Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Specifications

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 - Just a few days ago we received official confirmation from Samsung that an 8-inch Android tablet is in the works and will be unveiled at MWC 2013, the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, and soon after that we got the first purported image of the device.

On paper, Samsung's new Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet is a perfectly fine piece of hardware.

It runs Android 4.1, has a 1.6 GHz quad-core CPU, 2 gigabytes of RAM, and an 8-inch, 1280 x 800 display that you can control with Samsung's S-Pen stylus. But on the international version of the device, there's something quite strange lurking near the top.

Yes, it's an earpiece. Yes, it's meant for you to make calls. Yes, Samsung expects you to hold an 8-inch tablet up to your face.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 (Image credit: CNN)

Samsung expects you to hold an 8-inch tablet up to your face.

The decision to imbue an 8-inch tablet with a phone very much seems like a reaction to the success of Samsung's Galaxy Note phones, which checked in at 5.3 and 5.5-inches, opening up some of the functionality of tablets. (Ugh, phablets).

I joked before about the day when we'd see a 7-inch phone. Turns out we got an 8-inch one sooner than we thought. But it is worth mentioning that it's undecided if a phone-enabled version of the Galaxy Note 8.0 will see the light of day in the U.S.

The device itself is suitably thin and light (more or less comparable to the iPad mini, it's closest known competition), and is responsive enough for most tasks. The stylus works pretty well, introducing a new feature that lets you activate preview panes of apps such as email and Flipboard, without ever touching the the screen (instead, you hover above the area you want to preview).