 Since the beginning of this year, Samsung has released no fewer than nine distinct tablets, and that's not including different storage and LTE options. That's just an insane number, and there's not that much to distinguish them. So, of course, Samsung did what Samsung does. It went ahead and introduced tablets number 10 and 11. This is the Samsung Galaxy Tab S. The Galaxy Tab S comes in two sizes. One has an 8.4-inch screen and the other is 10.5 inches. And it's actually the screen that's the most important part of any tablet. If it's terrible, the whole thing is basically worthless. If it's great, everything you do in the tablet feels better. So, with the Galaxy Tab S, Samsung focused on the screen, and it did something pretty amazing. Both sizes have the same resolution, a super high 2560 by 1600 pixels, which puts them imperceptibly ahead of their respective competitors, the iPad Air and the iPad Mini with retina display. The pixels are basically invisible, and everything is super sharp and super bright. The whole tablet is built around this screen. It's using the same technology that Samsung uses on its phones, Super AMOLED. That technology doesn't need a backlight, so these tablets can be thinner and lighter. Both are just.26 inches thick and weigh just a little less than the comparable iPads. The colors are vibrant. Often it's just a little too vibrant. But Samsung has added software called Adaptive Display, which keeps an eye on the content on the screen and the lighting environment of your room to automatically adjust the image's color, saturation, and contrast. Most people won't notice these subtle changes, just that the screen is nice and sharp. I'm just impressed that the screen looks good in so many lighting conditions. I can see it fine in daylight, and in total darkness you can ratchet the brightness way down so it doesn't burn out your eye sockets. That's the story of the screen. The story for the rest of the hardware is, well, not as good. As usual, Samsung is sticking with plastic everywhere. All that plastic does make the tablet light, but it also makes it feel cheaper than the iPad. The back has the same stipple texture as the Galaxy S5, and in fact both tablets basically look and feel like blown up versions of that phone. They both come in two colors, white and bronze, and they're both garish and kind of ugly. Samsung sells a variety of covers that click into the back using plastic grommets. They attach securely, and then there's various origami folds you can make to attach the magnets and prop up tablets at different angles. I'm not a fan of the color options here, but if you want a case that looks more like a handbag than a boring black laptop sleeve, Samsung has you covered. Depending on which model you choose, LTE or Wi-Fi only, you'll get different processors. The models we tested were Wi-Fi only with a crazy fast Exynos 5 octa processor. That gave it speeds fast enough to handle even tough tasks like intense gaming. There's 3GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, but you can also add a microSD card for more storage. The camera on the back is 8MP and it's fine. There's also dual speakers on the side that get loud enough for me, but are pretty easy to cover with your hands. Battery life on both was solid, lasting me two days of moderate use without much hassle. Samsung even added a fingerprint sensor to the home button, which works about as well as it does on the Galaxy S5 phone, which is to say that it works only if you're very careful with your finger swipes. The best thing about the software is Samsung's split screen mode, which lets you run two apps simultaneously. Unlike the Galaxy Note Pro 10.5, you're only limited to two apps, but the feature is really nice and for the most part things don't slow down too much. There's also the usual array of Samsung features and add-ons. Paper Garden is loaded on for magazines, Hand Come Office for documents, and the home screen is a pretty crazy pile of flipboard style tiles, Android style widgets, and that's not to mention the direct access to your files and a completely nutso pile of settings and options in the notification panel and in settings. There's also the latest version of SideSync, which mirrors your Galaxy S5 phone onto the screen of your tablet so you can operate it directly from there. It lets you do everything your phone can do right on the tablet, including making and receiving calls, and you can transfer files too. It's too slow to actually be useful in most cases, so it basically amounts to yet another software feature that's more impressive in the showroom than it is for real humans. At this point, getting angry at Samsung for all these software add-ons is like getting angry at the allergies you get every spring. It's better than it used to be, it's still not fun to deal with, but you're never going to get it to stop. Of the two, I much prefer the 8.4 inch version. Android tablets work best at this portrait size and though the incredibly high screen resolution can make some things difficult to tap with your finger, the fact that it just barely fits in my back pocket makes it totally worth the trade-off. The 10.5 inch version starts at $499.99 and the smaller one is $399.99. That's the exact same price as the equivalent iPads. And Samsung has tried its hardest to match the iPads in every category. There's a bunch of hardware accessories like keyboards and cases, there's a ton of hand-waving software to distract you from the fact that iPads tend to have better apps. But at the end of the day, even though the Tab S has a better screen and is slightly lighter, I still prefer the iPad. These are probably the best tablets Samsung has ever made, but the vast majority of people would still be better off going with an iPad. Better luck with tablets number 12 and 13, Samsung.
 Since the beginning of this year, Samsung has released no fewer than nine distinct tablets,
 and that's not including different storage and LTE options. That's just an insane number,
 and there's not that much to distinguish them. So, of course, Samsung did what Samsung does.
 It went ahead and introduced tablets number 10 and 11. This is the Samsung Galaxy Tab
 S.
 The Galaxy Tab S comes in two sizes. One has an 8.4-inch screen and the other is 10.5 inches.
 And it's actually the screen that's the most important part of any tablet. If it's terrible,
 the whole thing is basically worthless. If it's great, everything you do in the tablet
 feels better. So, with the Galaxy Tab S, Samsung focused on the screen, and it did something
 pretty amazing. Both sizes have the same resolution, a super high 2560 by 1600 pixels, which puts
 them imperceptibly ahead of their respective competitors, the iPad Air and the iPad Mini
 with retina display. The pixels are basically invisible, and everything is super sharp and
 super bright.
 The whole tablet is built around this screen. It's using the same technology that Samsung
 uses on its phones, Super AMOLED. That technology doesn't need a backlight, so these tablets
 can be thinner and lighter. Both are just.26 inches thick and weigh just a little less
 than the comparable iPads.
 The colors are vibrant. Often it's just a little too vibrant. But Samsung has added
 software called Adaptive Display, which keeps an eye on the content on the screen and the
 lighting environment of your room to automatically adjust the image's color, saturation, and
 contrast. Most people won't notice these subtle changes, just that the screen is nice
 and sharp. I'm just impressed that the screen looks good in so many lighting conditions.
 I can see it fine in daylight, and in total darkness you can ratchet the brightness way
 down so it doesn't burn out your eye sockets.
 That's the story of the screen. The story for the rest of the hardware is, well, not
 as good. As usual, Samsung is sticking with plastic everywhere. All that plastic does
 make the tablet light, but it also makes it feel cheaper than the iPad. The back has the
 same stipple texture as the Galaxy S5, and in fact both tablets basically look and feel
 like blown up versions of that phone. They both come in two colors, white and bronze,
 and they're both garish and kind of ugly.
 Samsung sells a variety of covers that click into the back using plastic grommets. They
 attach securely, and then there's various origami folds you can make to attach the magnets
 and prop up tablets at different angles. I'm not a fan of the color options here, but if
 you want a case that looks more like a handbag than a boring black laptop sleeve, Samsung
 has you covered.
 Depending on which model you choose, LTE or Wi-Fi only, you'll get different processors.
 The models we tested were Wi-Fi only with a crazy fast Exynos 5 octa processor. That
 gave it speeds fast enough to handle even tough tasks like intense gaming. There's
 3GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, but you can also add a microSD card for more storage.
 The camera on the back is 8MP and it's fine. There's also dual speakers on the side that
 get loud enough for me, but are pretty easy to cover with your hands. Battery life on
 both was solid, lasting me two days of moderate use without much hassle. Samsung even added
 a fingerprint sensor to the home button, which works about as well as it does on the Galaxy
 S5 phone, which is to say that it works only if you're very careful with your finger
 swipes.
 The best thing about the software is Samsung's split screen mode, which lets you run two
 apps simultaneously. Unlike the Galaxy Note Pro 10.5, you're only limited to two apps,
 but the feature is really nice and for the most part things don't slow down too much.
 There's also the usual array of Samsung features and add-ons. Paper Garden is loaded
 on for magazines, Hand Come Office for documents, and the home screen is a pretty crazy pile
 of flipboard style tiles, Android style widgets, and that's not to mention the direct access
 to your files and a completely nutso pile of settings and options in the notification
 panel and in settings.
 There's also the latest version of SideSync, which mirrors your Galaxy S5 phone onto the
 screen of your tablet so you can operate it directly from there. It lets you do everything
 your phone can do right on the tablet, including making and receiving calls, and you can transfer
 files too. It's too slow to actually be useful in most cases, so it basically amounts
 to yet another software feature that's more impressive in the showroom than it is for
 real humans.
 At this point, getting angry at Samsung for all these software add-ons is like getting
 angry at the allergies you get every spring. It's better than it used to be, it's still
 not fun to deal with, but you're never going to get it to stop.
 Of the two, I much prefer the 8.4 inch version. Android tablets work best at this portrait
 size and though the incredibly high screen resolution can make some things difficult
 to tap with your finger, the fact that it just barely fits in my back pocket makes it
 totally worth the trade-off. The 10.5 inch version starts at $499.99 and the smaller
 one is $399.99. That's the exact same price as the equivalent iPads.
 And Samsung has tried its hardest to match the iPads in every category. There's a bunch
 of hardware accessories like keyboards and cases, there's a ton of hand-waving software
 to distract you from the fact that iPads tend to have better apps. But at the end of the
 day, even though the Tab S has a better screen and is slightly lighter, I still prefer the
 iPad.
 These are probably the best tablets Samsung has ever made, but the vast majority of people
 would still be better off going with an iPad. Better luck with tablets number 12 and 13,
 Samsung.