Samsung has refreshed its flagship tablet series with the new Tab S11 and Tab S11 Ultra. Announced alongside the almost flagship Galaxy S25 FE smartphone and a host of smart home tech at IFA 2025.
After a bit of time with the oversized Tab S11 Ultra, Samsung's latest flagship slate takes on the iPad Pro and iPad OS 26 with its huge screen and new desktop-like interface, with newly added support for virtual desktops and extended mode for external monitors. The tablet also overhauls the S Pen for the first time in generations, with the latest looking less like a pen, and more like a pencil.
In the flesh, one of the most striking aspects of the Tab S11 Ultra is just how thin it is, a move that mirrors the direction Samsung's taken with its stunning new Z Fold 7. After speaking with Annika Bizon, Mobile Experience VP of Product and Marketing for Samsung UK & Ireland, this move is an intentional response to customer feedback and Samsung research, confirming that thin is definitely in when it comes to tech in 2025.
Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra price
The Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra is the most expensive of Samsung's latest slates, with a punchy starting price of £1,199 / $1,199 for the 256GB option, £1,299 / $1319.99 for 512GB, and £1,549 / $1,619.99 for the 1TB option. If you want the 5G option (available in the UK only through Samsung direct), add £150 to all those prices, and all versions support microSD card expansion for easy storage boosting.
Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra design and screen
The Tab S10 Ultra was already thin at 5.4mm, but the Tab 11 Ultra is an iPad Pro-matching 5.1mm. Despite its huge 14.6-inch screen, it's lighter than its predecessor, making the whole tablet feel like a slice of screen, an impression compounded by the slightly smaller bezels and selfie camera notch.
Available in two colors, Moonstone Gray and Platinum Silver, the Tab S11 Ultra has a glass front and an enhanced Amor Aluminum frame, and with IP68 water and dust resistance, can be submerged in 1.5m water for up to 30 minutes.
While past Galaxy tablets used an active stylus (which had a battery), the Tab S11 Ultra switches out to a passive stylus (no battery). That means Samsung has dropped some of the hover, clicker interactions for remote shutter release and other features, but it also means the tab stows magnetically on the top rather than the back, which is much more convenient.
The star of the Tab S11 Ultra show has got to be its huge 14.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+ brightness, and a peak HDR brightness of 1600 nits, ultra-high for a tablet with a screen this big. The peak full-screen brightness of 1000 nits is paired with an anti-reflective coating that makes it one of the best tablets for comfortable outdoor viewing around.
Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra performance and One UI 8
A new tablet, a new chipset and a new version of One UI, Samsung’s Android interface, and this year the Tab S series gets a feature I’ve been wanting for years, extended desktop support. Before diving into the interface, though, the specs are primed to keep everything running smoothly, with a MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ chip matched with either 12GB or 16GB RAM. While the 16GB RAM spec is reserved for the 1TB version of the tab, I’ve been able to run three top-tier games split-screen with the 12GB RAM Tab S11 Ultra without any issues, leaving me very impressed with its multitasking and gaming performance on first impression.
Starting with 256GB storage, and going all the way up to 1TB plus optional microSD card expansion, the Tab S11 Ultra should give you plenty of space for your offline content and apps, and with a massive 11600mAh battery – 400mAh higher-capacity than the Tab S10 Ultra – it even doubles up as a power bank for your phone, while offering fast 45W wired charging.
As for OneUI 8 for tablets, it’s matched with Android 16 and Samsung promises seven years of software updates, making the Tab S11 Ultra exceptionally future-proofed across spec and software. The extended desktop support unlocks more PC-like interaction when plugged into an external monitor, allowing you to drag and drop windows across the tablet and display. The new virtual desktop feature, along with floating windows, also blurs the lines between laptop and tablet, setting the S11 Ultra up as a productivity workhorse.
Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra keyboard folio
If you really want to unlock the potential of the Tab S11 Ultra for work, you’ll want to pick up a keyboard. Samsung makes two official options for its tablet series: a one-piece folio Book Cover Keyboard Slim (£199) and a two-piece detachable kickstand solution, the AI Book Cover Keyboard with Trackpad (£TBC).
For lap typers, the cheaper Book Cover Keyboard Slim is actually the better shout, with the tab secured to the keyboard more robustly – perfect for trains and rattly planes – but if you want the flexibility of using a kickstand without a keyboard, the AI Book Cover adds a trackpad to the mix and could be a better shout for watching and presenting. Any existing Tab S series owners will be sad to know that the past-gen keyboards aren’t supported by Samsung’s latest line of slates.
Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra early verdict
On first impression, the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra checks a lot of boxes – which it needs to considering its punchy price – and could be the first Tab S series upgrade that’s truly compelling since the original Tab S8 Ultra in 2022.
The upgraded power courtesy of MediaTek, improved interface that finally takes advantage of the big screen and extended displays, and the brighter, more immersive display matched with its lighter weight and slimmer profile all take the fight to Apple’s latest iPads and win in a few key areas.
If the Tab S11 Ultra is too big or too pricey for you, check out our best tablet of 2025 picks, and check back for the full review in the coming weeks.
