Hands On With Samsung’s High-End Tablets: Can Galaxy AI Trounce the iPad?

Samsung has revised its flagship tablet lineup and aims to beat Apple to the AI punch. The Galaxy Tab S10+ and Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra, unveiled this week, will both ship with Galaxy AI before Apple Intelligence rolls out on iPads. Samsung’s tablets have a great deal in common with each other and the previous generation. Read on for our early impressions.

Design: Smooth, Clean, Familiar

Samsung doesn’t break any new ground on design with its latest tablets, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing—Samsung makes some of the best Android tablets available. The Tab S10+ and Tab S10 Ultra share core design elements including large Dynamic AMOLED 2X displays, dual rear cameras, a landscape selfie camera, a magnetic S Pen holder, and quality aluminum frames.

The Galaxy Tab S10+ is the smaller of the new duo. It has a 12.4-inch display with a resolution of 2,800 by 1,752 pixels, which is carried over from the previous generation. The tablet measures 7.30 by 11.24 by 0.22 inches (HWD). The Wi-Fi-only model weighs 1.25 pounds and the 5G-equipped variant weighs 1.27 pounds. These measurements are almost identical to the Galaxy Tab S9+ (7.30 by 11.23 by 0.22 inches and 1.28 pounds).

Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ (Credit: Iyaz Akhtar/PCMag)

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra packs an enormous 14.6-inch screen with a resolution of 2,960 by 1,848 pixels into a body that measures 8.21 by 12.85 by 0.21 inches and weighs 1.58 pounds. This tablet is 0.03 pounds lighter than the Tab S9 Ultra, which otherwise shares the exact same screen and dimensions.

Both new tablets feature an anti-reflective coating on their displays, which Samsung says will make them easier to see in sunlight. Get them in Moonstone Gray or Platinum Silver.

The build quality of the S10+ and S10 Ultra is excellent. The aluminum frame seamlessly flows into the display glass and vice versa. The S10+ feels dense compared to the airy S10 Ultra, but both are impressively thin. For comparison, the Apple iPad Pro is 0.20 inches thick and it is Apple’s thinnest product ever.

Performance: So Long, Snapdragon

The Tab S10 series is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 9300+ processor, a somewhat surprising change from the Qualcomm Snapdragon chips found in the Tab S9 line. The 9300+ is meant for top-of-the-line devices and is built with AI at its heart. Samsung claims the MediaTek chip in the Tab S10 Ultra has better CPU, GPU, and NPU performance compared with the Qualcomm chip in the Tab S9 Ultra. We look forward to benchmarking the tablets to see how well they really perform.

Left to right: Galaxy S24 FE and Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra (Credit: Joseph Maldonado/PCMag)

Both tablets have 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of internal storage. The S10 Ultra is available in a high-end configuration with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. An included microSD card slot supports memory cards up to 1.5TB.

The smaller S10+ features a 10,090mAh battery capable of 45W wired charging, while the larger S10 Ultra has a 11,200 mAh cell that charges at the same speed. Samsung claims both devices have a battery life of up to 16 hours, or about 6 hours more than Apple’s iPads.

For connectivity, the S10 supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. Carrier-locked 5G models will offer sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G compatibility. The S10 Ultra supports the quicker Wi-Fi 7, which is one of the few differentiating specs between the tablets.

Software: Galaxy AI Is the Draw

Both devices will ship with Android 14 and receive four generations of OS updates and seven years of security fixes. Last year’s models will receive the same number of OS updates, but just five years of security updates. This longer support window means the Galaxy Tab S10 series is a better long-term investment.

While the Tab S9 and Tab S10 seem similar, Samsung is touting AI on the S10. Galaxy AI, Samsung’s suite of AI tools, will ship on the Tab S10+ and Tab S10 Ultra. In our experience, Galaxy AI is truly useful and also provides a few laughs here and there.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra with S Pen (Credit: Joseph Maldonado/PCMag)

Several Galaxy AI features are available to the tablets out of the box. They include Circle to Search with Google to discover info about what’s on your screen, Sketch to Image to turn doodles into masterpieces, and Notes Assist, which helps organize and summarize your thoughts. Galaxy AI is such a big part of Samsung’s future that Samsung’s optional Book Cover Keyboard has a dedicated Galaxy AI key.

So far, Galaxy AI is available for free. Samsung hasn’t said if it will charge for Galaxy AI down the road. In comparison, Google charges $20 per month for access to Gemini Live, though the device is available to Pixel 9 Pro buyers for free for one year.

Pricing and Availability

(Credit: Iyaz Akhtar)

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ starts at $999.99, and the Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra starts at $1,199.99. Both will ship starting Oct. 3. Check back for full reviews soon.

In the meantime, check out first thoughts on the Galaxy S24 FE phone.

First Look: Samsung Galaxy S24 FE

About Iyaz Akhtar

Mobile Analyst

I’m one of PCMag’s mobile analysts. That means I check out phones, hotspots, and mobile networks. Technology has been my passion and hobby since I was a child. I’ve covered tech professionally for over 15 years at outlets including The Apple Blog, This Week in Tech, and CNET.

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