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Samsung charges $1,400 for a Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra that looks like last year's
Samsung's Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra goes on sale Oct. 7 at $1,400, in last year's body with a faster MediaTek chip. A 12.6-inch Plus at $1,200 replaces the 11-inch model, so the new line starts there and the case for upgrading rests on a chip CNET found only modestly quicker.
The Product Desk · Product desk
What happened
- Samsung claims the Dimensity 9500 gives up to 19% faster CPU and 17% more GPU than the S11 Ultra, with the NPU gain reported as 61% by CNET and 51% by TechRadar.
- CNET's preliminary battery test for the S12 Ultra came in a little short of the S11 Ultra, with final numbers waiting on a software update.
- TechRadar says the Plus replaces the 2024 S10+ and, with no regular S12 this year, effectively succeeds the S11 as well.
- Apple's own price increases leave the 11-inch iPad Pro level with the S12 Plus and the 13-inch iPad Pro $100 above the Ultra, according to TechRadar.
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Why it matters
- cost Replacing S11 Ultras buys users a faster chip inside a tablet they will not be able to tell from the old one, and the company pays the higher list price for it.
- constraint Teams that bought the 11-inch model to keep costs down have no same-size S12 to move to, so their choice is the larger Plus or year-old stock.
- contradiction Until Samsung confirms the S11 Ultra's US list price, a budget request cannot state the size of the Ultra's increase with confidence.
Put a Tab S11 Ultra next to the new S12 Ultra and a user will struggle to say which one is new. TechRadar lists an unchanged 14.6-inch 120Hz screen, 11,600mAh battery with 45W charging, 5.1mm thickness and silver or gray finish [7]. The camera notch stays [22]. CNET's reviewer wrote that the Ultra "hasn't really changed at all on the outside" [5].
Samsung's pitch leans on AI. Its biggest claimed gains are in neural processing, and the tablets ship with a six-month Google AI Pro trial [9][21]. What TechRadar's reviewer actually did with the Ultra over a couple of weeks was use it as a laptop stand-in with the keyboard cover, sold separately, and as a screen for games and TV while travelling [19]. None of those jobs is an AI job. When CNET's reviewer did try one, animating a still image, "it still took a good 45 seconds or so for the animation to generate" [10].
The size of the price increase is itself disputed. Both outlets put the new Ultra at $1,399 or $1,400, depending on rounding [1][12]. By CNET's count the increase is $200, so the S11 Ultra cost $1,200 [1]. For TechRadar, which lists the S11 Ultra at $1,299, the increase is $100 [12][2].
Further down the line, the Plus has the same chip as the Ultra [14]. The Ultra costs $200 more [3]. For that money a buyer gets 2 more inches of screen [6], 1,000mAh more battery [5], an 8MP ultrawide rear camera [14] and 139 more grams to carry [4]. The sources do not give a price for last year's 11-inch model, so they cannot show how far the entry price moved. TechRadar's reviewer wrote: "For someone on a budget thinking of upgrading, it's a real shame the best option from Samsung might be a tablet that's a year old" [15].
Against the iPad Pro, TechRadar credits Samsung with larger screens, longer quoted battery life and an S Pen in the box, while Apple sells its Pencil separately [18]. The iPads are lighter: 444g and 579g against 553g and 692g [18].
Support length will not settle the choice. Both S12 models get seven generations of OS upgrades and seven years of security updates, the same policy as the S10 and S11 series [20]. Two tests do settle it: whether the work leans on the new chip, meaning on-device AI or heavy graphics, and whether it needs the 14.6-inch screen. Work that needs neither points to last year's stock, TechRadar's budget case [15]. Screen without chip points to the S11 Ultra, since the body is the same [7]. Chip without screen is the Plus at $1,200 [2]. Only work that needs both gets something from the $1,400 Ultra that the S11 Ultra lacked [1][8].
What to watch
- CNET's final benchmark and battery results after the pending software update; a battery figure below the S11 Ultra would weaken the refresh case further.
- Samsung confirming the S11 Ultra's US list price, to settle whether the Ultra rose $100 or $200.
- Whether Samsung adds a regular Tab S12 later in the cycle; TechRadar's reviewer is not expecting one.