Can the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 become the ultimate iPad ‘killer’?

Posted at 7:02 pm October 20, 2011

Tags: Consumer Electronics, Hardware Solutions, Technology Industry

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By Alexander Villafania

QUEZON CITY, METRO MANILA – Samsung earned a fair amount of success when it launched the 7-inch Galaxy Tab last year and has since put pressure on manufacturers yet to release a tablet PC.

Then this year, just when the Korean device giant was about to launch its latest line of Galaxy Tabs (the 10.1 and the 8.9), Apple filed a patent lawsuit against Samsung, citing intellectual property infringement because of some overt similarities between the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Apple’s hugely successful iPad 2.

Nevertheless, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 saw the light of day and was launched in various markets.

Of the two models, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 was the first to make landfall in the Philippines. It is already being sold commercially in numerous PC dealers in Metro Manila. It would also be the first 10-inch tablet PC to be commercially launched in the Philippines (save for the relatively unknown brand Archos 101).

How it looks

Just from the look and feel, Galaxy Tab 10.1 does have oddly similar aspects as the iPad 2. Not that the similarities make the Tab 10.1 a copycat of Apple’s flagship tablet, but it does make one feel that holding up the Tab 10.1 will make one think it’s actually an iPad.

Still, one could not fault Samsung for following a design concept that is actually going to be used in other tablet PCs, whether Apple likes it or not.

Corning’s much-praised Gorilla Glass is once again the favored glass cover of the screen. This stops the screen from being scratched by solid objects, including keys, coins, or other devices. Technically, its orientation is landscape and the front facing 2-megapixel camera is on one side along with the gyroscopic lens. On either side are the two stereo speakers. Behind it is 8 megapixel camera that comes with a nifty flash.

One thing that is absent with the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is a microSD slot, which was made available to the first Galaxy Tab. While most people would cringe at the thought of not being able to transfer files from their memory cards, there is some wisdom to having no microSD (which will be explained later).

At the top edge of the device are the power button, the volume controls, and a 3.5 mm jack for headphones. The bottom edge has the data and power port. This means that the Galaxy Tab’s accessories would have to always consider its landscape orientation.

Its dimensions are 9.69×6.71×43 inches and while sizeable in terms of the front real-estate, is actually slightly thinner than the original 7-inch Galaxy Tab. From the smooth curves at the corners to the tapering edges, the Galaxy Tab 10.1’s design is near perfect, save for some really close physical similarities to the iPad 2.

Under the hood

The Galaxy Tab is powered by an NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual core processor running at 1 gigahertz and a 1 gigabyte DDR2 memory. Essentially, this is one of the fastest tablet PCs around, which makes it a prime choice for graphics-heavy applications, notably some video games and high-definition videos (1080p). It also has a choice between a 16 gigabyte internal storage to 32 Gb.

WiFi connectivity and Bluetooth capabilities are also present. One good feature is that the Galaxy Tab 10.1 supports DLNA (digital living network alliance) connectivity, which allows users to connect the device to a home network.

The value of this is that the user does not have to transfer files to the Galaxy Tab and keep it there as he only needs to wirelessly transfer or even stream content over a wireless local network. Essentially, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is future-proofed.

Completing the connectivity is an available 3G SIM slot, which connects the Galaxy Tab to a 3G network. And since telecommunication service providers are starting to offer cloud computing services, it won’t be a surprise until users will start uploading their personal files to private, cloud-based services. This saves the need for users to keep valuable data on the Galaxy Tab and instead have it kept in the Internet where it can be accessed by the user anytime and on any device.

It’s in the software

For most people, hardware resource is a primary reason why they buy devices. However, in the past years, more people are relying on software for their needs. In fact, software is slowly becoming the primary reason why users would choose a device. In recent months, many tech-savvy Filipinos are purchasing devices that run on the latest Google Android operating system.

The Galaxy Tab has the Google Android 3.0 “Honeycomb” operating system, which can be upgraded over-the-air to the latest Android 3.2, if needed. One of the key features of Android 3.0 is that these could execute applications much faster, can do more multitasking activities, as well as open up developers to make applications on large-screen tablet PCs.

Samsung added some stuff that made the Galaxy Tab 10.1 stand out from the rest of the tablet PC crowd. Samsung’s TouchWiz interface has vastly improved the usability of the Android 3.0. For one, TouchWiz’s Live Panels allow easy access to the Android widgets installed. Add to this is the Mini Apps Tray on the bottom side of the screen for the most commonly used applications.

The best application in the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is the Social Hub, which unifies all messages from a variety of social networking and email services. It doesn’t require the user to open separate browsers and tabs just to access these content.

Battery and overall performance

The Galaxy Tab 10.1 is powered by a 7000 mAh battery, one of the more powerful batteries for such large-screen devices. At maximum use, with the 3G or WiFi and Bluetooth active, it can run for about 6 hours before running out of juice. When only using 3G and no Bluetooth on, it runs for at least 8 hours. WiFi only will give it around 9 to 10 hours.

Samsung claims that video playback would give the Galaxy Tab 10.1 six hours, thereabouts, which is actually close to real-world experience even when the WiFi is active.

The experience with the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is quite positive and much can be expected given the company’s success with the first 7-inch Galaxy Tab. However, the challenge now is getting users to accept its price.

At P29,900 it’s only a couple thousand pesos cheaper than the iPad 2 (WiFi+3G) and little over P5,000 more expensive than other up-and-coming tablet PCs. That price is just about the cost of a fairly-powered laptop.

Perhaps the convenience of carrying around a tablet PC – and the excitement one feels when being ogled for carrying one – would be more than enough to compensate for the price tag.