Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0 (2019) gets Android 11-based One UI Core 3.1 update

02 June 2021
The new build also includes the May 2021 Android security patch.

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  • S
  • Some dude
  • bI%
  • 07 May 2024

My tablet is Galaxy Tab A8 2019 but the latest version on my tablet is android 8.1 with samsung expierence 9.5

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • u7Q
    • 12 Feb 2024

    After the update installation the touch screen is not working

      • X
      • XRaiderV1
      • kCX
      • 17 Jul 2021

      my 2019 sm-290 wifi model took the update last night, in point of fact I checked after reading the article on this site.

      not gonna lie, definitely feels like I took a performance hit with this one.

        • A
        • Amin
        • at5
        • 14 Jul 2021

        Im experiencing a laggy status(notification)bar after this last update
        Do you think they ever fix laggs in future updates?

          • c
          • consceouse
          • yAK
          • 12 Jul 2021

          Samsung is seriously slow when it comes to updates. I have a Tab A 8.0 - SM-T295 (2019) and a Tab 10.1 - SM-T515 (2019), both were scheduled to get updated to One UI 3.1 in June 2021. But... after waiting for the entire month to get the update, nothing. Turns out that they have moved the update for the A 8.0 -SM-T295 (2019) to July 2021 (which is now, and there is still no update) and for the A 10.1 - SM-T515 (2019) to August 2021. It seems that Samsung only honors those who spend a few thousand on their flagship devices, those who buy their budget devices (like most of us here), which are sold more then their flagship devices are being placed at the end of the Q. Samsung need to change their ways, competition is looming, and as many other big brands, the higher (to the top) you go, the harder you fall (down).

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • rAN
            • 04 Jul 2021

            My tab A 10.1 also got one ui 3.1

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • vgM
              • 30 Jun 2021

              FlarmBlarm, 24 Jun 2021Will the Galaxy Tab A 8.0 (2019) SM-T295 variant get the On... moreYes. I just got notification to update my Tab 1 8.0 this morning.

                • F
                • FlarmBlarm
                • t7V
                • 24 Jun 2021

                Will the Galaxy Tab A 8.0 (2019) SM-T295 variant get the One UI 3.1 firmware upgrade?

                  nanoprog, 03 Jun 2021i saw in my mynextablet.com that that did come with the not... moreYes unfortunately it came with small stylus like the one on Note 4. I'm not really a heavy user of the stylus since I don't draw, but I love the PenUp's coloring book app and the stylus is a great match for that. I do need to find the best grip position but it's not bad. I never tried using another stylus on my Tab A 8", but it is possible that it supports the stylus from Tab S4 or Tab S5e since those were released earlier. I just tried again last night and I confirm that I can use the stylus from Tab A6 2016 but not vice versa. Weirdly enough, the oldest one, Note 3 Neo from 2014, supports stylus from Tab A6 2016 and my Tab A 8" 2019.

                    afronoia, 03 Jun 2021Tab A8 2019 without S-pen is much cheaper than the one with... morei saw in my mynextablet.com that that did come with the note 4 like stylus? is that correct? I did have that with my phone but it seemed quite uncomfortable to hold for long just as the reviewer said so too.

                    he did mention also that the tablet might accept/allow use of the S4 tablet's stylus which could be comfier

                    if that's it's original supplied pen (the note 4-like) what are your long term experiences with it, and did you try any alternatives?

                    the s7 pen is more or less alright in this regard. Much comfier than the genN4 but i never really got used to the fact that it's round with the exception of 1 flat side which i guess was designed to prevent rolling down from flat surfaces. However this how you always the feel you are holding it wrong and try to rotate it to have a consistent accuracy by holding it the same angle. This fiddling with it (even it only takes a second or two) does take away a bit from the "just pick-up and start using it" attitude of traditional stationary

                      nanoprog, 03 Jun 2021regarding the 2019 tab A: i reckon if it wasn't bundle... moreTab A8 2019 without S-pen is much cheaper than the one with, by almost half. Also, it is printed on the retail box. The one with S-pen should say "Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 2019 with S-Pen", bought this one for ~$320 in late 2019.

                        nanoprog, 03 Jun 2021totally agree on the generic "styluses". maybe ba... moreI get what you mean. I, too, tried to get away from Google services (on a phone, at least) and like to try a pure google-less experience. But then, some apps like maps or cloud game saves on Google Play Games are quite convenient (other 'popular' option is with FB; no thanks). I do still limit my usage; I don't use Assistant, not sync with Photos, and always use incognito on all browsers.

                        Huawei's offers is quite interesting, albeit it may not be easy to switch from android/google experience. The problem is, their products are quite pricey, and the availability is limited by region.

                        Back to Tablets topic, any tablet with pen support should support palm rejection to some degree, because even when you use palm to support your drawing movements, the fact that screens are much more slippery than paper still make it quite hard to finely control the pen. Newer S-pen (also iPencil and M-Pen) that has the dimensions of a real pen should be easier to use though.

                          afronoia, 03 Jun 2021As far as I know, currently only Samsung S line tablets inc... moreregarding the 2019 tab A: i reckon if it wasn't bundled with it it belongs to the "non supported" group

                          or is there any more specific way to be sure?

                            afronoia, 03 Jun 2021As far as I know, currently only Samsung S line tablets inc... moretotally agree on the generic "styluses". maybe back then in the resistive pda era, but even then i doubt.

                            yesterday i saw some promo on the M pencil from huawei. it didn't really reveal much and although the patterns drawn were nice and calligraphic the palm of the user was not touching the tablet.

                            i guess it will support palm rejection but it didn't show. Also albeit they say apps can be side loaded I'm not all too optimistic on the app selection front with Harmony os until some years pass.

                            even if someone is diehard against Google services despite it's various issues it does solve to some extent a "useable" 2 way sync with the cloud which otherwise companies would have needed to develop themselves and charge it on their users.

                            e.g. there's this great drawing app called Concepts which i love and it even has export/import function but without 2way sync it's way too much hassle to use the same files from different devices.

                            with android/Google it's this version control you get "for free" which can be an "incentive" to stay in the android eco system

                              nanoprog, 02 Jun 2021so i see an spen in the picture and the title also says A-t... moreAs far as I know, currently only Samsung S line tablets includes/supports stylus. The latest other line supports stylus is/was Tab A8 2019. It has 2 sub-type, one with S-pen and one without. I don't think the one without S-pen can recognize S-pen styluses, because the screen needs the required digitizer layer for the S-pen to work.
                              I believe support for S-pen (a stylus with this specific name) is only for Samsung's products, and you cannot use it on other brand's. Also, though it's to be expected, not all newer S-pen can be used on older devices. I also have Note 3 Neo and Tab A6 10.1" 2016, and not all 3 S-pens are interchangeable.
                              From other brands (apart from Apple' iPad and Microsoft's Surface, of course) Lenovo and Huawei recently released new tablets with active stylus support. I don't know whether they use wacom's like Samsung or not, but I bet you cannot use Samsung's S-pen on them.
                              As for other generic styluses, I'll just stay away from them and it's better to use your fingers instead.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • 7X9
                                • 03 Jun 2021

                                Anonymous, 02 Jun 2021Bro the cheapest iPad starts at $329, how's living und... moreIt cost 10,000 in my country

                                  Nice! I use this device in the U.S., bought it from Amazon earlier this year when it was on sale for $225. Very nice tablet/phone, I'm sure the update (when it arrives over here) will make this an even better device :)

                                    • m
                                    • mike
                                    • kse
                                    • 02 Jun 2021

                                    Anonymous, 02 Jun 2021Bro the cheapest iPad starts at $329, how's living und... moretrue

                                      afronoia, 02 Jun 2021Regardless how fast I'll get this update (I'm not... moreso i see an spen in the picture and the title also says A-tab and there's mention of s update:

                                      i would please like to reach out to experienced tablet pen users.

                                      my experience with tablet+stylus combinations goes as:

                                      1) no name plastic sticks+general android tablets (horrible to advantage whatsoever )
                                      2) got nvidia tegra note (good concept, nice but basic OS support, palm rejection, nvidia killed the whole product/line (discontinued))
                                      3)note4 phone (too small screen, too small uncomfortable stylus, good ideas of features, minimal beneficial usability imho)
                                      4)s7/s7+ tablets (great user experience, bad battery, so-so portability, but most importantly: despite that i love mines: can't justify or recommend to any of my friends/relatives with lower income as it's ridiculously overpriced) thus i became enthusiastic when i saw the good value for money Tab A line and S-pen in the same sentence. My questions as such would be:

                                      a) do only s - tablets have s pen support?
                                      b) if not: which lines have support for it? or all Samsung?
                                      c) do you need a separate specific Tab A stylus for A Tabs or do they work well with s pen?
                                      d) s-pen support for other brands? does it even exist?
                                      e) good active palm rejection android stylus alternatives? by good i mean at least 4k pressure sensing+generally good reception from industry+consumers

                                      i know that there are at least 2-4 other companies that recently made tablets with active styluses in the past 1-2 years but it was only a handful of news articles i recall which i didn't follow up

                                      i know back then wacom with bamboo was well recognised and that's why it got into samsung's crossfire but so many years have passed since. Has there been good progress from competition since?

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • k2Z
                                        • 02 Jun 2021

                                        kek, 02 Jun 2021I dont know under what rock you live, because there are no ... moreBro the cheapest iPad starts at $329, how's living under a rock going?