Regular or LTE version, which one to buy?

[Bananarama3412]

Hello, there are two versions of this tablet, wifi only and LTE, i'm not sure which one to get, maybe you can help. As i understand it wifi only version contains Exynos 5420 octa core processor, whereas LTE version has Snapdragon 800 quad core processor. Exynos has 4 cores at 1.9 ghz and 4 cores at 1.3 ghz, snapdragon has only 4 cores at 2.3ghz. Initially i thought that exynos would be better for multi tasking due to more cores, but apparently something called hmp was never enabled in tab s due to heat concerns so more then 4 cores are never used at the same time, the tab s simply switches to the slower cores for less demanding tasks. Does this mean that the extra cores provide no performance advantage? So snapdragon 800 is faster since 4 cores at 2.3ghz beats 4 cores at 1.9 ghz, right? Also from looking at benchmarks it seems that snapdragon has superior performance in running games. Are my conclusions correct, LTE version is superior?

 

[L0n3N1nja]

Based on my memory from when I worked at Verizon the snapdragon version was all around better.

I've got to ask, why are you looking at a tablet that is over 5 years old? If gaming is your concern the Snapdragon 800 is already under spec and incompatible with some of the newer mobile games. Unless you install a custom ROM you will be outdated on security and at risk of losing support for apps as developers update them with newer features.

If cheap enough I could see buying it for media consumption, it has a great screen, but otherwise I think you'd be better off with something newer.

 

[Bananarama3412]

Yeah its mainly for the high quality screen, i'll be using it mainly for web browsing and watching movies in bed, i can get it very cheap compared to the latest tablets so it seems like an attractive option.

 

[Rukbat]

I'd opt for the LTE version. It's actually considerably faster and, if you ever need mobile data, you have it.

 

[Bananarama3412]

Thanks for the replies, i'll go with the lte version.

 

[pags11]

I still use my Tab S, primarily during college football season to stream games. Bought the LTE model but ultimately canceled the data plan, as 98% of the time I only used it when I was connected to a Wi-Fi network. Use it now strictly over Wi-Fi networks.