Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 FE 5G has 12-inch screen, S Pen stylus and Dolby Atmos

Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 FE 5G tablet is a 12in entertainment machine with Dolby Atmos
(Image credit: Samsung)

Last year's Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 was one of the best tablets of 2020, and now there's a stripped back, cheaper model available. The Galaxy Tab S7 FE 5G has the same-sized 12.4in screen, AKG Dolby Atmos-compatible speakers and S Pen stylus as the full-fat Tab S7.

So why does it warrant a lower price? It's Samsung's first Fan Edition (FE) tablet – the firm has released FE smartphones before, but never a slate PC. That means some slightly lower specs than the standard S7.

The cameras, for example. While the S7 has a 13MP/5MP rear facing camera array and 8MP front-facer, the S7 FE only has an 8MP rear-facer and 5MP front-facer. The screen has the same 1600 x 2560-pixel resolution, but lacks the 120Hz refresh rate and HDR compatibility of the S7. And it has a slightly less powerful processor. There's also no side-mounted fingerprint sensor.

But it's still a lot of tablet for the money. The S Pen stylus lets you draw and write on screen, while Multi-Active Window lets you open up to three apps at once, so you can browse the web, take notes, and stream a video simultaneously. And that big screen should give you plenty of space to play with.

A feature called App Pair lets you save and quickly launch your favourite combination of apps together in Multi-Active Window. So if there's a particular document you work on while watching a certain movie and checking a certain news site, you can launch all three at the touch of a button.

It's compatible with Samsung's DeX, which lets you use your tablet like a PC. And it can double up as a second screen for your desktop or laptop.

It also comes with unlimited free access to Samsung TV Plus, which lets you stream over 90 channels in the UK.

If you want a smaller, cheaper tablet, Samsung's other new device might interest you. The Galaxy Tab A7 Lite has an 8.7in screen, but still packs dual AKG speakers that are compatible with Dolby Atmos. Also onboard are 64GB of storage (expandable to 1TB with a microSD card), 15W Adaptive Fast Charging, and optional 4G connectivity.

The Tab S7 FE 5G is available to preorder from 2nd June, and goes on sale on 18th June. It comes in Mystic Black, Mystic Silver, Mystic Green, and Mystic Pink, and costs £589 (for the 64GB model) or £629 (for the 128GB model).

The Tab A7 Lite hits stores on 18th June, in Grey and Silver. It costs £149 for the wi-fi model, or £179 for the LTE option.

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