NEWS FLASH

Believe it or not, the era of netbooks has passed. 2011 will be the year of tablets.

In the past, we already had slates — or tablets — from Acer, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard and many other leading computer makers. However all of them were still driven by Intel processors and ran on Microsoft Windows. Apple, the brand associated with innovative but pricey products, blew everyone away when it introduced the iPad, a slate that looks more like a large iPod or iPhone sans telephony.

Indeed, the iPad was one of Apple’s biggest successes. Less than two months after launching it, the company reportedly shipped two million units. In 2010, Apple sold 8 million iPads across the world.

With the phenomenal success of the iPad, it isn’t surprising computer makers rushed to come up with their own tablets. These include Research in Motion (the maker of BlackBerrys), Dell, Hewlett-Packard and, surprise surprise: Samsung.

The Korean electronics giant released its Galaxy Tab more or less at the same time Dell launched its Streak, which we also looked at last year.

The Galaxy Tab has a 7-inch TFT LCD with a 1024 x 600 resolution, compared to the Streak’s 5-inch TFT screen. More importantly however, the Tab is regarded by many as the strongest contender to the iPad to date. So many people were buying it that Samsung had already sold one million units in the first three months it was launched.

The Tab was also launched in Indonesia. Two models are available here, the 16 GB and the 32 GB, an indication of the tablet’s storage capacity. Both use the 1 GHz Arm Cortex A8 processor, which has the same speed as the processor found inside the iPad. With this fairly powerful brain, the Tab is a joy to use.

I was lucky to be able to toy with the Pad for quite some time courtesy of Samsung Indonesia.
Unlike the iPad — but like the Streak — the Tab also runs on Google Android 2.2. This version of Android is also known as Froyo. Like the Streak, the Tab also has cellular telephony functionality, while the iPad is not designed to be used as a phone. So, although it is quite large, we still can make and receive calls with it.

The “build” quality is excellent. One of the few problems I saw was the white back plastic panel that scratches easily. In addition, you need to keep a piece of soft cloth near you to keep the Gorilla glass top clean and shiny. The overall design is quite simple, with two buttons on the right edge for power and volume adjustment. You can also insert a MicroSD for additional storage memory.

What makes it such a strong contender to the iPad? First, its thickness (12 millimeters) and weight (380 grams) are more suitable for holding with one hand. This helps, for example, when making calls, reading e-books by the swimming pool or even texting in a taxi. By the way, Android 2.2 supports Flash 10.1 while Apple does not.

The cameras may not be an ultimately irresistible feature, especially since Samsung only included a 3 MP camera at the back and a 1.3 MP at the front. But it sure is nice to have.

What do I think of this gadget? There are quite a few things to like about it. I like the GPS, which is pretty snappy. I like the sound, which is loud enough to listen to music. Samsung’s own Readers Hub gives us access to books, newspapers and magazines. However, it still has to catch up with the iPad when it comes to user experience.

The 16 GB model costs Rp 6.9 million, by the way.

Rumor has it Samsung unofficially introduced a newer Galaxy Tab, called Galaxy Tab 2 to the media during the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona recently. Some say the screen has grown from 7 inch to 10.1 inches, but at least it will have a new version of Android, a more powerful processor, more storage capacity and the AMOLED screen found in the popular smartphone Galaxy S.

However, Apple is also expected to launch its Apple iPad 2 shortly.

Did I not say 2011 was going to be the year of tablets?