if you can get your hands on one. They’re rumoured to only make 0.4 million units of it if I’m not mistaken.
it’ll be interesting to see what Samsung does to push their tablets forward. I hope it’s not just a spec bump and the intro of this 8 Ultra.
Samsung has already done a lot (compared to the other Android tablet makers, and in part to iPad too) but it's not enough...
What Samsung has compared to the others (Android or iPad):
- 3 years of upgrades and 4 years of security support (only iPad does better)
- DEX (some manufactures don't even have video out), which gives you proper external display supports, something even the iPad pro lacks
- Much better multitasking (better than iPad for sure)
- Desktop optimized browser (compared to other Android devices, but Safari is better)
- Second monitor feature including audio (wireless)
- Better file management compared to iPad (this is something Android in general as files are treated like in a desktop OS)
What it lacks compared to iPad (things they need to improve)
- Optimize the browser speed (it's slower than Safari in a first gen iPad pro, while the TAB S7 is faster than a second gen pro). This is a general problem with Android browsers, none is even close to iPad Safari.
- Add hand rejection when holding the tablet (iPad does, Samsung not at all)
What they cannot do:
oblige developers to write apps for Android (they have done already a lot, and there are even great productivity apps for free or discounted in Samsung tablets). However some things are going to improve, like the fact that Lumafusion is coming to Android soon.
S8 Ultra
This could be big (pun intended). A 14.6in tablet that is lighter than the M1 12.9. It may be the ultimate video watching tablet. Also Android has an App called Superdiplay which works better than both Duet pro and Luna Display as a second monitor, and also than Samsung native second display (no latency, even when used wireless, but no audio).
Apps
They have almost caught up with iPad when it comes to note-taking. They will soon catch up in video editing with Lumafusion. They are behind in drawing, despite the great Clip Studio (no procreate). They are behind in photo editing. They are equal or even slightly better with Office apps. Equal with Google apps. Facebook apps are poorly optimized instead. They are slightly behind in remote desktop (mainly because they lack the best remote for iPad, jump desktop, or rather jump desktop on Android is inferior). The generalization "Android apps on tablets are just blown apps phone apps" is generally false, but it's true for some apps, like facebook ones.
So, to sum up, there are things they can do, things they are doing, but ultimately they cannot force developers. However if they can manage to make their browser as smooth as safari, that would be a great step forward...