Tablets
Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 – the custom Honeycomb Android tablet for $469
March 22, 2011 | by Andrew Kameka
Samsung Tablets
Samsung Mobile released the Samsung Galaxy Tab, a 7-inch screen, and then followed-up with the Galaxy Tab 10.1, which has 10.1-inch screen. Samsung backtracked and moved forward by announcing a new Android tablet, the Galaxy Tab 8.9, that meets the two in the middle.
The Samsung Galaxy will sell for $469 as a 16 GB model, and 32 GB for $569 early this summer. The Galaxy Tab 8.9 differs from previously announced tablets because it features Samsung’s custom user interface. Samsung tweaked the Honeycomb UI to add in its own home screen launcher and Android widgets, a custom app switcher, and retooled some of the design elements that ship with the default Honeycomb experience. One prominent feature of this UI is the “Mini Apps Tray” that allows up to six apps to function in a small window without switching away from your main task. So if you have a browser window open but want to launch your favorite Android Twitter app, press the Mini Apps button and operate it on in one area of the screen.
The original Galaxy Tab is great for portability but lacks the features that make the larger 10.1 device appealing. The 8.9 seeks to merge those two desires by being compact but feature rich. The device is 8.6 mm thin, 479 grams in weight, and has a 6,000 mAh battery that supoprts up to 10 hours of video playback.
The Tab 8.9 also adds a new version of TouchWiz for tablets, also be featured on the Galaxy Tab 10.1, which Samsung says offers “superior multi-tasking and enhanced user interaction and navigation.” Each version offers its own strengths and weaknesses, but also raises issues about whether these new devices offer the best “future proof” to receive more updates and continued support. We’ll see soon.
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I'm interested to see how the 8.9" tablet feels. I own a GTablet (10.1") and it's great, although I think that an 8.9 could be a better "holding" experience. I'm also a bit skeptical about their custom apps tray. Even in TouchWiz 3.0 you cannot customize the apps in the launcher tray (AFAIK), so I don't see the 6 apps being customizable, especially since it's Samsung.
I thought there was supposed to be a stock android tablet from Samsung. Is this no longer the case? They could make their reputation for slow updates disappear by just offering a stock android option. Then they could release stock android updates first for those that chose stock and give the customized version to people when it is ready. Anyone sitting on a customized version that felt that they were waiting to long could always just switch to stock. What isn't to like about this idea?
I really like the Galaxy Tab 8.9. It is small enough to be super portable, and big enough to make for a great tablet. I really like that Samsung redesigned the tablets a few weeks after Apple released the iPad 2. As soon as this tablet comes out, I am going to get one! As soon as I do the first app that is going on the tab will be the DISH Remote Access app. The cool thing about this app is it lets me watch TV using my 922 SlingLoaded receiver. As long as I have a 3G or wifi connection, I can stream live TV and recorded shows anywhere I want. TV is just so much better when you can watch it when you want. I love this app and as a customer and employee of DISH Network, and I know it will be perfect for the Galaxy Tab!
nice tablet…i like it
I got this from here. I was very very lucky
http://gadgetsales.net/exclusive You can get XBox, iPhone and Dell laptops if you’re eligible. They are doing this promotion for some time this spring.