AT&T beats T-Mobile to the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8+ 5G availability punch
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Like most high-end tablets nowadays, the Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8+, and Tab S8 Ultra are technically equipped with optional 5G connectivity. But more than a month after the official announcement of Samsung's latest iPad Pro rivals, only one of the three powerhouses can actually be ordered in a 5G-enabled version... from just one major US carrier.
Worse yet, Verizon has its Galaxy Tab S8+ 5G on backorder at the time of this writing, merely promising to ship the 12.4-inch giant "by April 1" (no joke) if you commit to it right now. Alternatively, you could wait for AT&T to put the same model up for pre-order on its own official website tomorrow, March 15, although the nation's third-largest wireless service provider has no specific release date to share today.
Still, AT&T manages to beat T-Mobile to the punch here, with the industry's number two player continuing to rely on the Galaxy Tab S7 FE and Tab A7 Lite to satisfy the cellular needs of its Samsung-loving subscribers.
In a way, AT&T is also eclipsing Verizon in terms of Galaxy Tab S8+ 5G "affordability", gearing up to charge a whopping $1099.99 with a keyboard cover included at no extra cost during the unspecified pre-order period. A Samsung Book Cover Keyboard Slim is typically priced at $159.99, thus saving you more than the $100 discount currently offered by the biggest US mobile network operator on the hot new tablet itself.
Of course, AT&T will also allow you to split that eleven hundred bucks in 36 monthly payments of $30.56, making the Tab S8 Plus 5G feel a little more reasonably priced.
Then again, this Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 beast is still more expensive than Apple's 2021-released iPad Pro 11 while undercutting the latest and greatest iPad Pro 12.9 monster.
The Tab S8+ comes with a state-of-the-art S Pen as standard in both Wi-Fi-only and 5G-capable variants, mind you, as well as 8 gigs of RAM paired with 128GB internal storage space. The silky smooth 120Hz Super AMOLED display is another big selling point, and coincidentally (or not), AT&T never carried the Tab S7 Plus, thus avoiding competition for the new 12.4-inch colossus.
It remains to be seen if any US carriers will eventually pick up the "regular-sized" Galaxy Tab S8 or the absolutely gargantuan 14.6-inch Tab S8 Ultra with 5G support. For the time being, the Tab S7 5G is still available at AT&T for $850.
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