Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE Review (By an Apple Fanboy)

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90%

90%

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE is an affordable iPad alternative

The Good

1. Very affordable
2. Durable build
3. 'Good enough' performance for most

The Not So Good

1. Exynos chip performance

• User Ratings (1 Votes)
  9.7

Is the iPad really the best tablet money can buy?

I’ve said that multiple times, even though, at the back of my mind, I’ve known that I haven’t given the competition a fair crack of the whip.

One such competitor is Samsung. Beyond some hands-on time at press launch events, I’ve never used a Samsung S-series tablet in anger, until now. And the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE has taught me an important lesson about making assumptions.

More importantly, Samsung’s latest mid-range tablet has revealed that if there’s one area where the Apple ecosystem is at its weakest, it’s in the tablet arena.

How I reviewed the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE

I’m not a heavy tablet user, therefore I used the Tab S10 FE as I would my iPad – for content consumption, web browsing, and referencing notes.

I tested the S Pen’s capabilities by taking some handwritten notes and giving it to my two-year-old son to doodle with.

At the time of testing, I didn’t have the keyboard case to hand, so I couldn’t dig fully into the productivity aspects of the Tab S10 FE, but I may do that in the future.

Specs and pricing

Samsung doesn’t publicly state which chip is running the show inside the Tab S10 FE, but a quick Google search reveals that it is, as expected, an in-house Exynos variant – specifically the 1580.

The chip is joined by one of two RAM/storage options: either 8GB/128GB or 12GB/256GB. There are also two display sizes to choose from: 10.9-inch and 13.1-inch (the latter is known as the Tab S10 FE+). I was sent the former to review.

There’s S Pen support (the stylus is included as part of the package), and compatibility with an optional keyboard case. At the time of writing, the latter is included free of charge (it usually retails at £139/£169, depending on the display size you go for).

One UI 7 – which is based on Android 15 – sits at the heart of the Tab S10 FE.

Price-wise, the S10 FE starts at £499, and the S10 FE+ starts at £649.

The most comparable iPad is the iPad Air, which starts at £599 for the 11-inch version and £799 for the 13-inch edition. However, Apple being Apple, there are no special offers for peripherals, which means if you want a Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro, you’ll need to stump up the full asking prices for both.

With that in mind, let’s move on to my preconceptions about the iPad and its competition. 

How does the Tab S10 FE fare?

Preconception 1: No tablet is built like an iPad

This simply isn’t true. The Tab S10 FE feels identical in terms of build quality to any iPad I’ve held. It’s also IP68 water resistant, which is something the iPad has lacked for quite some time, and provides an added layer of reassurance and durability that Apple can’t match.

The Tab S10 FE is slightly thinner than an iPad Air. It’s not as ridiculously thin as an M4 iPad Pro, but it isn’t far off.

The only thing I’m not keen on is the power button location on the long edge of the tablet. It throws me regularly, for some reason (although that’s undoubtedly because of how long I’ve been used to the iPad’s power button positioning on the short edge of the device).

As for the display, the 16:10 aspect ratio takes some getting used to for a long-term iPad user. It feels longer and narrower (because it is) and, as a result, appears to promote landscape use. You get used to it, though, and the presence of a 90Hz variable refresh rate immediately places it above every iPad model bar the Pro.

Speakers? They’re not up to iPad standards, but they’re bright, loud, and wide. What’s missing is the depth that Apple somehow draws from incredibly small driver units. I’m yet to encounter a competing brand that can match them in that regard.

Preconception 2: iPadOS is the best tablet operating system

It isn’t.

Although I’ve often said that the iPad is unbeatable in terms of user experience, there’s no getting away from the fact that Apple’s tablet often feels like nothing more than a massive iPhone.

This isn’t necessarily a problem. The iPad relies on its ability to differentiate itself from the Mac, and given that most people probably use their tablets for content consumption and web browsing, I think iPadOS is perfectly justified in feeling similar to iOS.

The same criticism could be levelled at Samsung, after all. One UI 7 on the Tab S10 FE feels very similar to the operating system that can be found on the S25 Ultra. And that’s fine. More importantly for this review, it feels incredibly similar to iPadOS. Which, again, is fine.

Just like smartphones, it doesn’t feel like Apple is ahead of Samsung when it comes to tablet operating systems. I could switch tomorrow and not feel a thing.

You probably could, too.

Preconception 3: Nothing beats the Apple ecosystem

I said recently that the only reason I’m still using an iPhone is because I’m a Mac user. That won’t change, because I’ll never move to Windows. Ever. The Mac is, without a shadow of a doubt, the single best thing Apple has and will ever do.

Fight me in the comments if you don’t agree.

However, I’ve been sitting here for a while now trying to figure out which part of the Apple ecosystem I rely on while using my iPad, and I’ve drawn a blank. I can’t think of anything.

I may occasionally transfer something from my iPhone to my iPad, but that’s rare. And, as you might suspect, Samsung offers the same ability with Quick Share, which worked just as reliably as AirDrop during my testing between the Tab S10 FE and the S25 Ultra.

If there’s one area where Apple has very little hold over me in terms of the ecosystem, it’s the iPad.

Yikes.

Preconception 4: The Apple Pencil Pro is unbeatable

I’m not a heavy Apple Pencil user. I’m not an artist, I can’t draw for toffee, and these days, I tend to lean more towards traditional note-taking with a pen and notepad.

However, I’ve always assumed that the Apple Pencil is in a class of its own. That might be the case for the Apple Pencil Pro if you’re an illustrator, graphic designer, or do something where features like tilt and barrel roll are vital. But for everyone else (which I guess is a lot of people), the S Pen is just as good. And cheaper.

The S Pen is free, in fact, because it comes as standard with the Tab S10 series – but it only costs £46 if you need to buy another one in the future. Samsung’s stylus also features pressure sensitivity, a button which can be used for switching functions, and IP68 water resistance.

Who needs an Apple Pencil?

Preconception 5: I couldn’t switch to a Samsung tablet

I could, actually. And the only reason I won’t is because I can’t justify buying another tablet when I have so many iPads and such a limited use case for any of them.

Given that I don’t rely on the Apple ecosystem for my iPad usage and that the latter extends as far as web browsing and content consumption, this review has taught me that I literally have no tie to the iPad at all.

I suspect this might be the case for most iPad users.

It’s worth asking yourself an important question if you think you’re welded to the iPad and see no route beyond Apple’s offerings come upgrade time: is there anything you do on your iPad which can only be done on the iPad?

I doubt it.

This brings me to my inevitable conclusion about the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE.

Conclusion

I was wrong about the iPad. It’s brilliant, still, and I’m glad that I’m in a position to try so many of them, but my prior belief that nothing could touch Apple’s tablet was so wide of the mark.

The Tab S10 FE is a superb alternative to the iPad. It’s more affordable, more durable, and doesn’t demand that you increase your budget considerably to get more out of it by adding the peripherals that turn it into something more interesting.

Sure, in a benchmark test, that Exynos chip would probably struggle to match the might of Apple Silicon, but the people who buy tablets like the S10 FE aren’t going to notice any performance deficit.

If you’re not welded to the Apple ecosystem for your iPad and you’re approaching upgrade time, I highly recommend considering Samsung’s latest mid-range tablet. I’m not sure why you’d need anything more.