We’ve got an account here of a until-recently-proud owner of a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Google I/O Limited Edition Android tablet. An account that tells a story of one of the most evil errors a person holding a $500 device might hope never to have to experience – the fact that this device was free notwithstanding. This error is a physical error – it appears that the glass covering the front of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is coming loose. Luckily the person who we’re speaking with here has gotten word back from the Samsung support line on what he should do to fix this situation.

As you know, this year at Google I/O (2011), one of the free devices given out to all 5,000 attendees was this lovely Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, an early edition of the tablet featuring a special Android army etched in the back cover and a non-TouchWiz experience happening inside. We’ve got an entirely full review of this device for your enjoyment. Notice how slick, sleek, and fabulous it is. Notice how similar and perhaps even smaller and lighter than the iPad 2 it is. Wow, what an object, right?

Well it turns out there’s something very evil happening to at least one of these 5,000 – a glue error! Have a look at this terrifying image you see above and shield your children’s eyes, because it is terrifying. That said, the owner of this device, a fellow by the name of Justin G, has emailed Samsung Support, receiving this message in reply:

——-BEGIN EMAIL——–
Dear Justin,

Thank you for your inquiry. You have reached Samsung Telecommunications America. This inquiry concerns a model that is not manufactured for use here in the United States.

Unfortunately, Samsung Telecommunications America is unable to provide information, technical support, or repair services for Galaxy tablet 10.1 since this device is not yet available in United States. We do not have the knowledge base or components to provide this service.

Because this inquiry is in relation to a model manufactured for use in another country, please click here and select the appropriate country of support. This will direct you to the main website for that country’s support and provide you with a Contact Us link, located at the bottom of the page. Questions will then be directed to the proper support center for your model phone.

We do apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Thank you for your continued interest in Samsung.

Sincerely, Technical Support John
———-END EMAIL———-

Well, Technical Support John, the link provided doesn’t really lead anywhere:
http://www.samsung.com/us/function/ipredirection/ipredirectionLocalList.do
but we do appreciate the sentiment. We’re truly hoping this is the only incident, but we’re asking that anyone else who has the same situation going on to step forward and let us know so we can continue to push Samsung for a fix. They’ve made one of the greatest tablets on the market, can’t stop now with a little yet potentially big issue like this!

Here’s how the corner SHOULD look, this photo taken of the same tablet in question:

Thanks for sending this in, Justin G!

UPDATE: User Aaron Mars has the same problem, and more reports are pouring in –

“Here’s mine. Not as clear as the one from the original post, but I can assure you when I press on the corner, I can feel it move and hear the glue trying to take hold.”

UPDATE: User Kasra Varzaghani also adds a report –

I have the same problem 🙁 Its the upper right corner(by the headphone jack) only though! it’s fine on the other three corners. I think it’s a glue issue.

UPDATE: Nirav C comments –

Hey Chris,
I saw your article on android community and decided to send you the pics I have of my tab from google i/o. wouldnt say mine is as bad as justin’s but it is noticeable a bit up close (i noticed it while reading on my tab). On one of the edges I can see a little crevice between the black bezel and chrome casing. Here are some pictures, and thanks again for writing this article! Didn’t know where to turn to otherwise.
—
Nirav C

UPDATE: Oscone R comments –

I was reading are article and thats when i took a real good look at my tab and saw i had the same issue as bad im kinda upset i spent 850 on this device you know if their going to fix it any word yet?
—
Oscone R

Feel free to post a picture of your broken unit in the comments below OR email to chris@androidcommunity.com

44 COMMENTS

  1. Nope.  This is not an isolated case.  This is huge.
    At Google I/O, I traded in my original tablet because of this exact defect.  I had my fingers crossed that it was just that particular unit.

    To my dismay, the new one started doing the exact same thing.  That photo above is accurate and exactly what mine looks like.  I’m not getting pissed or anything because it was free, but they had damn well better fix it before asking people to shell out $500 (or whatever) for one of these things.

  2. Here’s mine.  Not as clear as the one from the original post, but I can assure you when I press on the corner, I can feel it move and hear the glue trying to take hold.

  3. Well, this certainly makes me feel more confident about my choice to buy a Xoom and not hold out for the GT 10.1. The lack of a microSD slot and Touchwiz on the tablet were the primary reasons I chose the Xoom.

  4. Ok, not only is the screen coming off, but when I press it back down into place it stays in place for several minutes.  However during those several minutes the corner where the problem is is now showing a yellowish discoloring on the screen.  The discoloring goes away once the screen has popped out again.  

    Sigh…it was free and all and I’m grateful, but my kids Elmers Glue could hold this better.

  5. I have the same problem with mine. I called Samsung technical support and they told mme tthat the I/O device would be covered with a 1 year warranty just like the consumer version. I was also told that they can’t really provide support until the consumer version is released.

    The screen glue is one thing, but no KIES for mac? That is a big failure point… I have to use Bluetooth to transfer videos tto this thing and it takes an eternity.

  7. What an idiotic response, Samsung! Here, let me help you out:

    “Dear Valued Developer,

    Samsung [yadda yadda something about their products and the Tab … and how awesome they think they are …]

    We are unable to assist you directly with this issue because the device you received was not specifically manufactured for use in the United States. However, thank you for bringing this to our attention. We take pride in all of our products, and value feedback.

    We may not be able to replace your device as it is a pre-production model; however, we will look into the issue and get back to you within [a reasonable amount of time].”

    Sheeeez!

  8. I’m experiencing the same issue.  icontacted US customer support @ 888-614-0897.  They provided me UPS shipping(free of course).  I’m sending it in for evaluation.  Will update once i hear more.

  9. I’m experiencing the same issue.  icontacted US customer support @ 888-614-0897.  They provided me UPS shipping(free of course).  I’m sending it in for evaluation.  Will update once i hear more.

  11. The glue on the top right corner of mine is starting to loosen. It hasn’t gotten too severe yet, but I’ll probably will send it in when their production model comes out. 

    By the way, was anyone able to fill out that survey that was mentioned on the blue card? 

  17. I have the same issue on three corners on the screen. I even exchanged mine at google i/o because there are gaps in between the screen and the frame, now it’s 1 mm, but the first one was over 2mm.
    I also noticed the headphone input is a little bit loose, and the thin part above the connector slot on the bottom of the tab bends a little bit.
    The samsung guy at google i/o said it’s because they’re preproduction models and hand-made, so  issues were bound to crop up, unfortunately :s

  18. I have had mine for 10 days now, the touch screen stopped working, I googled faults and came up with this forum, checked the corners and what do you know…they are lifting as well. I pressed them back in and the screen returned to operational. The thing is it keeps on coming out and is now at the stage where I need to hold the screen down for the touch to work… Really frustrating, any help here??

  21. *UPDATE*

    Just wanted to post an update to my support woes…

    May 31:
    Emailed GalaxyTabDevSupport@sta.samsung.com per some suggestions on Twitter and here.  Got a response telling me to call 1-888-987-4357

    p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 13.0px Arial; color: #2505cc}
    span.s1 {text-decoration: underline}

    June 1:
    I call the phone number.  They tell me to email GalaxyTabDevSupport@sta.samsung.com.  At the time of the call, I didn’t realize that was taking me back to where I started.

    June 1:
    I send an email to the support email above stating the near comical redirect loop.

    June 2:
    Support email responds asking for my contact details.  I give them everything I have for contact.

    June 14 (today):
    Still no response after giving them my contact info.  I sent another followup email asking for support.  My screen is still coming away from the device.

    p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 13.0px Arial; color: #676767}

  22. I’m UK based.

    I called the number on the back of the tab and at first the guy told me that I couldn’t get it shipped back to the UK. I asked him to double check and he came back and said that in fact they could send it back to me.

    I gave him my address and all the information and he repeated it back to me and said to wait for the ticket email to confirm.

    When I got the email it didn’t have the right address – it obviously was not liked by their system as the road address and town where right but the state was Texas!

    I am also not clear on if I am meant to ship it to them or they are going to pick it up.

    I will call them back shortly and try to sort out the address and clarify but has anyone else spoken to anyone in support about an international return and repair? And if anyone had a direct email for someone at samsung support so I can send them my address in typed form that would be really helpful! Thanks.

    • UPDATE! Samsung had UPS collect it from my UK address and it is being shipped back to them in Texas. All in all very quick and good service… we will see how long it takes for me to get it back but so far I am very happy! (I included a photo of my tab – not the worst but I know it will get worse if it isn’t fixed!)

  23. *UPDATE 2*

    Finally got a RMA and return label.  My tablet is going to be shipped off to it’s maker tomorrow.

    While I appreciate the support that I have finally gotten, I wish that it had gone much smoother than what it has.

  24. * FINAL UPDATE *

    I finally got my device back from Samsung.  It looks like they replaced the whole thing with a new tablet (same Google IO branding).  The screen on this one seems to be in better shape. But time will tell!

    Justin G

  25. * FINAL UPDATE *

    I finally got my device back from Samsung.  It looks like they replaced the whole thing with a new tablet (same Google IO branding).  The screen on this one seems to be in better shape. But time will tell!

    Justin G

  29. I am also having the same problem and its been months and it has slowly progressed to the same as the pictures above. I can see allot of others over time having the same issues.

    Sad how Samsung is brushing off everyone who received these Tablets

  31. I am also having same kind of problem. This appeared last week. First I thought it may be due to extra pressure on the edges due to carrying I purchased. After reading this post I am realizing this is a construction fault. I am staying in Jakarta and purchased the tablet from here. Do you know any solution to this?

  32. I recently dropped my Samsung Galaxy 10.1 and broke the screen pretty good. So I sent it off for repairs. It’s not until I got it back that I noticed that something wasn’t right with the screen. It seemed loose. The top right corner was not flush with the binding and you could feel the screen going in and trying to stick when I woul press on the screen. Needless to say I am very dissapointed.

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