Galaxy Tab – Android 2.2 7″ Tablet Extravaganza

The Samsung Galaxy Tab, which will most likely take a while to hit the states, appears to be an oversized Galaxy S Android phone, without the ear piece.  It has all the other elements baked right in.  It comes in a 7″ diagonal screen form, with a 1Ghz processor inside, 16GB or 32GB of storage built in a microSD expansion slot for up to 32GB more memory, 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, a 3MP camera with flash in back and a 1.3mp camera up front.  It also sports quad band GSM and for now 3G in European standard form.  Nothing that’ll support your AT&T or T-Mobile network yet.  We have seen many reports and rumors of a CDMA model and I really wouldn’t be surprised.  What does the cellular service give you?  Video calls, and audio calls if you use a headset or bluetooth headset with a built in microphone.  You definitely don’t want to walk around with this next to your head…well maybe you do.  I wouldn’t.  Samsung has promised that while this does ship with Android 2.2 (Froyo) it will get Gingerbread when it’s available.  Gingerbread will be the next Android release and at this time, it’s unknown if that means Android 3.0 or possibly Android 2.5, or 2.3.  Samsung also spilled the beans that their next hardware iteration will also get the next iteration of Android, codenamed Honeycomb as well.

[/Rant Begin]Remember the original Galaxy S?  It was released in Europe first, and featured all the same things as the Tab, only in a small form and smaller screen.  Then, it went to the US in four different forms, missing some features and in some cases, turning downright ugly.  Do I expect the same thing to happen to the Tab?  Maybe. Probably not.  I see the tab remaining in it’s current form, maybe with some frequency changes (to support US cell market).  This is because it won’t be marketed as a true phone, so the carriers won’t be so inclined to butcher it.  [/Rant Complete]

That being said, it looks like a great device that is big enough for some serious video watching and general web surfing without feeling cramped on a tiny smart phone screen, yet not so big that you’d have to lug it around.

It’s small enough for a one had hold while you use the other to control it, small enough to fit into some purses, and easily tuck into a backpack.  I could actually see some people replacing a cell phone with the Tab.  I see them making all phone calls with a BT headset and leaving the Tab on the desk, or table etc.

Samsung is said to have made a fairly decent update to Touchwiz 3.0 in order to support the higher resolution screen, now at 1024 x 600.  They have stated that they have tested a number of Android apps already and most of them work without a problem.  With the help of Google they have tested out the top 200 apps and have contacted the developers of the apps they found not compatible to ask for their help in creating a tablet capable app.  [Engadget] Hopefully this will benefit all Android Tablet makers, as there are a number of them making their way to the market.

And now, the official product video, which can also be found at the Galaxy Tab website linked below.

Samsung Galaxy Tab