Samsung quietly launches budget Galaxy Tab A9 and Galaxy Tab A9 Plus with 5G

Samsung usually involves a lot of fanfare in its product release announcements. The Galaxy S flagships and foldables are always launched with large-scale global events, and even other products like A-series phones and the FE lineup are given due space. But for reasons best known to Samsung, the company has very quietly launched the Galaxy Tab A9 and Galaxy Tab A9 Plus, putting the devices on sale over the weekend without a press announcement, despite them being contenders for good budget Android tablets.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A9 and Galaxy Tab A9 Plus have been silently launched in India. Product listings of the tablets went live over the weekend as part of the online sale season in the country. It is unknown when Samsung will release the tablets in other regions, but past leaks have indicated that they will launch globally.

Galaxy Tab A9

According to the listing on Amazon India, the Galaxy Tab A9 comes with an 8.7-inch LCD with a resolution of 1,340 x 800 resolution with a 60Hz refresh rate. Powering the tablet is a MediaTek Helio G99 processor, 4GB RAM, and 64GB storage. There is an 8MP rear camera with autofocus, a 2MP front camera, and a 5,100mAh battery.

The Amazon listing mentions a Wi-Fi variant and a Wi-Fi plus 5G variant. However, it also states that both variants support a physical SIM and an eSIM, which appears to be a listing error to us as the Wi-Fi-only variant is unlikely to have telephony support.

Past leaks have suggested that this tablet also has 15W charging support. It is also said to have a 3.5mm headphone jack alongside the USB-C port. We could not confirm these details in the current product listing.

The Galaxy Tab A9 is priced at Rs. 12,999 (~$156) for the Wi-Fi variant and Rs. 15,999 (~$192) for the 5G variant.

Galaxy Tab A9 Plus

According to the listing on Amazon India, the Galaxy Tab A9 Plus comes with an 11-inch LCD with a resolution of 1,920 x 1200 resolution with a 90Hz refresh rate. Powering the tablet is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 (SM6375) processor, 8GB RAM, and 128GB storage. There is an 8MP rear camera with autofocus, a 5MP front camera, and a 5,100mAh battery.

There are some ambiguous details in this product listing, too. For one, the listing mentions an S Pen in the package, but the pictured box contents do not reflect the same. The Wi-Fi variant appears to be available in only a 128GB variant, while the Wi-Fi plus 5G variant comes in 64GB and 128GB variants. It also states that both variants support a physical SIM and an eSIM, which appears to be a listing error to us as the Wi-Fi-only variant is unlikely to have telephony support.

The battery information also does not align with past leaks that have suggested a 7,040mAh battery with 15W charging support, which would be in line with the larger size of the tablet. Past leaks have indicated a 3.5mm headphone jack alongside the USB-C port, but we could not locate the same in this listing.

The Galaxy Tab A9 Plus is priced at Rs. 20,999 (~$252) for the 128GB Wi-Fi variant and Rs. 22,999 (~$276) for the 64GB 5G variant. Pricing for the 128GB 5G variant is unknown. Pre-orders are open, while the listing mentions that the tablet will be released on October 17, 2023, so expect open sales to begin on that date.