Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 vs. Apple iPad Air: Which is the best mainstream tablet?

With tablets getting increasingly expensive, which is the best investment?

A potent bargain

The 5th generation of Apple's mid-range iPad is a compelling entry given its comparatively reasonable price and excellent feature set. While it lacks the Tab S9's expandable storage, its powerful M1 chip, optional 5G support, and compact design make it a worthy competitor, especially considering the significant price difference.

Built to last

The latest iteration of the S series of tablets from Samsung improves on some of the best Android tablets, with an upgraded display, processor, and more capacious battery. However, it remains hamstrung by an uncompetitive price tag, and even the new Snapdragon CPU can't hang with Apple's M1 chip.

Samsung has unleashed its latest progeny upon the world at Galaxy Unpacked 2023, and amongst the silicon tide are the iterative Tab S9s. While they aren't revolutionary upgrades from the previous generation, they do make enough upgrades to vie for the title of best Android tablet.

But how does the vanilla Tab S9, arguably the most mainstream model of the lineup, compare to Apple's excellent fifth generation iPad Air, the mid-tier offering of their iPad tablet line?

Just announced in late July 2023, the Tab S9 is available now. The vanilla Tab S9, the least expensive and most modest of the three tablet line-up, starts at $800 for 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, rising to $920 for 12GB and 256GB. There's no 5G option - you have to buy the Tab S9+ for that.

The iPad Air launched back in March of 2022, with two options: a 64GB model that retails for $600, and an upgraded 256GB model will run you $750 at MSRP. Adding 5G functionality to either model will you run you somewhere in the vicinity of $150.

With price in mind, let's take a deep dive into the specs of both tablets.

The two tablets are pretty similarly proportioned, with the Tab S9 coming in slightly taller and thinner. The iPad Air, however, is noticeably lighter, weighing over 30g less than the Tab S9 at 462g to the S9's 498g. Both tablets feature an appealing aluminum chassis, and both (as you'd expect in 2023) use USB-C ports for charging/wired connection.

If flair is important, the iPad Air is a clear winner in the colorway battle. It's available in five options, and almost all of them are bolder (and, to my eye, more appealing) than the two options offered for the Tab S9's chassis.

The Air comes in pink, purple, blue, space gray, and starlight, while the Tab S9 is only available in graphite and beige (even the naming convention is working against the Samsung tablet here).

The rear of the iPad Air reflects Apples minimalist design aesthetic, with just the camera, logo, and an ellipsis of dots visible, while the Tab S9 looks a little chunkier largely due to the magnetic dock for the included S Pen.

Both tablets support a proprietary stylus: the excellent S Pen in Samsung's case, and the Apple Pencil in the case of the iPad Air. Both are solid styli but the latest generation of the S Pen is marginally more responsive (with a latency of 2.8ms vs the Pencil's 8ms) and has a better, sleeker hand feel.

More importantly, the S Pen is included in the cost of the Tab S9, whereas Apple only sells it separately.

Another significant difference between the two tablets is their water resistance (or lack thereof). The Tab S9 boasts IP68 dust/water resistance—that's the highest particle resistance rating and second-highest water resistance rating, meaning it can survive being fully immersed in water for up to 30 minutes. The iPad has no equivalent protective rating at all.

In terms of real estate, the two tablets displays are pretty comparable, with the Tab S9 covering 11-inches and the iPad Air just a hair smaller at 10.9-inches.

However, the Tab S9 has a clear edge in terms of crispness and panel tech—its screen is a sharp 2560 x 1600 AMOLED, while the iPad Air's screen is a 2360 x 1640 IPS LCD. That's not to say that the iPad Air's screen isn't a nice display, it just can't match the Samsung's AMOLED color gamut and contrast superiority.

On the other hand, the Apple ecosystem continues to lead the Android marketplace in terms of software, bolstered by additions like Apple Arcade and iPadOS 16. Apple continues to spend to secure exclusive apps that just aren't available on the Android side, and has done an impressive job overall of optimizing a number of apps specifically to work (and display) well on their tablets.

The Tab S9 runs on Android 13, with Samsung's One UI 5.1.1 layer offering a number of upgrades to the included apps and widgets, as well as DeX software which allows you to connect your tablet to and control it via a desktop PC, opening up a lot of expanded capabilities not available on the Apple side of the aisle.

To some extent, software preference will come down to which ecosystem you're already invested in (particularly true if you already own other devices in either family), and which UI you're most comfortable navigating. Objectively, however, Apple has the edge here, due largely to their continued investment in top quality app support for their mobile devices.

Broadly speaking, Apple's OS and software library have the advantage of advanced and constantly improving messaging and enhanced safety and privacy tools. Android, on the other hand, generally has better multitasking tools and language and accessibility options.

Bear in mind, however, that both have their flaws, as well. Apple's fancy Messages upgrades only work if you're messaging another Apple user, for instance.

While the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip from Qualcomm is a powerhouse - especially with a few Samsung-specific upgrades - it still can't compare to the efficiency and power of Apple's M1 chip.

That said, the Tab S9 has an optional upgrade to 12GB of RAM, while the iPad Air is only available in an 8GB offering. The additional RAM may have an impact in some particularly memory intensive applications, or while multi-tasking, but for the most part, the edge provided by the M1 chip makes the iPad Air the superior performer.

In terms of battery life, Apple advertises that the iPad Air should last you for 10 hours of productivity tasks, likely significantly less under higher loads like gaming or streaming video. The Tab S9 edges it out but is in the same general ballpark, packing an 8,400mAh battery with an advertised life of 12 hours; not as large an upgrade as you might expect based on capacity, which is likely due to the efficiency of the M1.

It's also notable that the iPad Air can be upgraded to support 5G at the cost of an additional $150, while the Tab S9 doesn't include 5G support at any price. For that, you'd have to upgrade to the S9's larger and more expensive sibling, the Tab S9+.

While the rear camera on the Tab S9 offers a slightly higher resolution than the Air's (13MP vs. the Air's 12MP), the actual quality of the two cameras is fairly similar.

The front-facing cameras on both tablets sport the same resolution at 12MP each, and both offer ultrawide framing and can record video at 4K and 60fps.

While they're very close, if you have no particular loyalty to either the Apple or Android ecosystems, the iPad Air is my choice due largely to its superior processor, more robust software offerings, and lower price point.

One of the best mid-range tablets out there

Largely due to its price, the excellent M1 processor, and the frankly unfair advantage of Apple's walled garden of software, the iPad Air edges out the Tab S9 in the battle for superior mid-range tablet. This is especially true if you're more comfortable/familiar with Apple devices and UI, or already own other Apple products.

However, if you're already invested in Android apps and devices and don't mind paying a few hundred dollars more, the Tab S9 is an excellent alternative, especially when you consider its AMOLED display and improved durability - not to mention the fact that once you factor in the included S Pen and higher base storage, the price difference almost disappears.

Just edged out

A solid new entry in Samsung's proud S series lineage, the new Tab S9 just barely misses the mark set by the iPad Air largely due to its inflated price. Bear in mind, however, that if you want to add an Apple Pencil or more storage to the iPad Air, that advantage shrinks considerably.

Alan is an experienced culture, commerce, and tech writer with a background in newspaper reporting. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone, Paste Magazine, The Escapist, ESPN, PC Gamer, and a multitude of other outlets. He has over twenty years of experience writing reviews, deals posts, and roundups of the best tech and his debut novel, The Sixth Borough, is coming soon.