Samsung’s flagship Galaxy Tab S series got two updates last year, but for 2022, it’s been updated with three new tablets, the Galaxy Tab S8, S8 Plus and S8 Ultra. Just like the Galaxy S22 line that’s been announced alongside it, the most interesting of the three is the Ultra, with its laptop-beating 14.6-inch screen, and optimized UI to take full advantage of the accompanying S Pen and ample power inside.
While the line hasn’t seen a design refresh at first glance – the three tablets are metal-backed, glass-fronted slivers, all three sport new, more robust frames made from Samsung’s Armor Aluminum. They’re all slender, with the Ultra being the thinnest of the three at 5.5mm, which is about 0.4mm thinner than the iPad Pro.
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Color options are limited, with the Tab S8 and Tab S8 Plus available in Graphite, Pink Gold and Silver, while the Tab S8 Ultra is exclusively available in Graphite. Most interesting is the fact the new tab has a notch, which houses two front cameras.
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The most obvious thing that differentiates the three tablets is their size, with the Galaxy Tab S8’s screen measuring 11 inches, the Tab S8 Plus’s screen measuring 12.4 inches, while the Tab S8 Ultra is a huge 14.6 inches. That’s by comparison to the largest iPad Pro, which clocks in at 12.9 inches.
Not all the new tablets get Samsung AMOLED panels, with the vanilla Tab S8 getting an LTPS (Samsung’s version of IPS) display. That said, all three screens have 120Hz refresh rates and roughly WQXGA resolution. That means they’re all sharper than 240 pixels per inch, which is great going for a tablet.
The well-specced screens are matched with quad stereo speakers and sound tuned by AKG. Dolby Atmos support also means the Tab S8-series should be great for watching movies on, though headphone fans will need to go Bluetooth or use an adapter – there’s no 3.5mm jack in sight across the line.
As with most tablets, all the Tab S8s sport humbly specced cameras, with each featuring a dual-rear camera setup consisting of an ultra-wide 6MP and primary 13MP camera. As for the front camera, the Tab S8 and S8 Plus have a sole 12MP module for video calls and selfies, while the Tab S8 Ultra features two 12MP cameras – a wide and ultra-wide option.
With all three tablets sporting the same chipset – the 4nm Exynos 2200 for global markets and Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 in the US and China, they should offer impressive speed, graphics and hopefully, stability. That being said, the maximum RAM and Storage capacity of the Tab S8 Ultra is higher than on the smaller tabs, with the S8 and S8 Plus capping out at 12GB RAM with 256GB storage, and the S8 Ultra capping out at 16GB RAM with 512GB storage. All three Tab S8s support expandable storage up to 1TB with a microSD card.
Samsung’s tablets charge up relatively quickly with up to 45W charging, and their batteries are huge given how slender they are: Tab S8 – 8000mAh; Tab S8 Plus 10090mAh;Tab S8 Ultra 11200mAh.
As far as accessories go, while each tab ships with an S Pen, you can also pick up a Book Cover Keyboard or Protective Standing Cover. While accessory pricing and availability is yet to be confirmed, you can pre-order all three of the tablets now, with the Tab S8 starting from £649 (approximately $880), the S8 Plus from £849 (approximately $1,150), and the S8 Ultra starting at £999 (approximately $1,350).
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