We go hands-on with Samsung’s newest tablets!

Earlier today Samsung officially unveiled their newest flagship tablet, the Galaxy Tab S. The Tab S comes in two distinct flavors: a full sized 10.5-inch version and a smaller, 8.4-inch variant. Samsung says that they developed these two tablets with superior viewing in mind, infusing them with a extremely vibrant Super AMOLED display. So does Samsung’s newest flagship tablet deliver on its promise? The answer is an overwhelming yes, but we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

Samsung Tab S 10.5 specs

• 2.3 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor
• Adreno 330 GPU
• 3GB of RAM
• 10.5-inch Super AMOLED display, 1600 x 2560 resolution
• 16GB of storage, expandable up to 128GB via microSD
• 8-megapixel rear camera
• 2.1-megapixel front camera
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
• 3G, LTE
• Android 4.4
• 246.3x 177.8 x  6.6 mm
• 7900 mAh Li-ion battery

Samsung Tab S 8.4 specs

• 2.3 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor
• Adreno 330 GPU
• 3GB of RAM
• 8.4-inch Super AMOLED display, 1600 x 2560
• 16GB of storage, expandable up to 128GB via microSD
• 8-megapixel rear camera
• 2.1-megapixel front camera
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
• 3G, LTE
• Android 4.4
• 212.9 x 125.7 x 6.6 mm
• 4900 mAh Li-ion battery

Initial Impressions: vibrant, colorful tablet in a body that’s thinner than most smartphones

The Tab S is probably one of the thinnest tablets that you can buy today. At only 6.6mm thin (that’s for both the 10.5 and 8.4-inch variants), it’s almost impossibly slim, which makes it easier to hold with one hand.

While the 10.5-inch variant is obviously the headliner of the show, the 8.4-inch version is actually the better of the two, as far as usability and portability is concerned.

 

There’s really no words to describe just how awesome the Super AMOLED panel on the Tab S is. It’s amazingly bright, vibrant and the colors on it are just fantastic. Looking at the display, we’re kind of reminded of Samsung’s UHD panel that we reviewed a couple of days ago, and while the Tab S is just half of its resolution (2K as opposed to 4K) it still looks pretty amazing.

The colors are bright and vivid, and since the panel is an Super AMOLED one, the contrast ratio can be measured in the millions. If that wasn’t enough, Samsung has embedded a sensor on the front of the Tab S that measures the lighting level in the room where the device is in and then calibrates the screen accordingly. The result is a display that’s able to stand out even under direct sunlight.

The back of the Tab S has the same perforated back as the Galaxy S5, which may or may not be to your liking. Personally, the design of the Tab S is pretty good, although the finish on the perforated back of the Tab S is a bit slippery, so be warned.

There’s two attachment points on the back of the Tab S where you can place the removable cover. While the attachment points are technically sturdier than regular ol’ magnets, they kind of ruin the overall design of the back, though this is a matter of taste at this point.

Of course a brilliant screen means diddly squat if the device’s other hardware didn’t step up to the challenge, and thankfully the Tab S has one of the best hardware spec sheets this side of the planet. While it uses Qualcomm’s relatively older Snapdragon 800 chip, it’s paired with 3GB of RAM and an Adreno 330 GPU, which almost guarantees high benchmark scores and a fluid, seamless experience.

Like most of Samsung’s tablet offerings, the Tab S is treated to the company’s TouchWiz UI and Magazine UX experience. The Tab S also has a fingerprint scanner on the home button that you can enable for added security and also makes sharing the tablet easier for families, for instance. The Tab S can have as much as user 8 accounts in it at any time, with each account having their own space for apps and files. The Tab S can also connect with either a Galaxy S5 or a Galaxy Note 3 via the SideSync application, essentially getting a mirror image of their device on the tablet.

While Samsung has put a price tag for the Wi-Fi versions of the two tablets in the US, there’s still no hint of pricing for the LTE version which the Philippine market is getting. Samsung execs told us that we’ll probably get the tablets around the middle of July, though we’ll only be getting the 16GB, LTE version of both variants.