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peter

Just got the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, any questions?

Samsung just sent me one to check out for a couple of weeks, would be happy to try and answer any questions you might have it about it!

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69 replies
NotHotWater

How bad is it compared to the iPad? Just kidding.

In your mind, how does it compare to the rest of the Tablets on the market? I know many reviewers have said that it's *the* Android tablet - is it?
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peter

I haven't used every Honeycomb tablet out there, but I have used the Xoom and the Acer A500 as well as the Tab 10.1, and I'd say that the Tab 10.1 is the best of the three. The hardware is great, it's light and thin and feels very good in the hand.
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radikal

this is the lightest I have used.

I've had gslate, acer a500, xoom and this one. This is lightest easy
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Dignan17

Does it have TouchWiz or not? I put in my preorder this morning, and I'm assuming it doesn't have TouchWiz because everything I've read has said it will be a later download. But what scares me is that Samsung hasn't said if it will be an optional download. I REALLY don't want it, as I ALWAYS prefer the plain Android experience.

I'm not very familiar with Honeycomb, but can you tell if the Honeycomb on the Tab is untouched by Samsung?
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peter

It does not have TouchWiz. The only customizations Samsung has made to Honeycomb are very minor, like in terms of wallpapers and the keyboard (which can be easily switched the stock Honeycomb version). There may be some other small things, but I don't see much of a difference between this and other tablets I've used that have stock Honeycomb.
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sabixx

How fast is the switching from landscape to portrait? is it as smooth and as fast as the ipad?
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peter

It's not bad, but I wish it were faster, it is not as smooth or as fast as on the iPad.
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elbaso

Does your tab have Honeycomb 3.1? If you've used the tab before with 3.0 (like the Google I/O version), can you talk about some of the differences, better and worse?
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peter

It has Honeycomb 3.1. I never used the Google I/O version of the Tab w/3.0, but I did use both the Xoom and A500 and the differences aren't huge. Things seem a bit more responsive and you can resize widgets now are the ones that I've noticed the most.
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elbaso

I have the Google I/O version, and am waiting for the 3.1 upgrade.
My understanding is that it should make things peppier, and Flash should run better as well.
Thanks!
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Dunnion

Web browsing has improved with 3.1 on my Xoom, but for me that's the only noticeable change. I'm not counting resizing widgets since you can only resize like 2 of them.
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ThePale

Have you tried Music Beta on it? Via app or website?
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peter

I tried both. I had to update the Music app before I could access the online service, but once I did it worked. Used the browser-based version and it worked the same as on a PC. One thing I noticed is that songs would start playing slightly faster in the browser than in the app.
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groovechicken

From what little hands-on I have had with it, I really like the 7" Tab. The size and weight are about perfect for my taste. Any thoughts on how the 7" and 10" compare, especially in terms of viewing resolution? I have good eyes, so I don't mind things being tiny on the screen as long as I can see a lot of what's there at a time and still read the font.
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peter

I'm a fan of the 7-inch Tab as well. I like the size, and despite the handwringing from a lot of commenters about it running the "phone" version of Android, I found that the OS and apps scaled fairly well for that screen size. No, it wasn't perfect, but it worked better than many people gave it credit for.

So with respect to the 7 vs the 10.1, the screen on the 7 has slighter higher pixel density (170 ppi vs 150 ppi), and I found it to be acceptable for reading ebooks (which is sort of the litmus test, right?).
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egon0119

How does the interface responsiveness feel as compared to other android tablets and the iPad?
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peter

Not as good as the iPad 2, slightly better than the A500 and Xoom. Though I only had the Xoom on 3.0, had to send it back before the upgrade to 3.1 was released.
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ronrubens

How do you connect a flash drive? Does it have a slot for a memory card?
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peter

There is no memory card slot and no way to connect a flash drive, at least not that I've seen. I suppose it's possible that Samsung will come out with some kind of adapter.
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kriegs

Apparently Samsung is going to release an adapter, found on their site: www.samsung.com­/us­/mobile­/galaxy­-tab­-accessories­/E...
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peter

Good catch!
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seanjobig

Does it come with an adapter or some way to do HDMI out?
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peter

No adapter, though it's possible that Samsung might offer one at some point.
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JerryGPena

There will be a adapter fot HDMI and USB, aswell as a adapter for sd cards
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tajh2009

Can you try installing NoLED? Its great for showing notifications on the screen while in standby on the Galaxy S phones. I wonder how well it would work on the bigger device.
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peter

Just searched for it in the Android Market and it is not compatible with Honeycomb tablets.
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This post has been removed.

peter

It's standard Honeycomb.
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ryanarch

I understand the front and rear camera usefulness on tablets...but what is the photo/video quality like? Can it record HD video with the rear 3mp camera (which seems substandard?).
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peter

So I would not buy this tablet for its cameras. (I wouldn't buy the iPad for its cameras either.) The pics I've taken are ok, but I wouldn't see any reason to take a picture with the Galaxy Tab if I had my phone with me (which definitely takes better photos).

It can do 720p video, but again, it's nothing special.
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radikal

no tablet should be a camera machine. just kinda weird
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elbaso

Have you tried TouchWiz on it? I know it's going to be a separate download, and I'm wondering if it adds anything to the stock Honeycomb experience.
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peter

Samsung hasn't made it available yet, but I am curious to try it out. (Assuming that Samsung rolls it out before I have to send this thing back, of course.)
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kmazur

How do non-tablet specific apps look? Do they just scale up or do they function more like the iPad where it just zoomed in?
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peter

It can depend on the app, but they don't get zoomed in like when running iPhone apps on the iPad. They usually just have extra space or text expands to fill the space available, it's bit like expanding a window on your desktop.
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radikal

facebook looks weird, google reader looks ok, engadget looks GREAT
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JeremyDK

Is the bootloader locked/encrypted? I know the I/O version is open, but I'm hoping the retail one is as well. Thanks!
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radikal

i have friends from IO that are working on it
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brett

Does Netflix work on the device?
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peter

Nope.
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radikal

not yet
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realsoda

What material is the back cover made of?
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peter

White plastic. It's not as fancy as the aluminum that's used in the iPad, but it keeps the weight down and still manages to look decent.
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radikal

plastic indeed, kinda nice and glossy
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headtowall

How about Google Voice integration, does it exist at all? What about Google Docs?
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radikal

no google voice, yes google docs
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peter

What he said!
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headtowall

Are there any limitations to Google Docs, or is the normal version as you would see using the Chrome Browser?
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radikal

the google docs app is just like android, and i am sure you could access the desktop .com version if needed
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radikal

how have you found durability, it has been back and forth for me
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