Like you, I had the Tab S2 8.0 and really liked that tablet. Remember though that the size in the tablet's title refers to the screen size. I moved to the Galaxy Tab S3 9.7 and noticed the slightly larger tablet body size for about 2 hours and then it became a non-issue. Even though it is a 9.7" screen, we're talking about drastically different hardware from the old Samsung 10" days. Personally, unless you have very specific needs, I don't think you'll notice a difference.