Tablets Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+. Review from an iPad user’s point of view.
Being an iPad user from the very first version and an iPad Pro devotee since 2017, I would like to share my thoughts after using the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ for about a week.
Design
The Galaxy Tab S9+ shows a slim landscape model, with a slight note of 16:10. The 12.4-inch AMOLED display works on a screen resolution of 1752 x 2800 pixels and comes with a 120Hz refresh rate that sweeps smoothly across. The thin bezels give it a premium look that is typical of other premium tablets on the market.
Having been an iPad user since its first model and a dedicated iPad Pro season since 2017, I would like to express my views after using the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ for the last one week.
Design
It has a sleek landscape design with a 16:10 aspect ratio. The 12.4-inch AMOLED display has a resolution of 1752 x 2800 pixels and a 120Hz refresh rate. Capable of a high-end tablet feel, the slim bezels lend it a very contemporary appearance.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ is exceptionally sturdy and well-constructed, something I found quite comforting. The buttons also lend a sturdy touch to the general quality.
On either side, you have four AKG speakers, a USB-C port, microphones, and a 3-pin for the keyboard, similar to what you see on the iPad. The back houses two cameras, a flash, and a slot for the S Pen, which charges in that location. The S Pen also magnetically attaches horizontally to the right side for easy access, though it doesn’t charge in that position. This particular position works best with the keyboard.
On the whole, the tablet offers excellent build quality at that price range. In terms of hold and feel, lightweight and slim are the best in its class. Still, I find that the iPad’s squarer proportions are better suited to productivity, while the Galaxy Tab screen is better for content consumption.
For its part, it is a sharp and vibrant property with notable color contrast direct from each other, yet not too saturating and provides ample brightness to avoid reflections. The iPad Pro with a miniLED screen may have an edge in color calibration and reflections, but the AMOLED display on the Samsung offers deeper blacks and improved contrast.
The sound quality is decent, with AKG providing an equalizer with several sound modes for personal preference. But I do find the iPad to be louder and more immersive.
Software
The tablet brings OneUI 6.0 and Android 14, at the time of the review of it I still did not have the update to OneUI 6.1 with Galaxy AI features. I have been using a Google Pixel 8 Pro as a second mobile phone for a while, as a second handset and I find the PixelOS layer to my taste, very pretty. But the first time you set up a Samsung product – and even more on a tablet – one is frankly bewildered by all the possible options, settings and personalisations to be made. There is the normal mode and the Dex mode, if you activate it the tablet is practically a computer. Multi-window mode that lets you have up to three apps divided by the screen simultaneously. Quick gestures to multitask. Hides the dock or not. The truth is that thanks to the Dex on the Samsung we do not miss iPad and iPadOS that much as Dex with Stage Manager is very cumbersome to use on the device itself, it is better to connect it via HDMI to a monitor. And although this feature has improved in recent years, the SplitView and SlideOver are very limited.
This dual experience benefits from iPadOS regarding app quality: this difference is more apparent on tablets. The difference in experience becomes more pronounced in tablet apps running on iPadOS. The likes of Twitter, currently rebranded as X, are such that they are suitably engineered for a larger screen running on iPadOS. In contrast, Android apps, in many instances, are merely scaled-up versions of the phone counterpart, resulting in an uneven experience.
Out of the box, the Galaxy Tab S9+ comes armed with a number of interesting apps-LumaFusion for video editing, GoodNotes for note-taking, and Clip Studio for drawing. But nothing quite compares to apps included with the iPad family of offerings-Procreate and Pixelmator Photo-mechanics with the latter being programmed through paid subscriptions, though Lightroom or Clip Studio in Android does offer monetization.
I find the S Pen to be preferable over Apple’s Pencil when it comes to writing, as it is lighter and comes with a custom button. Precise artistic detailing convenient for that purpose is real icing on the cake! For drawing, the Apple Pencil has the edge over the S Pen because of how it was designed to allow tilt functionality-a great benefit for shading. Thus, combining that quality of Procreate results in a truly fulfilling experience for an artist.
One great advantage of the S Pen is that it can be stored and charged right at the back of the tablet; it holds itself really well at the top right on the landscape.
The biometric security of the device consists of a fairly swift fingerprint scanner along with facial recognition. It’s great to see Samsung add in the Knox security suite, which has an extensive list of capabilities similar to what is found in Apple’s ecosystem.
The overall battery life is pretty decent, boasting around eight to ten hours of usage. The tablet’s 45 W fast-charging completely charges it in a little over an hour. It is considerably fast when compared to the iPad’s Pro 12.9, which takes about two hours to charge with its 35 W charger.
I buy a keyboard with no touchpad that looks similar to the iPad Pro Smart Keyboard Folio. The case has that same silicone feel; however, the keyboard itself features a more traditional design, so it is not attached to the actual case or device and thus gives better typing feedback on the Samsung. However, the tablet does not stay completely shut once inside, and it has a tendency to move slightly. This case carries a slot on top where the S Pen could be inserted, allowing you to carry it without having to take it out of the case. Doesn’t add appreciably to weight or width, it is pretty travel friendly. It can easily stain, like Apple’s cases.
The keyboard provides only the 60 degrees of tilt; it is nothing like the full keyboard-case that is having a Surface stand or the iPad Smart Keyboard Folio that offers basically two angles.
You shouldn’t really have problems with performance; everything runs perfectly, even demanding AI work.
Hardware
The device is built on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, has 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, expandable via microSD up to 1TB. It is quite powerful for whatever task might be assigned to it; however, the iPad Pro with its M2 chip- or even the M1-equipped iPad Air-is unsurpassable, as the more “computer-grade” processors give them a million monkeys worth of CPU time on their excellent screens. But the OS hasn’t learned how to take full advantage of such power: Android is much better at multitasking and background tasks.
You will face no performance issues. Everything runs smoothly, even in the most demanding instances of AI work.
Conclusions
After a week using the Tab Galaxy S9+ as my primary tablet, I find it genuinely enjoyable. For many advantages, the iPad does prevail, although it also does greatly in certain aspects.
In terms of apps, the iPad is ahead by miles, simply put, especially dedicated apps meant for illustration (like Procreate) and photo and video editing (like Pixelmator Photo and Logic Pro). More mainstream apps like Twitter are better optimized for the larger iPad screen.
For multitasking, OneUI stands tall above Apple-both in standard mode and in DeX mode. I find Split View and Slide Over intuitive, but Samsung’s Multi View gives far more customization, and the gestures are pretty much on point once you pick up some practice.
The Office is fairly competitive across platforms: a tad prettier on iPadOS, but functionally identical, so you’re not losing any face no matter which device you have.
The Galaxy Tab S9+ is light and comfortable to hold, and the solid build further enhances the experience of holding it. It gives more than its bulkier 12.9-inch competitor like iPad Pro.
The squarer ratio appeals to me on the iPad for productivity, while the Samsung one excels in content consumption.
Let us proceed now with the other part-the price.
So my version brings in something like €1,300-the cost for 5G, 512GB storage, 12GB RAM, and the keyboard-in consideration of the noncommercial iPad Pro 12.9: 5G, 512GB, Apple Pencil, Smart Keyboard Folio-€2,427.
Would you say that difference in pricing is justified? If the ecosystem and specific applications are indeed your cup of tea, perhaps yes. However, it stacks up great value against other basic office tasks that include working on the internet, editing documents, watching video content, and surfing the social net. It has an amazing screen, decent sound, good security program, and performance.
