With the holiday season approaching and thinking what I’d like to add to my gadget list, I decided to take a look at the two hottest pieces of technology out today: iPad and Galaxy Tab. Since I’m always looking for a better and more convenient way to travel to client meetings with as little as possible, I figured I’d give a tablet a try. A tablet would be a great way to present demos to clients without having to lug around a netbook or laptop. So now I have to decide which device to purchase. So, first let’s take a look at the specs.
| iPad | Samsung Galaxy Tab |
| – Apple’s own 1 GHz Apple A4 chip – 16 — 64 GB of Flash storage – Bluetooth 2.1 – 802.11n – 10 hours of battery life – Speaker, microphone and 30-pin connector – Fully multi-touch – 9.7 inch IPS LED backlit LCD – Half an inch thick – Accelerometer and Compass – 3G UMTS/HSPDA and GSM/EDGE data (optional) – Assisted GPS and Digital Compass (3G version only) – 3.5mm headphone jack – VGA out support or AV out via dock connector and converter cable |
– Android 2.2 running TouchWiz 3.0 – 7-inch TFT LCD with 1024 x 600 resolution (WSVGA) – Weighs 380 grams – 1GHz Cortex A8 processor – 16GB or 32GB internal storage – microSD expansion for up to 32GB additional storage – Front-facing 1.3 megapixel camera and rear 3 megapixel camera with flash – 4,000mAh battery – 3G data / voice (there’s a speakerphone and Bluetooth for phone calls, but no earpiece) – 5GHz dual-band 802.11n WiFi – Standard back color is white, carriers might offer different colors – Full HD video playback – There’s a 30-pin dock connector on the bottom that allows for HDMI, USB, and docking accessories (a car dock at least is planned) |
Luckily one doesn’t have to solely depend on a Wi-Fi signal to access the internet on these devices. PC World offers a price/data package comparison of carriers that have jumped on board to provide data service for the Galaxy Tab. AT&T is the only service provider for the iPad.
Image from PC World website
The Samsung Galaxy Tab has received rave reviews from many reviewers despite the fact that others see the 7-inch screen as a con rather a pro to iPads 9-inch. However, if I were to choose between the two products, I’d have to give the nod to the Galaxy Tab. A consumer would have a greater flexibility with choosing a service provider and the over all features are more extensive than the iPad.
Although the Galaxy Tab seems to be feature rich, the iPad is still the big boy on the block selling over 7 million devices. So we’ll stay tuned and keep an eye on the Tab and see if it gain momentum on its competitor and add the Galaxy Tab to my list.
