 Samsung's newest tablet is ridiculously thin. It's so thin, in fact, that when I went to go dig it out of my bag the other day, I couldn't even see it at first. Is this worth $400 or more? The brand new Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 is the successor to last year's Galaxy Tab S. As I mentioned, it's thinner than last year's model, but it's also lighter, has a similarly beautiful display, and has an updated processor. But despite its felt figure, it's still, in some ways, the same tablet inside. I can't help but feel like it's lacking that wow factor that would catapult it into true top-of-the-line tablet territory. Does it have longer-lasting battery life? Nope. An amazing camera? Nope. That's pretty much the same. Wireless charging? Wishful thinking. Let's talk about the Tab S2's build first, one area where it really stands out. It comes in two different sizes, a 9.7-inch model and an 8-inch model. Samsung claims the S2 Tabs are the thinnest on the market. It's even thinner than the iPad Air 2, if you want to compare it with iPad. And it's pretty nice-looking. The back of the Galaxy Tab S2 is an unembellished matte plastic, with metal edges that give it a more premium feel. One area where Samsung's mobile devices have really stood out from the package is in displays, and the Tab S2's rich-looking Super AMOLED display is no exception. Specs-wise, the resolution is actually lower than the display on last year's Tab S, which some consumers might ding it for, but the difference in pixel density is probably not visible to the average eye. Now, there are a few features that will look or feel familiar to you if you've been using other, newer Samsung mobile devices. For example, the Tab S2 has a fingerprint scanner built into the Home button. It's running on Android, though it is an outdated version of Android at this point, and it has Samsung's familiar TouchWiz skin. There are things like SideSync, which allow you to do things like text message and make phone calls from the Tab, and as with other Samsung tablets, you can multitask using the multi-window feature. But one key difference between this Tab and the previous is its 4 by 3 aspect ratio. On the previous Galaxy Tab S, Samsung went with a 16 by 10 cinematic aspect ratio. The Tab S2, like many other tablets on the market, is 4 by 3, and more optimal for everyday use case stuff, like reading. It has an updated Samsung Exynos processor, due in part to the fact that some people complained that last year's Tab S felt sluggish. For the most part, the new Tab felt fluid and fast, and I was able to play graphics-heavy games and stream video mostly without issue, although the smaller Tab S2 froze up on me on a couple occasions. Also, it's worth noting that the Tab S2 has the same processor as the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, not the super-fast chip found in Samsung's latest and greatest smartphones. The cameras? They're just okay. I still think using tablets for photos is just weird, but I know that plenty of people use their Tabs for this, and they probably won't be blown away by the Tab S2's 8 megapixel rear and 1.2 megapixel front-facing cameras, which are pretty much the same as last year's Tab S. And the rear camera's positioning means it's still too easy to inadvertently cover the lens with your hands or finger. Also, battery life suffers a little bit due to the tablet's thinness. It wasn't terrible—during an official Verge battery test, I managed to get well over six hours with both tablets— but that's less than the average for tablets these days. It also doesn't support wireless charging or super-fast charging. As I mentioned earlier, the Tab S2 starts at $400. That's for the 8-inch Wi-Fi-only 32GB model, but it jumps up to $650 for a 9.7-inch 32GB model with LTE, putting it firmly in the upper echelon of tablet pricing. When you consider this, it's tough to justify an upgrade from the previous model, unless thinness, lightness, and a little more speed are top priority for you. Tablets in general have fallen off from the initial excitement around them a few years ago, and in order to make a case for someone to spend several hundred dollars on a tablet these days, it has to be something really special. Samsung has definitely improved upon the Tab S where it needed it the most, but it kind of feels like Samsung made this because it could, not because it should. I can't help but think, or maybe hope, that there's another tablet in the works, whether it's a new, high-powered Note tablet or another tab that is going to truly bring out the wow factor.
 Samsung's newest tablet is ridiculously thin.
 It's so thin, in fact, that when I went to go dig it out of my bag the other day, I couldn't even see it at first.
 Is this worth $400 or more?
 The brand new Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 is the successor to last year's Galaxy Tab S.
 As I mentioned, it's thinner than last year's model, but it's also lighter, has a similarly beautiful display,
 and has an updated processor.
 But despite its felt figure, it's still, in some ways, the same tablet inside.
 I can't help but feel like it's lacking that wow factor that would catapult it into true top-of-the-line tablet territory.
 Does it have longer-lasting battery life? Nope.
 An amazing camera? Nope. That's pretty much the same.
 Wireless charging? Wishful thinking.
 Let's talk about the Tab S2's build first, one area where it really stands out.
 It comes in two different sizes, a 9.7-inch model and an 8-inch model.
 Samsung claims the S2 Tabs are the thinnest on the market.
 It's even thinner than the iPad Air 2, if you want to compare it with iPad.
 And it's pretty nice-looking.
 The back of the Galaxy Tab S2 is an unembellished matte plastic, with metal edges that give it a more premium feel.
 One area where Samsung's mobile devices have really stood out from the package is in displays,
 and the Tab S2's rich-looking Super AMOLED display is no exception.
 Specs-wise, the resolution is actually lower than the display on last year's Tab S, which some consumers might ding it for,
 but the difference in pixel density is probably not visible to the average eye.
 Now, there are a few features that will look or feel familiar to you if you've been using other, newer Samsung mobile devices.
 For example, the Tab S2 has a fingerprint scanner built into the Home button.
 It's running on Android, though it is an outdated version of Android at this point, and it has Samsung's familiar TouchWiz skin.
 There are things like SideSync, which allow you to do things like text message and make phone calls from the Tab,
 and as with other Samsung tablets, you can multitask using the multi-window feature.
 But one key difference between this Tab and the previous is its 4 by 3 aspect ratio.
 On the previous Galaxy Tab S, Samsung went with a 16 by 10 cinematic aspect ratio.
 The Tab S2, like many other tablets on the market, is 4 by 3, and more optimal for everyday use case stuff, like reading.
 It has an updated Samsung Exynos processor, due in part to the fact that some people complained that last year's Tab S felt sluggish.
 For the most part, the new Tab felt fluid and fast, and I was able to play graphics-heavy games and stream video mostly without issue,
 although the smaller Tab S2 froze up on me on a couple occasions.
 Also, it's worth noting that the Tab S2 has the same processor as the Samsung Galaxy Note 4,
 not the super-fast chip found in Samsung's latest and greatest smartphones.
 The cameras? They're just okay. I still think using tablets for photos is just weird, but I know that plenty of people use their Tabs for this,
 and they probably won't be blown away by the Tab S2's 8 megapixel rear and 1.2 megapixel front-facing cameras,
 which are pretty much the same as last year's Tab S.
 And the rear camera's positioning means it's still too easy to inadvertently cover the lens with your hands or finger.
 Also, battery life suffers a little bit due to the tablet's thinness.
 It wasn't terrible—during an official Verge battery test, I managed to get well over six hours with both tablets—
 but that's less than the average for tablets these days. It also doesn't support wireless charging or super-fast charging.
 As I mentioned earlier, the Tab S2 starts at $400. That's for the 8-inch Wi-Fi-only 32GB model,
 but it jumps up to $650 for a 9.7-inch 32GB model with LTE, putting it firmly in the upper echelon of tablet pricing.
 When you consider this, it's tough to justify an upgrade from the previous model,
 unless thinness, lightness, and a little more speed are top priority for you.
 Tablets in general have fallen off from the initial excitement around them a few years ago,
 and in order to make a case for someone to spend several hundred dollars on a tablet these days, it has to be something really special.
 Samsung has definitely improved upon the Tab S where it needed it the most,
 but it kind of feels like Samsung made this because it could, not because it should.
 I can't help but think, or maybe hope, that there's another tablet in the works,
 whether it's a new, high-powered Note tablet or another tab that is going to truly bring out the wow factor.