Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 Announced: New Android Tablet Brings Speed, Slim Frame & Power -- What You Need To Know [Release Date, Price & Specs]

Samsung has just announced that it would be releasing a new tablet, the Galaxy Tab S2, in two sizes. The Tab S2 8.0 and S2 9.7 will be released in the United States on September 3 LTE variants to be made available via all four telcomm carriers. 

According to The Verge, the Galaxy Tab S2 is Samsung's first "premium" tablet to be released by the South Korean firm in quite some time. With a 4:3 screen ratio, this is believed to be a direct design rival to Apple's popular iPad. 

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 Specs 

The Tab S2 is the company's newest flagship device and is currently Samsung's slimmest, lightest and fastest tablet. Below are some of the noteworthy features of the tablet. 

• Slim Frame - The new device offers a more "comfortable" user grip with its square shape, as opposed to its predecessor's rectangular shape. In terms of dimensions, the Galaxy Tab S2 was made slimmer with a 5.6 mm profile, for both sizes, and is reported to be about 16% slimmer than its predecessor.
• Lightweight - Enjoy a lightweight tablet which is pegged at an impressive 9.4 oz.* (8.0-inch) and 13.8 oz.* (9.7-inch).
• Super AMOLED Display - Offering stunning visual content with 4:3 aspect ratio, the Tab S2 sports a 1536 x 2048 pixels.
• Under The Hood Power - Both devices run on Android 5.0 Lollipop and features 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB internal storage, and an octa-core Exynos 5433 processor.

Other features consumers will get with the Galaxy Tab S2 would be expandable microSD card support (up to 128 GB), dual cameras (2 MP in the front and an 8 MP back clicker). 

"We set out to make the Galaxy Tab S2 the most powerful tablet we've ever created," quoted Business Wire of Gary Riding, senior vice president, Mobile Computing at Samsung Electronics America. "The Tab S2 seamlessly integrates with the Samsung device family and simplifies the connected lifestyle of our consumers. It also reflects our commitment to listen to and learn from consumer feedback, giving Samsung users even more of what they love."

Pre-orders for the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 kicks off today. The WiFi 9.7 inch model has a retail tag of $500 while the smaller 8 inch tablet is $100 cheaper. For those who want LTE, you can expect to pay an addition $150 or opt for a lock-in contract with a carrier. 

For those in Canada, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 will hit the market a bit later, specifically September 16.