Samsung arguably makes the very best tablets in the Android space, provided money isn’t a limiter for you. These are proper flagship tablets and they integrate awesomely into the ecosystem that Samsung has been building. To a degree, that ecosystem gives Apple and its iPads a run for their money.
It was this month last year that Samsung unveiled its Tab S9 series but the succeeding Tab S10 devices seem set to wait until October this year. However, a rumor suggests that the long-term partnership with Qualcomm is going to end this generation, as Samsung might opt for MediaTek chips.
In the past, when you saw a Samsung Galaxy Tab S device, it was extremely likely that it was running a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip inside. Samsung’s tablets in this line are flagship options so they always need as much power as they can get each year. There were a few Exynos entries, but it was the exception, not the rule. Generally, it just never seemed like the South Korean giant was going to move away from using those American chips.
Well, according to Ice Universe, who is arguably the most reliable Samsung leaker that there is, the Galaxy Tab S10 series is going to make a monumental move over to MediaTek chips. Now, this might sound pretty bad on paper, especially considering that MediaTek lacks the brand recognition that Snapdragon chips have when it comes to the average consumer. However, it is meant to use the MediaTek Dimensity 9300+, which on paper, is an excellent chip.
In fact, whether you’re looking at AnTuTu or GeekBench results, the Dimensity 9300+ beats out the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in all categories. As much as MediaTek isn’t a very “trusted” name when it comes to power, things have changed substantially and that old reputation is bound to be shed in quite some time. Even the top Exynos chip has more power than we give the name credit for. If the rumor is true, there’s not much that will be missed in terms of performance.
The new Samsung tablets will hardly be the first MediaTek-powered devices to launch in the US, but they might just be some of the first flagship devices in the US to have a MediaTek chip inside. The company earlier revealed that a flagship smartphone with one of its chips was going to launch in the US this year. This isn’t quite a smartphone but it is still a major device in its segment.
It is also rumored that there isn’t going to be a base Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 model this year. Instead, it’ll merely be the Tab S10+ and the Tab S10 Ultra. Why Samsung is getting rid of the vanilla model, I really can’t say, but it will at least serve as a vote of confidence that the Dimensity 9300+ is powerful enough for an “Ultra” tablet.
