Galaxy Tab S2 vs iPad Air 2 vs Xperia Z4 Tablet specs comparison
Samsung just put the slumbering tablet competition into overdrive, releasing the world's thinnest tablets, the Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 and Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 9.7, each measuring the incredible 5.6mm thin, and weighing just 265g and 389g, respectively. Those two will be competing directly with slates that are a bit thicker, but no less impressive, like Apple's iPad Air 2 and Sony's Xperia Z4 Tablet.
This is why took a look at what the S2 9.7 has to offer, comparing it head-on with Apple's and Sony's finest for the moment, as these are the three tablets people are likely to be musing over in the coming months when in the market for a slate. Designwise, the trio of tablets looks exquisite, with the Samsung and Apple slates donning a metal body, while Sony keeps things soft and touchy. The Xperia Z4 Tablet has one very important reason not to go the aluminum alloy way, though, as it is IP68-certified for watching movies in the bathtub, while the metal-clad slates can't brag with any extra waterproofing to speak of.
The overall dimensions of the Samsung and Apple tablets are strikingly similar, save for the thinner chassis on the Tab S2, while Sony has the tallest slate. Granted, it is hosting the largest screen of the bunch, too, but that's not the only reason, as the worst screen-to-body ration of the trio shows that Sony has gone with thicker bezels, compared to the other two, to make holding its tablet more comfortable.
For that matter, the Xperia Z4 Tablet has a much higher pixel density than the other two, with its 2560x1600 pixels screen. Not only that, but Sony has equipped it with one of its power-sipping, yet ultrabright panels, making the display on the Xperia tablet the best of the bunch in these two important aspects. When it comes to the silicon inside, all three are capable warriors, with Apple's desktop-grade A8+ chipset taking the cake from the Exynos 5433 in the Tab S2 and the Snapdragon 810 in the Z4 Tablet, and eating it with much better benchmark scores. Samsung and Sony are more generous with their internal storage allotments, plus they offer microSD slots for expansion.
Last but not least, Sony claims 17 hours of video-watching on a charge, and, considering what it does with its phones now, consistently placing them in our top battery life ranks, we'd wager to bet that the Z4 Tablet bests both the iPad Air 2, and the Galaxy Tab S2 when it comes to endurance on a charge. Which one is your favorite so far, given that they are all hitting very similar price points when storage amounts are evened out?
Display
Size
Technology
IPS LCD
TFT
Super AMOLED
Screen-to-body
71.65 %
66.35 %
72.71 %
Features
Oleophobic coating, Ambient light sensor
Oleophobic coating, Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor
Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor
Hardware
System chip
Apple A8X
Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 MSM8994
Samsung Exynos 7 Octa 5433 (20 nm)
Processor
GPU
PowerVR GXA6850
Adreno 430
Mali-T760 MP6
RAM
Internal storage
128GB
32GB
64GB
OS
iOS (13.x, 12.x, 11.x, 10.x, 9.x, 8.x)
Android (7.1 Nougat, 7.0 Nougat, 6.0 Marshmallow, 5.0 Lollipop)
Android (7.0 Nougat, 6.0 Marshmallow, 5.0 Lollipop)
Battery
Capacity
7340 mAh
6000 mAh
5870 mAh
Charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0
Talk time
the average is 0 h (0 min)
Stand-by time
the average is 0 days (0 h)
Talk time (3G)
the average is 0 h (0 min)
Stand-by time (3G)
the average is 0 days (0 h)
Stand-by time (4G)
the average is 0 days (0 h)
Video playback
17.00 hours
Camera
Rear
Single camera
Single camera
Single camera
Main camera
Specifications
Aperture size: F2.4
Focal length: 31 mm
Focal length: 31 mm
Video recording
1920x1080 (Full HD) (30 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (120 fps)
1920x1080 (Full HD)
2560x1440 (QHD), 1920x1080 (Full HD), 1280x720 (HD), 640x480 (VGA)
Recording format
H.264, MOV
MPEG4, H.263, H.264
Features
Time-lapse video, EIS, Video calling
EIS, Video calling, Video sharing
Front
1.2 MP
5.1 MP
2.1 MP
Video capture
1280x720 (HD) (30 fps)
Design
Dimensions
(240 x 169.5 x 6.1 mm)
(254 x 167 x 6.1 mm)
(237.3 x 169 x 5.6 mm)
Weight
the average is 18.2 oz (521 g)
the average is 18.2 oz (521 g)
the average is 18.2 oz (521 g)
Materials
Back: Aluminum
Back: Stainless steel
Back: Metal
Resistance
Water, Dust; IP68
Biometrics
Fingerprint (touch)
Fingerprint (touch)
Features
Touch sensitive control keys
Phone functionality
Yes
Buyers information
MSRP
$ 829
See the full Apple iPad Air 2 vs Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet vs Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 9.7-inch specs comparison or compare them to other tablets using our Tablet Comparison Tool.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: