Finding the Best Samsung Galaxy Tablets

Welcome to our current buying guide to the best Samsung Galaxy tablets in the market, based on expert research, critic reviews and customer feedback.

Before we get into it, it is good to appreciate how far the tablet has come. A few years ago, nobody could fathom the idea of a laptop without a keyboard but today, manufacturers are coming up with new tablets every day. As one of the pioneers of this trend, Samsung has been on the forefront in the advancement of tablet technology over the years and now, Samsung Galaxy tablets are among the most popular hand-held devices in the world. It is because of this that we here at Tabletninja decided to travel all around the galaxy in search of the best Samsung tablets out there. The tablets we have featured in this guide range from expensive premium products with high-end performance and looks to match, to budget products with modest feature sets. If you are in the hunt for a tablet in the Galaxy line of products, we have just what you need right here.

Tablet Buying Guide

Before you get started on your journey be sure to check out our Tablet Buying Guide for a run down on tablet basics or if you would like to learn more of the ins and outs of what makes a tablet without being confused by a ton of technical jargon.

Top Picks >> Runners-Up >>

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Best Samsung Galaxy Tablets – Top Pick

Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 9.7-inch

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 9.7-inch is a flagship ablet with an awesome price to performance ratio. The Galaxy S3 has a beautiful all-glass, slim, and lightweight design. Its 2048 x 1536 Quad HD resolution AMOLED display is HDR-ready, a first for tablets. The detailed screen displays HD content as rich and sharp, and while there may not be much HDR content around yet, it is future-proofed. The Snapdragon 820 may be from 2016, but the 2.2GHz and 4GB of RAM drives a solid performance, although at this price point, one would have thought that it would include the most up to date chip. The 32GB is fairly slim, but it can be expanded with an extra 256GB microSD card. Samsung has included the S Pen stylus for free, which is an upgraded version from the Note’s version of the S Pen. Most found that the S Pen is easy to hold and incredibly sensitive, making it well suitable for note taking and for creative purposes. This particular version comes without the keyboard cover, which costs quite a bit extra, and according to CNET, the keyboard is an underwhelming performer. Its 6,000mAh battery is larger than the Tab S2 and holds a single charge for around 12 hours. It takes around 3 hours to reach a full charge thanks to its USB-C quick charge. The rear camera is 13MP, while the front is a 5MP camera, and it has 4K video recording. It has quad speakers, which have been tuned by AKG to deliver great audio for a tablet. It comes with Android Nougat installed, so you can expect all the latest features from Android.

Best Samsung Galaxy Tablets – Runners-Up

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 9.7-inch

Released as an update to the popular Galaxy Tab S 10.5, the Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 boasts new features that do well to maintain Samsung’s place atop the best Android tablets manufacturers’ list. Measuring a mere 0.22 inches thick and weighing in at 0.8 pounds, it is extra slim and light. This results in a tablet that looks professional and feels premium. Display is facilitated by a 9.7-inch AMOLED screen with a resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels which offers outstanding picture quality and vivid colors. The dual-speakers on the bottom edge of the screen produce more than enough volume and decent quality sound resulting in a generally remarkable multimedia device. The tablet runs Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, which can now be upgraded to Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. Samsung has applied various modifications to the stock Android user interface. An example is that whereas Android OS itself doesn’t offer split-screen multitasking, the tablet can run two applications side by side. However, this feature is only limited to the few apps that support split-view. The Galaxy Tab S2 9.7 is powered by an octa-core Samsung Exynos 5433 processor that includes four cores running at 1.9GHz for power-demanding tasks, and four cores at 1.3GHz for battery saving. The 3GB RAM is a generous amount, and the device comes with 32GB secondary storage which can be increased with microSD cards. The battery is a 5,870mAh Li-ion, which lasts an average 7 hours from a full charge.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8-Inch

Samsung is not known for budget tablets, but with the Galaxy Tab A, they have struck a good balance between low price and modest specs. At 0.29 inches thick and with a 0.69-pound weight, the design is slim, light and trendy. Its smooth back panel is comfortable to grip but the plastic gives it a cheap feel. More often than not, budget tablets suffer from poor display quality, and the Tab A is no exception. With a below average 1024 x 768 resolution (160 ppi pixel density) screen, the display is far from decent, offering poor picture quality, limited viewing angles and noticeably pixelated text. The single speaker provides lackluster audio meaning overall, multimedia functionality is not this device’s strong point. The Tab A runs Android v5.0 Lollipop featuring the user-friendly Samsung’s TouchWiz interface. Microsoft Office apps come pre-loaded, and multi-window function works well for basic multitasking with apps that support it. Performance-wise, the device packs a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon CPU and 1.5GB of RAM, which enable it to deal effectively with common tasks and moderately demanding games. Also on-board is 16GB storage, expandable up to 128GB with microSD cards. With moderate to heavy use, the Tab A’s battery will give you up to 13 hours of battery life, which is remarkable.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-T280 7-inch

The 2016 Samsung Galaxy Tab A SM-T280 is a solid budget tablet that is able to push a decent performance when it comes to doing the basics such as photo viewing or just for basic navigation around the device. However, it will struggle a tad when you throw more resource intensive tasks at it. It has a quad-core, 1.3 GHz Spreadtrum SC8830 processor, which is entry level, along with a mere 1.5 GHz of RAM. The 7-inch screen has a resolution of 1280×800 and one user reported that it has very little glare, and is well suitable as an e-reader. It runs Android 5.1 and comes with only 8GB of storage. The microSD slot allows you to expand the memory further, so in the case that you find yourself in short supply (which you almost certainly will due to Android Lollipop taking up a fair amount of space), you can always expand the storage space. Some users thought that the screen was not as sensitive as they would have liked, suggesting that the response is rather average. It has both a rear and front camera, with the rear being 5MP and the front a 2MP. Both cameras record videos in 720p at 30fps. It takes around 4 hours to achieve full charge, while maintaining a battery life of around 11 hours, which is impressive.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 SM-T580

The 2015 9.7-inch Galaxy Tab A offered users a decent overall performance without breaking the bank. The SM-T580 has set out to achieve the same, offering users a decent set of features at a good price. To keep the device affordable, Samsung opts for a non-flashy look and instead employs an all-plastic case with white and black being the only color choices. The T580 comes equipped with a 10.1-inch TFT display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels. Not only is it sharp and colorful, but brightness is also adequate enough for virtually all lighting conditions. The speakers output decent sound volume, and although bass is almost non-existent, the quality is generally commendable. Software-wise, the new Galaxy Tab A sports a relatively up-to-date version of Android, version 6.0.1 Marshmallow. Thankfully Samsung more or less leaves the OS untouched and only includes a few pre-installed apps: S Planner, Kids Mode and Microsoft Office products. Equipped with the fairly new 1.6GHz Exynos 7870 Octa CPU and 2GB RAM, the tablet does pretty well with even demanding tasks and heavy multitasking. The ARM Mali-T830 MP2 GPU offers very good gaming performance as well, even at maximum screen resolution and while 16GB internal storage is rather modest, the T580’s expandable storage capabilities ensure you have enough memory space for your favorite games. Both the 8MP rear camera and the 2MP front sensor output decent picture quality, but neither are as impressive as the battery, which lasts an excellent 15 hours of Full-HD video playback.

More Samsung Galaxy Tablets

Samsung Galaxy View 18.4-Inch

The Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 is a combination of their Note Series phones and tablet series. It comes with the fast chipset, TouchWiz UI, and pressure sensitive S Pen stylus found on the Note 3, but on a much larger 12.2-inch WQXGA screen and a larger price tag. It features the same leather-effect finish found on most Samsung devices of its generation like the Note 3, and its only 8 mm thick, however, a 12-inch tablet that weighs 753g is far from portable, and it was clearly intended to be a two-handed device. The S Pen resides in a slot in the top right edge and is incredibly useful with the added screen estate. This added estate is put to good use as Samsung redesigned the whole interface to take advantage; highly customizable home screens and up to 4 apps can be viewed at the same time. Some users may get frustrated with the TouchWiz UI, however, as it can be overbearing at times. Samsung used the PenTile pixel arrangement on the screen to dramatically increase brightness and power efficiency; it, however, results in fuzzy looking images. The battery savings mean that it can last up to 13 hours on a single charge despite its powerful specs. It also sports a USB 3.0 port meaning faster charging.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 7-Inch

The Galaxy Tab 4 seems uninspiring at first sight with its reserved looks and modest specs, but its vast array of features and solid general performance make it a great budget tablet. Black or white are the choices you get, but other than color, the Tab 4’s design is rather dull and remains fully functional. It weighs 277g and is 9 mm thick; its very light, and with its 7-inch screen, it is small enough to hold in one hand. The display’s resolution is not awe-inspiring, but it delivers accurate colors and wide viewing angles; images look vibrant, and text is crisp. TouchWiz comes stock with all Galaxy devices nowadays; experienced Samsung users will feel right at home, but it may be overwhelming to new users. Multi Window allows you to split the screen and open two apps at the same time, however, some apps may prove too heavy to multitask for the modest hardware. The Quad-Core 1.2 GHz processor is more than enough for basic tasks, but most games take a hit framerate-wise, where the Tab 4 truly reveals its budget nature. The tablet has no cellular connectivity as well, and while a microSD card slot is included, the 8 GB internal memory proves insufficient. All in all the Tab 4 proves itself to be a capable device for what you pay, and though it may only be able to handle moderate tasks, it can do so for 10 hours straight.

Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2

The Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 is a combination of their Note Series phones and tablet series. It comes with the fast chipset, TouchWiz UI, and pressure sensitive S Pen stylus found on the Note 3, but on a much larger 12.2-inch WQXGA screen and a larger price tag. It features the same leather-effect finish found on most Samsung devices of its generation like the Note 3, and its only 8 mm thick, however, a 12-inch tablet that weighs 753g is far from portable, and it was clearly intended to be a two-handed device. The S Pen resides in a slot in the top right edge and is incredibly useful with the added screen estate. This added estate is put to good use as Samsung redesigned the whole interface to take advantage; highly customizable home screens and up to 4 apps can be viewed at the same time. Some users may get frustrated with the TouchWiz UI, however, as it can be overbearing at times. Samsung used the PenTile pixel arrangement on the screen to dramatically increase brightness and power efficiency; it, however, results in fuzzy looking images. The battery savings mean that it can last up to 13 hours on a single charge despite its powerful specs. It also sports a USB 3.0 port meaning faster charging.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8-inch

Coming as an upgrade to 2014’s Galaxy Tab S 8.4-inch, the 8-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 packs a new processor and a beautiful AMOLED screen all in an ultra-thin, light body. The premium design blends a nice mix of plastic, metal and glass, and measuring 0.22 inches thick and at 0.6 pounds, the tablet is a delight to hold in terms of quality and comfort. Display is facilitated by an 8-inch Super AMOLED panel with a resolution of 2048×1536 pixels (320 ppi density). Overall, the screen is very good, providing crisp picture and sharp contrast for enjoyable multimedia experience. Pre-installed is Android Lollipop v5.0 which is upgradable to v6.0.1 Marshmallow. Samsung’s TouchWiz integrates well with the OS, and adds extra features including multi-window functionality and Smart Manager. Inside the Tab S2 8-inch is a Samsung Exynos 5433 octa-core processor, 3GB RAM and Mali T760MP6 GPU, resulting in a very speedy tablet. Even with heavy multitasking and graphics-intensive games, you will not experience any lag. For a tablet, the cameras are very good and the quality of the images captured with both the 8MP rear camera and the 2.1MP front camera is satisfactory. Perhaps the only significant weak point with this product is the battery life, which averages only 7 hours on moderate use.

 

Conclusion

You have reached the end of our guide, and it is our hope that now you have adequate information on the Samsung Galaxy range of tablets. With smartphones becoming bigger and bigger, Samsung has done well to remind us why tablets are still important. It is of no doubt that some of the products in this guide sit well atop the list of the best tablets out there. However, if you are still aching for research, head on to our other guides on TabletNinja, such as the Finding The Best 8-Inch Tablets, Finding The Best 10-Inch Tablets and Finding The Best Large Tablets. For any assistance whatsoever, drop us a line!