Samsung Galaxy Tab - The AnandTech Review
by Vivek Gowri on December 23, 2010 9:48 AM ESTSamsung Galaxy Tab - Size Really Does Matter
The Galaxy Tab is almost exactly half the size of the iPad.
So the Galaxy Tab, as one of the first 7” tablets to release, brings up a new concern in the tablet space - how much does screen size change things? This is the first real 7” tablet I’ve played with for any length of time, but my first reaction when I pulled the Galaxy Tab out of the box was “dang, this thing is a lot smaller than I expected”. It’s literally half the size of the 9.7” iPad, dimensionally. It’s interesting to see two supposedly competitive devices have such different form factors, completely at odds with how the notebook market works.
The sizing thing is going to be a big deal for tablets going forward, and I think eventually we’ll see the market split into two or three segments based on size. It looks like some companies are already choosing one camp or the other; Apple appears staunchly in the 10” camp after Steve Jobs ripped on the entire 7” form factor, RIM is going 7” for its PlayBook, Dell started with 5” and are adding 7” and 9” models, HP took the middle road with its 8.9” slate, Samsung is adding a 10” Galaxy Tab early next year. So we’re going to be seeing tons of both 7” and 10” form factors on the market.
So why choose one form factor over the other? They’ll likely have similar internal hardware and the same WSVGA resolution on differently sized screens, so it won’t be on specs, and based on the current device pricing, I don’t expect that to be terribly different either. So, really, it comes down to whichever suits your use cases better.
Three tablets, three screen sizes. Pick your form factor wisely.
Honestly, here’s what I found: it’s more comfortable to use the 7” tablet in portrait mode, whereas it’s easier to use the 10”ers in landscape. This is true for both the 4:3 iPad or any of the 16:9 10” widescreen tablets. Part of it is in the keyboard - the 7” portrait keyboard is just comfortable enough to use with two thumbs, whereas in landscape its a bit too wide. The 10” has the opposite problem - too wide for two thumbs and too narrow for normal typing in portrait mode, but just about perfect with two handed typing in landscape. The difference is that with the 7” tablet, you can use it like a large smartphone, whereas the 10” tablets are more suited for use on a desk or table. The iPad and other 10” tablets are better as standalone netbook replacements, while the 7” Galaxy Tab almost feel like a device that’s meant to be carried in addition to a notebook.
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VivekGowri - Thursday, December 23, 2010 - link
Dude, I have enough problems typing normally, without having to worry about drawing lines between the keys. I will admit, I got the hang of it quicker than I thought I would, but as a G2 user, I must say that nothing can beat a good HTC hardware keyboard (unless Dell can manage it with the Venue Pro).vision33r - Thursday, December 23, 2010 - link
I have an Android phone and my wife uses the iPhone. But we both use the iPad. For many years, I've compared my Android phone to the iPhone.Google keeps improving the performance of Android but have done very little to make the OS more user friendly.
Apple has improved the performance of iOS and their UI. The implementation is much more mainstream with a minimalist approach vs the Android's muddy and convoluted way of stuffing the OS with tedius configs.
The iPad stands for all those Apple design cues, easy, accessible, and everything works philosophy.
The Galaxytab represents all the problems with Android. Lack of standardization, poorly executed and flawed ideas. The lack of standardization has hurt the ecosystem greatly. The Dev community can't find leadership or direction in this "Open" Android market. They don't know which direction Google wants Android to go.
Bottomline, Apple has won the Tablet market. The industry mainly film, print, media, have all signed on to embrace the iPad "format."
OldPueblo - Friday, December 24, 2010 - link
They own it except for those that don't want to be forced into Apple's ecosystem and those that want a tablet that actually fits in a pocket and doesn't belong mostly on a coffe table. The iPad hardly wins the tablet war on many fronts. "Stupid easy" doesn't make something better, it just means there are more stupid people parting with their money.medi01 - Friday, December 24, 2010 - link
Mentioning "lack of standardization" in "Apple vs Anything" as a pro-Apple argument is one of the most idiotic statements I've ever seen.Paladin1650 - Wednesday, June 15, 2011 - link
Those same arguments would apply to Macs vs. PCs, yet PC dominates. What actually happens is that Apple's user-friendly approach dominates the EARLY stages of a new market. Users don't know how to use a new device, so of course they gravitate to those that are most polished and easiest to use (Apple). Once everyone becomes familiar with how the device works, and once UI conventions become more or less standardized, then the general consumer population can see the more open PC/Android approach for what it is: Superior.OldPueblo - Thursday, December 23, 2010 - link
I mean you knock it for it's interface, but what should a tablet interface be like? I mean how much simpler can you get? You can set it up the way you want with icons to tap to open things. What's not "made for a tablet?" Just because it's the same/similar to arguably the best smartphones on the planet, why is that bad on tablet? Why does it HAVE to be different?medi01 - Friday, December 24, 2010 - link
I guess if they don't invent such "problems" with Galaxy Tab it would have been much harder to come "iPad is still better" conclusion.VivekGowri - Friday, December 24, 2010 - link
Direct quote from another comment I posted:If you read my software section, I said exactly that - having a scaled up OS never held the iPad back, so it's not something I can hold against the Galaxy Tab. What I can hold against the Galaxy Tab is that there are basically no apps, first party or otherwise, that take advantage of the larger screen size, other than the three or four apps that Samsung put in afterwards (Mail, Calendar, Contacts, etc). Apple basically changed every core app on the iPad to use that screen real estate, and they had more than a few high profile 3rd party apps out for the iPad - ABC player, NYT, BBC, etc etc. I don't doubt that Google will get there, probably with Honeycomb, but until then, it's a legitimate problem.
If the OS is the same and the apps are the same, why would I get a Galaxy Tab instead of a Galaxy S or any other Android device? I'm a day-in, day-out Android user (T-Mo G2), and I love the platform, but it really isn't ready for tablets right now.
Hrel - Friday, December 24, 2010 - link
Didn't you guys already review this? I'm pretty sure I already read about this on anandtech...kadaj - Friday, December 24, 2010 - link
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