Samsung Galaxy Tab S to be Released Soon? Features and Specs
Samsung Electronics' Galaxy Tab (front) and Apple's iPad are seen in Seoul, in this May 13, 2013 file picture illustration. A U.S. jury on May 2, 2014, ordered Samsung Electronics Co Ltd to pay $119.6 million to Apple Inc, after it found the South Korean smartphone maker had infringed two Apple patents. During the month-long trial in a San Jose, California, federal court, Apple accused Samsung of violating patents on smartphone features including universal search, while Samsung denied wrongdoing. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/Files Reuters

The rumoured iPad Mini 3 release date later this 2014 will be no match to the recently unveiled Galaxy Tab S 8.4 from Samsung, a new report said.

Citing its latest research, DigiTimes of Taiwan called the Galaxy Tab S, which also comes in a 10.5-inch version, feature-rich as the new tablet series from Samsung has "made use of all the specialised features accessible from Android."

In the same report, DigiTimes declared that "the Galaxy S 8.4-inch tablet is expected to out-compete the iPad Mini in the second half of 2014." Apple is reportedly set to refresh the Retina-toting iPad Mini 2 it delivered in late 2013.

Analysts are anticipating the third instalment of the smaller iPad from Apple to touchdown in the fourth quarter of 2014 or a few months after the Tab S 8.4 commercial debut. Samsung will start selling the device this July.

However, even if the Tab S will be some months older by the time the iPad Mini 3 gets out, global consumers will likely remain enamoured with the former, said the DigiTimes Research.

Essentially, the report maintained that the latest high-end Android slate from Samsung will be an iPad Mini killer on three key features:

- A larger viewing and navigational front panel at 8.4-inch. Apple deployed the first two Minis on a 7.9-inch screen profile and there is no reason to believe that display size upgrade is being planned.

- Its ultra-thin and super-light build that easily beats both the iPad Mini 2 and the iPad Air 2. Trimming down the next model could prove a production challenge for Apple as the redesign could come compromise the device's battery life.

- The Galaxy Tab S benefits from Samsung's Super AMOLED display technology that its maker said will overwhelm the iPad Mini that takes pride on its Retina-fired up screen. In a review by Walt Mossberg of Re/code, he said that the Galaxy Tab S hardware is pretty impressive and the praise goes too on the display department. But Mossberg noted too that "the colour saturation may be a tad too strong for some tastes."

Yet even as the Galaxy Tab S 8.4 will prove a winner for Samsung against Apple's industry leading iPads, the former's sales figures may not be enough to lift the South Korean tech giant past its rivals this 2014. DigiTimes blames growing saturation in the high-end tablet market.

The iPad Mini 3 release date from Apple is likely to happen between October and November 2014, setting it on a direct collision course with that of Samsung's Galaxy Tab S 8.4.