Samsung has officially unveiled its second Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, and as we suggested it’s running NVIDIA’s dual-core 1GHz Tegra 2 chipset rather than one of Samsung’s own processors. The Galaxy Tab 10.1, as the name suggests, has a 10.1-inch 1280 x 768 touchscreen, just like the Motorola XOOM, along with an 8-megapixel autofocus camera capable of Full HD video recording.
OS is Android 3.0 Honeycomb, and since the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is a “Google Experience” slate it uses the native Honeycomb UI, rather than Samsung’s own custom TouchWiz interface. That should mean faster OS updates in future, too.
Samsung isn’t saying exactly when the Galaxy Tab 10.1 will launch, nor pricing, but we’ve heard separately that the company hopes to beat Motorola and the XOOM to European availability; we’ve also heard whispers that Vodafone – in the UK at least – may have the slate exclusively in April 2011. Enjoy our hands-on and video!
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 hands-on!
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Press Release:
NVIDIA and Samsung Partner to Deliver the Galaxy Tab 10.1 Honeycomb Tablet
GALAXY Tab’s Successor Powered by Tegra 2, Featuring a Dual-Core CPU plus an NVIDIA GeForce GPU That Enable Full Use of Android 3.0
Barcelona — MWC 2011 — Feb. 13, 2011—NVIDIA and Samsung Electronics announced today the Galaxy Tab 10.1, a 10.1-inch screen tablet which uses the NVIDIA® TegraTM 2 mobile super chip to take full advantage of the Android 3.0 (also known as Honeycomb) user interface.
While the previous 7-inch GALAXY Tab introduced the Android tablet space, the new Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet maximizes the entertainment on-the-go experience. It features the Tegra 2 chip’s dual-core CPU and GeForce GPU for faster Web browsing, snappier response time and overall better performance.
Galaxy Tab 10.1 utilizes the Tegra 2 chip to power Honeycomb, the first GPU- accelerated user interface designed for tablets and other larger-screen devices.
The new Samsung tablet with Tegra 2 enables consumers to engage in multitasking, surf the web quickly with fast-loading Web pages and Flash-based content, enjoy console- quality gaming and savor HD movies.
“Our first GALAXY Tab successfully defined a new generation of Android tablets,” said Hyungmoon Noh, VP of R&D Strategy Group, at Samsung. “We’ve worked closely with NVIDIA to raise the stakes again. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, with Honeycomb and Tegra 2, provide the optimal entertainment and multimedia experience without compromising mobility Samsung is known for.”
“Samsung’s latest tablet with the Tegra 2 mobile super chip and Honeycomb is a great example of what we’ve come to expect from one of the world’s most innovative companies,” said Michael Rayfield, General Manager of the Mobile business at NVIDIA.
The companies are also partnering to bring a new Android-based super phone with a dual-core CPU to consumers, for never-before-seen experiences.
Nice, I do hope I get something shortly to buy, Motorola Xoom will probably just price itself out of the market so Samsung could potentially take the sales lead here.
There are several Android Honeycomb tablets coming to market over the next several months. Motorola will get the jump and be able to charge a premium price because they are the first, but once other tablets start hitting the market, watch the price points start to fall (thank you Acer, Samsung, and Toshiba to name a few).
There are several Android Honeycomb tablets coming to market over the next several months. Motorola will get the jump and be able to charge a premium price because they are the first, but once other tablets start hitting the market, watch the price points start to fall (thank you Acer, Samsung, and Toshiba to name a few).
What about the people who have only just bought the original Galaxy Tab, are they going to be left by the way side? Will Samsung provide a Honeycomb update for it?
Well, there is no hardware restriction on running Honeycomb so potentially it could run on the Tab I but this is why I held off getting one of those although was very close in getting it.
I would say they couldn’t just drop the Tab I within 3 months of the European release that would be a very bad company statement and I too would be pretty p!$$ed if they didn’t offer Honeycomb to 1st Gen Tab if I were you. They should’ve (main event tonght ?) announced what they do with the 1st gen to not put off prospective buyers hopefully…
What about the people who have only just bought the original Galaxy Tab, are they going to be left by the way side? Will Samsung provide a Honeycomb update for it?
Please allow me to eat crow 😛 I was definitely one of the people who thought there was a snowball’s chance in hell of Samsung using a Nvidia part instead of it’s own dual core solution, but I was proven wrong! Or that’s one amazing snowball…
Props to AC for getting it right!
Mmm… Have I mentioned how amazing this Humble Pie is?? Om nom nom! ;D
I dont see any mention of ports. HDMI, USB, SD.
Damn after all the horror stories I’ve been hearing with Tegra 2 and it’s inability to play high profile videos, this Samsung was going to be my go to tab, because logic told me for sure Samsung was going to use it’s own dual core CPU in here. My shock to find out it’s Tegra 2, now I’m going to have to pass this tab up as well. WTF Samsung???!
This looks great, but the inability of the Tegra 2 to play high profile videos without first converting them is a dealbreaker. I had a viewsonic g tablet which also had the Tegra 2 and I sold it because most of my videos could not play on it without first converting them. The last thing I wanted to do with a tablet is spend time converting my videos for playback on my tablet.