The Good, the Bad, and the 'Mommy Needs Coffee Now'
The Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ is about as essential as baby wipes in a parent's arsenal. It mostly delivers on its promise of family entertainment and mild parent-sanctioned escapism, though you might need the patience of a saint teaching a goldfish to fetch while it charges. Still, that big screen buys precious moments of peace!
What We Liked 👍
- Big, bright screen = kid magnet
- Surprisingly great speakers for Paw Patrol
- Samsung Kids app: sanity in digital form
- Expandable storage swallows endless cartoons
- Survived juice box incident (mostly)
- Price tag that won't make you weep
What Could Be Better 👎
- Charges slower than a sloth marathon
- Performance stutters with complex apps
- Barely survives screen time demands
- 64GB fills up way too fast
- Screams 'fingerprint magnet' immediately
Surviving Screen Time: My Tablet Tango
Alright, picture this: It's 4 p.m. The tiny humans are reaching critical fussy mass. Enter the Samsung Tab A9+. I handed it over like Excalibur. Did it appease the beast? Mostly! That 11-inch screen is gloriously bright and big enough that both kids could simultaneously argue about what color Bubble Guppies should be next. The quad speakers pumped out Cocomelon at volumes capable of rivaling an airplane engine (seriously, Dolby Atmos drowns out tantrums beautifully), though my eardrums may never recover.
Here’s the rub ‘Red Light, Green Light’ on Roblox was smoother than my toddler’s explanation of why glitter belongs in the toaster. But booting up, switching apps, or demanding anything fancier than endless Peppa Pig? Yeah, think gerbil-powered wheel, not cheetah. And oh, the charging! Plugging it in after one epic Duolingo Kids session felt like waiting for a cactus to hydrate. Zero to 100% takes roughly the time it takes to explain why we can't buy *every* LOL Surprise blind bag.
Features That (Mostly) Don't Annoy Me
Let's talk wins: The Samsung Kids app is a fortress. Setting timers and content limits feels less like parenting, more like mission control. This thing is slim! Fits in the diaper bag mountain beside the suspicious raisins. Need to move that cute video of your kid singing backwards? Quick Share actually worked for me sending clips to my non-Samsung phone faster than I could find matching socks. Casting to the big TV? Lifesaver when narrating the adventures of ‘Sticky the Gum' became the main event. Keep the conversation going worked… until my toddler managed to video call grandma mid-tantrum. So, functional! Storage was tight out the gate, but tossing in an old microSD card fixed that glut. It *feels* reasonably durable. Mine has survived a graham cracker dusting and one minor saliva inspection. Doesn't feel like a premium brick, but it doesn’t feel like tomorrow’s recycling either.
The Verdict: Buy It, But Maybe Buy Ice Cream Too
Look, it's not perfect. It charges like it's meditating, can hiccup on graphics, and 64GB fills up faster than a diaper at a juice party. BUT! It absolutely nails its main job: being a budget-friendly, kid-entertaining (and quite pretty) screen shield between you and the witching hour. It’s leagues better than handing over your fragile phone. For the price, especially if you need a decent family tablet that promises ‘enter the pass code to see Mommy cry quietly in the pantry’ time? Grab. It. Go buy a bigger microSD card and try not to panic about the charging speed.
