ipad2

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1-inch: The iPad 2 of Honeycomb tablets

Editor's note: The full review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 can be found here.

If there's one thing I've realized in my short stint covering tablets, it's that apparently there can never be too many Honeycomb-based products in the wild. Today, at Google's I/O conference, the company gave away 5,000 Wi-Fi-only Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1s. CNET was fortunate enough to have a few good men in the field willing to wade through cell phone belt holders and short sleeve button shirts to get us one.

Design and features The first thing that struck us upon taking the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 out of its box was its slight profile. In fact, when lying next to the iPad 2 we honestly can't tell which tablet is thicker and unfortunately we don't have a micrometer handy to get down into the business of microns.… Read more

Otterbox readies iPad 2 Defender case

If you're looking for serious protection for your iPad 2, you'll probably want to check out Otterbox's Defender Series Case, which the company says is "shipping soon."

As Apple has reduced the size and weight of the iPad 2, Otterbox has also slimmed down its case: It says the iPad 2 version of the Defender is 20-percent lighter than its predecessor for the original iPad. It's still going to be one of the bulkier cases out there, offering multiple layers of protection and a clip-on screen cover that turns into a stand with two adjustable heights, one for typing and one for watching.

All this protection comes at a price, of course. The Otterbox iPad 2 Defender is $89.99. Otterbox isn't doing preorders, though you can sign-up to get an e-mail alert when it becomes available.

In the meantime, check out the video below. As you can see, it's a bit of an operation to get your iPad 2 into the case and cover, but both iPad and case look like they could take a licking. … Read more

Apple's iPad 2 Smart Cover color conspiracy

The other day I noticed that one of our tech editors here, Joe Kaminski, had a light blue Smart Cover on his iPad 2. Now Joe prides himself on being kind of a macho guy--some of you might know him from the Digital City podcast--so a little ribbing was in order.

I said, "Dude, why does a guy like you have baby-blue iPad cover?"

"I know, I know," he said. "It's kind of lame, but it's the best color they had in the cheaper version. What, I'm gonna get that DayGlo … Read more

Sony: Android and Nvidia go together

Sony's adoption of Nvidia silicon for its upcoming Android tablets makes the graphics chip supplier--at least for the time being--the hardware standard for the Android tablet world, as a Sony vice president articulated in an interview in Japan on Wednesday.

"For the tablet platform, we're standardizing on Android 3.0 and Nvidia's Tegra 2," said Kunimasa Suzuki, a senior vice president at Sony in an interview with Japan-based Impress Watch.

Suzuki's comments come after Sony unveiled two Android 3.0 "Honeycomb" tablets on Tuesday. One has a 9.4-inch (1280-by-800) display and … Read more

Web speed tests: Tablet tournament!

Yes, I'm a huge Mortal Kombat fan. This should be evident to anyone after watching the video above. However, I can't take credit for the whole tournament idea. That was the brainchild of my producer, Jamie Yee (she's actually a hidden Easter egg in the video, if you watch closely). Jamie's a huge sports nut (or at least, an San Francisco Giants nut) and apparently thinks only in terms of brackets and tournaments.

Anyway, last week was a fairly busy week for the CNET tablet reviews team. Donald Bell and I received three new tablets in the span of only a few days.

With all that glamorous reviewing we were doing, I didn't really have the bandwidth to conduct any official speed tests, until now.

As I alluded to before, we split the tests into two rounds. The first round, featuring the Acer Iconia Tab A500, T-Mobile G-Slate, and the Asus Eee Pad Transformer, would determine which tablet would take on the Xoom and iPad 2 in the final round.

So yeah, it's a two-round tournament. We thought about extending it, but decided that doing so would involve too much repetition in the video.

Check out the results below (or above if you prefer your results in talkies form).… Read more

Logitech Keyboard Case by Zagg review: Keyboarding your iPad 2

Keyboards and iPads...good bedfellows? A perfect way to add laptop functionality to your tablet? Or, mere accessory silliness? It's a debate as old as the iPad itself, which means only about a year and a month. Still, for as useful and portable as the iPad is, there are always some--myself included, at times--who bemoan its lack of a real, physical keyboard. At least, I feel that way when all I have is my iPad and I want to get some serious writing done.

The Logitech Keyboard Case by Zagg for the iPad 2 is an update to last … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1450: Lick my 9Volt (Podcast)

Can you tell Brian Tong is back on the show? Actually, we're legitimately wondering whether a home-brew electroshock like battery licking could produce video game skill improvements like DARPA is seeing with their electroshock research. No, really. Also, Google shuts down Google Video, President Obama wants a universal login that's not Facebook Connect, and Match.com just got a whole lot more trustworthy. --Molly

Stupid iPad 2 trick: Make your white bezel glow

Chalk this one up as a stupid iPad 2 trick, but it's just another thing Apple fanboys (and fangirls) can crow about. That's right, the iPad 2's bezel glows when you hold a light up to it, which makes for an interesting "Tron" effect when you turn the lights out. A colored laser pointer can also spice things up a bit with a green or red hue.

Speed tests: iPad 2 vs. PlayBook vs. Xoom

Get ready, 'cause it's coming.

By "it," I'm of course referring to the deluge of tablets ready to flood the market. Make no mistake, in the next two to three months, consumers will have more tablet options than they know what to do with.

This week sees the launch of RIM's long-awaited BlackBerry PlayBook. This tablet is targeted at an arguably esoteric market, and includes the expected features aimed at that business demographic, but it also includes features that average shoppers are looking for.

Check out the full review for more details, but before you do that, read the PlayBook's speed results in their entirety.… Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1446: Cisco flips off the Flip (Podcast)

Two years ago Cisco bought a little video camera maker. Today it's letting it go, sniff sniff. Also lots of legal laffs today: The Winklevii refuse to give up; Microsoft calls out Google on Federal approval of Google Apps; and a blogger hits HuffPo with class-action suit. Plus, future Macbooks to be made from bicycles?