Samsung Galaxy Tab Garners Favorable Reviews - Wired News

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, a 7-inch tablet powered by the Android operating system, has made its rounds with gadget reviewers, and consensus says it’s a solid but pricey device.

Reviewers at tech blogs and mainstream publications, including Wired.com, found that the Galaxy Tab offered a pleasing user experience despite some flaws. Many quipped that the Galaxy Tab, priced at $600, is too expensive when pitted against Apple’s larger $500 iPad.

The Galaxy Tab is the first official Android tablet on the market to compete with Apple’s iPad. Samsung has marketed the smaller, pocketable size of the Galaxy Tab as ideal for commuters, while  highlighting Adobe Flash as a key feature that the tablet supports, unlike the iPad.

Reviews of the Galaxy Tab were mostly positive, but the most dissenting opinion comes from Matt Buchanan of Gizmodo, who described the Galaxy Tab as a “pocketable trainwreck.” A list of excerpts from reviews of the Galaxy Tab follows.

Christopher Null, Wired.com:

“The Tab ultimately reveals itself not as a competitor to the iPad but as a new class of mobile devices: a minitablet that is designed to go everywhere you do.”

Walt Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal:

“The Tab is attractive, versatile and competitively priced, though monthly cell fees can add up. It’s different enough from the iPad, yet good enough, to give consumers a real choice.”

David Pogue, New York Times:

“With the Samsung Galaxy Tab, you’re also buying delicious speed and highly refined hardware. It’s just a shame that you’re buying all that for $600.”

Matt Buchanan, Gizmodo:

“This thing is just a mess. It’s like a tablet drunkenly hooked up with a phone, and then took the fetus swimming in a Superfund cleanup site. The browser is miserable, at least when Flash is enabled. It goes catatonic, scrolling is laggy, and it can get laughably bad.”

Joanna Stern, Engadget:

“It’s the best Android tablet on the market. Now, that’s not saying much given the state of the Android competition, but we can also assuredly say that the Tab is the first true competitor to Apple’s iPad. Its crisp display, compact form factor, touch-friendly software and dual cameras undoubtedly have what it takes to win over the average tablet seeker.”

Melissa Perenson, PCWorld:

“The Samsung Galaxy Tab lives up to its promise as the most credible Android tablet to date. Though it isn’t perfect, it is a strong first-gen device. It isn’t for everyone: The high cost without a monthly contract ($600) underscores that. Nevertheless, if you’re planning to get a mobile broadband data device, the Galaxy Tab’s potential as a mobile hotspot makes it more attractive than some of its competitors.”

Chris Davies, SlashGear:

“Its 7-inch display may offer only half the usable area of the iPad, but the high resolution and responsive, accurate capacitive touchscreen add up to a user experience that’s significantly better than a regular smartphone for browsing, multimedia and – thanks in no small part to Samsung’s custom apps – messaging.”

Donald Bell, CNET:

With the Galaxy Tab, Samsung has created a true peer of the iPad–an uncompromising product that stakes out new territory in terms of both design and features.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab: T-Mobile Price and Release Date - Product Reviews

Following on from our previous article which informed you about a confirmed price and date for the MyTouch 4G on T-Mobile, we now have a confirmed price and date for the T-Mobile version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab.

As reported from BGR, the price has now been confirmed to be $399, which is what was first rumored in one of our previous reports here. That price has now been set though, and it is subject to a two-year agreement.

What you might not be aware of though, is that the T-Mobile version will also benefit from their newly established HSPA+ network, which promises 4G speeds of up to 21Mbps.

If you are interested in picking one up, it will be available to buy on November 10th, just one day after a certain video game is launched worldwide.

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Read more about samsung, Samsung Galaxy Tab, T-Mobile

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Mossberg reviews, recommends Office for Mac 2011 - Apple Insider

Mossberg reviews, recommends Office for Mac 2011

By Josh Ong

Published: 10:30 PM EST

After reviewing Microsoft's upcoming Office for Mac 2011, which now includes Outlook, Walt Mossberg concluded that it was "by far the best Mac version of the suite" and recommended it to users.

The newest version of Microsoft's office suite is faster and better, although it is missing a few minor features from the Windows version, Mossberg said in his review for the Wall Street Journal. Office for Mac 2011 is due out Oct. 26.

One of the main draws of Office for Mac 2011 is the addition of Outlook, the email, calendar and contacts program popular with business users. Outlook, which has been built as a Cocoa application from the ground up, will replace Entourage, a Mac-specific email client bundled with previous versions of Office for Mac. Office for Mac 2011 will allow users to import Outlook data files, but it is currently unable to export its data to Windows.

Office for Mac 2011 also adds the ribbon interface that was added to Windows Office several years ago. However, unlike the Windows version, the ribbons can be disabled in favor of the more familiar menu and toolbars, which have been retained in the Mac version.

Though Office for Mac 2011 is missing several features from its Windows counterpart, it has also gained some Mac-only features. According to Mossberg, the "Dynamic Re-order" feature and a new Full Screen view with minimal distractions are features specific to the Mac. Pivot charts in Excel, full video editing in PowerPoint, and a "backstage" feature are missing from the Mac version.

Mossberg conducted several compatibility and fidelity tests between the Windows and Mac versions of Office with generally favorable results, especially with documents created in the most recent Windows version, Office 2010. Cross-compatibility between Windows and Mac versions of Office has been an issue in the past.

Office Mac 2011 is currently available for pre-order from Amazon.com, which is offering release-date delivery. The Home and Student edition is $110 while the Home and Business edition is priced at $175.

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