Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra to take on iPad Pro with Exynos 2200 chip

The Android tablet market has had its ups and downs, but Samsung remained steadfast in putting out slates on all market tiers, even when the going went tough. Perhaps spurred by the success of the iPad Pro line, Samsung has also started expanding its high-end tablets to include more size options and configurations. Next year, the manufacturer might push the envelope even further with a Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra that will blur the boundary between tablet and laptop.

To some extent, Samsung might be anticipating that Apple will also be introducing a bigger iPad Pro soon. The current iPad Pro lineup only includes 11-inch and 12.9-inch models, which Samsung rivaled with the Galaxy Tab S7 and Galaxy Tab S7+ last year. According to some rumors, a larger 14.6-inch tablet might be coming bearing the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra moniker.

It won't just be larger, though, but potentially more powerful than any tablet Samsung has ever made. According to a post on Korean forum Clien, the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra will use the upcoming Exynos 2200 with AMD graphics. The Galaxy Tab S8 and S8+, in contrast, might only get the Snapdragon 895.

In theory, this would put the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra on the same playing field as the M1 iPad Pro. The latter is already seen as a hybrid laptop because it shares the same processor as M1 Macs. Whether the Exynos 2200 will perform as well as the Apple M1 remains to be seen, though recent benchmarks show that it at least outperforms the Apple A14 Bionic.

Other rumored specs for the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra include 12GB of RAM and at least 256GB of hopefully expandable storage. An 11,500 mAh battery is also expected for the slate, giving it the largest capacity in any Samsung tablet so far. The Galaxy Tab S8 line might be announced alongside the Galaxy S22 next year.