Samsung allegedly working on ‘Tahoe’, a giant 18.4-inch Android tablet

With Samsung’s most recent device launches being surprisingly restrained, you could almost be forgiven for thinking the company didn’t care so much about the showmanship of releasing high-specced products with ridiculous features anymore. Case in point being the elegant and well-made Galaxy S6 and Note 5 phones. No longer are they smartphones packed with eye-watering feature lists, or a slew of gimmicky features no one needs. But that doesn’t mean the company is completely giving up on trying new, interesting things. At least, not if a recent rumor from SamMobile is anything to go by.

According to the site’s sources, Samsung is working on a tablet code-named ‘Tahoe’ also known internally as model number SM-T670. Allegedly, this tablet has a gigantic 18.4-inch screen. Sadly for those hoping for a bazillion pixels and ultra-sharp resolution, we could be disappointed. Despite being virtually double the usual large tablet size, it’s rumored to feature a 1080 x 1920 screen. That’s a pixel density of under 120ppi. In other words, a screen less sharp than the original iPhone’s. Granted, in a TV that wouldn’t be so bad, since it sits a few feet from your face. But with a tablet on your lap, at arm’s length, that’s going to look fuzzy and pixellated.

Other purported features include an octa-core 64-bit 1.6GHz Exynos 7580 processor, continuing Samsung’s recent tradition of using its own in-house chips. It’ll also house a 5,700mAh battery, 2GB RAM and 32GB internal storage (expandable to 128GB via MicroSD). It’ll supposedly have an 8MP camera on the back, and a 2.1MP camera on the front and run Android 5.1 Lollipop at launch. What’s more, it’s expected to measure in at a huge 451.8mm wide, 275.8mm tall and 11.9mm thick.

If released, it’ll be interesting to see how Samsung markets ‘Tahoe’. Is it a desktop-replacement Android-based tablet you can still stick in your backpack and carry around with you? Will the company create a bespoke keyboard to go alongside it, similar to the Surface and Surface Pro tablets from Microsoft? Although I can’t ever see myself needing such a huge table, I’m still very intrigued. Let’s hope Samsung still has it within them to surprise, confuse and shock us. It’s been too long.