tablet

Samsung: Galaxy Tab has leg up on Apple iPad

BERLIN--When Samsung debuted its Galaxy Tab on Thursday, it made a bold claim: the device is at least as good as today's dominant tablet, Apple's iPad.

"Honestly, I don't see anything [about the Galaxy Tab] that is weaker than the iPad," W.P. Wong, head of Samsung Mobile's product planning team, said at a press conference here at the IFA electronics show.

And in several ways, he said, the Galaxy Tab is stronger. It permits both picture-taking and video chat with front- and back-mounted cameras. Its weight of 380 grams (0.8 pounds) is considerably less than the iPad, which weighs 680 grams (1.5 pounds) without 3G and 730g (1.6 pounds) with it.

"In terms of the weight, you may not think it's a significant factor. But we think, through consumer research, that weight is very critical to enjoy the user experience," Hong said.

The product itself will begin shipping in late September or early October in Europe and by year's end in the U.S.

Samsung is already working to raise expectations about as high as they'll go.

"The Galaxy Tab will change our lives," Samsung Mobile President J.K. Shin said. "It is a true paradigm-shifter." … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab Android tablet goes official

Samsung's plans to create the Galaxy Tab Android tablet can't come as much of a surprise at this point, but today's announcement at IFA 2010 marks the first time we're seeing official specs from the company.

Official pricing is still unknown, but we now know that the device is due to hit European markets in mid-September, and the U.S. and Asia by year's end. The Galaxy Tab's size and specs put it somewhere between the phone-like Dell Streak and the magazine-size Apple iPad. The Tab uses a 7-inch capacitive touch screen with a … Read more

Priority Inbox sorts Gmail

Links from Tuesday's episode of Loaded: Priority Inbox sorts Gmail MySpace gives into Facebook iTunes song previews double NASA signs up for Flickr 10-inch Android tablet arrives

Archos reveals five new Android tablets for fall

Archos carries the distinction of being one of the first manufacturers to produce an Android tablet. Now, it seems it's gunning to be the manufacturer with the largest stable of Android tablets.

Today, Archos revealed its plans to deliver no fewer than five new Android-based tablets in 2010. According to the company, all of its tablets are scheduled to be released about September and October, and each it promises to ship each tablet with Android 2.2 installed. Here's the lineup:… Read more

Buzz Out Loud Ep. 1298: Forking tired of Android forks (Podcast)

On today's show, Google does us a solid in the ham-filtering department, we wonder whether Paul Allen might have waited too long to sue the Internet, or whether this is just the beginning, and we speculate whether seven inches is, in fact, the perfect size after all. Plus, Internet vigilantes on the loose! --Molly

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Apple now shipping iPad within 24 hours

Apple is now shipping the iPad within 24 hours after an order is placed.

The new, speedier processing contrasts with the shipping times that followed the tablet's April launch in which orders typically took at least a week to fill.

Swamped by a huge number of preorders and initial sales, Apple had trouble keeping up with customer demand. On the first day, the company sold 300,000 of the tablets. That initial surge depleted the stock of iPads, forcing Apple to push back the 3G version by a week and the international debut by a month.

The lack of … Read more

ViewSonic outs Android ViewPad 7

ViewSonic is throwing its hat into the Android tablet ring with a 7-inch offering called ViewPad.

The tablet will be made official at this year's upcoming IFA. So far, confirmed specs include a 7-inch screen, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, microSD memory expansion, microphone, speaker, 3.5mm headphone jack, mini USB, and both front- and rear-facing cameras.

Pricing, capacity, and availability are yet to be determined, as is the specific version of Android the device will ship with. The image shown here, provided by ViewSonic, is a computer rendering of the device powered off, offering no hint of how Android … Read more

Early tablet executive leaves Microsoft

Bill Mitchell, a corporate vice president who led some of Microsoft's early forays into tablet computing, has left the company in recent months, CNET has learned.

Although Mitchell has been gone from Redmond for a bit, according to sources, his biography had remained on the company's Web site until earlier this month. Microsoft confirmed his departure, but did not offer further details.

Mitchell's listed title was "Corporate Vice President, PC3 - Platform, Components, Creation & Collaboration" and his biography (as cached by Google) stated that he was "responsible for strategy, planning and project incubation … Read more

Report: iPad to rule tablet market through 2012

Apple's reign as king of the tablet market should stay strong for at least the next couple of years, says a new report from iSuppli.

Though a variety of tech players have been cooking up their own tablet devices, no true competitor is likely to surface until next year, giving Apple a dominant share of the market through 2012 if not further, according to iSuppli.

This year, the iPad is expected to account for 74.1 percent of all global tablet shipments, with the remaining percentage left mostly to an assortment of older PC-style tablets. Next year, it will … Read more

Samsung teases with Galaxy Tab video

Bit by bit, details about Samsung's forthcoming tablet are appearing.

On Tuesday, Samsung released a very short video hinting at some of the features of the so-called Galaxy Tab. The video can be found here.

The Galaxy Tab is just one of many devices attempting to challenge Apple and the iPad in the very hot consumer touch-screen tablet space right now. The video positions Samsung's Android tablet as going beyond what the iPad is already offering, which is necessary if any contender is going to make any sort of dent in Apple's lead.

It starts by showing … Read more