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Samsung Galaxy Note Pro and Tab Pro series coming to US February 13th (updated)
Looks like Office Depot wasn't messing with us when it began offering pre-orders of Samsung's brand-new 12.2-inch tablet ahead of its official US launch; it just jumped the gun a bit. As it turns out, the entire litany of Samsung's Galaxy tablets announced at CES -- which include the 12.2-inch Note Pro and all three sizes in the Tab Pro series -- will be available stateside on February 13th. (Update: it appears that the 12.2-inch Tab Pro won't actually hit the market until March, but everything else will be available on Feb 13th.) Just in case you're worried about hordes of people trying to grab one as a last-minute Valentine's Day present, you can also pre-order any of the products starting right now through one of several online retailers like Best Buy, Walmart, Amazon, Fry's, Newegg and others. There's no word on any carrier agreements yet, however, and it appears that all four models are WiFi-only. (Update: Samsung confirms that an LTE edition of the Note Pro 12.2 will come to Verizon Wireless later this quarter.) Pricing varies wildly depending on which model you're getting. Starting at the low end of the spectrum, you can grab the 8.4-inch Tab Pro (16GB) for $400; the 10.1-inch Tab Pro (16GB) for $500; and the 12.2-inch Tab Pro (32GB) for $650. Last but not least, the productivity powerhouse itself -- the Note Pro -- can be yours for $750 (32GB) or $850 (64GB). Additionally, the devices come with 50GB Dropbox space for two years, a $25 Google Play credit, three-month trial Hulu Plus subscription, six months of Cisco WebEx Premium 8 and a year subscription with Bloomberg Businessweek. Samsung also confirms that the new tablets are still outfitted with Magazine UX, which means these products haven't been affected by the company's rumored deal with Google. According to reports from last week, Samsung agreed to tone down the amount of customization and special features in its Android devices. Naturally, if this does happen, we expect it to be a while before it finally takes effect.
Samsung's Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 is a gigantic tablet that promises extensive productivity (hands-on)
In much the same way that smartphones are trending towards larger screens, it appears that manufacturers like Samsung are experimenting with the same concept in the tablet realm. The company has just introduced its latest (and largest) Android-running Galaxy Note device called the Note Pro 12.2. Announced alongside the Tab Pro 12.2 at CES, the Note Pro offers the same S Pen functionality we've enjoyed on previous devices like the Note 3 and Note 10.1 2014 edition, and as usual, you're going to see some refinements in Samsung's firmware and user experience as well. The device will be available in LTE, 3G and WiFi flavors and is expected to launch sometime this quarter in various parts of the world. As soon as we tried out the new Note Pro, we immediately noticed the size and weight difference compared to Samsung's 10.1-inch offerings. Regardless of how much you trim its bezel, a 12.2-inch tablet simply isn't designed for optimal portability, which means we're more likely to use it as a coffee table device, special projects or conferences in the office. It's just a little too awkward to hold for long periods of time. Aside from that and a glaring weight difference -- 753g (1.66 lbs) on the 12.2, versus 547g (1.21 lbs) on the 10.1 -- we were hard-pressed to find any variation between the 12.2-incher and the Note 10.1 2014 edition; it features the same design, button layout, "leather-like" back and display resolution (2560x1600, for a pixel density of 247 ppi). Other than that, what stands out on the 12.2, which runs Android 4.4 KitKat, is a few key new firmware features like Remote PC and Magazine UX. Continue reading below the gallery and our hands-on video to get more of our impressions.
