Samsung created this tablet standard to compete with Apple's new iPad Pro.
Both models have two ports. The Surface Pro has a DisplayPort, USB, a mini-display port, and a micro SD card slot. And while the Surface Pro 4 uses a built-in, fully adjustable kickstand, the iPad Pro and Tab Pro S use the keyboard cover's fold to prop themselves up.
The 12-inch tablet is a bit smaller than the iPad Pro, but about the same weight as the Surface Pro 4. It weighs a pound and a half without the display cover, and it's also about the same weight as the iPad Pro (1.53 pounds for the TabPro S and 1.57 pounds for the iPad Pro). The Samsung Galaxy TabPro S may be a bit heavier because the weight is squeezed into a smaller frame. That feeling is more pronounced when you attach the keyboard cover, which wraps around both sides of the device. The Apple iPad Pro folds the keyboard under one side of the cover.
In terms of display, the Samsung Galaxy S TabPro features the first Super AMOLED for a Windows 10 tablet. At 2160 x 1440, it's incredibly sharp and impressively bright, but both the Surface Pro 4 (2736 x 1824) and iPad Pro (2732 x 2048) offer higher resolutions. This display technology has allowed Samsung to make the TabPro S even thinner than the Surface Pro 4, which uses LCD technology, and slightly thinner (less than a millimeter) than the iPad Pro. Like most other systems in its class, the TabPro S includes a visible set of connectors along one long side combined with hidden strong magnets. When aligned with a channel in the keyboard cover, the TabPro S cleverly locks into place, and the rest of the cover snaps onto the back of the tablet.
If you've used Windows 10 on any touchscreen device, the experience on the TabPro S will feel familiar. Windows 10 has been Microsoft's best operating system for nearly a decade. As a Windows device, the Galaxy TabPro S doesn't introduce anything new.
The Samsung Galaxy S TabPro runs Intel's new Core M3 CPU, the same chip you'll find in the Surface Pro 4. It has solid benchmark numbers, but Apple's A9X CPU beats it by a wide margin. In reality, though, the M3 core holds up surprisingly well. You can open over a dozen windows in two different web browsers (e.g., Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome), leave a Netflix movie playing in the background, and then play 3D chess. The TabPro S doesn't miss a beat. It's rated for 10.5 hours of battery life, but like most battery, that's probably an exaggeration. In a day of use, it lasted 6.5 hours, which is actually pretty good.
The Samsung Galaxy S TabPro is available on the market, priced at $899.99.
