Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE Plus Review: Better Than Expected

Click "show more" to view our time-stamped video chapters.

Video chapters:

00:00 - Introduction
00:34 - S9 FE+ criticism
01:43 - Design overview
03:33 - Display overview
05:10 - Tablet comparisons
07:11 - Display continued
07:49 - Performance overview
09:10 - Extra features and software
09:49 - Is this tablet slow?
10:28 - Other minor compromises
11:23 - Stylus experience
12:10 - What should you buy?
13:56 - Ways to support

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Where to buy:

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE +

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE + Book Cover Keyboard:

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE + Slim Keyboard:

Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE + Outdoor Cover

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[captainsparkle-fingers]

Got the Tab S9FE 10.9 inch variant with 256gb and 8gigs of ram! This tablet does everything I need, which doesn't include gaming. The display is really nice and being IP68 which I really didn't know about until my daughter dropped it in the sink with the water running is a nice touch of durability👍🏽. Understand one thing about Samsung products, u need to let the battery understand ur usage needs for a least 4 days or maybe sooner when u first use these products. I spent $487 W/ tax and got a free Smart Cover which is really nice 😊. Excellent tablet!!

[naomischannel]

I got the S9 FE+ 12/256 GB for £730 from the Samsung UK website and I qualified for a free slimbook cover (you can qualify if you are between the age of 18 to 26 or if you can prove you are a student). I think this device is very reasonably priced after comparing it with the rest of the S9 series and Dex is such a game changer. As someone who just uses it for creating spreadsheets, typing documents, emails, study, note taking & entertainment purposes this tab has exceeded my expectations. Plus with the included S Pen it's a monster for a note taking machine. I spent £4 on the Penly app and use it as my yearly diary. I spent some extra money on a bluetooth keyboard & mouse and a stand for a the tab. I haven't used my laptop since I've got this device😮. The size is just so convenient! I compared it with the S9+ because I wanted the screen size. The battery life is the same as the S9+ (priced £999) and the FE+ & S9's front camera are both 12MP so it's fine for Zoom/video calls.I don't really care about the back camera as long as I can take clear enough pics of documents. So far I haven't had any problems with the processor and everything runs super smoothly even when I have multiple apps open at the same time. I would really like to connect it to a monitor in some way... I am yet to try this. But so far I love this tablet😊 I just couldn't get myself to pay a £999 for a "better" S9+ for the purpose I am using it for. Great vid!

[hemanthkaramthoti]

Got S9 FE+ 128GB Silver for around 399$. I think it's a pretty good deal.

[jerryberry]

I agree, the FE's are solid tabs at a decent enough price. They'll meet the vast majority of people's needs. I would have bought a S9 FE 8/256 model and probably been happy. But I bought a S9 with 12/256 included for free solely because the trade in value for my S7fe (I wanted to drop to 11" for mainly handheld use) was $500 toward an S9 but only $300 toward an S9 FE. That made the difference in out of pocket cost was only about 50 bucks which definitely made sense to go S9. Some people just love to hate on Exynos chips and I'm not sure why other than it's a snob thing.

[vsimp]

Got this one at a nice deal, 550 dollars with Galaxy buds FE included and a smart cover. The only thing that competes with this tablet is the s8, but the issue with the s8 is that depending on where you live, they don't have enough stock to decrease it's price. the s8+ would still have been considerably more expensive for me, probably because they just never made that many units of it in my country in the first place.

[barbs]

Thanks for the review! My S6 lite bought last Jan 2021 went to a boot loop a few weeks back this Dec so now I just wanna replace it instead of having it fixed.

Based on my weekly activity back on my S6 lite, I spent most of my time here on YouTube (I mostly watch anime here), and perusing Chrome. But one critical aspect is reading music scores. So I'm getting the bigger version.

I just want a big screen for my consumption and the S9 FE+ fits the bill. I ordered it a few days ago and am definitely looking to it! Just hoping it arrives sooner than later!

[sholmes_ttyy]

ipads are still rocking in 60hz while even base samsung has 90hz

[rodrigoiturbide]

Thank you so much for the vid! I do think this is a great offer and I get people try and make it worse than it is... I just bought a tab s9 fe+ and waiting to pick it up. Really excited for it. Another thing people dont keep in mind when recommending tab s8 is the years of updates you get... That additional year is nice

[AndrewFulo]

Just bought one and I'm not really a power tablet user. I mostly use my macbook. As a person entering the tablet market, this is a great tablet with a few compromises that I don't mind since I don't want to pay too much for a tablet experience. Also, Samsung threw in the keyboard cover for free when I purchased it. The build quality really surprised me with how premium it feels, and the overall experience for basic writing (s-spen) has been really enjoyable. Love the big screen and responsiveness of 90hz. The expandable storage was also something that lured me in. The only downside would be Android apps still have optimization issues with resizing for tablets. Also, my battery experience is a bit weird. I don't know if it's just my unit but I lose 20% charge when I wake up in the morning. I'm still figuring out why...

[AhmetBayar-slhr]

ı can get S9FE+ (256GB) for $325 after giving them my S6Lite 2020. I think its a pretty good deal. I don't think i'll have any issues with the power of this tablet since i use it mostly for taking notes and sometimes watching movies. If the screen isn't a big deal as you said i think this is the perfect tablet for me. I will wait until Monday to see if there's some huge discount on TabS8+ since its galaxy week. Thanks for the video, really helped!

[MrAlexFortis]

In fact, I think IPS is better here than AMOLED. This tablet is probably the best for writing in its price category. IPS is more durable on merit displaying static images and usually comes without PWM, so it is easier on your eyes. So for me AMOLED is inferior, I use over 60% my tablets for writing and 30% - reading so IPS is a must for me in this aplication.

[jasonmoto]

I didnt want a 12" tab and did not need a $800 S9, I went with the FE cause my tablet use just doesnt justify the cost especially as I will probably upgrade sooner rather than later and it was only $399 (or zero with my tradeins at Best Buy) I also still have my Note 10.1 and it works fine as a Home Automation Dashboard and a still works as a drawing tab.

[evelinecarolinelienhuaming]

Wow I will Order the Plus Version!!! It's Gonna be Awesome!!! ✌🏻😃✌🏻

[_Digitalguy]

Great video as usual. I also saw your family post this morning. You are really an amazing person. Realized that for some strange reason I was not subscribed, so I clicked. As for the S9 FE(+) the main reason I think they are "overpriced" is because they price will go down in a few months. I thought the same thing of the S7FE at $530, after 6 months I got the maxed out version (8GB RAM 256) at $550 (the base is 4GB 64), which was a nice deal. The S9FE+ is an improvement in terms of refresh rate and water resistance (for those who care about that), and of course support, but is a sidegrade in terms of speed (same as the wifi S7FE and even a regression in terms of video out). I think those negatives have to be considered (if Samsung came out with a CPU that was the same 2 generations later many would criticize it), as it's fair to expect a more powerfull and capable device after one or 2 generation for the same price. Personally I'll keep my S7FE for a very long time, unless I find some amazing deal on the flagship models at some point (I also have the S8 ultra)

[stevegresock]

GREAT VIDEOS!!! I really have been enjoying you videos.👍👍

[ojaspatwardhan]

From India here! Got the S9 FE+ for $350

[zeppast]

I think the question is whether to get the Tabs S9 FE Plus or the Tabs S8 Plus? both are very similar in price right now as you can find the Tabs8 Plus very discounted right now.. I would argue the Tab S8 Plus would be the better buy it's more powerful with a better screen. The only downside is you are losing a year of support and you're losing the IP68 rating but if you don't care.

[OnlineMD]

Yesterday I traded in my Galaxy A7 for the S9 FE+. I did this direct with Samsung using the Samsung Shop app on my phone but had to go to Best Buy to pick up the Tablet. I'll have to ship the A7 this week. They allowed $75 for it so I'm thinking why not keep it; mostly likely I'll send it back as I doubt I'll use it. Aside from the larger screen, the colors are more vibrant and the stereo sound is good. Please note that this model only has USB 2.0 as compared to USB 3.0 with the flagship S9+ and S9 Ultra. Slower data transmission and charge speeds, I'm told. But hey, as I transferred all my data via USB C to C cable from the A7, it went pretty fast. I don't believe I can project the Tab on to a TV by USB/DP (DisplayPort), not sure. Doesn't matter; I usually cast YouTube videos wirelessly anyhow. And the charging is fast enough for me. All told, I am very pleased.

[KrazyShark]

Just what i wanted, thanks for the vids !!!! :D

[Democracyyy]

I would just recommend the OnePlus pad or ipad air 5/4 or tab s8 to most people the OnePlus pad gives 3 years software support which is honestly quite ok for most people if you want Samsung get the s8 or s8+ if you want the bigger display personally i wouldn't make such a big sacrifice in performance for just one extra year of software support i do see a point for the tab s9fe plus if you don't want to pay the extra cost for the s8+ or s9+ it could be a good option at 600 dollars if you really need the bigger display but i would just get a used s8+ if you dont want to then the s9fe plus is a decent even though its quite overpriced for what your getting. OnePlus pad is good option it has a 11.6 display a much faster processor and you are able to multitask although the pen does cost an extra 100 it can be a good option if you game and take notes . The s9fe+ is a good option if you need the 12.4 inch display and you aren't a heavy user if your going to be doing heavy multitasking or gaming get the s8+ or s9+


I've used a S6 lite 2020 with Exynos it isnt bad but its not great for long time use i would recommend a tab s8 for most people 3 years of software support is more than enough.