The win for Android
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+
From $804 on Amazon
Pros
- Fabulous S Pen experience
- PC-like experience with optional keyboard
- Gorgeous high-resolution screen
- Comes with four months YouTube premium
- Expandable storage up to 1TB
- 14 hours of battery life
Cons
- No 3.5mm headphone jack
- DeX experience and apps can be buggy
- Awkward size
For Android users, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ is a solid tablet to consider. It offers plenty of features that are appealing for both work and play, including the superior S Pen, the ultra-fast octa-core processor, gorgeous screen, long battery life, and quad speakers. While it’s pretty expensive, it’s a fully-featured, premium tablet that has a large enough screen to use at home or on the go.
Made for iOS users
iPad Pro
From $750 on Amazon
Pros
- Seamless integration with other Apple devices
- Gorgeous Liquid Retina display
- Superior Magic Keyboard
- Fast chip, smooth graphics processing
- Two size options
Cons
- No 3.5mm headphone jack
- Only 10 hours of battery life
- Not ideal for Android ecosystem users
Like other Apple products, the iPad Pro works seamlessly with other Apple devices, and thus makes perfect sense if you live within the Apple ecosystem. If not, however, you can still enjoy plenty of the benefits the tablet has to offer, including the smaller screen size, sleek optional Magic Keyboard, Apple Pencil, and superior augmented reality (AR) app experience.
When it comes down to it, whether you buy the Samsung Galaxy S7+ or the Apple iPad Pro might depend on what ecosystem you live in. However, if you aren’t tied to either, it’s a close race. In terms of specs, they are almost dead even, but Samsung’s fantastic S Pen experience makes the Galaxy Tab S7+ a great option for productivity, whereas the Apple iPad Pro, true to the brand, is great for more creative types thanks to features like the TrueDepth camera and neural-engine and LiDAR scanner for superior augmented reality (AR) experiences. That isn’t to say, of course, that you can’t be productive on an iPad Pro nor get creative on a Galaxy S7+.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ vs. Apple iPad Pro: Head-to-head specs
Both the Samsung Galaxy S7+ and Apple iPad Pro have generous-sized high-resolution screens and work with optional keyboards and their own styli — the S Pen and Apple Pencil, respectively. They both offer ultra-fast processing, great integrated camera experiences, and Bluetooth connectivity.
But let’s run down the key specs to see how they compare at a bare bones level.
| Operating System | Android | iPadOS |
| Battery Life | Up to 14 Hours | Up to 10 Hours |
| Display | 12.4-inch Super AMOLED | 11-inch or 12.9-inch Liquid Retina |
| Display Resolution | WQXGA (2,800 x 1,752) | 2,388 x 1,668 (11-inch), 2,732 x 2,048 (12.9-inch) |
| Weight | 590 Grams | 472 Grams (11-inch), 639 Grams (12.9-inch) |
| Processor | Octa-core | A12Z Bionic Chip |
| Storage | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB (expandable up to 1TB via microSD) | 128GB-1TB |
| Charging | USB-C | USB-C |
| Front Camera | 8MP | 7MP TrueDepth |
| Rear Cameras | 13 MP + 5 MP | 12MP Wde + 1-MP Ultra-Wide |
| Speakers | Quad Speakers by AKG, Dolby Atmos | Four Speaker Audio |
| Headphone Jack | No | No |
| Stylus | Samsung S Pen | Apple Pencil |
| LTE Option | Yes | Yes |
| Dimensions | 185 x 285 x 5.7mm | 246 x 178 x 5.8mm (11-inch), 280 x 214 x 5.8mm (12.9-inch) |
| Finish Options | Mystic Black, Mystic Silver, Mystic Bronze | Silver, Space Gray |
Looking at the specs alone, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ is the more portable of the two. It has smaller overall dimensions and is more lightweight than the iPad Pro. The iPad Pro seems to have more storage, with up to 1TB of storage space, but you can expand the Galaxy Tab S7+ to up to this much with an optional microSD card. You also get almost 50% more battery life with the Samsung model.
The Galaxy Tab S7+ is definitely the better option for using on-the-go whereas the iPad Pro is light and small enough to take with you, but it might be more comfortable to use at home, especially with the delightful optional Magic Keyboard attachment.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ vs. Apple iPad Pro: The look
Both tablets have impressive, bright, responsive displays. The Galaxy Tab S7+’s 12.4-inch screen is Super AMOLED with WQXGA (2800×1752) resolution, which is higher than the iPad Pro’s at 2388×1668 for the 11-inch version and 2732×2048 for the 12.9-inch, offering 600 nits of brightness and ultra-low reflectivity. Both offer a smooth 120Hz refresh rate.
The Galaxy Tab S7+ screen offers HDR10+ support for the entire NTSC color range as well as eye care certification. The iPad Pro’s Liquid Retina edge-to-edge display is almost all screen, with TrueTone P3 wide color gamut support.
Both come in cool color options and work seamlessly with optional keyboard attachments as well as their respective styli. Neither, however, has a 3.5mm headphone jack, which means you’ll have to use wireless headphones or a USB-C-to-3.5mm adapter if you want to listen with wired headphones.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ vs. Apple iPad Pro: Getting things done
From a productivity perspective, both tablets have nice, large screens, with the iPad Pro offered in a slightly smaller 11-inch option should you prefer something much more compact. However, Apple’s 12.9-inch iPad Pro might be far too big for some, especially if you’re opting for a tablet for the sake of portability, and some might find the 12.4-inch Galaxy Tab S7+ too big to be truly portable but too small to rival a full laptop.
The Galaxy Tab S7+ is definitely the better option for using on-the-go whereas the iPad Pro might be more comfortable to use at home.
The larger size of the iPad Pro, however, does give it a nice advantage when you want to get work done, especially when paired with the Magic Keyboard, which connects to it magnetically. This essentailly turns the iPad Pro into a laptop. You get backlit keys, a click-anywhere trackpad, and multi-touch gestures. The trackpad for iPadOS makes the cursor contextual so it will turn into whatever tool you need based on where it is placed on the screen. You can also adjust the angle of the keyboard.
But you can get really productive with the Galaxy Tab S7+, either with an optional Bluetooth keyboard or by using the best part about this tablet: the Samsung S Pen. While the Apple Pencil lets you do cool stuff with the iPad Pro, the Samsung S Pen just works really, really well. You can use it mark-up files in Samsung Notes, write on PDFs, export content to Office, convert handwriting, and more. You can, it should be noted, also use the Apple Pencil with the iPad Pro to takes notes in the Notes app and mark up documents, as well as draw, create, and more. And it charges while magnetically attached to the iPad. Both pens are low-latency.
You do get a lot more battery life out of the Galaxy Tab S7+, which is rated at up to 14 hours per charge and offers fast charging. You’ll only get up to 10 hours of use per charge with the iPad Pro. Both charge via USB-C.
It’s easy to sync files between the Galaxy Tab S7+ and your phone, and you can do the same with the iPad Pro and other Apple devices. And with both, you can multi-task with ease thanks to the super-fast processors: Apple says it’s A12Z chip is even faster than some full-sized PCs!
However, the Galaxy Tab S7+ is the king of productivity here. You can use its smart home dashboard to manage connected smart appliances and even answer phone calls from your tablet using the auto hotspot feature. It also has Samsung DeX desktop interface, even though some users have found it to be finicky at times.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ vs. Apple iPad Pro: Capturing memories
Both Samsung and Apple have been upping their games with respect to photography, and these two tablets are no exception.
The Galaxy Tab S7+ has an 8MP front camera for selfies, video calls, and more, along with a 13MP rear camera and 5MP camera with auto-focus, flash, and the ability to shoot up to 4K videos at 30FPS. Apple loaded a ton of photo features into the iPad Pro, including a 7MP TrueDepth front camera that you can use to chat via FaceTime, take Portrait selfies, or even major your own Animojis. It also has a wide 12MP camera and ultra-wide 10MP camera with five-element lens. Features include auto-focus, smart HDR, and auto image stabilization. You can record up to 4K videos with this camera at up to 60FPS, along with slow-motion and time lapse videos. You can also shoot panoramas up to 63MP in size! The eight-core graphics processor Is ideal for editing 4K videos, 3D designs, and AR applications.
Speaking of AR, what sets the iPad Pro apart here is the neural engine for on-device machine learning and the LiDAR scanner that enhance the experience with next-generation AR apps. You can view them realistically, complete with being able to adjust the view to place AR images in front or behind real world objects.
One thing worth mentioning with the Galaxy Tab S7+: it comes with four months of access to YouTube Premium, which could be a huge plus for some.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ vs. Apple iPad Pro: Which is best?
When taking everything into consideration, you might find better value with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+. You can grab one for less money (when compared to the 12.9-inch iPad Pro) and enjoy considerably longer rated battery life, a higher-resolution screen, and a more compact and lightweight design. Plus, Samsung’s S Pen experience is second to none. There’s a reason why it’s one of the best Android tablets on the market right now.
That said, if you’re looking for a mobile laptop replacement, especially for creative tasks like sketching, drawing, and taking notes, Apple’s iPad Pro is a worthy competitor. If this is the case, however, you’ll almost definitely also want to invest in the Magic Keyboard, at which point you’re paying as much for a MacBook Air anyway.
Both offer compelling productivity features, but those with more creative sensibilities, and who are fans of Apple, will naturally gravitate to the iPad Pro. But for an all-around great tablet that can be used for both productivity and fun, you can’t go wrong with the Galaxy Tab S7+.
Great all-around tablet
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+
Equal parts productivity and fun
From $804 on Amazon
From $849 at Best Buy
From $849 at Samsung
For a decent price, you can get a good-sized yet perfectly lightweight and portable tablet that comes with the Samsung S Pen for taking notes, sketching, and more. Enjoy up to 14 hours of battery life to watch videos, play games, and more, with the ability to multi-task thanks to the octa-core processor.
Content creators dream
Apple iPad Pro
Explore your creative side
From $750 at Amazon
From $800 at Best Buy
From $799 at Apple
Content creators will naturally gravitate to the iPad Pro, whether you’re making 4K videos, shooting photos using the TrueDepth and ultra-wide cameras, or enjoying augmented reality (AR) apps. But when it’s time to get down to work, the iPad Pro is no slouch. Combine it with the Magic Keyboard for a true laptop-like experience, or use the Apple Pencil instead to sketch, draw, or take notes.
