T-Mobile Announces Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus Pricing And Availability

T-Mobile has just announced that they will be offering the “new and improved” Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus for their 4G network this holiday season. The 7-inch device is running on Android 3.2 Honeycomb and features a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 16GB of internal storage, micro SD slot, 3MP rear/2MP front facing cameras and of course, running on T-Mobile’s insanely fast 4G network. The Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus will be available November 16th and can be purchase for $250 (after $50 mail-in rebate) with a 2-year agreement. You can check out the full press release below.

T-Mobile Completes Holiday 4G Tablet Portfolio With the Samsung Galaxy Tab™7.0 PlusT-Mobile’s newest ultra-mobile 4G tablet delivers a rich entertainment experience anywhere on America’s Largest 4G Network. BELLEVUE, Wash. -- Nov. 8, 2011 -- T-Mobile USA, Inc. today unveiled the ultra-mobile Samsung Galaxy Tab™7.0 Plus, the latest to join the company’s portfolio of 7-, 9- and 10-inch 4G-enabled* tablets. Featuring a brilliant 7-inch multitouch display and weighing just 0.77 lbs., less than a can of soda, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is one of the thinnest and lightest 7-inch tablets on the market, making it easy to watch popular TV shows and movies, download full-color magazines, compete in multi-player gaming and more - all while on the go.

"Consumers want a selection of affordable, highly mobile tablets that can deliver the content they want virtually anywhere they go," said Jeremy Korst, vice president of mobile broadband and emerging devices, T-Mobile USA. "The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is a perfectly sized, ultra-thin and lightweight 4G tablet that easily fits in a coat pocket or purse and delivers a rich on-the-go entertainment experience."

Offering a premium, ultra-mobile entertainment experience, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus from T-Mobile comes with a variety of pre-installed premium content, including the Samsung Media Hub so customers can rent or purchase movies and purchase TV programs and share that content on up to five compatible devices on the same account. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus also comes pre-loaded with WildTangent®, so customers can play premium games for free, as well as rent or purchase games.

The Android™ 3.2 (Honeycomb) Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus is equipped with a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, 16 GB of internal memory and a micro SD card slot that supports up to an additional 32 GB of expandable memory for easy storage of documents, movies, books and more. In addition, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus makes it quick and easy to browse rich Web content with support for Adobe® Flash® Player and read books and magazines though services like Zinio®, which offers more than 5,000 full color magazines to browse, and Blio® eReader, which shows eBooks in full color on the brilliant 7-inch screen.

Equipped with a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera with flash for photo, and Mobile HD video capture and playback in 720p** as well as a 2-megapixel front-facing camera which can be used to connect with friends and family via Video Chat, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus makes it possible to connect and share life’s most important moments while on the go.
 AvailabilityThe Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus will join the recently announced T-Mobile® SpringBoard™ with Google™ and Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 10.1, as well as the T-Mobile G-Slate™ with Google, to offer an affordable and compelling portfolio of 7-, 9- and 10-inch 4G tablets with down payments ranging from $179.99 to $399.99***.

Beginning Nov. 16, customers can purchase the T-Mobile SpringBoard for a $179.99 down payment and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus for a $249.99 down payment at T-Mobile retail stores. Each require a $50 mail-in rebate, with a T-Mobile Value Mobile Broadband plan, two-year service agreement, and 20 interest free monthly payments of $10 on approved credit. Overage-free Mobile Broadband Value plans start at $29.99 per month, and T-Mobile postpaid voice customers enjoy $10 off their monthly mobile broadband service. For more information, visithttp://mobile-broadband.t-mobile.com/tablets.

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Samsung Galaxy S3 vs Apple iPhone 4S

We're dealing with rumour and hyperbole this time around, as we compare Apple's newly released iPhone 4S with Samsung's Galaxy S3, courtesy of a juicy product leak

Most people are still arranging their upgrades to Apple's new iPhone 4S, but we're already concerning ourselves with what comes next. In this case it's the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S3.
We've recently got our hands on its intended specification via an internet leak. So in this face-off we'll be playing the 'suspected' Galaxy S3 specs off against the iPhone 4S.
How will this new Android powered device measure up to the sweetheart of the smartphone world? Well, let's delve into its  alleged specifications and find out.
It's worth remembering that at this stage in the game this is speculation, and there will no doubt be some changes before the final device hits the shops. But let's forget that and indulge ourselves!


Power
Apple's iPhone 4S packs a decent punch thanks to its dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 chip and PowerVR SGX543MP2 GPU, and as the first dual-core toting Apple smartphone to come to market you can enjoy solid, speedy performance throughout.
The device is equipped with 512MB RAM too, which provides a nice snap to proceedings and allows apps to open in a flash thanks to Apple's meticulous optimisations.
The iPhone 4S comes in 16, 32 and 64GB flavours.
The Galaxy S3 allegedly runs on Samsung's own Exynos 4212 chipset, which includes a huge 1.8GHz dual-core CPU and 2GB RAM (yes, you read that right!), which will have the device whizzing along at a rate previously reserved for laptops and top-end tablets.
In addition to its super powerful CPU, the Galaxy S3 will apparently come in 16 and 32GB flavours with additional support for Micro SD cards up to 32GB in size.
Winner - Samsung Galaxy S3
Display
The Galaxy S3 features a stellar Super AMOLED Plus HD display and rumour has it that it will be 4.6-inches in size and come with the usual array of accoutrements, including Gorilla Glass fronting.
The rumoured pixel density for the Galaxy S3 is 319PPI – only a gnats shy of the iPhone 4S – and if this is correct it will be the most advanced Android device around.
The iPhone 4S features Apple's famed Retina Display technology in the form of a 3.5-inch LED backlit IPS TFT screen, which weighs-in with a pixel density of 330PPI.
Visuals on the iPhone 4S are stunning and it's by far the best mobile display around – at the moment. How it stacks up against the Galaxy S3's Super AMOLED Plus HD in the real world may be cause for a changing of the guard though.
Winner - Apple iPhone 4S

Form
Apple iPhone 4S - 115.2 x 58.6 x 9.3 mm, 140G
Samsung Galaxy S3 - ?
Judging this category is going to be tough as no information has been leaked regarding the Galaxy S3's form and measurements – but we can let our imaginations run for a moment, right? No harm in that.
The iPhone 4S is a sleek, slim device which is constructed out of top quality materials. Design tweaks have all but eradicated 'death grip' concerns and, say what you like about Apple, it knows how to design a good looking piece of tech.
The 4S looks and feels like a finished article whereas in many areas the iPhone 4 did not. The antenna fix for one, then there's Siri and all that new hardware – dual-core CPU, 8-megapixel camera etc.
The Galaxy S3 will likely follow in the footsteps of its brother, the Galaxy S2, and be a big-screened, super skinny device.
We expect it to measure less than its stable-mate's 8.5mm thickness and be crafted from the same blend of plastics that let us down with the S2 as well.
In other areas it seems as though Samsung has chosen to refine things, giving the Galaxy S3 more sweeping edges, rather than the boxy shape its predecessor's boasted.

Related articles

• Samsung and Android continue their bullish run (goandroid.co.in)
• HTC Vivid and Raider Review (tech-gadget.co.in)
• Samsung Galaxy Nexus vs Samsung Galaxy Note (goandroid.co.in)
• Motorola Razr vs Apple iPhone 4S (goandroid.co.in)

Camera

Both devices in this comparison feature primary and secondary cameras.

The iPhone 4S features a very pleasing 8-megapixel primary, which benefits from auto-focus, LED flash, touch-focus, geo-tagging and face detection, and captures video at 1080P.

Its secondary camera is a VGA.

The Samsung Galaxy S3 is rumoured to feature a 12-megapixel primary camera with dual LED flash, geo-tagging, touch focus, face & smile detection and image stabilisation and will capture movies in 1080P too.

It's secondary camera is expected to be the same as the Galaxy S2's 2-megapixel offering.

The jury will stay out on this round until the Galaxy S3 hits our desk, ready for testing. In terms of specification it should best the iPhone 4S, but knowing how well the Apple performs we'll leave that proclamation until we're 100% sure.

Winner - Draw

Software

The iPhone 4S runs on version 5 of Apple's iOS operating system and it's the best iteration of the platform to date.

Its upgrades include a new Notification Centre (which is vaguely reminiscent of Android's own pull-down blind system), iMessage, a new, BBM inspired messaging solution, Newsstand, for keeping up-to-date with all your periodicals and native Twitter integration.

On top of the tweaks you'll still have the very best software QWERTY on the planet, access to the hundreds of thousands of apps available in the Apple App Store and the usual silky, seamless performance that we've come to expect of Apple.

The Galaxy S3 will apparently run on version 4.0 of Android, otherwise known as Ice Cream Sandwich, and the OS has undergone a bit of a face-lift in this iteration.

New features include a whole new visage, a new standard font throughout, giving the platform a much more mature and professional look, in-app spell checking, newly designed core applications, a neat folder system vaguely reminiscent of Apple's iOS system and Face Unlock, which should allow you and only you access to your device (the 'should' is italicised because it didn't quite work like that during Google's grand reveal).

Overall Ice Cream Sandwich looks set to be the most complete version of Android to date. With no more custom overlays delaying updates, and custom UI's draining resources away from the core functionality of the system. 

It will have to be good though, because as it stands iOS 5 is the best mobile platform on the market.

Winner - Apple iPhone 4S

Apple's iPhone 4S has given a good account of itself against its competitor from the future.

Even when held up against a smartphone that is months away from completion the device still looks complete and we can't see many devices having the nous to challenge its superiority until the Galaxy S3 arrives next year.

The aforementioned Galaxy S3 certainly looks to be a powerful and interesting Android device though, and with a few tweaks it could nick the top spot from Apple's baby.

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Google lawyer says Microsoft sues because Windows Phone 7 is failing

The war of words between Google and Microsoft has reached into the media once again, as SFGate has interviewed Google’s patent lawyer Tim Porter. Refuting the claims made by his Redmond counterpart in an earlier interview, Porter said that Microsoft is attacking Android because they feel their own product (Windows Phone 7) is marginalized and threatened. He said that while the meteoric rise of Android hasn’t been halted by Microsoft’s tactics, companies that have to worry about patent litigation can’t focus on innovation.

Harkening back to Microsoft’s previous patent litigation against Linux, Porter accused Microsoft of gaining revenue from other company’s successful products by means of the courts. That’s certainly true: estimates put Microsoft’s Android earnings at more than 400 million dollars a year, and with more than half of all Android devices made paying Microsoft in some way, that’s not likely to end soon. Porter notes that Microsoft didn’t earn a single software patent until the late 80s, after both DOS and Word were already smash hits.
Here’s the full quote:

[Aggressively chasing licensing] is a tactic that Microsoft has used in the past, with Linux, for example. When their products stop succeeding in the marketplace, when they get marginalized, as is happening now with Android, they use the large patent portfolio they’ve built up to get revenue from the success of other companies’ products

Porter stopped short of saying that software shouldn’t be patentable, a view that many are taking in response to current patent wars, but did say that the current system is broken and needs serious attention. In speaking on Microsoft’s assertion that Google doesn’t stand behind its OEM partners and left them vulnerable to IP attack (yeesh, Microsoft, ever heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy?) Porter repeated the company line that they stand behind their partners. Unfortunately, it looks like the multi-sided pantent battle between Google, Microsoft, Apple and dozens of others isn’t going to end any time soon.
[via SlashGear]

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Team Xron’s CM7 dresses up your TouchPad in Honeycomb

Just like the rest of us, the CyanogenMod team doesn’t have access to the Honeycomb source code, so for now the best they can do for custom ROMS and the HP TouchPad is Gingerbread. But themers are a crafty bunch, and since CyanogenMod is open sourced, a group calling themselves Team Xron has released a skinned version to at least make you feel like you’re using a tablet OS. Users won’t have access to Honeycomb apps, but the various customizations do make Gingerbread look pretty slick.

Installation is simple if you’ve already shoved CyanogenMod onto the TouchPad: just transfer the ZIP over, reboot, select ClockworkMod recovery and flash the new software. You’ll definitely want to make Nandroid backup, just in case the new color scheme doesn’t agree with you, and as always when dealing with community mods there’s no guarantees of success. I f you haven’t used the rather complicated SDK method of pushing the CM7 files to your TouchPad, you can just replicate the installation method and swap out the zip file.
In addition to the tablet makeover, Team Xron has added themed widgets and am appropriate wireless printing app. It looks like they’re updating frequently – certainly more frequently than CyanogenMod, which hasn’t released any new info since the Alpha 2 version weeks ago. Early reports indicate that the build is fast, but certain apps like Gtalk are having issues. Remember, CM7 includes its own theme engine, so if you’re happy with your current build it might be bust to just apply a community theme.
Still not sure about adding Android to the TouchPad’s native WebOS? Take a gander at our hands-on video.
[via Liliputing]

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Verizon double data promo gets more details

In cased anyone missed it, Verizon is starting a double your data promotion tomorrow. Basically if you sign up and pay for 2GB of smartphone data a month, they’ll be nice and give you 4GB for the same price — take that AT&T. The deal goes live tomorrow and is available to both new and current Verizon Wireless customers and we now have a few additional details regarding this “Double Data” deal.

The image can be seen in the full size gallery below. What we have is a brand new double data promotion that starts tomorrow, November 8th, and users will get double for their money. We have reached out to Verizon regarding how long this promotion will last and be sure to update as soon as we hear anything. Hopefully it lasts long enough for those waiting to buy the Galaxy Nexus, it might be in stores come the 21st. Verizon is offering this deal on all current tiered data plans, obviously unlimited doesn’t count here.
– $30 for 2GB becomes 4GB
– $50 for 5GB becomes 10GB
– $80 for 10GB becomes 20GB
According to some leaked documents from Verizon this promo deal will actually last for the life of the smartphone plan. So as long as you don’t change to something else later, you’ll always have the awesome low price and get double the data. Basically grandfathered in until you decide to change something, then they’ll take any chance they get to make you pay more. The post this morning we didn’t know how long this would last for customers, but now we know. Sadly mobile hotspot data and pricing does not count here, only for 4G LTE smartphone data plans.
As soon as we hear anything official from Verizon regarding how long the double data promotion will be available for subscribers we will be sure to update so everyone can be prepared to jump ship if necessary. Check out the full sized document by clicking below.
[via vzbuzz]

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Samsung Galaxy Nexus hidden notification LED [Video]

Who knew the Samsung Galaxy Nexus featured a multicolored notification LED hidden on the bottom chin area? We mentioned this feature back in October before the big unveiling of the Galaxy Nexus but it seems many still don’t know about it. Most hands-on coverage doesn’t mention it either so we figured a little video preview showing you what to expect would be worth a quick 25-30 second glance.

Shown in the image above is the completely hidden multicolored notification LED that is present on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. It resides where the capacitive buttons previously called home and is completely hidden until it lights up and notifies the world. The original G1 had one, and the Nexus One featured the same idea with a multicolored notification light in the Blackberry style direction cursor ball. Sadly that notification light never received its full potential from Google but third party apps and ROM’s like CyanogenMod made it completely customizable. I had blue for texts, green for emails, red for Gmail, cyan for twitter, and white for missed calls. A few early Android phones had this feature and I wish ALL still had it, but sadly they do not.
I’m happy to report that Google is bringing back the notification LED with the Galaxy Nexus, just like we mentioned above. Below we have a very short video demonstrating just how it works (Thanks anonymous). I’m sure it will be highly customizable from Google themselves in Ice Cream Sandwich — or from third party apps and ROM’s.
Galaxy Nexus Notification LED




If you look close you can see it at 13 seconds, and again around 22. It pulses for a second or so and appears to be a nice cyan blue color similar to everything else with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. If this truly is completely customizable I will be one very happy camper, why turn on and check your device for that pesky Twitter notification when a simple and low power LED light can tell you instead. I truly loved having this feature on my Nexus One and would love it if more phones came with a similar option.
I don’t know about you guys but I just want this phone already. Latest rumors are saying around November 17th, or maybe the 21st so we’ll just have to wait and see. Hurry it up Verizon!

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HTC Edge: Quad-core phone images leaked

Whoa, Monday just got a lot more exciting. We have just been tipped with some photos of a smartphone being called the HTC Edge, the companies very first quad-core phone. This could also be the first actual quad-core smartphone if you think about it. We are hearing this will basically be the top dog of them all and combine everything HTC has to offer into one. a 4.7″ 1280 x 720p HD display, Beats Audio, and of course that quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor.


Initial reports are suggesting a 1.5 GHz quad-core processor but we are still digging for more details. In the past almost every HTC phone has came with Qualcomm processors so this would be a huge change of direction, so that is my first doubt. Second NVIDIA Tegra 2 is only 1.0 GHz although a 1.5 GHz quad-core does sound amazing. So basically we are hearing a 4.7″ quad-core beast with 1GB of RAM, 32GB internal storage, 8 megapixel camera on the rear, 2 up front for video chat, Beats Audio and more all into an awesome looking device around 10mm thin.
According to PocketNow this is a credible source, but for now this is probably all just speculation but sounds amazing and I want one now. We are seeing capacitive buttons on the rendered image (looking pretty real) so that could mean Android 2.3 Gingerbread although I’m sure many were hoping for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Obviously a flagship device like this would get the update, but you’d think it would come out of the box with Ice Cream Sandwich. This early, with NVIDIA not even officially announcing the Tegra 3 quad-core yet this phone is highly acceptable to both OS, and design changes. There is also no talk of 4G LTE here but that will most likely come later. If you ask me this looks like the Sensation and the recently announced HTC Rezound made a baby, and it looks beautiful.
Developing… stay tuned for more details!
[via PocketNow]

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NOOK Color officially drops to $199, goes head to head with Kindle Fire

Just like the leaked internal deck predicted, the venerable Nook Color is getting a price drop now that the Nook Tablet is official. The original will cost just $199, going head-to-head with the Amazon Kindle Fire while the Nook Tablet competes with some superior specs at $249. The price has already dropped on Barnes & Noble’s NOOK website.

Also included is a major update to the Nook Color software, which is still getting some impressive support a year after its initial release. Netflix support is coming in the next firmware update, with Hulu Plus support scheduled in the next few months – both of which the Kindle Fire lacks, relying instead on Amazon Instant Video.  The ebook and app libraries already on offer will be streamlined with new interfaces and social suggestions.
At this point, the two bookselling giants have products that directly compete at the $200 level, while Amazon dips below $100 with the ad-based Kindle and Barnes & Noble taking the high road with the Nook Tablet. All the models of the Nook, including the Nook SimpleTouch at a reduced $99, run modified versions of Android, making them prime targets for enthusiastic modders and ROM developers. At $199 for a light tablet with an IPS screen, the Nook Color is still a pretty good deal – unless you’re already set on Amazon’s universe of content and apps.

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NOOK Tablet vs Kindle Fire: what will you buy?

Today at an event in NYC Barnes & Noble announced the new NOOK Tablet and most of the event they were quick to point out how much better it was compared to the Kindle Fire tablet from Amazon. We saw most of the specs leak late last week on the new NOOK Tablet so nothing was a huge surprise today, either way head down past the break for the details and comparison on these two tablets.

First off lets start with the NOOK Tablet, announced this morning with a slew of top tier specs all for a great price. We have a 7″ LG IPS diplay with a 1024 x 600 resolution powered by a TI OMAP 1.0 GHz dual-core processor. Being very similar here with the Fire, this is where things take a change. The NOOK has 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage compared to just 512MB on the Fire and 8GB of storage.

“The Kindle Fire is deficient as a media tablet” William J. Lynch Jr., B&N CEO

At the event this morning, B&N CEO Lynch said the above quote while talking about the Kindle Fire and its lowly 8GB of storage, partly because only 6GB or so of that is actually usable. The NOOK offers 16GB plus micro-SD support for an additional 32GB. The entire event they were quick to take shots at the Kindle Fire — from the copycat design of the BlackBerry Playbook, not enough storage, less RAM, and being fatter. We’ll let you guys make that decision on your own, I’ll just give you the details.
The Kindle Fire features a similar 7″ display with the same 1024 x 600 resolution. We also have the TI OMAP 4 dual-core processor here running at 1.0 GHz but like mentioned above, the Kindle Fire only has 512MB of RAM — something that could play a factor in multitasking at some point. With no cameras these are mainly consumption devices, but we already knew that right.
Both devices are a hair less than half an inch thick and weigh around 400 grams (or 15 ounces). The Kindle Fire is said to weigh 413 grams compared to the slightly thinner and lighter NOOK Tablet coming in at 398 grams. While that may not matter to some, many will use these devices as e-readers and the lighter weight will help especially during one-handed use.
Both tablets run on an undisclosed version of Android, most likely 2.3 Gingerbread and have their own custom user interfaces on board. We weren’t live at the NOOK Tablet event to get a look at it for a comparison, but it looks almost identical to the original NOOK Color which ran extremely smooth so we expect the same here. Not to mention the dual-core processor should keep things speedy. Both tablets come bundled with plenty of games and applications. From Angry Birds, Netflix, Pandora Radio and more they really are tablets, not e-readers. One benefit here with the Fire is the inclusion of the Amazon App Store although that can be installed on any Android device so I’m sure we’ll have it on our NOOK fairly quick and easy.
Whether these devices will be easy to root, and run custom ROM’s like the original NOOK Color still remains to be seen so until they hit the streets we can’t comment further. Without having hands-on time with both it is hard to say what is better, but we’ll have both devices in for a full review soon so stay tuned. Both tablets offer an excellent level of performance and usage for their price. What will you buy?
The Amazon Kindle Fire is available for pre-order right now for just $199 and begins shipping November 15th. Concluding the B&N NOOK event today in NYC the new NOOK Tablet will be $249 and will also be available next week starting on the 18th. Pre-orders are available now and it will be at B&N stores as well as retail partners such as Best Buy, Target, Walmart and many others late next week.
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