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CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review

By | March 26, 2011, 12:27pm PDT

Summary: A round-up of the latest Android tablets presented at CTIA 2011 this year.

I put together a gallery of the highlights in new tablets that were presented this month at CTIA. Unlike CES this year, the sampling of devices was much smaller, but stronger; these are tablets that will be on the market by summer.

Personally, I think the clear winner this round was Samsung with the Galaxy Tab offerings. They came out with two larger tablets, 10.1″ and 8.9″, both the thinnest and lightest tablets in production–yes, even thinner and lighter than the new Apple iPad2.

Also See: CTIA 2011 Android Tablet Review (Gallery)

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Android Tablet PC, CTIA, Tablets, Notebooks, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets, Scott Raymond

Scott Raymond has been a technologist and system administrator for over 25 years.

Disclosure

Scott Raymond

I am the IT Manager for a high end audio and network systems integrator in northern Califronia. My wife works at Adobe Systems, Inc. Whenever I write an article that might involve Adobe or its products, I add a disclaimer at the top of the article to make sure she is not involved in any way. We have a small bit of stock with AT&T and no other major investments that would cause conflict.

Biography

Scott Raymond

Scott Raymond has been a technologist and system administrator for over 25 years. Starting as a hobbyist in his teens, Scott quickly learned that he could translate his passion and knowledge into a full-time career. He currently works as the IT Manager for a high end audio and network systems integrator in northern California. He has written technology articles for various publications in the past and began contributing to ZDnet as a guest blogger on Jason Perlow's Tech Broiler. Scott and Jason met in New York in the 1990s where they co-managed the New York City Palm Pilot Users' Group.

In his spare time, Scott is a trained chef and avid bicycling enthusiast, as well as a voracious reader of historical, science and horror fiction. He is a huge fan of pop culture, with a wide range of interest in TV shows, movies and games.

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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
dejan001 14th Oct
tablets which show, clearly, that the Samsung non-functional prototypes are somewhat thicker than the iPad2 (not by much but enough to remove Samsung's bragging rights)

Do you think that Samsung will meet their stated tablet dimensions? (their published fine print does not bind them to keeping that thin tablet dimension with the standard disclaimer "designs subject to change without notice")
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
Peter Perry 26th Mar 2011
Good thing you don't get paid per word! Journalism at its finest right here folks.
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So many .....
wackoae 26th Mar 2011
... too bad they all suck. Some because the hardware is cheap others because the OEM was too cheap to actually test the generic version of the OS on the target hardware (ie: didn't bother to install good drivers). And at least one where the OS is just not ready for usage.
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I totally agree with you my friend
edtimes 26th Mar 2011
@wackoae
The only good tablet in the world is the iPad.
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
rhonin 27th Mar 2011
@edtimes
Personally I don't agree.

I was able to spend a good half hour in a Best Buy with a Xoom and Ipad2 side by side, both up and running.

Note: this is my opinion. Yours may differ. I want a tablet for work, personal and play.

After using both, I came away with a very firm impression:
For video, for work/personal, basic computer type stuff the Xoom was a clear winner. While it was nice, the iPad2 felt and worked like an entertainment tablet. One definite, Android 3 is not the phone Android by any means.

I would love to get my hands on a Windows tablet and compare all three...

On a funnier note: Best Buy had iPad original on sale and they had a Apple rep on the floor demoing the iPad 1 and 2. Was funny watching his attempted reply when I asked why the ATT store at the other end of the strip mall had the same units for a cheaper price.... happy
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Scott, there are published comparison photos of the Apple and Samsung
kenosha77a Updated - 26th Mar 2011
tablets which show, clearly, that the Samsung non-functional prototypes are somewhat thicker than the iPad2 (not by much but enough to remove Samsung's bragging rights)

Do you think that Samsung will meet their stated tablet dimensions? (their published fine print does not bind them to keeping that thin tablet dimension with the standard disclaimer "designs subject to change without notice")
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Contributr
RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
Scott Raymond 26th Mar 2011
@kenosha7777 When Samsung introduced the 10.1 and 8.9 tablets at CTIA, they actually presented the new ones. The protoype ones were on display to show the new UI, but they also had the new ones on display as well. You can probably find some Youtube videos of the new ones in use.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJq_6BAdNEs

Note that they didn't turn it on. I can't say with certainty if these were simply mockups that Samsung hopes to have in production by June 8 when the 10.1" one launches, but I have my fingers crossed that these are actual devices being built as we speak.
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You are right!! They never power them on
wackoae 26th Mar 2011
@Scott Raymond So the entire video is a total waste.

Showing a "plastic shell" is not the same as showing the product. The demo was about as usefull as making as power point slides about a user interface ... but no pictures, just one word bullets.
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Contributr
RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
Scott Raymond 26th Mar 2011
@wackoae It gets worse. Skip through the video of the Samsung CTIA presentation, and you'll notice they never turn the devices on while onstage, either:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jXY1x_tTcY

Not only that, the videos they show with working tablets flash on them very briefly--so briefly that you almost don't notice that they're the older, thicker prototypes.

I'm starting to wonder if this is a result of the noise coming from Samsung saying they had to rethink the tablet design when Apple announced how thin the iPad2 was. They claimed they didn't, and yet here are non-functioning thin tablets alongside the heavier, thicker ones, and the the only ones that people can try out are the older ones.

Even though this is typical marketing bait and switch, I am willing to give Samsung the benefit of the doubt. If they deliver the thin models starting June 8, I will say they earned a reprieve. If it's delayed, it will prove that they were not telling the truth.
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How much thicker were they than iPad?
edtimes 26th Mar 2011
@kenosha7777
Probably 3 inches thicker. And probably has half the battery life. And probably lousy graphics performance.

I'm beginning to think that Apple is the only company that can make magical and revolutionary products. Heck, the competition can't even make fair products! I mean seriously, why would I buy a tablet that did not have it's screen layers glued together?
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Well, since you did ask about this Samsung prototype's thickness
kenosha77a Updated - 26th Mar 2011
@edtimes

Please review the following link.

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/11/03/25/samsung_caught_presenting_actors_as_galaxy_tab_consumers_fudging_thinnest_tablet_claims.html

I'll let you draw your own conclusions. But like Scott stated, until Samsung actually ships this product, your particular question about the thickness of these new tablets will remain ambiguous or unanswered.

Just out of curiosity, are you one of the 17 million iPad owners? You know, some analyst project 40 million iPad users by year's end. Plus, with the ever increasing availability of Android tablets entering into the market (and they are fine machines, to be sure, as previous Android tablet owners will attest to), a very conservative modern tablet world wide tablet population might reach 50 million users or more.

To put that number into perspective, the current population of Canada is 33.9 million. That would mean that there will be more modern tablet users by the end of the year than all the proud Canadians living on native soil!

BTW, like you, I don't count previous Windows convertible tablets as modern mobile tablet devices. Those units, if they still exist, have a very limited battery life and are prohibitively heavy for one handed operation.
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Are the screen layers glued together in the Samsung?
edtimes Updated - 26th Mar 2011
Does it use IPS or some inferior LCD technology? Hmm, I think it is IPS that is better than everything else. The one Apple uses. I'm told it is better than everything else by my Apple friends here and I don't think they would be wrong about that. It makes sense since Apple has bought up the world's supply of high quality components leaving inferior products for the competition. And I think that is great.

Does Android have 70,000 tablet optimized apps or are they lousy pixelated cell phone apps?

Does Android work with my AppleTv?

Can Android run the hundreds of dollars of iOS apps I've purchased?

No?

Then I will never buy an Android tablet. I will continue to buy iPads every year.
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
Peter Perry Updated - 26th Mar 2011
@edtimes Hey crack baby... IPS Screens are not better than super Amoled or Amoled or Oled for that matter...

The IPS screen in the iPhone has a contrast ratio of 800:1 where as the Amoled in my Droid Incredible is actually closer to 50000:1 and is capable of displaying true Blacks where IPS cannot...

The only benefit IPS has is viewing angle, every other area it is often worse than most other LCD screen technology...

Super Amoled has true blacks and is closer to 100000:1 contrast ratio... you know who owns the Super Amoled Technology test tube baby? Samsung and Apple refused to use them as a vendor which is dumb because Samsung said straight up that newer tablets will have this technology.

Oh and one more thing, Samsungs Screen process combines the top two layers into one layer so there's no need for gluing and remember that Yellowish hue some new ipads have are because of the glue.
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
kevindarling Updated - 26th Mar 2011
@edtimes Android tablets don't display pixelated apps. You're thinking of the iPad and all the iOS non-resolution-independent apps that had to be pixel-doubled to even work in a larger, but still non-full-screen, window.
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
BassManISG 26th Mar 2011
As a current iPad owner let me just tell you that I do not care whether or not the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 is thinner than the iPad2. The thickness of my iPad is not its problem. I don't mind it being this thick, I carry it with me almost anywhere I go and I never get tired of carrying it. This includes carrying it to and around work, to friends houses, to the McDonald's where I am writing this, or to the park. I don't really even care about cameras on my tablet either, I can probably take better pictures with my phone than I'll ever be able to on my tablet. I'm an iPad owner who has looked at all the tablets out and upcoming, including test driving an iPad2, and I tell you the only one that I'm ready to spend $500-600 on is the Samsung Galaxy 10.1; unless, for some unforeseen reason it just totally flops. Flash, removable media, storage space, compatibility. Those are the iPad's problems. The iPad2 did nothing about them. So like Apple. I'm saving my money till June.
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
Spawneh 4th May 2011
Haha the age old discussion of whats better... I think the simple asnswer here like every where else is that:

Apple currently has the edge when it comes to the apps and the people who have already spent money with apple will never leave due to this...

Android devices tend to have better hardware in nearly all area's whilst most would argue the OS isnt as refined..

device size/weight etc really does it matter? as long as it isnt to heavy for you to carry and it fits your lifestlye
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
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RE: CTIA 2011: Android Tablet Review
dejan001 14th Oct
tablets which show, clearly, that the Samsung non-functional prototypes are somewhat thicker than the iPad2 (not by much but enough to remove Samsung's bragging rights)

Do you think that Samsung will meet their stated tablet dimensions? (their published fine print does not bind them to keeping that thin tablet dimension with the standard disclaimer "designs subject to change without notice")
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