Alright, Apple vs Samsung
The iPad Air 5 vs Galaxy Tab S8
Which is best for you?
Well, as always, we’ll first go over the specs and then talk about who these devices are best for
So, let’s go over the raw stats
First, let’s talk about the externals
The iPad Air 5 is Apple’s well-rounded speedy tablet
that starts at $600
While the Galaxy Tab S8 is Samsung’s alternative starting at $100 more
But, comes with its stylus in the box
While, for the iPad, its stylus will be an extra $100
So, so far, they’re pretty similar
Let’s keep going
For the form factor, both devices are fairly similar in size,
with the iPad being 10.9 inches and the Tab being 11
There isn’t really too much of a noticeable difference in sizing here
But for screens, there’s a clear winner
The Galaxy Tab sports an adaptive 120Hz display,
meaning movements on the screen will look faster and smoother
And Apple does have this feature
It’s called Pro Motion in its premium line of iPads, the iPad Pros
But, it does not come with the iPad Air
And for connectivity, with tablets, this isn’t usually too much of a concern
You really just need a USB port, a headphone jack, and oh wait…
Oh, lord
Yeah, neither device comes with a headphone jack
But, the Tab does sport a MicroSD card slot over the iPad Air’s just single USB-C
So, yeah, it does edge out the Apple tablet
Now for the styluses, like I said,
The Tab S8 does come with the S Pen in the box
while the iPad Air is purchased separately
And with that out of the way,
both styluses are very effective for any kind of work
So, there’s no need to worry about either of them
And for the cameras, this is quite the interesting battle
For the front, both devices sport 12 megapixel cameras with center-framing features
But for the back, although the iPad Air has a single 12 megapixel camera,
The Tab S8 has two lenses,
a wide and an ultra-wide
So for versatility sake, the Tab has the slight edge
And so for the external summary,
while the iPad Air has a better price,
the Tab S8 has a better screen, connectivity, an included stylus, and camera system
Now, you might think that this is kind of one-sided,
but you wait right here
Let’s move on to the internals
For the internal specs, the iPad Air blows the competition out of the water with its M1 Chip
Heck, it isn’t even much of a competition
The Tab S8 sports the SnapDragon 8 Gen 1, which is a great processor
But, just look at the benchmarks
They’re both good,
but the iPad is much better
So, if you want a powerhouse, the iPad Air is your tablet
Now for storage, neither device is great in this category
Dare I say even okay
The iPad Air comes with 64 gigabytes,
which is not great
And the Tab comes with 128,
which is actually fairly acceptable for a tablet
But still a little low in my opinion
For batteries, both devices are very respectable and effective for many users
The iPad air runs for an average of 10 hours
while the Tab S8 runs for an average of 12
Both are good, but the Tab’s a little bit better
And for device protection, each device has its own security features,
which are both very effective
And lastly for the, arguably, most important feature of both devices,
the operating systems
The iPad Air 5 uses iPadOS while the Tab S8 uses Android,
which, frankly, are both fine operating systems and they do their jobs well
But, each has its own quirks,
like Samsung DeX with the Tab S8
which turns the tablet into a somewhat laptop
So the winner depends on which operating system you prefer
And that’s what my verdict will talk about
More on that in a minute
And for the internal summary, the iPad Air has far faster internal specs,
while the Tab S8 has a better storage capacity and battery life
So now that we’ve gotten the raw stats out of the way and seen which devices has the better specs,
which one is best for you?
Well, that’s a simple question with a not-so-simple answer
It’s not always about specs, despite them being compared first,
It’s more about you
Let me explain
Here’s how I’d choose the tablet for myself
After researching and checking out these devices,
I would, personally, get the iPad Air 5
because I’m more accustomed to the Apple ecosystem and it fits my needs better
And, boom, that’s how you do it
Look at your needs for a device and see what fits them best
For instance, if I was in the market for another tablet,
I would make sure it can work and accommodate my current work schedule and that it works with my current tech ecosystem,
In this case, primarily Apple
So, the iPad is the best bet for me
But in a different universe where I have a primarily Android setup,
I mean even in this current one, I do have the Note 10,
but I mean having the Galaxy Watch, the Buds, etc.,
Then, yeah, I’d get the Tab
The point is you need to figure out which one fits your setup the best
and which one you’re more accustomed to
The raw stats are a great way to compare the components of the devices
But at the end of the day, you’re the decision maker not the specs
The stats only give the superficial qualities of the devices
The real nuance comes from you and your needs
So, I suggest you figure out your operating system of choice, either iPadOS or Android,
and get the tablet that comes with that
So if you want a tablet with iPadOS, get the iPad Air 5
But if you want an Android-friendly device, get the tab S8
And that’s how you choose your next tablet
My name is Cyrus.
It’s spelled like “Cyrus,” pronounced like “See Rooster,” just take out the “ter”
Thank you very much for watching and have a wonderful day
Peace.