What tablets are coming up? aka Should I buy the Samsung GalTab 10.1 now?

[DarsVaeda]

Hey, I'm currently looking to buy a tablet. I need it latest mid October. I want a tablet as replacement for a laptop, kinda better eReader. I mainly read texts (pdf, ebooks...) but they are scanned in which makes them hard to read, if possible, on a reader. Thus a tablet... Also I like to watch video, surf on the net, write a view meeting notes and I guess that is probably all or more I would ever do with it. I don't need 3G as I also own a Nexus One and can tether. Currently my choice is the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 That's in a large part because of the low weight. If I replace my laptop I do not want 600g plus, its weight is 1.2kg so the tablet has to weight at least half or it won't be an option. I'm not to satisfied with buying the GalTab because: - I live in Germany, so I have to buy it via UK - no SDCARD slot - stupid adapter thingy That is why I'm looking for alternatives. Are there any you can recommend? Anything coming up in the next weeks?

 

[pbrauer]

There are lots of new tablets coming in Q4 and early next year. There are also always new things about to come. If you wait for the next great thing, or once you buy something get upset that you didn't wait you are not going to be real happy with tablets and android. It is still a new platform with lots of things in the pipeline.

 

[Pinkie]

Personally I am waiting for the Toshiba Excite. It meets all of your requirements except when it is coming out. It is due out 4th quarter this year but no solid date yet. Compared with the Sammy it has SD, USB, HDMI and a slightly faster processor. It is also VERY thin and very light; only slightly more than the Galaxy in fact. Barring that the only one I know of that is coming out real quick is the Asus Transformer slider, but it is way too heavy and thick for your wants.

Gotta agree with Peter though. If you think you will be happy with the Galaxy after all the new spiffy stuff shows up then you should jump it. It is still a sweet tab, and the screen is second to none imo. Cheers!

 

[DarsVaeda]

Thanks. Yes a lot of stuff coming up, but most of it does not meet my requirements. But somehow I missed the Excite or forgot about it. This might be worth waiting a little longer. Seems to be quite like the GalaxyTab with some nice extras (slots) and without the patent right stories (for now).

 

[Pinkie]

On the upside of the Excite too is the confirmed Ice Cream Sandwich update for it (when it shows up that is). Granted at the end of the day most current gen tabs will probably get it too but still. Good luck with whatever you choose bud!

 

[DarrylB]

Hey DarsVaeda welcome to the forum! For the past several months there's been a lot of hype about new Amazon tablets coming out, but little details are known as far as specs and availability date. I know this doesn't exactly help much or answer your question, but based on rumors (I know they are only rumors) it sounds like they will be worth the wait. Thing is, you could be waiting too long for the high end Amazon tablet model so perhaps it's best to seek other options. I'd recommend the Asus Eee Pad Transformer, which is what I have, but the thing is it might be a bit heavier than what you'd like based on the weight requirements that you mentioned.

 

[Walkop]

Either that, or wait for the Transformer 2 which is rumored to be coming out in October-November and in my opinion will be the absolute best tablet yet!

It supposedly has the Kal-El Quad-Core processor, will be the first Ice Cream Sandwich tablet, and I'm betting it'll have a lot more amazing things that we don't know of as of now.

It will likely have keep the same features it has now as well, though, such as the MicroSD card slot, Mini-HDMI; also, the optional Keyboard Dock with battery, 2 USB ports, and a SD card slot; etc.
Either way, there are some good tablets out now as well. The Transformer 1, the Samsung GTab 10.1, and a few others.

I would most certainly wait at least 2 months, though, to see what happens in the market. There is a LOT of potential for things to happen in that timeframe - native ICS tablets, Quad-Core tablets...super thin, light tablets...

Edit: Oh! And welcome to the forum!

 

[GameHog9]

It seems to me that the tablet market is a bit unfocused at the moment. All the companies are throwing out different versions of the same product (7.5, 7.7, 9.4, 10.1 inch tablets, 3G/no-3G, etc). My guess is that they're trying to determine which features and form factor are in demand and then build off of that.

I wish it were a bit more focused, and the tablets a bit more work-oriented.

I too recommend to wait until the Xmas season. New tablets are rumored to come out by then, and existing tablets should drop in price. A quad core tegra is nice, but honestly I dont see the "apps" taking any advantage of it. Id like to see more productivity in these things.

 

[DarsVaeda]

Hi, thanks for all your quality replies. I have heard rumors about the Amazon tablet too. They say, and this is my own opinion too, that it has potential to be "the" IPad competitor. I wouldn't doubt that regarding price and quality. BUT even thou it will run on Android it will most probably be at least closed as an IPad. I mean Amazon can not want you to install apps that will enable you to get books from any other source than Amazon itself So that will be no option. But waiting one more month considering the Excite and Transformer2 will be worth it I guess. Thanks again for helping me make this decision

 

[Marquis]

I'd say, go for the Galaxy Tab.
If everyone would start thinking "hey, maybe tomorrow there's a new & better tablet available", noone would buy them today.
Yes, before christmas there will be some new tablets coming out (from Amazon, for example) but nothing new and amazing (well, you will see some price cuts too), and if you want newer hardware, quad-core CPU's will come for tablets in the beginning of the next year, and they could be very well delayed, again.
I believe apps necessarily don't need quad core support themselves, it should be enough if OS supports them, probably the Ice Cream Sandwich will, but with games, and in the future 3D games, it's a different story.

 

[Tom T]

I agree, look at what is available now and pick one. There are many great choices.

Funny everyone is calling the Amazon tablet the first true iPad competitor and it has nothing to do with the as yet nonexistent hardware. The reason behind the hype is the possibility of an Amazon market for their tablet that could possibly compete with itunes. I frankly think the tablet will be comparably speced to everything else available, possibly at a subsidized price point. But how much trouble will it be to make it as functional as the Asus or the Samsung, and will you lose the the itunes like functionality in the proccess?

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[belongumdave]

If you want to wait for the"right" tablet, then you may have to wait and wait and wait. As everyday passes, there is always another announcement, of new device, around the corner. The time is now. Just see what is available now, try them in the store, then choose. Or you can wait and wait and wait.
I chose the GT-P7500, because it I played with it for an hour. ( I am not an apple fan) but for an android tab, it is quite brilliant.
My only disappointment, is that it does not run skype video as yet, and do hope that the skype people will release a vesion for the tegra processor soon

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[GameHog9]

Hi, thanks for all your quality replies. I have heard rumors about the Amazon tablet too. They say, and this is my own opinion too, that it has potential to be "the" IPad competitor. I wouldn't doubt that regarding price and quality. BUT even thou it will run on Android it will most probably be at least closed as an IPad. I mean Amazon can not want you to install apps that will enable you to get books from any other source than Amazon itself So that will be no option. But waiting one more month considering the Excite and Transformer2 will be worth it I guess. Thanks again for helping me make this decision

If Amazon is running Android, then I imagine there would be away around any "limits" they place on the device (as jailbreaking does with the iPad). Plus, its rumored to be priced around $250, which will hopefully prompt the other loser companies to slash these ridiculous $600 price tags.

I have to disagree with the others here on the "choose now; if you wait you'll never be satisfied" mentality.

New tablet are almost guaranteed to launch this year, and you have the opportunity to see for yourself if the new hardware and software suits your needs. As someone mentioned before, regular apps probably wont take advantage of the Tegra 3, it will most likely be used for gaming.

We could of course be wrong; multi-core processing might usher in an era of superapps that take advantage of the enhanced multi-tasking and threads.

Theres no harm in waiting, you either spend your money on a newer product or you save money by buying a presumably price-cut 1st gen tablet.

 

[Walkop]

I agree, look at what is available now and pick one. There are many great choices.

If you want to wait for the"right" tablet, then you may have to wait and wait and wait. As everyday passes, there is always another announcement, of new device, around the corner. The time is now. Just see what is available now, try them in the store, then choose. Or you can wait and wait and wait.

I would have to agree with you in practice, always waiting for the next best thing when you don't even own something in the category is usually wasteful - but now is the most illogical time to not wait!

It just wouldn't make any sense. Most sources around the net (I could probably provide links, if someone wanted them) are pinning an October-November release date for Kal-El tablets, and Ice Cream Sandwich is supposed to be released then as well (according to Notion Ink Adam). "Be happy with what you buy now" doesn't really apply in this type of situation and I tend to disagree.

Tablet refreshes do not happen very often so far. Sure, tablets like the ARCHOS G9 have been released, but they don't really present anything new - just, mainly, a refresh with a slight spec bump. Next-generation (not simply 'the next', but next generation) tablets are coming really soon. Likely in the next two months, that is when the huge, massive refreshes will happen. Look at the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer 2 - it's all over the place that it has been benchmarked with the Kal-El processor, with pretty massive performance gains.

There's a pretty massive difference between Dual-Core and Quad-Core; better battery life; better gaming (Mediocre Studios, the creators of Sprinkle (a Tegra-based game) are apparently already on the road to developing a Kal-El edition of the game)...less OS lag, better system responsiveness...isn't that worth waiting 2 months for? Considering cost-benefit it makes way more sense to wait.

If the Transformer 2 has been benchmarked, then that also implies that it must be fairly close to a production model. There is just so much potential for anything to happen that it would be illogical to buy now.

It's not like you're waiting a year while many refreshes pass you by - It's only 2 months, at most. If nothing happens then, then buy a tablet and be happy with what you get. If something major DOES happen, though, then you definitely made the right choice by waiting. Think about this: would you buy a 2012 vehicle the month before 2013s are released? No! Why not? Because 2013s will likely hold the same price as previous year's models, while offering considerably better quality (in most situations); and even if you decided not to buy the 2013s, the 2012 models will have dropped in price.

If everyone would start thinking "hey, maybe tomorrow there's a new & better tablet available", noone would buy them today.
Yes, before christmas there will be some new tablets coming out (from Amazon, for example) but nothing new and amazing (well, you will see some price cuts too), and if you want newer hardware, quad-core CPU's will come for tablets in the beginning of the next year, and they could be very well delayed, again.

Again, the same argument. I've only seen 1 or 2 sources even mention Kal-El to be coming in 2012. It also wouldn't make sense, considering it was originally pinned for August and they already have testing chips (you know the "Glowball" video? That was a while ago now); you don't test a processor (especially if you already have a working edition) for 6 months!

Anyway, you probably get my point. Why buy now when a major refresh (not minor or simply new products, but a major hardware/software refresh) is only 1-2 months away in all likelyhood? If it doesn't come, you haven't lost anything. If it does, well, you just got yourself a LOT better deal than you would have gotten 2 months before without waiting for an unreasonable amount of time.

 

[Tom T]

I guess it really comes down to this - if you are buying the tablet strictly as an entertainment device, wait - if it can help you be more productive buy one now.

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