I’ll come clean about how I’ve been “testing” the Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+ for the past week; mostly lying in bed. Gaming, YouTube, YT Music, repeat. Not the most professional workflow, but it’s how a lot of people actually use a 12.6-inch tablet, and it turns out that’s exactly where this thing shines.
For context, my daily tablet for the past year and a half has been the Galaxy Tab S10 FE+. It’s a perfectly good tablet that I have no real complaints about. Or I didn’t, until this one showed up and made it look like a hand-me-down.
The Upgrade You Can Feel (And Hear)
The display is the first thing that gets you. Coming from the FE+, the jump to a 120Hz Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel is immediately obvious. Everything scrolls more smoothly, blacks are actually black, and videos look properly rich instead of just “fine.” The FE+ is technically the bigger tablet, but the Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+ is the one that feels more immersive.
The quad speakers do a lot of the heavy lifting there too. They fill the space around you in a way the FE+ never quite managed, which matters a lot when the tablet is propped up on your chest at 1am and you’ve decided one more episode won’t hurt. (It does hurt. Every time.)
It’s also thinner and lighter than what I was using. At 5.3mm and around 553g for the Wi-Fi model, it’s much kinder to your wrists during long sessions in bed, though your posture is still your own problem.
Performance-wise, the MediaTek Dimensity 9500 inside feels properly powerful in everyday use and the lighter games I’ve been playing. That said, I haven’t thrown the real heavyweights at it yet. Honkai: Star Rail and Genshin Impact are what will show whether it stays smooth, or turns into a very expensive hand warmer.
The Small Print
A few things are worth flagging early.
There’s no Wi-Fi 7. It tops out at Wi-Fi 6E. I suspect most people haven’t upgraded their routers yet, in which case this won’t matter one bit. Still, at this price, it’s a curious omission.
The S Pen comes in the box, which is great, but it’s a passive stylus. If you’re coming from the Galaxy Note days and expecting Air Actions or other button-triggered tricks, you won’t get them here. It’s a very good pen, not a magic wand.
Charging tops out at 45W. It’s decent but not fast, especially for a 10,600mAh battery. Luckily, battery life has been good so far, so you won’t be tethered to the wall very often.
The microSD slot deserves a quiet round of applause. Instead of paying extra for the 512GB model upfront, you can buy the base version and expand storage later when you actually need it. More brands should treat their customers like adults this way.
Pricing
In Malaysia, the Galaxy Tab S12+ goes for RM4,999 for the Wi-Fi model and RM5,649 for the 5G model, both with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. That’s RM400 more than the Tab S10+ cost at launch, so the bar for “worth it” has gone up a little too. Selected retailers in Malaysia throw in the Book Cover Keyboard for free, which is how ours came. If you’re buying, it’s worth shopping around for that bundle.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+ Specifications
| Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+ Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Display | 12.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 2800 × 1752 (16:10), 120Hz, HDR10+, up to 1,600 nits peak |
| Processor | MediaTek Dimensity 9500 (3nm), octa-core up to 4.21GHz |
| GPU | Mali-G1 Ultra MC12 |
| Memory | 12GB LPDDR5X |
| Storage | 256GB / 512GB UFS 4.1, microSD expansion up to 2TB |
| Rear camera | 13MP, f/2.0, autofocus, LED flash |
| Front camera | 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, 120° |
| Audio | Quad speakers, Dolby Atmos |
| Battery | 10,600mAh, 45W wired charging |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 6.0, USB-C (USB 3.2), 5G (5G model only) |
| Security | Under-display fingerprint sensor |
| S Pen | Included (passive, IP68) |
| Software | One UI 9 based on Android 17, up to 7 OS upgrades |
| Build | Aluminium frame and back, IP68 |
| Dimensions | 289.5 × 187.8 × 5.3mm |
| Weight | 553g (Wi-Fi) / 555g (5G) |
| Colors | Grey, Silver |
| Price (Malaysia) | RM4,999 (Wi-Fi, 12GB + 256GB) RM5,649 (5G, 12GB + 256GB) |
Early verdict
After a week, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+ comes across as a powerful multimedia tablet with a display and speaker setup that make the step up from the FE+ line easy to notice. A week of good impressions isn’t a verdict, though.
In the full review, we’ll run benchmarks, put it through Honkai: Star Rail to see how it handles heat, and test battery life across multiple cycles. Great battery life on day one means nothing if it falls apart by the third charge. We’ll also take a look at the cameras, mostly out of a sense of duty. Stay tuned to Pokde.NET.
