tablets

Early adopters that bought into the tablet craze by picking up a Samsung Galaxy Tab as then the only viable iPad alternative will be delighted to know that carrier Sprint has begun pushing the Android 2.3 Gingerbread software update over-the-air. Their gadget girl Michelle Leff boasted on Twitter that Sprint is the first carrier to roll out Gingerbread for the Samsung Galaxy Tab. The new firmware brings HID Bluetooth and it updates the device’s baseband software to version S:P100.08 S.EF17 (build GINGERBREAD.EF17).

As you know, Gingerbread is technically a phone operating system. Google was strongly discouraging vendors from building tablet products until Honeycomb arrived. Samsung, of course, didn’t listen. As the iPad had taken everyone by surprise, the Korean gadget maker went on to launch the Galaxy Tab in September of last year. Despite Steve Jobs’ claims that the seven-inch tablets will be dead on arrival because users would need to sandpaper their fingers down to hit the tiny on-screen controls, the form factor has actually been quite compelling, at least among the Android community.

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The Galaxy Tab has made its official debut a month ago in New York, giving Samsung will a litmus test of the tablet’s potential in one of the world’s greatest shopping meccas. The well-received device is raved for its attractive design, thinness and a variety of hardware and software features that outdo Apple’s tablet. However, it also has some teething problems stemming from Honeycomb, which is understandable knowing it’s powered by Google’s inaugural tablet software.

If you’ve been eyeing Samsung’s device, rest assured you’ll soon be able to run the upcoming new software which brings a host of Honeycomb 3.1 features provided by Google, such as support for HDMI dongles and compatibility with SD Cards and a range of USB peripherals. On top of that, Samsung is providing their own custom-designed features. The Korean company wrote on the firmware update page that you’ll be able to purchase and rent premium movies as well as purchase next-day television shows using the Samsung Media Hub app, with content sharing across five Media Hub-enabled devices, including tablets and smartphones. The latest version of Swype keyboard input is also included, as is the new ability to remotely locate and wipe lost or stolen devices (they call it FindMyMobile). And now, the most important feature from Samsung.

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Amazon, the well-versed vendor of vertically integrated wireless devices, is on the verge of unveiling a tablet

We’ve heard rumors that Amazon is planning multiple mobile devices and their chief Jeff Bezos teased us to “stay tuned” for a tablet, but the actual release date of their first iPad killer has been anyone’s guess. According to DigiTimes, a pretty reliable Taiwanese publication, the online retailer is gearing up to launch their inaugural Android slate some time in the August-September time frame.

Amazon is poised to step into tablet PCs and will launch models as soon as August-September, with targeted global sales of four million units for 2011, according to Taiwan-based component makers. The timing of launch is to meet the peak sales period prior to Thanksgiving in the US and the year-end holidays in the US and Europe, the sources pointed out.

Four million units is a pretty aggressive target for about four months worth of sales, however…

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Who said Apple has to dominate the tablet market? As of now they are, but that doesn’t mean things can’t change. According to CNet, Apple shipped 4.7 million tablets last quarter. But hot…err warm… on their heels, Samsung has shipped 850,000 units – and that’s without the newly launched Galaxy Tab 10.1. Following a close third, and could even overtake Samsung, Acer shipped 800,000 units that same quarter. This is promising news for a diverse tablet market.

There’s no reason why Apple can’t become a minority player by the end of the year. Just these two companies alone have a third of Apple’s share.  There is also Motorola, ASUS, LG, HTC and even the Nook by Barnes and Noble.
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Whether you just wanna stay in touch with your folks while on that Afghanistan mission, check your email after the lunch on a construction site or post statuses about the perks of working your tail off on an oil platform, Panasonic has you covered with this rugged tablet which has obviously taken clues from their brand of durable notebooks.

They sure call it the Toughbook for a reason: The rigid, strong device is designed to operate smoothly and reliably in extreme conditions. Featuring front and back cameras, the Toughbook has a 10.1-inch high-brightness display which is easily readable under direct sunlight thanks to a special matte coating. That’s not all…

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As if there has ever been any doubt that Chrome OS would eventually run on tablets, developer François Beaufort has discovered a number of touch-related tweaks in the latest Chromium browser build. And because enhancements from the Chromium project usually trickle down to the Chrome browser and Chrome OS, it is very likely that Google is accelerating tablet plans – especially with Microsoft’s Windows 8 now in the picture. “I compiled Touch UI version of Chromium to see how it looked like”, Beaufort wrote in a Google Buzz post. As you can see from the screenshots (two more below the fold), the Chrome interface has been optimized for touch-based input…

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This is my next caught up with Toshiba officials, learning their anticipated Android-driven tablet will hit pre-orders beginning next week. Dubbed the Thrive, it runs Honeycomb 3.1 from the get-go. As a result, expect compatibility with mice, keyboards, memory sticks and other USB peripherals from day one because Honeycomb 3.1 is the first Android version that acts as a USB host. Let’s not forget a built-in SDcard port for easy media transfer from your digital cameras and camcorders. In addition to full-sized USB and HDMI ports, the Thrive also packs in – and road warriors will appreciate this – a swappable battery. A couple more perks before we get to the downer…

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So Intel has showcased six Honeycomb tablets at the Computex show, all of them engineered around the company’s latest 32-nanometer silicon code-named Medfield, the chip maker’s first system-on-a-chip engineered specifically for tablets and smartphones. Unsurprisingly, the demos fell on deaf ears with the veteran journalists who have seen it all.

Sean Moloney, Intel’s new president for China, flashed six Honeycomb 3.0 tablets and a smartphone during his opening keynote. He said reference designs for Medfield tablets and smartphones include both Android and ill-fated Meego software that Intel and Nokia co-developed for high-end mobile gear.

Intel has been trying for years to penetrate the potent mobile market where ARM-based processors designed by Nvidia, Texas Instruments, Apple and others woe device makers. Be that as it may, we don’t see Intel’s latest technology competing effectively with market incumbents – neither this nor next year. Why?

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Strategy Analytics ranked Samsung the #1 Android tablet maker and the world’s #2 tablet company behind Apple in Q1 2011. It took them a month to sell a millionth Galaxy S II smartphone in Korea  and brag about it  on their Flickr account with the above image.

Samsung is content on releasing more Android tablets despite that pending legal spat with Apple, which is accusing them of stealing the iPad’s and iPhone’s design, software features and hardware engineering with the Galaxy-branded tablets and smartphones. The Wall Street Journal quoted this morning Samsung’s J.K. Shin who underscored his company’s determinacy to release more Honeycomb tablets this year as they “continue to work with Android on future tablets”. Their senior vice president of sales and marketing Younghee Lee added:

Android is the fastest-growing platform and the market direction is headed toward Android so we’re riding the wave. When there is a market need for our own software, we will consider it but that’s not our plan at the moment.

Samsung also says it’ll continue offering tablet PCs in multiple screen sizes as a way of distinguishing themselves from Apple. Asked to comment on that pending lawsuit with Apple, Shin responded:

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Acer is looking forward to shipping a million Honeycomb-driven Iconia Tab slates in the second quarter of this year, sources told Taiwanese trade publication DigiTimes Friday.

Acer has been taking delivery of Iconia tablet PCs eagerly from its production partners with the company’s global shipments of tablet PCs likely to reach one million units in the second quarter, according to sources in the upstream supply chain.

The sources back this claim by pointing out surging revenues at Acer’s touch sensor suppliers Cando and Sintek Photronics.

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Next Issue Media, a joint venture of five major magazine publishers, is launching a long-awaited digital newsstand on Android tomorrow, May 19, 2011. Seven digital magazines packaged as downloadable Android apps will be available from day one: Esquire and Popular Mechanics from Hearst, Fitness and Parents from Meredith, The New Yorker from Condé Nast and Fortune and Time from Time Inc. Labeled an “early preview” release, the store will launch on Samsung Galaxy tablets on the Verizon network before rolling out to other Android devices later.

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Image via PCWorld.com

(Cross-posted on 9to5Mac.com)

Samsung will next week demo a new LCD display technology that will put future tablets in the Retina Display realm. Developed by Samsung’s subsidiary Nouvoyance, the new WQXGA 10.1-inch display stuns with a whopping 2560-by-1600 pixel resolution. Take a deep breath – that’s more pixels than on your 27-inch iMac and double the pixel count on full HD displays.

It uses PenTile RGBW technology that consumes 40 percent less power, a statement claims. Samsung will show off this tech at the SID Display Week 2011 International Symposium next week. The company expects to have commercial availability of this technology for tablet applications later this year.

At screen size and resolution this large the display features a pixel density of 300 pixels per inch – enough to file as a Retina Display. Apple says that 300 pixels-per-inch is the limit of the human retina where the eye is unable to distinguish between the individual pixels, meaning curves appear smooth and continuous rather than jagged and pixelated. It’s widely accepted that the next iPad will sport Retina Display technology which was first inaugurated ten months ago on iPhone 4.

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Mr. Bezos needs to work on his deniability skills.  On the subject of Android tablets, Consumer Reports got this from the Amazon CEO:

Asked today about the possibility of Amazon launching a multipurpose tablet device, the company’s president and CEO Jeff Bezos said to “stay tuned” on the company’s plans. In an interview at Consumer Reports’ offices, Bezos also signaled that any such device, should it come, is more likely to supplement than to supplant the Kindle, which he calls Amazon’s “purpose-built e-reading device.”

Bezos acknowledged the popularity of reading e-books (many of them sold by Amazon) on tablet computers such as the iPad. But he added that this popularity doesn’t spell the demise of the Kindle.

“We will always be very mindful that we will want a dedicated reading device,” he said. “In terms of any other product introductions, I shouldn’t answer.”

Amazon of course already has an ecosystem of eBooks, Music, Video and of course its own Android App Store, so the hardware really is the last piece at this point.  Both Analysts and yours truly think it really is only a matter of when.

Hot on the heels of a plethora of yesterday’s Android announcements, Google has launched a new site aimed at app developers. In a nod at “The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, a sci-fi comedy series by Douglas Adams, the company named it “The Guide to the App Galaxy by Google”.

Available here, this useful new place is meant to “help app developers, regardless of platform, build a business on mobile – whether they’ve just launcher their first app or are looking for additional tips as they grow their portfolio“, Google says. Resources include Google’s AdMob network to promote apps via paid campaigns or cross-promote apps within one’s own portfolio.

It’s all about monetizing lazy users who aren’t keen keen on paying for Android apps as much as their iOS counterparts. In addition to the freemium model, the site notes, developers will benefit from better understanding of the ways to monetize users with in-app adverts and in-app purchases as opposed to one-time paid downloads.

Hint: Use the arrow keys on your keyboard to navigate the spaceship through the site.

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Google has optimized the Google Earth service for Android Honeycomb-driven tablets, tailoring the user experience and features to a larger canvas compared to that of smartphones. “It makes Earth look better than ever on your tablet”, Google said. “It’s like moving to IMAX”, product manager Peter Birch joked in a blog post.

Moving from a mobile phone to a tablet was like going from a regular movie theatre to IMAX. We took advantage of the larger screen size, including features like content pop-ups appearing within Earth view, so you can see more information without switching back and forth between pages.

Features include a handy action bar that provides quick access to commonly used functions including flying to a location and navigating to various places of interest. Visually, the web app will take advantage of 3D-accelerated chips powering the latest Android tablets like the Motorola Xoom and Samsung Galaxy Tab…

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