Samsung accidentally packed revealing information in an Android app that was being used to promote their presence at this year’s IFA. Among the information revealed is the names of three devices, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, the Galaxy Note, and the Samsung Wave 3. Presumably the app was designed to unveil that information after IFA starts on September 2nd, but someone peeked into the files and found them ahead of time.

We can get the Wave 3 out of the way quickly. It is clearly a successor to the Wave 2, a phone running Samsung’s own Bada OS.

More exciting and relevant to us are the Galaxy Tab 7.7 and Galaxy Note.

Galaxy Tab 7.7

I’ve been watching, with great curiosity, for the sequel to the Galaxy Tab. By some accounts, the original 7 inch Galaxy Tab may be the best selling Android tablet to-date, even if it isn’t running the tablet-optimized Honeycomb. I’ve been hoping that the ever-handy 7 inch size of the Galaxy Tab 7 wouldn’t be left behind in favor of the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and 10.1. It looks like Samsung will answer those hopes at IFA… but not without adding 0.7 inch to the screen size.

First, a look a look at the past, to inform our view of the future:

Samsung had announced, not quite a sequel, but an enhanced Galaxy Tab 7 inch back during CES in January. This device was going to have a slightly faster (higher clocked) CPU, an upgraded rear camera, and Verizon’s 4G LTE connectivity. Oddly, this device never made it to market (even though the WiFi-only Galaxy Tab, announced along side it, did). While it hasn’t been officially canned by Verizon or Samsung, I think it’s safe to say 8 months after its announcement that Samsung has moved on to release a true sequel rather than a ‘1.5’ device.

Several months after that announcement at CES, while the device failed to materialize in physical form or advertising, we began to see rumors of a dual-core CPU that might go with a new Galaxy Tab 7, and it’s probably safe to say that Samsung will not release a new Galaxy Tab without a dual-core CPU (considering that the Tab 8.9 and 10.1 are both dual-core).

Now we can’t help but say that the new Galaxy Tab will use a 7.7 inch screen, as the naming convention can’t be ignored. This means that Samsung will be using an entirely new display in the device, causing many to speculate that it will be one of the famous Samsung AMOLED displays. While SlashGear does point out that Samsung demonstrated a 7 inch AMOLED display at a conference last November, it still may be too expensive to include in a consumer targeted device at this time. What we may see is a pixel-dense 1280×800 7.7 inch display, or maybe Samsung just wanted a slightly larger display with the same 1024×600 resolution as the original Galaxy Tab 7.

On the topic of the operating system, I actually prefer Samsung’s customized Android 2.2 that is used by the original Galaxy Tab 7 over Honeycomb. Though I usually hate Android skins, Samsung’s implementation for the Tab 7 actually did a great job of making the phone-oriented OS into a useful tablet interface. Leaked photos show the four classic Android buttons that are found on phones (and on the Tab 7), so our bet is that the Tab 7.7 won’t see Honeycomb, but will instead end up with a custom 2.2 or 2.3, or perhaps it would be the perfect candidate for Ice Cream Sandwich, which Google says is going to bridge the gap between the tablet and the phone versions of Android. It should be noted that the inclusion of the four capacitive Android buttons on the bezel does not necessarily erase the possibility of the device shipping with Honeycomb. After all, the 7 inch Acer Iconia Tab A100 has a home button on the bezel, even though it ships with Honeycomb.

As for the release date, I’m sure we’ll get more info soon, but it doesn’t hurt to use that handy leaked Verizon roadmap where we can. One of the devices on that roadmap is something called the “Galaxy Tab P8 inch which is likely to be either the Galaxy Tab 8.9 or the Tab 7.7. The device is listed for a November 1st release, which is only about two months away!

One might jump to note that 7.7 is closer to 8 than 8.9, but this likely has little do with the size and more to do with the product model number (for instance, the original Tab 7 is the P1000 range, while the 10.1 is the P7000 range). The P8000 range could be the 7.7, or the 8.9, (or any unknown device for that matter), we just can’t say for sure at this point.

Galaxy Note

Now this is where it gets fun. We know little about what Samsung’s Galaxy Note is, but there’s room for exciting speculation. My money is on a 10.1 Honeycomb device with a sliding form-factor like the Asus Eee Pad Slider, and I’ll tell you why.

We saw something exactly like this from Samsung at CES, except it was running Windows 7. It was said to become available in March but, like the enhanced Galaxy Tab 7 (also announced at CES), it conspicuously disappeared, and I’m betting it has been transformed into an Android device.

Chippy wrote about the sliding Samsung Windows 7 computer on UMPCPortal in January noting “I like the design but I’m also seeing a 1KG Windows tablet which is just a little too heavy and not running the right OS for some of the consumer tablet scenarios that are taking off inch. That was 8 months ago, but Chippy may have hit the nail on the head.

A trusted anonymous source tells me that they have seen a sliding prototype much like the Windows 7 Slider from Samsung, and they saw it after the Windows 7 slider was shown. Among other things, the prototype was slimmer than the Windows 7 slider and the screen slid up to reveal a full keyboard and trackpad.

If this prototype made it further through the design process, it may be just what Chippy was looking for; a lighter device with a tablet-optimized OS. Considering that the Windows 7 version vanished, this may very well be the case.

I’m hoping that the Galaxy Note is indeed a slider as I totally dig the form-factor.

More Detail to Come

IFA begins September 2nd and Chippy is on the scene, which means you should definitely keep your eye on Carrypad for hands-on and plenty more info on both of these devices and plenty of others.

Samsung accidentally packed revealing information in an Android app that was being used to promote their presence at this year’s IFA. Among the information revealed is the names of three devices, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, the Galaxy Note, and the Samsung Wave 3. Presumably the app was designed to unveil that information after IFA starts on September 2nd, but someone peeked into the files and found them ahead of time.

We can get the Wave 3 out of the way quickly. It is clearly a successor to the Wave 2, a phone running Samsung’s own Bada OS.

More exciting and relevant to us are the Galaxy Tab 7.7 and Galaxy Note.

Galaxy Tab 7.7

I’ve been watching, with great curiosity, for the sequel to the Galaxy Tab. By some accounts, the original 7” Galaxy Tab may be the best selling Android tablet to-date, even if it isn’t running the tablet-optimized Honeycomb. I’ve been hoping that the ever-handy 7” size of the Galaxy Tab 7 wouldn’t be left behind in favor of the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and 10.1. It looks like Samsung will answer those hopes at IFA… but not without adding 0.7” to the screen size.

First, a look a look at the past, to inform our view of the future:

Samsung had announced, not quite a sequel, but an enhanced Galaxy Tab 7” back during CES in January. This device was going to have a slightly faster (higher clocked) CPU, an upgraded rear camera, and Verizon’s 4G LTE connectivity. Oddly, this device never made it to market (even though the WiFi-only Galaxy Tab, announced along side it, did). While it hasn’t been officially canned by Verizon or Samsung, I think it’s safe to say – 8 months after its announcement – that Samsung has moved on to release a true sequel rather than a ‘1.5’ device.

Several months after that announcement at CES, while the device failed to materialize in physical form or advertising, we began to see rumors of a dual-core CPU that might go with a new Galaxy Tab 7, and it’s probably safe to say that Samsung will not release a new Galaxy Tab without a dual-core CPU (considering that the Tab 8.9 and 10.1 are both dual-core).

Now we can’t help but say that the new Galaxy Tab will use a 7.7” screen, as the naming convention can’t be ignored. This means that Samsung will be using an entirely new display in the device, causing many to speculate that it will be one of the famous Samsung AMOLED displays. While SlashGear does point out that Samsung demonstrated a 7” AMOLED display at a conference last November, it still may be too expensive to include in a consumer targeted device at this time. What we may see is a pixel-dense 1280×800 7.7” display, or maybe Samsung just wanted a slightly larger display with the same 1024×600 resolution as the original Galaxy Tab 7.

On the topic of the operating system, I actually prefer Samsung’s customized Android 2.2 that is used by the original Galaxy Tab 7 over Honeycomb. Though I usually hate Android skins, Samsung’s implementation for the Tab 7 actually did a great job of making the phone-oriented OS into a useful tablet interface. Leaked photos show the four classic Android buttons that are found on phones (and on the Tab 7), so our bet is that the Tab 7.7 won’t see Honeycomb, but will instead end up with a custom 2.2 or 2.3, or perhaps it would be the perfect candidate for Ice Cream Sandwich, which Google says is going to bridge the gap between the tablet and the phone versions of Android. It should be noted that the inclusion of the four capacitive Android buttons on the bezel does not necessarily erase the possibility of the device shipping with Honeycomb. After all, the 7” Acer Iconia Tab A100 has a home button on the bezel, even though it ships with Honeycomb.

As for the release date, I’m sure we’ll get more info soon, but it doesn’t hurt to use that handy leaked Verizon roadmap where we can. One of the devices on that roadmap is something called the “Galaxy Tab P8” which is likely to be either the Galaxy Tab 8.9 or the Tab 7.7. The device is listed for a November 1st release, which is only about two months away!

One might jump to note that 7.7 is closer to 8 than 8.9, but this likely has little do with the size and more to do with the product model number (for instance, the original Tab 7 is the P1000 range, while the 10.1 is the P7000 range). The P8000 range could be the 7.7, or the 8.9, (or any unknown device for that matter), we just can’t say for sure at this point.

Galaxy Note

Now this is where it gets fun. We know little about what Samsung’s Galaxy Note is, but there’s room for exciting speculation. My money is on a 10.1 Honeycomb device with a sliding form-factor like the Asus Eee Pad Slider, and I’ll tell you why.

We saw something exactly like this from Samsung at CES, except it was running Windows 7. It was said to become available in March but, like the enhanced Galaxy Tab 7 (also announced at CES), it conspicuously disappeared, and I’m betting it has been transformed into an Android device.

Chippy wrote about the sliding Samsung Windows 7 computer on UMPCPortal in January noting “I like the design but I’m also seeing a 1KG Windows tablet which is just a little too heavy and not running the right OS for some of the consumer tablet scenarios that are taking off”. That was 8 months ago, but Chippy may have hit the nail on the head.

A trusted anonymous source tells me that they have seen a sliding prototype much like the Windows 7 Slider from Samsung, and they saw it after the Windows 7 slider was shown. Among other things, the prototype was slimmer than the Windows 7 slider and the screen slid up to reveal a full keyboard and trackpad.

If this prototype made it further through the design process, it may be just what Chippy was looking for; a lighter device with a tablet-optimized OS. Considering that the Windows 7 version vanished, this may very well be the case.

I’m hoping that the Galaxy Note is indeed a slider as I totally dig the form-factor.

More Detail to Come

IFA begins September 2nd and Chippy is on the scene, which means you should definitely keep your eye on Carrypad for hands-on and plenty more info on both of these devices and plenty of others.

IGN managed to get a hold of what their source claims is an internal document listing launch dates for 14 upcoming devices. Swing by IGN to see the original document, but also hang here to see that I’ve taken the information and plotted it on a handy timeline for you (I am a visual person, after all). Be sure to click to bigify:

Among the devices listed are the Motorola Droid Bionic (I accidentally didn’t note it as being 4G), which has seen a number of delays, and the Motorola Xoom 4G upgrade, both of which we had already heard were coming in September, so corroboration makes this leak seem quite legit.

According to the leak, Verizon is set to add five additional 4G LTE devices to their shelves that weren’t part of their initial 4G lineup. Those devices include:

• Samsung Stratosphere
• Blackberry Curve 9370
• HTC Vigor
• LG Revolution 2
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 4G

The Droid Bionic and Xoom were part of Verizon’s early 4G lineup, so we already knew they were coming down the line. The ones listed above, however, are mostly new.

I say mostly because we’ve been eyeing the Galaxy Tab 4G which, at first, was announced as a 4G version of the original Galaxy Tab 7, but it may end up being the Galaxy Tab 8.9, instead. Verizon had it listed as the “P8 inch on the leaked chart, but it is unclear exactly what that means. Whichever form it comes in, the leak tells us that it’ll be happening sometime in November.

The HTC Vigor is specifically designated as being a replacement for the HTC Thunderbolt which was Verizon’s very first 4G device. Similarly, the Revolution 2 is going to replace the… wait for it… Revolution (bet you didn’t see that one coming!), which I’m hoping will provide better battery life, faster charging, and better standby than the original.

The Blackberry PlayBook is also listed on the leaked list, but its launch date is listed as “TBD inch.

What’s obviously missing here is any information regarding the iPhone 5 or iPad 3, but any information regarding those devices is unlikely to be known outside of Apple until they announce it publicly. Still, that doesn’t stop us from speculating.

If all of this turns out to be true, Verizon has a powerful pre-holiday lineup; I can only hope that the other major carriers have such an exciting group of devices ready to go!

via: The Droid Guy

source: IGN Gear

IGN managed to get a hold of what their source claims is an internal document listing launch dates for 14 upcoming devices. Swing by IGN to see the original document, but also hang here to see that I’ve taken the information and plotted it on a handy timeline for you (I am a visual person, after all). Be sure to click to bigify:

Among the devices listed are the Motorola Droid Bionic (I accidentally didn’t note it as being 4G), which has seen a number of delays, and the Motorola Xoom 4G upgrade, both of which we had already heard were coming in September, so corroboration makes this leak seem quite legit.

According to the leak, Verizon is set to add five additional 4G LTE devices to their shelves that weren’t part of their initial 4G lineup. Those devices include:

• Samsung Stratosphere
• Blackberry Curve 9370
• HTC Vigor
• LG Revolution 2
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 4G

The Droid Bionic and Xoom were part of Verizon’s early 4G lineup, so we already knew they were coming down the line. The ones listed above, however, are mostly new.

I say mostly because we’ve been eyeing the Galaxy Tab 4G which, at first, was announced as a 4G version of the original Galaxy Tab 7, but it may end up being the Galaxy Tab 8.9, instead. Verizon had it listed as the “P8” on the leaked chart, but it is unclear exactly what that means. Whichever form it comes in, the leak tells us that it’ll be happening sometime in November.

The HTC Vigor is specifically designated as being a replacement for the HTC Thunderbolt which was Verizon’s very first 4G device. Similarly, the Revolution 2 is going to replace the… wait for it… Revolution (bet you didn’t see that one coming!), which I’m hoping will provide better battery life, faster charging, and better standby than the original.

The Blackberry PlayBook is also listed on the leaked list, but its launch date is listed as “TBD”.

What’s obviously missing here is any information regarding the iPhone 5 or iPad 3, but any information regarding those devices is unlikely to be known outside of Apple until they announce it publicly. Still, that doesn’t stop us from speculating.

If all of this turns out to be true, Verizon has a powerful pre-holiday lineup; I can only hope that the other major carriers have such an exciting group of devices ready to go!

via: The Droid Guy

source: IGN Gear

Today Verizon has announced that the 4G LTE version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 inch will be available in two colors starting on July 28th, with prices beginning at $529. It’s been nearly 7 months since Samsung and Verizon announced a 4G version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 inch back at CES and yet information regarding its availability have yet to materialize.

The 8.6mm thick Galaxy Tab 10.1 will be available for purchase in stores and online directly from Verizon. There are two colors to choose from metallic grey or glossy white. Two memory options are available: 16GB and 32GB for $529 and $629 respectively, which undercuts the 3G iPad 2 by $100 for both capacities. Verizon says that the 4G connection built into the Galaxy Tab 10.1 will provide download speeds of 5-12 Mbps and upload speeds of 2-5 Mbps and the device will fall back to a 3G CDMA connection when not in range of 4G.

You can find full specifications, links, photos, and more for the Galaxy Tab 10.1 at the tracking page in our device database.

That’s fine and dandy, but the question remains: where the heck is the 4G Galaxy Tab 7?!

Back in January, Verizon and Samsung announced the 4G Galaxy Tab 7 on stage in front of the press at CES. We wrote with excitement about the 4G version of the device which would also include a faster CPU and a better camera. Seven months later, the device still hasn’t received an official launch date or pricing.

Perhaps Samsung decided to drop the 4G Galaxy Tab 7 in favor of the Galaxy Tab 8.9? Or maybe they’re still working on updating the famed device with a dual-core CPU instead of just bumping the clock speed?

I’ve reached out to both Samsung and Verizon and they won’t share any info not already made available in the press release that went out 7 months ago. I just hope no one has been waiting this long to buy a 4G Galaxy Tab 7 inch… their devotion may leave them disappointed.

Apparently lost in the shuffle, Samsung’s 4G Galaxy Tab 7 (with Verizon 4G LTE support, improved camera, and faster 1.2GHz {single-core} CPU) didn’t see wide coverage back when it was announced at this year’s CES in January. Six months later, we’re left wondering where it is. Now we’re seeing rumors of a dual-core Galaxy Tab 7 and it seems possible that the 4G version announced at CES may be scrapped and will perhaps emerge as a dual-core and 4G model.

Official inquiries to PR folks from both Verizon and Samsung say that the 4G Galaxy Tab 7 is still happening, but a date for release has not yet been announced. At this rate, I’m thinking it might be dropped in favor of a dual-core version. As mentioned, the 4G Galaxy Tab was announced 6 months ago — a long time in the tech world, especially for a device that was already available in it’s non-4G version as early as 8 months ago.

An Italian Blog, Samsung.HDBlog.it has a piece showing that the next version of the Galaxy Tab 7 may be equipped with Samsung’s newest processor, the Exynos 4210, a 1.2GHz dual-core CortexA9 CPU. In addition to 1080p encoding (for video file creation) and decoding (playback), the Exynos 4210 also conveniently supports 4G LTE modems. Due to the language barrier, I can’t quite make out if this is speculation on the part of the blog or sourced information. Regardless, the time appears to be right for a ‘version 2.0’ of the Galaxy Tab 7, and Samsung has the hardware laying in wait.

As an 8 month old product, the Galaxy Tab 7 is definitely becoming ripe for a refresh. It no longer seems that a mere bump to 1.2GHz from the existing CPU, an improved camera, and 4G support (as announced at CES) will be enough to bring the popular tablet up to spec with modern tablets, especially with its bigger brothers, the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and 10.1, already available (and soon in 4G variants). Perhaps dual-core 1.2GHz with the new Exynos 4210 is the only way to go. The question then is: when?

I can only hope that Samsung doesn’t decide the drop the Galaxy Tab 7 in favor of the 8.9 inch size. Chippy, along with myself and others, would be infuriated; 7 inch is just perfectly portable!

Update: As predicted, the Galaxy Tab has already sold out from Woot. Some interesting stats:

During the sale, Woot sold one Galaxy Tab every 27 seconds. The first one sold after only 1 minute and 42 seconds of the deal being available. Total number of units sold was 1755.

———————————————–

Our favorite deal-a-day site, Woot.com, has a great deal on the tablet that’s been topping our popularity charts for months on end: the Samsung Galaxy Tab.

This particular version is a 16GB WiFi+3G model which doesn’t appear to be well priced on the surface until you realize that you don’t have to sign up for service with your purchase from Woot. A new Galaxy Tab from Sprint without the contract would run you $429. Woot is offering the device (refurbished) for $259 without the contract.

Just in case you aren’t familiar with the well respected tablet, here are the important bits:

• Android 2.2 (customized for a tablet experience by Samsung)
• Samsung C110 Hummingbird CPU @ 1GHz
• 512MB of RAM
• 7 inch capacitive touchscreen @ 1024×600
• 16GB pre-installed MicroSD card
• WiFi & Bluetooth 3.0
• CDMA 1900/800 EVDO Rev A (Sprint)

Chippy has a wickedly detailed review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab should you desire to consult an expert about a potential purchase:

https://www.umpcportal.com/2010/10/28/samsung-galaxy-tab-full-review-part-1-overview-hardware-screen-keyboard/

This is Woot we’re talking about here — they only offer one deal per day. After 12:59am EST, this deal will be gone (and will likely sellout even before), have at it!

Update: As predicted, the Galaxy Tab has already sold out from Woot. Some interesting stats:

During the sale, Woot sold one Galaxy Tab every 27 seconds. The first one sold after only 1 minute and 42 seconds of the deal being available. Total number of units sold was 1755.

———————————————–

Our favorite deal-a-day site, Woot.com, has a great deal on the tablet that’s been topping our popularity charts for months on end: the Samsung Galaxy Tab.

This particular version is a 16GB WiFi+3G model which doesn’t appear to be well priced on the surface until you realize that you don’t have to sign up for service with your purchase from Woot. A new Galaxy Tab from Sprint without the contract would run you $429. Woot is offering the device (refurbished) for $259 without the contract.

Just in case you aren’t familiar with the well respected tablet, here are the important bits:

• Android 2.2 (customized for a tablet experience by Samsung)
• Samsung C110 Hummingbird CPU @ 1GHz
• 512MB of RAM
• 7” capacitive touchscreen @ 1024×600
• 16GB pre-installed MicroSD card
• WiFi & Bluetooth 3.0
• CDMA 1900/800 EVDO Rev A (Sprint)

Chippy has a wickedly detailed review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab should you desire to consult an expert about a potential purchase:

https://www.umpcportal.com/2010/10/28/samsung-galaxy-tab-full-review-part-1-overview-hardware-screen-keyboard/

This is Woot we’re talking about here — they only offer one deal per day. After 12:59am EST, this deal will be gone (and will likely sellout even before), have at it!