Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 (SIM Free/UK)

Following a few years of dominating the Android tablet space, Samsung has now refined the Galaxy Tab into the sleek and powerful Tab S3.

Encased in a super-thin 6 mm chassis, the Tab S3 has a beautiful 9.7-inch screen and is light enough to be held in one hand. Choose between the cellular model, with 4G/LTE connectivity for on-the-go browsing, or the Wi-Fi only model for lounging at home.

Reasons to buy Samsung Galaxy Tab S3

• Android 7.0 (Nougat)
• 9.7" Super AMOLED display with 2048 x 1536 resolution
• 2.15 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor
• 32 GB storage and 4 GB RAM
• Expandable memory (up to 256GB) with micro SD
• Wi-Fi ac/a/b/g/n
• Sealed 6,000 mAh battery
• USB Type-C connector

Box contents

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 9.7"
• UK mains adapter
• Micro USB data cable
• SIM / SD card tray pin

Overview

If you've shopped for an Android tablet in the past couple of years, chances are you've found a range of Samsung models looking right back at you.

Samsung isn't the only Android tablet manufacturer of course, although they've been excellent at producing a wide range of tablets that meet every price and specification point.

Now for 2017, they are refining the range with the Galaxy Tab S3.

A first for the Tab range is the inclusion of an S Pen. Previously these were only seen on Note range tablets and phones.

With the S-Pen, you can more easily select and navigate desktop websites, as well as jotting down notes, cropping images and accessing stylus-specific features.

Samsung is also aware that tablets are used for entertainment as well as browsing and shopping. To this end, they have had the speakers tuned in conjunction with AKG by HARMAN for premium sound output no matter what the source.

Design

This new slate continues the super thin and sleek design of previous Tab S models. At just 6mm thin, the Tab S3 is easy to hold in one hand and can slip into a bag for portability.

A 4:3 screen ratio maximizes the amount of viewing space for browsing websites and playing games. 16:9 widescreen media such as YouTube and other streaming sites (Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.) will display within the 4:3 ratio with surrounding bars.

USB Type-C has been incorporated on the bottom edge of the tablet. This allows for fast-charging (with compatible chargers) and simple connection to modern peripherals.

Pogo connectors on the left edge are suitable for connecting the Tab S3 to official Samsung keyboard cases and docks.

Stunning Display

Samsung's Super AMOLED screens deliver incredible contrast and gorgeous colour depth. The technology is also excellent for power saving, requiring variable power depending on the pixel brightness.

At 9.7" you can comfortably watch a film or catch up on your current box-set binge, while the tablet is still thin and light enough to be portable and held up for extended periods.

Darker areas of the screen use less power, keeping the phone in a low power state when only using the screen to check for notifications.

Connectivity

Samsung's Tab S3 is highly portable and features a full range of modern connectivity options.

Dual band (2.4 / 5 GHz) ac/a/b/g/n Wi-Fi is supported so you can take advantage of newer routers and find the best open channel in your area.

Tab S3 also supports low-power Bluetooth 4.2 connections for wearables and smart home IoT equipment, so it can become the central hub and control panel of a connected home.

Also, if you opt for the Cellular model, high-speed 4G LTE data connections allow you to access the Internet on the move away from Wi-Fi access points.

Miracast screen sharing is also built directly into the Android system. This is accessible from the Samsung Quick Connect options making a connection to compatible Samsung TVs, Google Chromecast and other screen sharing equipment seamless.

Imaging

If you need to take pictures then the Tab S3 provides a high-resolution 13MP main camera with autofocus, plus several shooting modes and post-editing filters. Video calls and selfies are handled by the 5 MP front-facing camera.