Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 trio goes official, Ultra takes Android tablets to a new level
The Galaxy S22 series consists of three devices - a vanilla, a Plus and an Ultra and Samsung thought it would be fitting to carry this naming strategy over to its Galaxy Tab S8 series. These are Samsung's 2022 flagship tablets but the Tab S8 Ultra is in a league of its own so letâs start with that one.
Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
The biggest and most powerful Galaxy Tab S to date - thatâs the elevator pitch for the Tab S8 Ultra. It brings a massive 14.6-inch Super AMOLED display with a 2960x1848px resolution and a 120Hz variable refresh rate. Thereâs more to it though - itâs the first Samsung tablet with a notch which is a controversial design choice by Samsung considering its past ridicule of Appleâs notched devices.
Samsung managed to slim down the display bezels to just 6.3mm while fitting two 12MP cameras inside the notch - a regular wide sensor and an ultrawide module with a 120 field of view. The front cams also support up to 4K video recordings this time around. The rear houses a 13MP main cam alongside a 6MP ultrawide snapper.
Tab S8 Ultra gets the quad stereo speaker setup tuned by AKG from previous Galaxy Tabs as well as an in-display optical fingerprint reader. All three Tab S8 models get a bundled S Pen stylus. The shell on all three tablets is made from aluminum and Samsung claims is more durable and less prone to bending than the Tab S7 series.
Qualcommâs latest flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset sits at the helm aided by 8, 12 or 16GB RAM and 128/256/512GB storage which is also expandable via the microSD slot. The software side is covered by Android 12 with One UI 4.1 on top. Samsung is also bringing a new continuity feature that lets you use the Galaxy S22 Ultra as a companion display in apps like Clip Studio Paint. Wireless DeX is also here for a more desktop-like environment when hooked up to an external display.
Samsung fitted an 11,200 mAh battery with support for up to 45W fast wired charging though the charger is not bundled in the box. All three Tab S8 devices come with Wi-Fi 6E and you can pay up to get 5G support too.
Galaxy Tab S8 and Tab S8+
If the 14.6-inch Tab S8 Ultra is not your cup of tea then Samsung has the 11-inch Tab S8 and the 12.4-inch Tab S8+ for your consideration. These are also powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset just like the Ultra model and bring the same aluminum design. You get the added benefit of Silver and Pink Gold colors alongside the Graphite option seen on the Ultra.
Tab S8 brings am 11-inch LTPS TFT display with a 2560 x 1600px resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. Tab S8+ boasts a 12.4-inch Super AMOLED with 2800 x 1752px resolution and also refreshes up to 120Hz. No notches or cutouts here.
The vanilla model gets a side-mounted fingerprint scanner while the plus retains the in-display type. Both tablets boast 12MP ultrawide selfie cameras and 13MP main and 6MP ultrawide shooters on the back. Sound output is covered by the AKG-tuned quad-speaker setup and you also get bundled S Pen styluses just like on the Tab S8 Ultra.
You can choose between 8GB and 12GB RAM and 256/512GB storage which is again expandable via microSD. Both tablets run the same One UI 4.1 on top of Android 12. Tab S8 has an 8,000 mAh battery while the Plus model gets a 10,090 mAh cell. Both do up to 45W charging provided you get the proper adapter.