Raising the bar for value

Samsung’s Fan Edition (FE) devices have been an excellent way for buyers to capture the feel of a premium Samsung device without paying premium prices. For example, the Galaxy Tab S9 retails at a whopping $800; it’s a hard choice to justify unless you regularly perform demanding productivity tasks or play demanding games on your tablet. Enter the Galaxy Tab S9 FE, a stripped-down Tab S9 that looks and feels the same while costing nearly half of Samsung’s modern flagship slate.

To hit this low price point, the Tab S9 FE has to make a lot of compromises. However, none of them detract from the overall fantastic experience for the price; it’s more capable than any budget tablet, and even the more powerful Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ is a hard purchase when its cheaper sibling is this good. But is the Galaxy Tab S9 FE able to compete with the best Android tablets, or is it destined for midrange mediocrity? Let’s find out.

Price, availability, and specs

Samsung sells the Galaxy Tab S9 FE with two memory and storage configurations. The 6GB RAM + 128GB storage option costs $450, but spending $70 more will net you the 8GB + 256GB model. You can also upgrade to the 6GB + 128GB option with 5G connectivity for an extra $100. If you’re looking for a cellular-connected tablet, you’ll have to pick the smaller Tab S9 FE — the FE+ is Wi-Fi only.

The Galaxy Tab S9 FE is available in gray, silver, mint, and lavender, but the 5G model is only available in gray. You can buy it directly from the Samsung website, retailers like Amazon or Best Buy, or—if you opt for the 5G variant—through all three national US carriers.

What’s good about the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE?

First impressions are that of a premium tablet

After picking up the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE, I was immediately reminded of the Tab S9. While the Tab S9 FE’s display is slightly smaller (10.9 inches versus 11.0 inches), it’s indistinguishable at first glance. The depth is also a fraction thinner, but it’s impossible to notice if you don’t hold the tablets side by side. Turn the screen on, and the differences will become immediately apparent, but we’ll touch on this later.

The tablet’s best feature is its design. At 1.15 pounds, it’s just a touch heavier than the Galaxy Tab S9, but its added heft actually makes it feel a little more premium. The included S Pen snaps perfectly onto the S9 FE’s magnetic connectors, and the bezel is the perfect size to hold the tablet comfortably without smudging the screen.

Of course, Samsung designs its FE products to match the appearance of their namesakes as closely as possible, so none of this is a surprise. Nevertheless, it’s important to note that if we were to score this tablet on design alone, it would earn a perfect score without question.

I tested this tablet for over a month, watching movies at the end of the day, playing Android games, and browsing social media. My experience was fantastic for all these activities thanks to its colorful 90Hz LCD and Exynos 1380 chipset (the same one found in the more expensive S9 FE+).

Overall, my day-to-day experience with this tablet was pretty excellent, becoming my go-to companion on my weekly train journeys. Whether I was traveling in sunlight or treated to the glare of the overhead lights at dusk, the tablet was usable whether playing games or watching films.

The performance was more than sufficient for most Android games. Games like Hearthstone and Dominion ran without a hitch. While the story was a little different when I tested the most demanding Android games, I found the tablet to be the perfect entertainment machine for traveling or relaxing at home. The 8,000 mAh battery is neither impressive nor disappointing, which was reflected in my use.

At the end of a day of extensively using the tablet to watch locally stored movies and light gaming while traveling, the tablet’s battery rested between 40% and 60%. I used my model over Wi-Fi exclusively, but if you’re using the Tab S9 FE over a 5G connection, expect to see that number drop.

Overall, the Galaxy Tab S9 FE exceeds expectations for day-to-day entertainment and casual browsing. However, push it a little more, and you’ll begin to see where the compromises have been made.

What’s bad about the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE?

Compromises will disappoint power users

Earlier, I described the Galaxy Tab S9 FE’s display as usable in most situations. Usable is the key word here as the LCD, while impressive for its class, lacks the deep blacks and contrast of its OLED-equipped brethren. While you will find it sufficient for most tasks, games or films that rely on dark scenes (looking at you, The Lord of the Rings) are not appropriate for this tablet’s screen.

This display was my biggest gripe. Over the month I used it, I became increasingly frustrated with its inconsistencies. The relatively small color range was noticeable, especially in the cooler spectrum. And the brightness mentioned above meant I preferred to switch to music when traveling in direct sunlight and only played games when I found some shade.

However, all these display issues were minor, never escalating beyond minor nitpicks, as I rarely watch films in direct sunlight in the first place. The Tab S9 FE’s display is more than enough for most environments to enjoy movies and games.

As I mentioned, the Exynos 1380 chipset does support casual gaming. However, when you start multitasking or playing demanding games, the tablet struggles to keep up. While the device didn’t become unusably slow, playing YouTube in one window and browsing Instagram in another created a noticeable lag when performing some actions.

Demanding games are also enough to push the tablet to its limit. Genshin Impact refused to run at a stable FPS, even after lowering the graphics to their minimum setting. On top of this, the tablet became uncomfortably warm to hold. I recommend sticking with streaming apps like Xbox Game Pass if you want to enjoy some serious gaming.

The cameras are disappointing, but that’s to be expected for an Android tablet at this price. The rear and front cameras produce pictures that appear slightly out of focus, no matter how hard I tried to capture a clear image. See my examples below for what I mean, but if you just need to snap a reference picture or scan a QR code, the Tab S9 will do the job.

Should you buy it?

For the money, the Galaxy Tab S9 FE is a solid alternative to Samsung’s more expensive flagship tablets. It combines the best parts of those slates and cuts the price nearly in half. As long as you can accept a handful of drawbacks, it’s a great everyday tablet, ideal for basic productivity tasks, browsing the web, and, of course, note-taking.

However, if you’re a power user or a frequent mobile gamer, you’re going to notice the Tab S9 FE’s shortcomings pretty quickly. Its display, while good enough for casual video streaming, doesn’t hold a candle to the OLED panels found on more expensive tablets, and its processor just can’t keep up with the most demanding — and most popular — of today’s mobile games. If you don’t fall into either of those categories, the Tab S9 FE lands as a great Android-flavored alternative to Apple’s $350 iPad, especially if you’re looking for a stylus right out of the box.