The adoption of tablets, social media and new interfaces and the changing nature of the TV itself mean the digital living room will continue on its path of rapid change, thanks to new ways of creating, viewing, bundling, distributing and selling content. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
When I held the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 at last month’s Consumer Electronics Show, I was hooked. The new Tab is slimmer, has a vastly improved display, more RAM and a 1.4 GHz dual-core processor. Here’s a first look at this thin, all-day Honeycomb tablet. Read more »
Mint’s financial management app for Android makes the move from phones to tablets on Wednesday. The software offers the same functionality as Mint’s iPad app, which is experiencing much higher take-up rates on tablets compared to smartphones. Here’s why Mint hopes for the same on Android. Read more »
This week, two of the latest Android tablets arrived on my doorstep: An Asus Transformer Prime and a Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7; solid upgrades from last year’s models. Android tablet sales are finally on the rise, mainly on the back of Amazon’s Kindle Fire. Read more »
Android was everywhere at this month’s CES, but many products don’t hit retail shelves for months. Acer broke that tradition, releasing the A200 tablet this week. It should see Android 4.0 soon, just like the Xoom recently did. Plus my pick for app of the week. Read more »
Acer introduced its A200 tablet at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier in January, and unlike many products shown at the event, this one is already available for sale in the U.S. Is it worth the money, considering it uses technology that was available a year ago? Read more »
In between appointments at CES, I spent ten minutes with two of Samsung’s newest devices. The 5.3-inch Galaxy Note and Galaxy Tab 7.7 LTE grabbed my attention, so after a few minutes of using both, I took a few short video clips of these LTE devices. Read more »
CES, currently in full swing in Las Vegas, promises to bring out another wave of Android tablets, to add to the 40+ that were on the market… Read more at paidContent »
At CES, Motorola announced a new Droid for Verizon’s LTE network that appears to be a combination of all of its Android smartphones released to date. Meanwhile, LG got cinematic with LTE’s video stream capabilities, announcing a new HD phone, while Samsung unveiled its Tab 7.7. Read more »
Toshiba’s 7-inch tablet is already available for purchase if you know where to look: One reseller is offering the smaller Thrive. But the $450 price has to include some large markup; here’s why I suspect Toshiba Thrive will see an official price of around $299. Read more »
Amazon’s Kindle Fire may already be the top selling Google Android slate and the no. 2 tablet behind Apple’s iPad. Amazon could move up to 4 million tablets this quarter, says iSuppli. And why not when you look at what you can do for $199? Read more »
Tablets began outselling netbooks earlier this year, but the small laptops still have their fans. One person created a list of 101 things a netbook can do and it’s a great read. But I’d argue that most consumers are moving away from such traditional computing activities. Read more »
T-Mobile’s Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus launches with improvements and functions over the prior model, such as a faster dual-core processor and HSPA+ support. One other new feature: a monthly payment plan that lowers the up-front cost by adding $10 to the next 20 monthly bills. Read more »
Yet another analyst report has joined the chorus of those claiming Apple will see its majority market share for tablet devices slide to less than a majority by 2014-2015. It’s quickly becoming a theme, but one which I find hard to back up in reality. Read more »
Asus is showing off the first Nvidia-powered quad-core tablet, which may intially run Google Android Honeycomb. I welcome advances in computer chips, but the time of “most powerful hardware” being best are long over. Today, top devices also require great apps and a solid user experience. Read more »
Netflix has a new version of its Android app that adds support for Honeycomb tablets and expands availability beyond the U.S. The app is now available on the Android Market, expanding the number of devices its subscribers will be able to access it on. Read more »
The tablet market is growing rapidly — but it could be getting even more of a boost thanks to the growing number of operator subsidies on offer. The latest? A series of cut-price deals aimed at France’s large student population. Read more »
Samsung officially announced the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, saying the 7-inch Android tablet will initially launch in Austria and Indonesia, but later expand to the U.S. and other regions. Some of the hardware upgrades appeal, but a key issue remains: selling tablets with lengthy contracts. Read more »
Google TV apps have started to pop up on the Android market, hinting at an imminent release of the Honeycomb-based next version of the smart TV platform. Wonder what those Google TV-specific apps look like? Then take a first look with our slide show. Read more »
The number of connected devices is steadily on the rise, but it’s not smartphones or computers that will lead us to the 50 billion connected devices expected by the year 2020. Rather, the Internet of Things — numerous smart objects that speak to the web and ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Amazon’s long awaited entry into the Android tablet space is nearly ready, but it’s not the tablet that some were expecting. Samsung blurs the lines between tablet and phone with the new 5.3-inch Samsung Note, while Toshiba and Lenovo debut new Android tablets this week. Read more »
Big hardware vendors continue to fight Apple’s iPad for a piece of the tablet pie and the three newest entries debuted today at the IFA electronics show. Samsung went high-end in a small device, while Lenovo went low cost. Meanwhile, Toshiba slimmed its 10.1-inch Android tablet. Read more »
With so many iPad lookalikes in the tablet market, it’s actually refreshing to see a new design. And the freshest of them all may be Sony’s new Tablet P with its dual screens in a folding clamshell case, which looks intriguing in this first look video. Read more »
AT&T’s first LTE tablet, the HTC Jetstream, sounds promising until you see the price of $699 with two-year contract. Yes, the slate supports AT&T’s upcoming LTE network, but the carrier should have learned a lesson from its rival Verizon: This price with contract doesn’t sell tablets. Read more »
Samsung is expected to announced a new tablet, the Galaxy Tab 7.7, at next month’s IFA event. The 7.7 could indicate the screen size, but perhaps not: Samsung is working on 7-inch 720p Super AMOLED Plus screens, so this might be a 7-inch, high-definition slate. Read more »
The demise of the HP TouchPad explains much about timing in the tablet market: Consumers won’t buy devices solely for their potential, at least not at full price. Tablet makers still playing catch-up to the iPad’s functions and features better be prepared for a long-term commitment. Read more »
Thanks to content and applications, iOS and Android will remain at the top of the tablet heap until at least 2017, a new report claimed Monday. Trends indicate that iOS and Android tablet devices will make up 90 percent of the market six years from now. Read more »
One of Apple’s tablet challengers, one that many initially thought might eventually become a force to be reckoned with, revealed Thursday that it would be leaving the field. HP will stop making webOS tablets or smartphones, which takes one potential iPad competitor out of the equation. Read more »
The most appealing tablet these days is clearly Apple’s iPad, but HP’s TouchPad is a surprising second choice, beating out the many Google Android tablets and RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook in a survey of potential tablet buyers. It may be too soon to call it the “OuchPad.” Read more »
Google rocked the mobile world on Monday, August 15, with the news that it will buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion, marking a 63-percent premium for the handset manufacturer. It’s a move that ushers Google into the exclusive club of companies that control both the hardware and software elements of their smartphone offerings, and it will enable Google to design handsets that are more closely integrated with Android. However, the deal doesn’t come without its risks, and it remains to be seen just how it will affect other handset makers, competition from Microsoft and the crucial patent issues currently surrounding Google. Companies mentioned in this report include Apple, Research In Motion and Samsung. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
A German court has temporarily lifted a restriction that was preventing Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 from being sold throughout most of Europe. The timing of this action coincides with news that Apple submitted inaccurate images of Samsung’s tablet, making it look more similar to Apple’s iPad. Read more »
Acer’s 7-inch tablet, the A100, launched this week with an attractive starting price of $330, but battery life could be a concern. Samsung added a new Galaxy smartphone using a few cheaper components. I also found a free task app that smartly leverages your handset’s GPS. Read more »
Acer’s new 7-inch Honeycomb tablet, the A100, launches today with a compelling $330 price tag. Helping to add appeal to the small slate is support for the compatibility zoom mode in Google Android 3.2 that better supports the many available smartphone apps on the small tablet. Read more »
The non-iPad tablet market is relatively young, but the iPad is still running away with the lion’s share of the tablet market. Aside from the iPad, consumers and enterprises can choose from tablets running on Android, BlackBerry and webOS. But are they buying? Here are a ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Apple won an injunction to halt Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 sales across most of the EU yesterday and today, Motorola’s Xoom has surfaced as the next potential target. Is Apple weeding out all potential iPad competitors or is it trying to control the entire tablet market? Read more »
After spending time with the HP TouchPad and its new webOS update, I’m sad to see the review unit go back. The tablet is now humming along like you’d expect a 1.2 GHz dual-core device should. And now the tablet is $50 cheaper than Apple’s iPad. Read more »
Logitech just significantly lowered the price of its Revue set-top box to $99. It’s a desperate move, but price-conscious consumers shouldn’t see it as a closeout sale. Instead, it may just be a great chance to get much more bang for your smart TV buck. Read more »
Seven months after launching with the promise of using Verizon’s LTE network, the Motorola Xoom tablet is going to deliver. In September, the Android tablet will be upgradable to 4G mobile broadband at no charge, although owners may be without their Xoom for 6 business days. Read more »
Verizon’s newest Android tablet arrives in stores this week and supports the operator’s 4G network. But wait, haven’t we heard that before? The Motorola Xoom is still waiting for its upgrade to use Verizon’s LTE network, but the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is ready to roll. Read more »
A report earlier this week pegged one Android tablet sold for every two iPads. Sounds like Honeycomb tablets are catching up, right? But there’s a problem: The figures aren’t based on sales numbers at all. Here’s a logical, reasonable method to the real tablet-sales data. Read more »
