The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra is totally ridiculous, but that hasn’t stopped me liking it

It has taken me a while to make peace with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra. The thing is, I rather like it, but I’m not sure if I should. Let’s get into why this massive tablet is a conundrum and whether you should consider buying one.

6.5/10

SoC

MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ (MT6991)

Display dimensions

14.6-inch

Storage

256GB, 512GB, or 1TB

It’s impossible to ignore the massive, 14.6-inch screen on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, or the large battery, and S Pen included in the box. Unfortunately, it’s also hard to ignore the high price.

Pros & Cons

• Massive screen is great for video
• One UI 8 works well on a tablet
• Long battery life
• S Pen included

• Average sound quality from the speakers
• Cumbersome and ungainly
• Awkward to use fingerprint sensor

Specs, price, and availability

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra tablet is available in three different versions. The 256GB model costs $1,199, the 512GB model is $1,319, and the top 1TB version is $1,619. It’s available in either gray or silver colors.

Samsung does not offer a 4G or 5G version of the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra. The prices stated here are the full price, but Samsung often has deals and offers on almost all its mobile devices; it’s worth looking out for one before buying if you’re not in a hurry.

It’s one of two Galaxy Tab S11 models, with the other being a smaller 11-inch version that shares many of the same technical features and identical software, but in a more convenient size to carry around. It starts at $799, and you can see the size difference in the photo above.

Look at the size of that thing

Quite the handful

The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra has a huge 14.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X screen on the front; that’s really the main reason anyone would look at this model over any other.

If the Tab S11 is a TV screen, the Tab S11 Ultra is a theater screen. It’s huge, and although the display is big, bright, smooth, and detailed, the overall size also has a negative impact. Take a look at the photo below to see the size difference between the Ultra and the 6.7-inch Honor Magic8 Pro.

It’s not a tablet I want to carry around with me. It’s only 5.1mm thick, so there’s not much to hold on to, and it’s nearly 700 grams heavy, so it’s a constant battle to hold it steady or comfortably.

I don’t think it works in portrait orientation because of this, as it’s so top-heavy. It’s a serious downside because it doesn’t really work as an eReader alternative, or for browsing online content like that either. You’ll move your entire hand to interact with the top of the screen, rather than just your fingers or thumbs, as it’s often an awkward stretch otherwise.

Landscape is the Tab S11 Ultra’s preferred orientation, where it manages to almost completely obscure a cat, but it’s still pretty big when trying to play some games. All this is most noticeable when you come from a more standard-sized tablet. While I don’t think it’s all bad, you should really consider what you want to use your tablet for and establish if the Tab S11 Ultra’s size makes sense.

I’ve settled down into using the Tab S11 Ultra on a stand, so I can enjoy the stunning screen without having to prop it up or hold it. It really feels like the Tab S11 Ultra is made for video, so this hands-off use doesn’t feel like a waste. At least, until you get to the price, but I’m getting ahead of myself here.

Longer battery life

Charge and forget

The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra has an 11,600mAh battery inside, which is considerably larger in capacity than the 8,400mAh battery in the Galaxy Tab S11. When I tested the two tablets back-to-back, the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra lasted four hours longer playing video than the Tab S11, taking 14-and-a-half hours before the battery was flat. This is a primary benefit of choosing the larger model.

It’s recharged using a USB-C cable, and the tablet supports 45W charging; this takes an hour-and-a-half. This is a great performance given the battery’s capacity, and only marginally longer than the Galaxy Tab S11’s charge time.

Long battery life and fast charging, combined with good efficiency from the MediaTek processor, make the Tab S11 Ultra so easy to live with. A 30-minute YouTube video at full brightness takes 4% battery, and a similar time playing Asphalt 9: Legends takes 8%. I haven’t really thought about battery life at all. The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra sits on my desk playing video or online radio, and I occasionally pick it up to browse a few apps, and the battery lasts for days.

Tab S11 Ultra is a homebody

Fingerprint sensor is a problem

Great battery life and massive size make the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra a true homebody. It loves spending time in the house, and looks at the outside in fear as one drop would soon make a mess of its lovely screen. If you’re going to use it in the safety of your own home, you may want to turn the security features off, because they’re one of the worst parts of the S11 Ultra. It’s secured by face recognition or a fingerprint sensor, but neither has been implemented well.

The fingerprint sensor is in the screen, and not only is it awkward to locate, but it’s slow and unreliable. It’s immediately frustrating, so you may look to use the face unlock instead. It’s not much better, mostly because the camera is on the side (in portrait) of the tablet, and never seems to be in the right place to actually see your face.

Tablets with a fingerprint sensor in the power button make a lot more sense, and it’s a shame Samsung didn’t follow that trend here, as it’s far too tempting to simply turn the security features off, due to speed and ergonomics issues.

Performance differences?

On-paper only

The MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ processor powers both the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra and the Galaxy Tab S11, but according to Samsung’s comparison spec table, the S11 Ultra’s chip has a higher 3.73Ghz/3.3GHz/2.4GHz speed, up from the 3.4GHz/2.8GHz/2GHz speed for the S11.

I haven’t noticed any change in response, smoothness, or overall performance coming from the Tab S11 to the Tab S11 Ultra. I used both Geekbench 6 and 3DMark benchmarking apps to see if any differences could be spotted in specialist tests. The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra recorded an 11,585 score in 3DMark’s Solar Bay test, while the Tab S11 scored 11,282. Running the CPU test in Geekbench 6 saw the Tab S11 Ultra score basically the same as the S11 in both single and multi-core.

Credit: Samsung

It’s possible Samsung has published the wrong data on its website, as the Geekbench 6 app lists the Tab S11’s CPU as having the speeds associated with the Ultra model, and not the lower figures on Samsung’s website.

Additionally, in its announcement, MediaTek doesn’t mention the S11 Ultra’s supposedly slightly higher speeds, and says the Dimensity 9400+ chip powers the entire S11 series of tablets. Android Police has contacted Samsung for clarification.

Whatever the situation with the processor, the Tab S11 Ultra can be specced with 1TB of internal storage space, and it gets 16GB of RAM instead of 12GB at the same time. There’s also no 128GB option, as there is on the Tab S11.

Tech carried over from the S11

S Pen and more

The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra has Android 16 with Samsung’s One UI 8 installed, and it works really well on the tablet’s massive screen. I particularly appreciate the split Quick Settings and Notification shades, a feature that works best on tablets.

The big screen is also great for using more than one app, as it can display up to three apps at the same time, although the side-by-side split screen works best, and a fourth floating app over the top. It gives you real multi-tasking power. To take advantage of its ability as a work machine, you’ll need a keyboard, and Samsung’s own Book Cover Keyboard Slim is $210.

Samsung includes an S Pen stylus in the box, and it’s the same type you get with the S11 tablet. It’s fairly comfortable to hold, and it performs well on the screen, but the feeling of contact is quite artificial. It doesn’t stop the PenUp app from being fun, though.

On the back of the tablet is a 13-megapixel camera, just like the Tab S11, but it’s joined by an 8MP wide-angle camera. Given the Tab S11 Ultra’s homebody status, I can’t imagine a situation where you’d need a poor-quality 8MP wide-angle camera, but it’s there if you do.

It’s the same 12MP camera on the front for video calls, and it worked without an issue during the Google Meet calls I’ve tried it with. It’s good to see space for a MicroSD card, where up to 2TB of additional storage space can be added.

Audio performance is the same as the Tab S11, which is unfortunate. While there’s plenty of volume from the quad speakers, they lack depth, and bass response really suffers despite the large overall enclosure. It’s the only negative point in the Tab S11 Ultra’s otherwise excellent media ability.

Should you buy the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra?

Is it really worth it?

I said at the start I didn’t feel as if I should like the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, so let me explain. It’s too big to carry around, it doesn’t come with a keyboard to make it more useful (although you can spend more to get one), and the price is unjustifiably high. Leave these things aside for a moment, and the Tab S11 Ultra is a wonderful at-home tablet partner. I’ve really enjoyed watching videos and playing games on the huge screen. However, I keep coming back to whether I’d spend $1,200 on one, and the answer is probably not.

This is the same price as a mid-level 13-inch Apple MacBook Air, and a touch less than a 13-inch Apple iPad Pro. The MacBook would be more versatile and easier to travel with, while the iPad Pro is still the benchmark tablet in terms of software and app availability.

While there’s nothing wrong with the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, you’ve got to put a lot of value on its big screen to justify paying out for it, especially when the cheaper Galaxy Tab S11 is otherwise the same, and easier to carry around and hold. Ultimately, I like it because it’s a bit silly. No one needs a $1,200 14.6-inch tablet, but it’s undeniably cool to use one. But liking it because it exists is not the same as recommending it as a product to buy.

Think very carefully about your requirements before choosing the Ultra over the 11-inch Galaxy Tab S11, and then think very carefully about that model over cheaper tablets like the OnePlus Pad Go 2. It’s easy to get carried away in the world of Android tablets, when the secret is to understand that the cheaper models may be just fine for most media-based needs.

6.5/10

SoC

MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ (MT6991)

Display dimensions

14.6-inch

Storage

256GB, 512GB, or 1TB

You pay a lot for the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, so you best be sure you’re going to make full use of the huge screen. If you’re not convinced you will, the smaller, cheaper Galaxy Tab S11 is the better buy.