Samsung today announced that the Galaxy Tab S6 is the world’s first tablet to support the HDR10+ format. Interestingly, the South Korean giant, along with 20th Century Fox and Panasonic, created the technology. Of course, that doesn’t mean Samsung got a free pass to flaunt the HDR10+ standard, as it says that the Galaxy Tab S6 went through rigorous quality testing to get the certification.
With the new standard, the Galaxy Tab S6 will be able to display media just the way the content creators want it to be seen. That’s because HDR10+ optimizes brightness levels according to the scene being displayed and this improves the viewing experience.
High Dynamic Range or HDR is a popular video technology that is applied to smartphones and other devices. It helps enhance brightness, contrast, and color accuracy on videos and still images. Every device that is capable of displaying HDR videos is by default compatible with HDR10. With the HDR10 standard, brightness can go up to 1000 nits.
Now, HDR10+ is an evolution of HDR and it allows for maximum brightness of up to 4,000 nits. The basic difference between the two formats is that the metadata that HDR10 gets is static. In simple words, this means that boundaries of brightness are preset and remain the same throughout the duration of a video. So, a bright scene might end up looking too bright, and a dark scene might appear way too dim.
With HDR10+, the metadata is dynamic, which means every frame gets its own set of colors and parameters for brightness and contrast. As a result, each scene is more detailed than it would have been with HDR. As long as the content plays, the settings continue to be fine-tuned, improving on everything from shadow detail to saturation.
Right now, only Amazon Prime Video supports the latest generation of HDR and perhaps, Netflix and Universal will also join in on the fun soon. With a 10.5-inch Super AMOLED screen that has a resolution of 1600 x 2560 pixels and AKG and Dolby Atmos, watching media will theoretically be a very immersive experience on the Galaxy Tab S6.
The Galaxy Tab S6 is fueled by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 Mobile Platform. It is available in two memory options, a variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of native storage and a version with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. The storage is expandable, thanks to the 512GB microSD slot.
The tablet features a dual rear camera system, with one 13-megapixel unit and one 5-megapixel sensor. On the front, there is an 8-megapixel camera. A 7040mAh capacity battery powers the show and the slate also gets the new S Pen stylus. A Book Cover Keyboard can also be attached to the tablet. The detachable keyboard also features a trackpad for added functionality. Color options include Rose Blush, Mountain Gray, and Cloud Blue.
Other than the Galaxy Tab S6, the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note10 also support HDR 10+. The standard is free, and it can be used by any brand, so it’s not just limited to Samsung’s devices.