Samsung sells Galaxy Tab 10.1N in Germany as workaround to Apple’s design ban

Samsung has begun selling a tweaked version of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Germany, where the tablet has been banned following Apple’s legal victory to block the slate for design patent copy-catting issues. The new tablet is called the Galaxy Tab 10.1N and features a modified exterior that is designed around what Apple can seek to block.

A significant part of Apple’s design patent in Europe is the use of edge-to-edge glass for the iPad screen. It appears that Samsung is working around this by adding a slightly thicker frame that wraps around the left and right sides of the Galaxy Tab 10.1N. Other than that tweak and a bump up to Bluetooth 3.0, the hardware should remain relatively unchanged from the previous version of the tablet.

It’s not clear whether this revised hardware design will be able to bypass Apple’s design patent claims, but Samsung is certainly testing the waters to find out. However, Apple also has software design claims against Samsung, such as in the US and Australia that may not be as easily bypassed with this design tweak. Below is an image of the original Galaxy Tab 10.1.

Article: RSS via SlashGear

Tags: Android, Apple, Galaxy Tab, Galaxy Tab 10.1N, Germany, Samsung, Tablet PC's

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Samsung Has Yet Another Android Tablet On The Way–Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus

Samsung has today revealed an update of its original Galaxy Tab, adding Android 3.2 and a dual-core processor to its smaller 7″ tablet.

As well as a software upgrade to the Honeycomb tablet version of Android, the Tab 7.0 Plus now includes a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, while the secondary front-facing camera has been beefed up from 1.3megapixels to 2.0.

The Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is also a little thinner and lighter than Samsung’s first attempt at an Android tablet, weighing 345g and with a thickness/thinness of just 9.96mm (the first weighed 380g and was 12mm thick).

The Tab 7.0 Plus has been announced for some parts of Europe thus far, and is expected to launch in mid-October. [Sammy Hub]

Article: RSS via Gizmodo UK

Tags: Android, Dual-Core, Europe, Galaxy Tab, Galaxy Tab 7.0, Honeycomb, Samsung, Tablet PC's

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 official: dual-core 1.4GHz CPU, Android 3.2, HSPA+

Here it is, official as official gets: Samsung just announced the Galaxy Tab 7.7. As the name suggests, it has a 7.7-inch (1280 x 800) display — specifically, a Super AMOLED Plus panel. Like so many other 7-inchers hitting the market, it runs Android 3.2 and yes, that’s a skinned flavor of Honeycomb, with Samsung’s tablet-optimized TouchWiz UX layered on top. Inside, it runs the same Samsung-made dual-core 1.4GHz processor found in the new Galaxy Note, along with an HSPA+ radio promising theoretical download speeds as high as 21Mbps. Other specs for the 0.74-pound (335-gram) tablet include 16GB to 64GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot, a 5,100mAh battery rated for 10 hours, 802.11n WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth 3.0 and dual 3MP and 2MP cameras. In a nutshell, it’s the in-between-sized do-over a lot of folks have been awaiting since the original Galaxy Tab grew stale — a slate that promises faster speeds and some seriously improved viewing angles. We’ll be the judge of that in our review, but in the meantime stay tuned for some early hands-on impressions.

Article: RSS via Engadget

Tags: Android, Android 3.2, Bluetooth 3.0, Dual-Core, Galaxy Tab, Galaxy Tab 7.7, GPS, Honeycomb, HSPA+, Samsung, Super AMOLED Plus, Tablet PC's, WiFi

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Samsung Galaxy Tab finally sees some Gingerbread action

Original 7-incher UK update arrives

Back in May, we told you how the original Android Samsung Galaxy Tab was getting its 2.3 update with the Gingerbread fun already available to Italian fandroids.

Well now finally the UK update has gone live too, with owners of the 7-inch former-Froyo device now able to update via Samsung’s Kies tool. Yep, Kies – sorry about that.

The original SamTab (as we affectionately call it) has fallen from the top table of tablet offerings (to think it was once touted as an iPad killer) as a result of new devices Xooming in (see what we did there?) but it is still a decent device in itself, and one that has become even more attractive as a result of the Gingerbread flavoured Android update.

It’s a shame it’s not a Honeycomb one, but beggars can’t be choosers.

The SamTab’s follow up, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 was finally priced and dated for a UK release earlier this week as well – it will hit shops on 4 August priced at £399 – £200 less than the original first went on sale for.

Article: RSS via Pocket lint

Tags: Android, Android 2.3, Galaxy Tab, Gingerbread, Samsung, Software Update, Tablet PC's

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.3.3 Gingerbread update begins international rollout

Look, we know all this Honeycomb and Ice Cream Sandwich talk can get you down original Galaxy Tab owners. Unfortunately, that’s the risk of being an early adopter. Now chin up, Samsung has just started dribbling out the Gingerbread 2.3.3 update to Italian Tab owners. The update, when it arrives in your location, will be available in Kies as firmware/baseband version P1000XXJQ1/P1000XXJPZ. Those less patient can always jump into the forums of course, and take their chances with a manual download and install. We won’t tell.

Article: RSS via Engadget

Tags: Android, Android 2.3, Galaxy Tab, Gingerbread, Samsung, Software Update, Tablet PC's

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1v available tomorrow for €590, starting with Portugal

Some lucky Aussies might have been able to pre-order the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1v ahead of the rest of the world, but it turns out the Portuguese will actually be taking this Honeycomb tablet home first, starting tomorrow. Originally known as the Galaxy Tab 10.1 but quickly superseded by a slimmer, impending model, said transitional device is now listed on Vodafone Portugal’s website with a more delightful €589.90 ($860, which is no doubt off-contract) tag to go with its HSPA+ radio, along with a big red “available from April 26th” stamp. We dug through Vodafone’s other European sites and the only country that also mentions this Tegra 2 slate is the Netherlands, though it only indicates a “week 17″ launch — in other words, any time between now and May 1st. If you’re in Europe and don’t mind this slightly out-of-date whopper, be sure to check back as we’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for more details.

Article: RSS via Engadget

Tags: Android, Android 3.0, Galaxy Tab, Galaxy Tab 10.1v, Honeycomb, HSPA+, Nvidia, Samsung, Tablet PC's, Tegra 2

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Apple Sues Samsung Over Galaxy; Are Other Tablet Makers Next?

In a patent suit filed Friday, Apple claims that Samsung’s line of Galaxy tablets and phones willfully infringe on its own patents. Apple is seeking injunctions as well as actual and punitive damages.

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, which runs on Android, was released late last year. Apple claims the tab infringes on iPad patents and that the Galaxy S looks and feels a little too similar to the iPhone.

The lawsuit doesn’t detail the damages it is seeking, but it also doesn’t pull any punches. A sample: “Rather than innovate and develop its own technology and a unique Samsung style for its smartphone products and computer tablets, Samsung chose to copy Apple’s technology, user interface and innovative style in these infringing products.”

That kind of language suggests Apple may ask the courts to pull the Samsung Galaxy products from the shelves. And given that the Galaxy Tab is not dissimilar to other Android devices, such as the Motorola Xoom, this may be the beginning of a concerted effort to hobble the iPad’s competitors for what Apple sees as infringement.

“This kind of blatant copying is wrong,” Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet added in a statement. “We need to protect Apple’s intellectual property when companies steal our ideas.”

We will update with more details from the lawsuit as they come in. What do you think? Does the Galaxy Tab copy Apple’s technology? Are there features that make it more similar to the iPad than other Android tablets? Let us know in the comments.

Article: RSS via Mashable

Tags: Apple, Galaxy S, Galaxy Tab, Lawsuit, Patents, Samsung, Smartphones, Tablet PC's

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Asda slashes Samsung tablet price

Discount ‘droid

Will Samsung clear the way for its new, much more svelte 8.9in and 10.1 Galaxy Tabs by selling off the original, 7in model cheap? If it won’t, retailer Asda will.

It is now offering the Android 2.2 Froyo tablet for a mere 300 quid, down, it says, from £437.

Samsung has never made clear the Tab’s base price. Amazon, for instance, says it’s £799 from which the retailer is discounting it to £399, which is the cheapest we’ve seen it outside of eBay.

The entry-level Apple iPad 2 will be priced at £399 when it goes on sale at 5pm tomorrow.

Asda wants exactly £100 less than that.

Tempted? More details on Asda’s website.

Article: RSS via Reg Hardware

Tags: Android, Asda, Galaxy Tab, Samsung, SIM Free, Tablet PC's, Unlocked

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After Seeing the iPad 2, Samsung Reconsiders Galaxy Tab Pricing

In a refreshingly honest statement, Samsung’s mobile division VP Lee Don-Joo admitted that the iPad 2 made some parts of Samsung’s 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab look “inadequate,” and the iPad 2′s pricing might force Samsung to lower the price of its tablet.

“Apple made it very thin (…) We will have to improve the parts that are inadequate,” Lee Don-Joo told Yonhap News Agency. We feel that a bit of information might have gotten lost in translation from Korean to English, as we definitely don’t expect Samsung to pull the 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab from the market and release a thinner version. It’s more likely that Samsung simply sees the iPad 2′s thinness as a big challenge for its future tablet models.

The other part of Lee Don-Joo’s statement is clearer and far more telling. “The 10-inch (tablet) was to be priced higher than the 7-inch, but we will have to think that over,” he said.

Samsung, unlike some of its competitors — for example, the Motorola Xoom — won’t try to compete with the iPad at a higher price point just because some of the hardware of its tablet looks better on paper and that, in our opinion, is the right approach. Apple has set the price for its tablet in the $499 – $829 price range (with the cheapest 3G-sporting option being priced at $629), and any Android tablet will have a hard time competing with the iPad 2 at a price too near the upper end of that spectrum.

Article: RSS via Mashable

Tags: Android, Galaxy Tab, iPad 2, Samsung, Tablet PC's

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Galaxy Tab hits the 2 million milestone

It sure doesn’t take long for Samsung to achieve these milestones, does it? It wasn’t too long ago that the Korean company announced that Galaxy Tab sales had surpassed 1 million units and now reports are in that the Android-powered tablet has raked in sales of over 2 million units after just three months of being available. Considering that the Galaxy Tab is Samsung’s first Android-powered tablet and is probably the main contender to Apple’s iPad, it isn’t too surprising to see that the device has been in demand. The Tab’s top three regions are in Europe, North America and Asia, where Samsung has sold 500,000, 350,000 and 330,000 units respectively. Samsung is also slated to unveil the next-generation Galaxy Tab at the upcoming Mobile World Congress, and we’ll be there, so stay tuned!

Article: RSS via Ubergizmo

Tags: Android, Galaxy Tab, Samsung, Tablet PC's

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