5 ms·

First impressions of the Galaxy Tab from Tim Bray (Google Android Evangelist)

46 points by bensummers 16y ago

gvb 16y ago
See also the linked iPad comparison http://www.androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-tab-vs-apple-ipad http://www.androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-tab-vs-apple-ip...
- 10ren 16y ago
  Almost half the weight (380g vs 730g), but smaller screen (7" vs. 9.7"). Maybe this makes it even more squarely a "big iPhone", neither fish nor phone.
  - chadgeidel 16y ago
    I really like the size after that screenshot. It looks more like a "page". However I really want to know what the actual, in-use battery life is like. That's really where the weight savings lie, and I think they are probably dreaming when it comes to their claimed 7 hour life.
ZeroGravitas 16y ago
One good thing about a serious (with a brand name and TV adverts etc.) iPad competitor in the market is that, like Tim does here, you can now have an actual conversation about "what are tablet computers (good) for?" without it becoming an Apple vs the world fanboy battle.
- ergo98 16y ago
  It is unfortunate that Apple is held as the inventor of the genre. What we're really talking about are networked PMPs, and Apple might have the biggest mindshare, but they certainly didn't invent the genre: Archos blazed a trail that Apple followed. I have young children, and occasionally one or all of them insist that I stay with them until they fall asleep. I've used smartphones to consume media and web pages in such circumstances, yet the obvious thought is "Wouldn't it be great if this were bigger?" (especially when interacting with dense web pages where you don't want to lose context by zooming). That is the purpose of devices like this, for all of those people who always say "But it's too big for my pocket!"
  - jdvolz 16y ago
    As a father, I have to second this. One of the great values of the tablet is that my daughter can use it directly. She's already learned a lot of the gestures necessary to get to the things she wants. It fits really well in a diaper bag or diaper backpack and is an excellent entertainment and educational device for long visits to anywhere. Don't leave home without it. I have an Archos 7, and my daughter's going to be 2 years old tomorrow.
  - chadgeidel 16y ago
    An Archos is cool and all, but I think the "real" device we would like to see is some form of Dynabook: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook IMHO non-tech people have a love/hate relationship with their computers. They love the versatility (the fact that you can do more than play media or read email - it's "future proof" in a sense) but they hate the usability/bugs/quirks. As I see it, these two things are in direct opposition, and Apples model is the most recent successful way (not the only way!) of reconciling the two.
nailer 16y ago
Interesting point: 'The trade-off is obvious. You win because you can show a bigger picture, which is important, and you lose because it just won’t fit in many pockets, which is important. It’ll go in most purses, though.' Anecdote: I have a friend who's completely uninterested in gadgets. She's a professional comedienne and talks mainly about childhood in her routine. We're out at a pub one day and she pulls out a giant 5 inch Dell Android phone, browsing the full (non-mobile) Facebook with her fingers. How did she end up with a 5 inch tablet/phone? She likes the comfy web browsing, and there's room in her purse.
- earl 16y ago
  It's worth remembering that pocket size is probably not an issue for roughly 1/2 the population that carries a purse as part of their daily routine.
  - dagw 16y ago
    significant number of the other half of the population also regularly carry some sort of bag.
RyanMcGreal 16y ago
Worth the read even if only for the conclusion: > [A] tablet is, crucially, a more shareable computer. A laptop, with its fragile hinge-ware and space-gobbling keyboard, is just not comfy to share. A tablet is easier to bring to the café, easier to hand across the table or along the sofa, easier to seize in the heat of the moment, easier to hold up in triumph, easier to set aside when you need to meet someone’s eyes. > How big a market is that? Anyone who says they know is lying.
- bensummers 16y ago
  I wrote a blog post about my experiences with using an iPad to show software at networking events: http://bens.me.uk/2010/ipad-software-demo-at-networking-events http://bens.me.uk/2010/ipad-software-demo-at-networking-even... TL;DR - it works great, but stick to static screenshots for making the tour very quick.
- ben1040 16y ago
  This is exactly why I like the iPad (although done right it could extend to any other tablet). With minimal browser chrome in the UI and minimal physical framing around the screen, you can just hand someone a web page as though you were passing over a newspaper. It's way more natural than trying to pass over a 15" laptop.
fortes 16y ago
For selfish reasons, I love that it's 1024x600 instead of 1024x768. Means that all those hard-coded magazine layouts will break :) I think we'll continue to see a lot of diversity in screen dimensions, which will continue to be a design challenge.
- acon 16y ago
  If forces a move to fluid layouts for the web I'm all for it. I like my browser windows tall and narrow, which breaks a lot of sites unless I use Readability. On small devices, however, there is definitely a place for pixel perfect designs. The designer have to be real conscious about what fits on the screen and how to lay it out in a way which is understandable and good looking.
martythemaniak 16y ago
Judging from the specs, this might also make a better ebook reader than the iPad: smaller and much lighter (easier to hold) with a higher PPI screen (smoother fonts, easier on the eyes). Someone should install the Kindle app on it and give us their impressions.
leif 16y ago
> A tablet is ... easier to seize in the heat of the moment awkward

46 points by bensummers 16y ago

gvb 16y ago

See also the linked iPad comparison http://www.androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-tab-vs-apple-ipad http://www.androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-tab-vs-apple-ip...

10ren 16y ago
Almost half the weight (380g vs 730g), but smaller screen (7" vs. 9.7"). Maybe this makes it even more squarely a "big iPhone", neither fish nor phone.
- chadgeidel 16y ago
  I really like the size after that screenshot. It looks more like a "page". However I really want to know what the actual, in-use battery life is like. That's really where the weight savings lie, and I think they are probably dreaming when it comes to their claimed 7 hour life.

ZeroGravitas 16y ago

One good thing about a serious (with a brand name and TV adverts etc.) iPad competitor in the market is that, like Tim does here, you can now have an actual conversation about "what are tablet computers (good) for?" without it becoming an Apple vs the world fanboy battle.

ergo98 16y ago
It is unfortunate that Apple is held as the inventor of the genre. What we're really talking about are networked PMPs, and Apple might have the biggest mindshare, but they certainly didn't invent the genre: Archos blazed a trail that Apple followed. I have young children, and occasionally one or all of them insist that I stay with them until they fall asleep. I've used smartphones to consume media and web pages in such circumstances, yet the obvious thought is "Wouldn't it be great if this were bigger?" (especially when interacting with dense web pages where you don't want to lose context by zooming). That is the purpose of devices like this, for all of those people who always say "But it's too big for my pocket!"
- jdvolz 16y ago
  As a father, I have to second this. One of the great values of the tablet is that my daughter can use it directly. She's already learned a lot of the gestures necessary to get to the things she wants. It fits really well in a diaper bag or diaper backpack and is an excellent entertainment and educational device for long visits to anywhere. Don't leave home without it. I have an Archos 7, and my daughter's going to be 2 years old tomorrow.
- chadgeidel 16y ago
  An Archos is cool and all, but I think the "real" device we would like to see is some form of Dynabook: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynabook IMHO non-tech people have a love/hate relationship with their computers. They love the versatility (the fact that you can do more than play media or read email - it's "future proof" in a sense) but they hate the usability/bugs/quirks. As I see it, these two things are in direct opposition, and Apples model is the most recent successful way (not the only way!) of reconciling the two.

nailer 16y ago

Interesting point: 'The trade-off is obvious. You win because you can show a bigger picture, which is important, and you lose because it just won’t fit in many pockets, which is important. It’ll go in most purses, though.' Anecdote: I have a friend who's completely uninterested in gadgets. She's a professional comedienne and talks mainly about childhood in her routine. We're out at a pub one day and she pulls out a giant 5 inch Dell Android phone, browsing the full (non-mobile) Facebook with her fingers. How did she end up with a 5 inch tablet/phone? She likes the comfy web browsing, and there's room in her purse.

earl 16y ago
It's worth remembering that pocket size is probably not an issue for roughly 1/2 the population that carries a purse as part of their daily routine.
- dagw 16y ago
  significant number of the other half of the population also regularly carry some sort of bag.

RyanMcGreal 16y ago

Worth the read even if only for the conclusion: > [A] tablet is, crucially, a more shareable computer. A laptop, with its fragile hinge-ware and space-gobbling keyboard, is just not comfy to share. A tablet is easier to bring to the café, easier to hand across the table or along the sofa, easier to seize in the heat of the moment, easier to hold up in triumph, easier to set aside when you need to meet someone’s eyes. > How big a market is that? Anyone who says they know is lying.

bensummers 16y ago
I wrote a blog post about my experiences with using an iPad to show software at networking events: http://bens.me.uk/2010/ipad-software-demo-at-networking-events http://bens.me.uk/2010/ipad-software-demo-at-networking-even... TL;DR - it works great, but stick to static screenshots for making the tour very quick.
ben1040 16y ago
This is exactly why I like the iPad (although done right it could extend to any other tablet). With minimal browser chrome in the UI and minimal physical framing around the screen, you can just hand someone a web page as though you were passing over a newspaper. It's way more natural than trying to pass over a 15" laptop.

fortes 16y ago

For selfish reasons, I love that it's 1024x600 instead of 1024x768. Means that all those hard-coded magazine layouts will break :) I think we'll continue to see a lot of diversity in screen dimensions, which will continue to be a design challenge.

acon 16y ago
If forces a move to fluid layouts for the web I'm all for it. I like my browser windows tall and narrow, which breaks a lot of sites unless I use Readability. On small devices, however, there is definitely a place for pixel perfect designs. The designer have to be real conscious about what fits on the screen and how to lay it out in a way which is understandable and good looking.

martythemaniak 16y ago

Judging from the specs, this might also make a better ebook reader than the iPad: smaller and much lighter (easier to hold) with a higher PPI screen (smoother fonts, easier on the eyes). Someone should install the Kindle app on it and give us their impressions.

leif 16y ago

> A tablet is ... easier to seize in the heat of the moment awkward