Samsung’s latest high-end tablet could also be water-resistant
The market for Android tablets isn’t quite as robust as it is for smartphones, but it’s absolutely not without its stars. Samsung has dominated this sector, delivering a whole range of devices targeting all variety of needs. Last year, it introduced the very capable (and very large) Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra, hoping it could provide a solution to users who wanted some laptop-class productivity. The South Korean company sure looks like it’s gearing up to release a follow-up Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra later this year, and a new leak suggests it could land with some solid performance and durability upgrades.
According to notable leaker Ice Universe, Samsung’s upcoming premium tablet will feature a custom chipset, a possible increase to base RAM, and IP68 water resistance. As previously suggested, the Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra should run the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 featured in this year’s Galaxy S23 series. Though the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra was available with 16GB of RAM, it was the highest and most expensive option of the available models. This source mentions 16GB of RAM, which could be the new starting point for this generation. Samsung could include more models with increased RAM, but we haven’t heard anything specific yet.
Maybe the more exciting upgraded would be the Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra picking up an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, something the previous generations didn’t have. Comparatively, Apple’s iPad Pro already has its IP68 rating.
Not everything is likely to change. Samsung’s new tablet is expected to keep several identical specs to its predecessor — screen and body size, display resolution, and battery are not slated to change in this year’s edition. However, it could be slightly heavier than the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra by approximately 11 grams.
While this rumor focuses on hardware, any new software changes so far remain under wraps. Samsung is likely to reveal the tablet later this year at a late summer Unpacked event.
