The Tablet
The Samsung Galaxy Tab is the first major tablet release since theApple iPad launched about five months ago.
It's been a long time coming, too. The Galaxy Tab was one of the all-time worst kept secrets in tech until it was finally unveiled at Berlin's IFA show back in September, and as the first major Android tablet release, it holds a weight of responsibility on its shoulders.
With a tidal wave of Android tablets about to sweep through the tech world, it's possible that if the Galaxy Tab were to disappoint, it could damage the perception that Android tablets will be able to top the iPad on features and performance.
The price certainly indicates that Samsung believes the Galaxy Tab can topple the Apple iPad from its tablet tower. The 16GB model costs £530, which is £100 more than the Wi-Fi only version of the iPad. It is, however, exactly the same price as the cheapest 3G iPad, which is clearly no accident.
That price doesn't include any 3G access either, so if you want web connectivity on the go, it's going to cost you a monthly fee from one of the mobile networks. Prices will likely start at around £10 a month for 1GB of data.
Once the Tab has gone on sale, you should be able to pick up a subsidised model from one of the mobile networks, in return for signing a contract. However, currently we're not sure how much these deals are likely to cost.
This pricing strategy is slightly surprising - the Android tablet would be a lot more appealing if it was a bit cheaper than the iPad.
Samsung's decision no doubt also has something to do with it not wanting to undercut the cost of its own Android smartphones, but it's a big risk.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab has a lot to live up to, then. Especially when you consider it's a lot smaller than Apple's tablet - its 7-inch screen is dwarfed by the iPad's 9.7-incher.
Keeping up appearances
With a slick black and white-styled body and a bright and shiny TFT touchscreen, the Samsung Galaxy Tab gets off to a good start in that it looks absolutely fabulous.
It looks every bit the iPad killer that Samsung wants it to be. And while it may look lot like the iPad in pictures, it's quite a bit smaller and feels a lot different in the hand.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab sitting between the Apple iPad and iPod touch 4G
At 12mm it's quite thick, only fractionally thinner than the 9.7-inch iPad. As such it feels proportionately more chunky than the Apple device; not necessarily a bad thing.
The body is entirely made of plastic, so it feels less solid than the aluminium-backed iPad but it still feels adequately sturdy and tough. The plastic case enables it to stay pretty light at only 380g.
On the front of the device there are four touch buttons, similar to to those found on your average Android phone – one for home, one for options, a back button and one for search.
On the top of the device sits a 3.5mm headphone jack. The on/off button sits on the right hand side next to the volume controls and further down that left hand side you'll also find slots for a SIM card and a microSD expansion card.
The underside of the device is adorned by a charging and docking connector which looks identical to that of the iPad and iPhone. This will come into play when all the planned Galaxy Tab accessories start to spill out onto the market. The only external feature on the left side is a small microphone.
FEATURES
The Samsung Galaxy Tab is powered by the Cortex A8 1Ghz processor which, in terms of sheer oomph, is a comparative match for the 1Ghz A4 processor found in the iPad and iPhone 4.
As such, we were expecting the Galaxy Tab to be at least as responsive, slick and speedy as the iPad. However, in many instances this just wasn't the case. More on that a little later.
Screen
The Samsung Galaxy Tab was orignally rumoured to have an AMOLED screen which would have been fantastic and undeniably iPad-beating.
However, the 7-inch display we have here is just a fairly standard TFT LCD. It's bright and colourful enough, and the WSVGA screen resolution (1024x600) is only slightly lower than that of the 9.7-inch iPad (so that's 260ppi versus 132ppi) which means that the display on the Galaxy Tab is a lot sharper.
Camera
The Tab comes with two built-in cameras: one 3MP rear-facing camera with LED flash and also a 1.3MP front-facing camera for video conferencing. This is an area that Samsung beats Apple by default – the iPad has no cameras at all and so for anyone who considers rear and front-facing cameras to be essential features, the Galaxy Tab is already a front-runner.
Connectivity
Unlike the iPad, the Samsung Galaxy Tab is not available in non-3G guise. This is intended to be an on-the-go device - an essential bag-stored companion for those long journeys – which means 3G connectivity is central to its functionality.
Alongside this 3G connectivity sits 802.11n Wi-Fi which means streaming videos and the like when you're connected to a wireless network should be easy, and you've also got Bluetooth 3.0 in there as well for transferring files and streaming to external devices like headphones and speakers.
Storage
Despite the lack of a Wi-Fi only version, the Galaxy Tab does come in two different flavours according to how much storage space you think you're going to need. There's a 16GB version and also a 32GB version - it's the 16GB unit which costs £529.99, and we haven't got a price yet for the 32GB version.
The microSD slot can add up to another 32GB of additional storage so technically you'd be able to match the iPad's 64GB version if you really needed to.
There's 512MB of RAM, too, which is the de facto amount for these kind of portable devices at the moment.
Operating system
And of course, the rest of the features on the Galaxy Tab come courtesy of the inclusion of Android 2.2, or 'Froyo'. It's the most up-to-date version of Android currently available which means no software features get left on the table.
We like the Galaxy Tab, we really do. But the fact is that Samsung has launched a device with a massive identity problem.
Is it a phone? No - it makes phone calls, sure, but it's too big to use as a primary mobile phone.
Is it a tablet? Again, no we don't think it is one. It's too small and fiddly and lacking in optimisations. Tablets need to distinguish themselves from smartphones by being bigger, better, more powerful, feature rich and interesting.
Essentially, they need a reason to exist. And this is where we're struggling with the Galaxy Tab.
The pricing is all wrong, too. Clearly, Samsung needs to avoid undercutting the prices of its own Android smartphones like the Galaxy S. But in doing so, it's made the Galaxy Tab £100 more expensive than the cheapest iPad - a class-leading product.
It may be the same price as the 3G iPad, but we can't help feeling that this product would be much more appealing were it slightly cheaper. A better-value, non-3G model would have a much better chance of success. There are rumours that such a device is on the way, but Samsung is yet to confirm.
The Android interface is fantastic, and in indoor conditions everything works pretty well. The screen is bright and colourful. Watching videos and listening to music is easy, as is transferring content to and from the device.
The Android Market enables you to customise the device beyond recognition, and so you'll never get bored of it.
The size has its benefits, too. It's a lot more pocket and bag friendly than the iPad, but it's still a pretty hefty object to have to lug round with you everywhere.
Flash support is a major advantage over the iPad, and the ability to surf online video is very well received.
The sluggish web browsing is very frustrating. As Google readily admits, Android 2.2 is in no way optimised for tablets, and so we can't help feeling that the Galaxy Tab has come along a bit too early.
The screen is also quite disappointing. It's not terrible, but it's in no way a class-leading piece of glass. With the 7-inch screen, it's an incredibly portable device, and so an AMOLED screen would have gone down a treat.
The camera, too, is fairly poor. Again, it's nice to have this feature, but remember this is a £530 gadget. It's expensive, and so you expect all the features to be top-notch... But they're not.
Verdict:
We can't hide our disappointment in the Samsung Galaxy Tab. It had the potential to deliver a serious blow to Apple's iPad sales. But in truth, the Galaxy Tab is no match for the iPad. It's nowhere near as smooth, it's not as polished and remarkably, it's not even a match when it comes to value for money.
If portability and Android are your main concern, the Galaxy Tab is certainly a handy gadget to have in your geeky arsenal. But for £530, we were expecting a hell of a lot more.
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