Galaxy Tab S12 tablets elevate the sound experience with 4-channel spatial audio

Samsung's new Galaxy Tab S12 series introduces a handful of hardware upgrades, the most unexpected of which might be better sound. The Galaxy Tab S12+ and the Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra get twice as many audio channels as the previous generation.

The Galaxy Tab S11 and S11 Ultra had four speakers, one for each corner, split into two channels. In essence, they had a quad-speaker setup wired in a dual-channel stereo output.

Dolby Atmos was virtualized, creating the illusion of a wider space through clever audio tricks, but everything was still delivered through a two-channel audio output.

This year, Samsung has upgraded the setup with 4-channel spatial audio. The Galaxy Tab S12+ and Tab S12 Ultra have four speakers and four channels. And yes, Samsung thankfully didn't introduce this upgrade as an Ultra-exclusive. The sound setup is similar on both models.

In practice, a lot depends on how good the physical speakers are. Both Tab S12 tablets are slightly thinner than the 2025 models, and we've seen Samsung's ambitions for thinner devices leading to poorer speakers before. The Galaxy Z Fold 7, and arguably the Galaxy Z Fold 8, have suffered because of that.

We'll have to see — or hear — if Samsung avoided recreating that scenario for its latest premium tablets. They're only a few tenths of a millimeter thinner than last year's models, so they're hopefully fine. We will talk more about the overall sound experience in our upcoming Galaxy Tab S12 reviews.

In theory, the Galaxy Tab S12's upgraded 4-channel audio should sound more immersive when streaming content and playing games. Potentially, it could also help productivity-oriented users with audio or video editing.

The Galaxy Tab S12+ and the Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra will go on sale in select markets on October 7.