galaxy tab

Tech that matters: Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 and 2012's best Blu-ray player

Every week at CNET, we test dozens of gadgets. Not every device stands out as amazing or wonderful, and we've seen our share of failing storage drives or -- shudder -- candy bar "feature phones." (That's what the industry calls a cell phone that's not quite a smart phone.)

But not a week goes by without at least a few standout gadgets. Sometimes, these gems shine in a crowded field. Sometimes, they break the mold. Occasionally, we review a high-quality device from an older category that does its job so well, we fall in love … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 review: The anti-Kindle Fire?

The Kindle Fire. Sure, it's low-priced and has a built-in Amazon content ecosystem that conveniently delivers movies, music, books, and apps through a simple, if stripped-down, interface, but there are quite a few things it doesn't do that have stopped you short of actually buying one.

If you find yourself being hesitant about the purchase, then you've probably at one point or another asked yourself some of the following questions: "Is 8GB of storage enough?" or "I want to access the full Android store. Why won't the Kindle Fire let me?" and "I feel comfortable taking pictures with my tablet in public. Why won't the Kindle Fire allow me to do that?!"… Read more

Making a great cheap Android tablet

Ematic entered the Android tablet fray yesterday when it announced the inexpensive eGlide Prism.

Priced as low as $157, the device runs Android 4.0 and features a 7-inch 800x480-pixel resolution display. Powered by a 1GHz processor, it also brings 8GB flash memory, 512MB RAM, and a front-facing Webcam. While it's certainly not the type of hardware to contend with a Galaxy Tab 2, it's in that interesting space between a Kindle Fire and a "real" tablet.

I typically cringe when I hear the word "value" associated with mobile tech -- Ematic proudly call themselves a "leader in value tablets" -- since the word conjures images of creaky plastic and poorly lit, low-resolution displays. That's why I'll pass on this model and recommend that others save a few bucks on something else. … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7-inch only $50 with new Verizon contract

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 will be available on April 22, and now Verizon is offering fire-sale pricing on the original 7-inch Galaxy Tab. Order one from the carrier now before the Galaxy Tab 2 hits stores and it'll cost you only $49.99 with a new mobile broadband plan.

The Galaxy Tab retails for $499.99 and Verizon normally sells it for $229.99 with a new two-year contract, so the discount announced today amounts to a $180 markdown. Of course, with the pricing for the Galaxy Tab 2 falling in line with the Nook Tablet at $250, it's hard to imagine many folks plunking down $230 for the older tablet -- especially one running Android 2.2.… Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 hands-on

SAN FRANCISCO--The announcement that Samsung's follow-up to its Galaxy Tab 10.1 would be receiving some downgrades from the previous entry, filled me with a mixture confusion and disappointment.

I just couldn't wrap my head around why the sequel to one of the premiere Android tablets would launch with a less impressive spec list than its predecessor.

Today, Samsung revealed that the Tab 2 10.1 would be released on May 13 for $400. That's $100 lower than the original Tab 10.1's list price and it fills the logic hole I believe Samsung was falling … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 hands-on

SAN FRANCISCO--Going into today's Samsung media event in San Francisco, there was one device that I was having trouble wrapping my head around: The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0.

The 7.0 Plus released last year was quite a good tablet and not four months later, here was Samsung showing what it called the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0. Surely this device would be thinner, sexier, and more powerful than any Samsung tablet before it right? Wrong.

Samsung announced that the Tab 2 7.0 would house a 1GHz CPU (down from 1.2GHz on the 7.0 … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 actually gets a competitive price

Today at a Samsung media event in San Francisco, the company unveiled pricing and release dates for both its Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 tablets. We took a brief look at both tablets at Mobile World Congress in February, but this is the first time they've been officially shown in the U.S.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 will be released on April 22 for $250 with 8GB of storage. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 follows a few weeks later on May 13 at a price of $400 for 16GB of storage.

While the $400 price … Read more

New iPad ranked top tablet by Consumer Reports

The latest iPad has a new fan, namely Consumer Reports.

Apple's latest tablet scored the highest ratings among its rivals in a report out today from the consumer publication.

The new iPad was commended for its 5-megapixel camera, battery life, and 4G coverage through Verizon Wireless. But it was the high-resolution screen that earned the sharpest praise.

Citing the detail and color accuracy of the Retina Display, Consumer Reports said that the screen "establishes a new benchmark in excellence" and is "the best we've seen" on a tablet. Specifically, the publication found that the … Read more

A Google Nexus tablet? Bad news for Android partners

The worst thing Google could do to its budding Android tablet business is get into it.

But that appears to be what the Internet search titan is up to. The latest report from Digitimes has Google partnering with Asus to create a low-cost tablet to compete with Amazon's Kindle Fire.

If Google wanted to assuage its Android partners that it isn't interested in competing against them, the company is going about it completely wrong. Android tablets haven't exactly been blockbusters like Apple's iPad, but device makers have begun to make some slight progress in the area. … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 review: 7-plus inches of AMOLED goodness

Don't overlook this screen. While it doesn't offer the same pixel density as the new iPad's Retina Display, it's still one of the most impressive I've encountered, offering deep blacks and an unmatched contrast ratio by tablet standards.

While games looked vibrant and well-saturated with color, there was an unfortunate side effect on background textures.

The full review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 has more on that admittedly cryptic statement as well as many other amusing anecdotes.