Samsung Launches the 9.7-inch Galaxy Tab S3: Snapdragon 820 with 6000mAh and HDR
by Ian Cutress on February 26, 2017 1:11 PM ESTAlong with the Galaxy Book parts being launched today, Samsung also announced the next generation of Galaxy Tab. The S3 is also an iterative design, with what Samsung believes is the premium Android tablet available in the market. Starting with the Snapdragon 820 SoC, featuring Qualcomm’s custom Kryo cores, the headline message for the S3 is support for HDR 8-bit content as well as a 6000 mAh battery and support for fast charging technology.
Aside from the SoC, the tablet is set to be offered in a 4GB DRAM and 64GB storage option, with a microSD card allowing for another 256GB. Wireless, aside from the 2x2 802.11ac inside, comes via an LTE Cat.6 modem, good for 300 Mbps downlink speed. There is also support for BEIDOU and GALILEO location detection services.
The 9.7-inch display uses Samsung’s Super AMOLED display technology, with a resolution of 2048x1536, and uses quad-stereo speakers tuned by AKG/Harman. Similar to the Galaxy Book, Samsung is promoting its latest ‘Flow’ technology, allowing biometric login for wirelessly tethered devices, and the new S Pen with ‘screen off’ note taking functionality. These are built upon Android 7.0, which along with the SoC is engineered for 4K60 video playback.
The camera setup is similar to the 12-inch Galaxy Book, with a 13MP rear sensor with auto-focus and a 5MP front sensor (other details should emerge on these. Samsung is listing the weight at around a pound for the S3 (434g in LTE mode), and the unit comes with a kickstand.
We’re awaiting more details on the hardware and the implementation, hopefully coming through the press event that’s starting as I’m writing this news post. We’ll hopefully get pricing and availability information too.
Edit: All Tab S3 units will come with the S-Pen as standard, and Samsung are partnering with Staedtler to provide a special S Pen called Noris Digital in the traditional school pencil style.
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StevoLincolnite - Thursday, March 2, 2017 - link
Yep. Android tablets are all garbage at the moment.They have absolutely nothing that entices me... And they have stagnated for the last few years.
It feels like all the innovation is over in the Windows camp with convertibles.
lilmoe - Sunday, February 26, 2017 - link
AND a low power Ryzen APU.FTFY
Gich - Sunday, February 26, 2017 - link
We'll see if AMD delivers, but sure.Michael Bay - Sunday, February 26, 2017 - link
>AMD>low power anything
ddriver - Sunday, February 26, 2017 - link
They claim to be launching an 8 core 16 threads desktop chip at 65 watts tdp.In that line of thought it won't be too much of a stretch to release cherry-picked lower frequency quads at below 30 watts, 25 watts outta be feasible at around 3-3.2 Ghz.
Meanwhile intel's cream of the crop mobile quads are 45 watts.
JoeMonco - Monday, February 27, 2017 - link
Why would any take an AMD claim seriously?ddriver - Monday, February 27, 2017 - link
They didn't lie about performance, in fact they understated it. It turned out better than they promised. This is not a guarantee the same will happen with TDP, but at least it proves they are not compulsively lying about zen.Meteor2 - Monday, February 27, 2017 - link
Well, we need 5W parts for mobile, not 25Ws.ddriver - Monday, February 27, 2017 - link
Actually a 25W quad will be feasible for a beefier tablet. 25W is max, not typical. Definitely a niche product, as most tablets are about content consumption, thus thin and offering mediocre performance, a 4c/8t zen apu would be quite the powerhouse in comparison.If they launch a 12 inch, half an inch thick tablet workstation with zen and 16 gigs of ram and 80% of that is battery, I will happily buy that at about 2500$. And I know plenty of people who will do the same.
I've used several "high end" x86 tablets, they were all mediocre in terms of performance, dual core just doesn't cut it. And intel quads at 45 watts are out of the question.
Michael Bay - Monday, February 27, 2017 - link
I`d very much like them to do so, seeing as 1080p is FINALLY getting into the low parts of the market. I don`t need any gaming capabilities whatsoever, just give me a passable screen and a processor to stay somewhat relevant for three or four years.If AMD can give me that, here`s my money, but it certainly won`t happen this year, and those new HP 430 G3s with Kaby Lake look very interesting.