  And the whole (single) time, I was afraid I'd drop and break that baby.

 

But I love having the same app in both the phone (a rugged model) and the tablet.  The tablet rocks for planning tomorrow around the campfire etc, and a smaller version of the same screen in the phone works well for the actual field work.  BTW, IMHO, good OSM maps on a big screen, with topo contours and slope shading, are a thing of beauty*.  (Locus Map Pro.)  It's why I upgraded the tablet, to the highest-res screen available at the time.  Happy customer. 

 

Oh, a tablet will take longer to charge off the sun than a phone.  Sometimes an issue in the forest, cloudy days, etc.

 

(* Showing off: a full-res screenshot from the big tablet.  Bigger actually; the forum reduces it.)

Edited December 11, 2020 by Viajero Perdido

[+Atlas Cached]

Hey VP, how's your new phone behaving?

[+Viajero Perdido]

Working like a charm, thanks.  I provided an update in this thread:

 

One extra thing to add: it has quad GNSS, but apparently it's still only single band.  It was very hard (impossible) to find this detail out in advance, but the GPSTest app tells the tale.  Still, I'm very happy with the GPS etc. performance.

[+ecanderson]

Just swapped out a Galaxy S8 Active for an S20.  GPSTest is showing GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou all providing data.

35 'in view', 18 'in use'... and that's sitting here in my office.  Can't wait to get this thing outside!

 

Edited December 11, 2020 by ecanderson