Samsung borrowed a page from its smartphone business this year and has created its first-ever Fan Edition tablet, called the Galaxy Tab S7 FE. It's just as large as the Galaxy Tab S7+ and it comes with an S Pen as well as a very similar suite of productivity apps.
The Galaxy Tab S7 FE isn't quite a flagship tablet killer, but when viewed next to the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite, Samsung's new tablet is a much more attractive proposition thanks to a combination of better software and hardware. The Lite variant is newer than the full-fledged Galaxy Tab S6, but it's also not nearly as well equipped, which means it probably doesn't have what it takes to remain a challenge to the newer Galaxy Tab S7 FE.
Galaxy Tab S7 FE vs Galaxy Tab S6 Lite: One TFT display is better
Both the Galaxy Tab S7 FE and the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite have TFT display technology, so they're both inferior to Samsung's other AMOLED tablets. At least in regards to the display.
Neither has a high refresh rate display, but the Galaxy Tab S7 FE takes advantage of a larger 12.4-inch panel, which should be a better fit for the included S Pen and accompanying productivity apps.
Finally, the Galaxy Tab S7 FE benefits from a higher display resolution of 2560 by 1600 pixels, whereas the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite's TFT panel has a pixel count of 2,000 by 1,200.
Galaxy Tab S7 FE vs Galaxy Tab S6 Lite: Internal hardware
The two Galaxy tablets at hand have similar camera characteristics, including an 8MP main shooter and a 5MP selfie camera. Likewise, they both have dual stereo speakers tuned by AKG but only the older Lite model has a 3.5mm headphone jack. They both have a USB-C port, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, and Bluetooth 5.0.
Beyond these similarities, the Galaxy Tab S7 FE has better hardware in virtually every aspect. It's powered by the Snapdragon 750G chipset whose performance surpasses than the Exynos 9611 in both CPU and GPU-intensive benchmarks, and by a considerable margin.
The Fan Edition model also has more RAM. Both tablets come with 64GB or 128GB of built-in storage, but the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is limited to 4GB of RAM in both cases. On the other hand, the Galaxy Tab S7 FE has 4GB as standard and 6GB for the beefier model, which should facilitate better multitasking.
The Galaxy Tab S7 FE has a larger 10,090mAh battery with support for 45W super-fast charging, whereas the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is equipped with a 7,040mAh battery with 15W charging.
Galaxy Tab S7 FE vs Galaxy Tab S6 Lite: Software and productivity
The Galaxy Tab S7 FE is a newer tablet that ships with Android 11 instead of Android 10, which means it will enjoy support for a longer time than the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite.
But aside from this obvious difference, the Galaxy Tab S7 FE also ships with a more powerful suite of productivity apps, such as Noteshelf, Clip Studio Paint, and a 30-day trial to Canva Pro. Up until now, this apps bundle was reserved for the Galaxy Tab S7 flagship series.
The new model supports Samsung DeX through a hardware connection, and it can be paired with an optional Keyboard Cover accessory to boosts on-the-go productivity further. It also features Second Screen and Multi-Active Window.
Galaxy Tab S7 FE vs Galaxy Tab S6 Lite: Design and Conclusion
There's not much else to be said about these two tablets, except that the Fan Edition looks a tiny bit more modern thanks to squarer edges, the magnetic S Pen stripe across the back, thinner bezels, and the rectangular camera housing.
Samsung's first Fan Edition tablet is superior to the company's most recent Lite model in virtually every way. It's faster, more powerful, and it delivers a more complete software experience. The Galaxy Tab S6 Lite was never a huge hit for Samsung, but now it looks like there's one less reason for Android tablet enthusiasts to care about the Lite-branded model.
Samsung is planning to release the Galaxy Tab S7 FE on pre-order terms on June 2. The tablet will ship to customers starting June 18. Samsung has also revealed pre-order prices, which are arguably a bit too high for a device of this caliber.
Samsung
Galaxy Tab S7 FE
Samsung
Galaxy Tab S6 Lite
General Information
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Model Name
Galaxy Tab S7 FE
Galaxy Tab S6 Lite
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Model type
Tablet
Tablet
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Colors
Black (Mystic Black)Silver (Mystic Silver)Green (Mystic Green)Pink (Mystic Pink)
Gray (Oxford Gray)Pink (Chiffon Pink)Blue (Angora Blue)
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Announced
2021, May
2020, April
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Released
2021, June
2020, April
Physical specifications
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Dimensions
Tablet: 185 x 284.8 x 6.3 mm
Tablet: 244.5 x 154.3 x 7.0 mm
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Weights
608g
465g
Operating system
-
Operating system
Android 11
Android 10
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One UI version
3.1
2.1
Networks
-
SIM card sizes
Nano-SIM (4FF)
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Networks
2G3G4G
Display
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Kind
Main Display
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Name
Infinity Display
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Technology
TFT
TFT
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Size
12.4 inch / mm
10.4 inch / 264.16 mm
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Resolution
WQXGA / 2560x1600 pixels
WUXGA+ / 2000x1200 pixels
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Pixel density
244 PPI
224 PPI
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Screen to body ratio
~81.6%
