Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 Android tablet (preview)

Samsung recently unveiled the Galaxy Tab 3 7.0, an update to the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 that was released in Australia last year. It's a low-cost device with predictable specifications but it hardly seems like much of an upgrade over the previous model.

Samsung's tablet range has historically been one of the most overwhelming on the market. The company started off with a 7in Android tablet, then released a 10.1in, then revised that 10.1in to be thinner and lighter than the first, then brought out an 8.9in model, and then a slightly bigger 7.7in device.

That's not even including the Galaxy Note range, which consists of 5.3 and 5.5in smartphones, along with the more recent 10.1in and 8in tablets. Confused? We don't blame you.

The Galaxy Tab brand now seems to be associated with lower end devices. The third generation of this device has a 7in screen but it's a regular LCD with a resolution of 1024x600, the same as the previous model.

The Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 has a thinner bezel than the previous model and the look has been changed. It predictably falls in line with Samsung's latest devices like the Galaxy S4 and the Galaxy Note 8.0 — the familiar glossy plastic finish and rounded corners.

Looks aside, the Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 hardly seems like much of an upgrade over the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0. The tablet is powered by a 1.2GHz dual core processor compared to the previous 1GHz processor and has the same 1GB of RAM. It even includes the same 3-megapixel rear camera, though the front-facing camera has been upgraded from VGA to a slightly more respectable 1.3-megapixels.

The Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 comes with either 8GB of 16GB of internal storage depending on the model you choose. There's also a microSD card slot that allows you to expand the memory up to 64GB.

The Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 comes with the 4.1 Jelly Bean version of Android and once again runs Samsung's TouchWiz overlay on top. The usual array of Samsung apps and services are all included.

Samsung hasn't announced if or when the Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 will launch in Australia but the Wi-Fi version is available now in various markets. Samsung says a 3G version of the device is expected to be released in June.