Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S3 slate launched for RM2999

Samsung’s big reveal this year at MWC 2017 wasn’t the Galaxy S8 as it had been on several occasions but was, instead, a tablet: the Galaxy Tab S3.

The Galaxy Tab S3 is a successor to the 2015 Galaxy Tab S2 and sports a 9.7-inch Super AMOLED display with 2048 x 1,536 pixel resolution that also incorporates support for High Dynamic Range (HDR) content, making it pleasantly future proof. Externally, the slate is done up in a posh glass and metal finish with their obligatory fingerprint reader up front at the base of the display.

For Malaysia, the Tab S3 comes with both a microSD card slot for extra storage and a SIM card slot that supports data up to Cat 6 LTE, runs Android Nougat 7.0 a Qualcomm MSM8996 quad core 2.15Ghz processor, has 4GB RAM and 32 GB of expandable storage via the aforementioned microSD card slot.

On the rear of the Tab S3 is a 13-MP snapper capable of snagging 4K@30fps video while the front has a 5-MP camera for video calls. A 6,000mAh battery keeps it powered for over a day plus of use or more realistically, over a dozen hours of video playback.

Bar the hardware, the Tab S3 notably comes with a free S Pen stylus with a 0.7mm thin nib with 4,096 levels of sensitivity for doodling, jotting notes and the like that interacts with stylus specific firmware akin to the recent Note 7. It also has four built-in AKG tuned speakers  to make it an exceptionally capable portable entertainment slate. If all this floats your boat, the Tab S3 ships for RM2,999 in either black or gray at all official Samsung stores and their online store at Lazada and 11Street starting from tomorrow on 1 June.

When you need it to get work done use you can pop on a Pogo keyboard that docks with connector pins on the side of the slate to turn it into an ersatz lappie to crunch paperwork. The Pogo keyboard for the Tab S3 only comes in gray and costs RM499.

More casual users will appreciate the Book Cover case that latches onto the Tab S3 magnetically and allows you to use the slate in either a viewing mode to watch content comfortably or props it up higher in what they dub as an interactive touch mode to use the bundled S Pen stylus. The Book Cover ships in black, white and green for RM199 and is sold separately from the Tab S3. Both the Book Cover and Pogo Keyboard are also available at all Samsung authorised dealer stores nationwide and at Lazada and 11street.