Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra review: The ultimate Android tablet

Greatest Costs At present: Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely

Samsung has been one of the vital constant producers of Android tablets over the previous years, staying true to the section whereas different manufacturers dropped out – and extra lately, rejoined the enjoyable.

It’s no shock, then, that Galaxy Tab fashions are amongst the best-selling Android tablets, following behind Apple’s dominance with the iPad. To problem Apple’s prime pill, the iPad Professional, Samsung went huge, throwing all the pieces it might into this machine. In 2025, that’s resulted within the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely.

I’m going to place it on the market: it’s very a lot an iterative replace of the mannequin that got here earlier than. If you happen to had been anticipating a surprisingly new novelty right here, you may be out of luck. The query surrounding the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely is as a lot about whether or not you should purchase this pill as whether or not it makes any sense in any respect.

Design, Construct & Equipment

• Gray or Silver color choices
• 5.1mm thick, 690g
• S Pen included

The bodily footprint of the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely stays a lot the identical because it was beforehand, the largest notable distinction being a slimming down to five.1mm. Why 5.1mm? Most likely as a result of that’s what the 13-inch iPad Professional affords. Bear in mind Apple’s ill-conceived “Crush!” advert destroying all method of artwork, music and different inventive menagerie? That’s why.

That additionally follows the pattern in units that we’re seeing once more, the place slim is in. Definitely, it lends a premium really feel to issues, and with an IP68 ranking and luscious metallic end, there’s no questioning the Extremely high quality right here.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

There’s additionally no avoiding the sheer dimension of this pill. Whereas the discount within the waistline has led to a slight drop in weight, we’re no nearer to sensible handholdability right here. The Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely is simply too darn huge to virtually use with out some form of stand.

Certain, it’s usable in a rest-on-your-knees form of approach, however in comparison with a 10-inch pill, it’s laborious to make use of. That’s why the vary of equipment is vital. Within the field comes the S Pen, which has misplaced the BLE (Bluetooth Low Vitality) connection it as soon as supplied, so it’s now only a pointy stick.

Sure, the writing expertise is nice and the texture of the S Pen is nice, lending itself to artists and creatives who worth that enter, however it’s barely much less helpful than it was.

That shouldn’t come as a shock: Samsung pulled the identical transfer with the Galaxy S25 Extremely earlier within the 12 months. Personally, I don’t discover it any nice loss, and earlier than you ask, no, you may’t simply use an previous S Pen.

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The Ebook Cowl Keyboard Slim prices an additional £199/$199 however is nearly important for the Tab S11 Extremely to grasp its potential. You would possibly baulk at that worth, however it’s a cut price in comparison with the £349/$349 Apple Magic Keyboard for iPad.

It’s a neat case providing a number of keyboard house, however there’s no trackpad, leaving you to make use of contact as a substitute, although it’s simple sufficient so as to add a Bluetooth mouse if you would like one. The keys have a pleasant motion, whereas it’s compact sufficient to not bulk the pill too a lot, offering safety all the way in which round and protecting your pill free from scratches on the rear.

It additionally holds the display screen properly at an angle for utilizing it as a laptop computer substitute, and maybe extra importantly, so you should use it to observe films. Is that this what the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely boils right down to, an enormous cell machine for consuming media? Just about.

Display & Audio system

• 14.6-inch 2.9k 120Hz AMOLED show
• 1600 nits peak brightness
• Quad speaker system with Dolby Atmos

That 14.6-inch show will get a peak brightness increase over the earlier iteration, however sticks to the identical sharp decision. It’s a premium AMOLED show, one thing that Samsung does so properly and in the end, the show is the explanation to purchase the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely. Premium OLED shows come at a excessive value, and much more so in bigger sizes.

The 120Hz refresh fee retains issues good and easy with scrolling, and as you’d predict, there’s no scarcity of punch from this display screen. Colors are nice, blacks are darkish, and it’s simply pleasant to take a look at.

I settled down to observe downloaded films on a 12-hour flight utilizing the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely and felt very smug with the first-class expertise. Loads of folks use the iPad for precisely the identical factor, however critically, if you’re making up for the low high quality and poor execution of an airline’s in-flight leisure system, the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely is a spectacular performer.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

There’s an anti-reflective coating on the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely, which makes reflection tackle a little bit of a blue tinge, however it’s in any other case pretty efficient in ensuring that the worst of the reflections are saved underneath management.

There are 4 audio system across the chassis of the Tab S11 Extremely, aiming to present you immersive virtualised Dolby Atmos encompass sound. The sound from the Tab S11 Extremely is fairly wealthy and full-bodied, making it perfect for video calls and advert hoc video watching. It’s nice for watching Netflix whereas in a resort room, or belting out some Spotify tracks at max quantity, which ensures room-filling audio with out the distortion.

You’ll be able to join a speaker or headphones, in fact, however this is among the few cell units the place it’s actually not essential.

Specs & Efficiency

• MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ chipset
• 12GB RAM, 16GB on 1TB mannequin
• 256/512GB/1TB storage + as much as 2TB Micro-SD enlargement

As Samsung’s flagship pill, I’m glad to see that the Tab S11 Extremely has a chipset to match. This time, it’s MediaTek’s top-of-the-line Dimensity 9400+. It’s a transparent improve in comparison with the Dimensity 9300+ within the Tab S10 Extremely, with a barely increased clock pace and a transfer to 3nm structure, so it’s notionally extra energy environment friendly because of this.

This MediaTek {hardware} has proved itself to be a reliable rival to the Snapdragon 8 Elite, making for a slick and quick pill expertise. All the pieces occurs with easy ease: opening apps, working a number of apps concurrently, and quickly switching between them. Once more, it’s a pleasure to make use of, a lot because the earlier machine was.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

There are many choices for storage, together with Micro-SD card enlargement as much as 2TB, so you may critically broaden the scale of information you’re carrying round with you. Which may seem to be an outdated factor to consider, however contemplating the price that Apple levies for rising storage, it has real attraction.

I’ve discovered the efficiency to be wonderful, however whereas there’s some attraction in big-screen gaming, I battle with shifting cell video games to a display screen so massive.

Excessive-performance video games optimised for contact are virtually unattainable to play on a pill this enormous, and I can’t assist feeling that informal avid gamers will benefit from the expertise way more. I did discover that the pill stayed cool whereas gaming, although, which is one other tick within the efficiency field.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely benchmarks

Cameras

• 13Mp f/2.0 primary – 4K 30fps video
• 8Mp f/2.2 ultrawide
• 12Mp selfie with ultrawide

Cameras on tablets don’t want to supply the identical form of expertise that you simply get from a smartphone: you’d should be a psychopath to tug out the Tab S11 Extremely’s expanse and begin taking pictures your vacation snaps.

It occurs, although, so the 13Mp digital camera, backed by an 8Mp ultrawide, has one thing to supply. In actuality, these cameras get used for a variety of enterprise capabilities, from my native property agent snapping room pictures whereas form-filling, to scanning paperwork for annotation.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

The efficiency of the rear cameras is common at greatest. You’ll get a pointy shot with respectable colors, however any form of complicated taking pictures scenario will present limitations – indoors, harsh vibrant lights, HDR scenes. Mainly, use your cellphone. There’s assist for 4K 60fps video, however once more, with limitations to the cameras, the outcomes are underwhelming.

The entrance cameras on the pill, nonetheless, are extra vital. From an ease-of-use perspective, face unlocking makes issues simpler than reaching for the fingerprint scanner (for my part, that is the largest improve that iPad Professional affords over the iPad Air), whereas these entrance cameras additionally supply nice high quality for video calling – and we’re all nonetheless doing loads of that.

The entrance digital camera has a neat trick, providing an everyday view after which an ultrawide view that you could pinch to. The latter is admittedly vast, which means you may match much more into the scene, making it perfect in case you have a number of folks on a video name. It seems nice, and all of it comes from one lens, relatively than having two separate cameras just like the Tab S10 Extremely.

It’s additionally true that these cameras are typically higher than you’d get from a laptop computer’s webcam, which maybe says extra concerning the poor high quality of laptop computer cameras than it does about these on this pill.

Battery Life & Charging

• 11,600mAh
• 45W wired charging
• Charger not equipped

Regardless of slimming down the body, there’s now a barely bigger battery – 11,600mAh. Let’s be truthful, it’s colossal, with 45W wired charging additionally supported, though there’s no charger within the field. That’s par for the course as of late, with rules driving to chop down on e-waste. It’s seemingly that you simply’ll have already got a charger that can energy the Tab S11 Extremely, anyway, even when it might’t hit the utmost speeds.

Samsung’s official determine for battery life runs as much as 23 hours of video playback. That’s a little bit of a push based mostly alone testing, however that efficiency will very a lot depend upon what else the pill is doing and the way vibrant the display screen is. However in combined utilization, getting over 12 hours of screen-on time from the pill was not an issue.

That included a number of internet searching and emails, plus some mild productiveness duties reminiscent of internet searching. Having the peace of thoughts of a battery that’s virtually assured to final the complete working day with cost to spare is a good feeling. Whereas we’re not fairly on the stage the place an Android pill will substitute a laptop computer for anybody with critical calls for, battery life isn’t a limiting issue.

Software program & Apps

• One UI 8, Android 16
• Galaxy AI and loads of bloatware
• Seven years of OS and safety updates

Of all of the pill producers, Samsung has executed essentially the most to tackle Android’s deficiencies and seek for a extra helpful answer. That’s been one thing of an ongoing mission, and lately, Google has began adopting among the issues that Samsung put into place to make Android on tablets extra usable.

The positioning of the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely may be very a lot as a laptop computer substitute, with Samsung’s DeX (desktop expertise) software program permitting a window-based system to broaden the multi-tasking alternatives through an exterior show. DeX will fireplace up as quickly as you begin dragging apps to make use of them in cut up display screen, whereas the dock will get smaller. It’s barely much less properly optimised for contact use when in that state and higher suited to utilizing with a mouse, I really feel.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

DeX is nice, however there’s nonetheless a component of fiddliness to the entire thing in comparison with utilizing a Home windows PC. I’d lengthen that to the iPad too – and whereas opening Workplace 365 and syncing paperwork is completely tremendous, permitting you to be inventive, I’d nonetheless say that pill use was one thing of a “computing lite” expertise.

It’s nonetheless true that the app expertise on Android isn’t nearly as good as it’s on iPad, with notable “skilled” apps lacking (Affinity Picture 2, for instance), however that argument stays about whether or not utilizing an costly pill over a laptop computer makes any sense.

For these utilizing the Tab S11 keyboards, there’s additionally an AI button which may be set to set off Gemini or Bixby – sure, the Samsung assistant nonetheless exists. Whereas Samsung spends quite a lot of time speaking about Galaxy AI and the options it affords, Gemini from Google continues to be essentially the most fascinating and helpful half.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

One of many issues that Galaxy AI faces is that it’s centred round Samsung’s apps. If you happen to persist with native Google apps or third-party apps, you’ll by no means encounter Galaxy AI.

Whereas we’re speaking about Samsung’s apps, there’s no avoiding that there’s some duplication right here, with Galaxy Retailer alongside the Play Retailer, Samsung’s personal browser and gallery, and different apps you would possibly see as completely superfluous. It is a Samsung pill in any case, in order that’s to be anticipated, however no less than you may delete virtually all of them.

One space the place the Tab S11 Extremely excels is software program assist. Samsung has dedicated to a full seven years of each OS and safety patches, which is up there with the perfect you’ll discover on any pill.

Worth & Availability

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely is out there in lots of nations world wide, together with the UK and the US.

Within the UK, you should purchase it from Samsung instantly, in addition to a full run of shops, together with Amazon, John Lewis, and extra.

Within the US, you will get it from Samsung instantly, Greatest Purchase and several other different retailers.

It begins at £1,199 / $1,199 for the Wi-Fi version with 256GB storage. There’s a 5G model that begins at £1,349 within the UK, however isn’t out there within the US.

The M5 iPad Professional is its most blatant rival, with most Android pill rivals getting nowhere shut when it comes to worth. See our information to the perfect tablets you should purchase for extra alternate options.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

Must you purchase the Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely?

There’s no doubting that the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely is a really succesful pill. It affords a wonderful show, making for a incredible content material consumption platform, whereas it’s massive sufficient for all method of sunshine work duties too. I’ve been blissful to browse, write and work by emails on the Tab S11 Extremely, however streaming video steals the present. As a journey companion, I’ve completely beloved it.

However separate it from the keyboard and it’s actually laborious to get on with. The discount in thickness and weight is welcomed, however it’s nonetheless too huge to carry one-handed, and propping it up is hard. The place you’ll casually maintain a 10-inch pill, at 14.6 inches, it’s simply too huge to make use of like that.

In that sense, nothing a lot has modified with Samsung’s Extremely pill. I like utilizing it, actually benefit from the efficiency, and may’t fault the standard of the show.

However at this worth, you should purchase a laptop computer that’s simply as massive and rather a lot simpler to make use of. For all the nice factors of the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely, it’s solely actually going to attraction to somebody who desires an enormous display screen, come hell or excessive water.

Specs

• MediaTek Dimensity 9400+
• 12GB / 16GB RAM
• 256GB / 512GB / 1TB (microSD expandable)
• 14.6-inch AMOLED show
• 2960 x 1848 decision, 1600 nits peak brightness
• 120Hz dynamic refresh fee
• 11600mAh battery
• 45W quick charging (no charger included)
• Twin front-facing 12Mp digital camera ?
• Rear 13Mp primary digital camera + 8Mp ultrawide
• Quad audio system
• 326 x 208 x 5.1 mm
• 692g (pill solely)