Apple’s iPad has had no rivals for more than half a year. Now the first device that can compete with Apple’s revolutionary gadget finally hits the market. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab is already on the shelves of the stores in U.S. and Europe and will become available in Ukraine within a few weeks.
It’s a slim device with seven-inch touch screen. It’s very convenient for web browsing, emailing and chatting on the run. It can totally replace a notebook for watching video on the road. And it’s a good alternative to e-book readers.
I had an opportunity to test Galaxy Tab for two weeks. Giving it back to the Ukrainian Samsung office was a real tragedy for me. It’s one of those devices you quickly get used to.
Will I miss it? Sure, I will. First of all, because it showed me how comfortable it is to carry the Internet literally in my pocket.
Galaxy Tab is twice smaller than the iPad. It easily fits in the inner pocket of the jacket. If you prefer clothes without pockets, the gadget will not occupy much space in your bag.
You can take it out any moment you want and start browsing or checking your email immediately.
An Associated Press reporter demonstrates the Samsung Galaxy Tab during a product review in San Francisco, on Nov. 16. (AP)
Also you can’t comfortably work with netbook just holding it in your hands, you have to put in on some surface. There is no such problem with Galaxy Tab.”
In case you have a notebook or even a small netbook you will definitely not be able to carry it in your pocket. And after you take it out of your bag, you still have to open the cover to start working.
Also you can’t comfortably work with netbook just holding it in your hands, you have to put in on some surface. There is no such problem with Galaxy Tab.
Of course, the smart phones can do all the same, but it’s the size of the display that makes difference.
Smart phones usually have three and a half to four-inch displays, the seven-inch display of Galaxy Tab gives you a much more pleasant experience, whether you are browsing, watching video or reading an ebook.
Unlike iPad Samsung’s device can make phone calls and even has a frontal camera for video calls in 3G networks. It has one more three megapixel camera at the back side, which iPad also lacks.
Though quality of the pictures is quite mediocre, at least you will be able to make a photo in case you utterly need it. Owners of iPads can’t do that at all.
Galaxy Tab has quite a usual touch screen which is easily beaten by iPad’s gorgeous display. One more drawback – the sensor keys below the screen. They are too sensitive and users often have unwanted clicks.
Galaxy Tab has 16 GB of built-in memory plus Micro SD cards (up to 32 GB). It means you can take dozens of movies and thousands of ebooks with you. The device easily plays all the formats of video files, it’s a huge advantage assuming that the iPad has severe restrictions for video playback.
All in all Galaxy Tab is different enough from iPad to give buyers a real choice. If only it was cheaper than the iPad it would have good chances to become a true bestseller.”
As for battery life Galaxy Tab is lagging far behind the iPad.
While Apple’s gadget gives you an unprecedented 10+ hours of watching video, Galaxy Tab can only last for 4-5 hours.
But it gives you at least 5-6 hours of web browsing using 3G network, it’s not bad if compared to netbooks.
Galaxy Tab runs Android 2.2, an operating system built by Google.
Though Android is rapidly developing, Apple’s platform, which is called iOs, still seems to be much more comfortable for everyday use.
And while Android Market offers 100 000 apps, owners of iPads can choose from more than 300,000 applications available in Apple App Store.
But Samsung is definitely thinking more about profit margins than about the market share.
When Galaxy Tab appears in Ukraine in December its price tag will be as high as $1,000. For this amount of money you can easily buy iPad in its top configuration (3G, 64GB of built-in memory).
There is no doubt, that Galaxy Tab is a wonderful gadget, but iPad is already a legend and a style icon. So Samsung can count mostly on geeks, nerds and Android fans. All the others will most likely stick to Apple’s fancy device.
Anyways it seems that Samsung might bite a notable piece of the Apple’s market share, which is now close to 100 percent on the Tablet PC market. And it will be a huge success.
Kyiv Post news editor Alexey Bondarev can be reached at [email protected]
