Samsung Galaxy Tab review: Don't call it an iPad competitor

Having the Tab with me at all times all but negates the need for a smartphone.  I might as well have a RAZR feature phone because the Tab does everything a smartphone does, but much much better.  I seriously wonder why Samsung didn't keep the phone option in the US version, where international versions can be used as phones?  Perhaps the negative publicity of Dell's Streak being compared to a huge ear-sandal scared Samsung off.  

Lost cause because  I can use Google Voice

Voice isn't a lost cause because  I can use Google Voice and Skype (on Wifi) and I would rather not pay for a worthless voice plan.  The speaker/mic work great as a speaker phone and it is compatible with stereo Bluetooth headsets so it is all doable.  I think Google will have a full 3G VoIP solution in the coming months that will make the lack of a voice plan a blessing in disguise, but for the time being, you can't make traditional calls.

Even the battery is impressive compared to a smartphone.  I've never used up a full battery in a day, even playing arcade games, watching movies, using it as a hotspot, and browsing the web over 3G for hours.  It may not last quite as long as the double-sized iPad, but it will blow by a cross country flight with ease.

Double-edged sword on the Galaxy Tab

Flash is a double-edged sword on the Galaxy Tab.  It works OK for some movies (Crackle!) but often it froze the browser while things loaded and was generally a bad experience.  What annoyed me more than anything was that a lot of media sites saw the Tab as a phone and gave up extremely limited versions of the site with only clips.  Samsung needs to allow me to change the browser agent on this like the HTC EVO does so I can view full websites.  Media sites also need to learn about Android tablets and not give up smartphone sites for devices with the same amount of pixels as a typical netbook.

Reading is fantastic on the Tab and its portability lends itself to use on a subway train or in a car.  Whipping it out of my pocket at a moments notice beats reaching into a backpack or briefcase and pulling an iPad out.  It is a new level of portability.  Videos are great and the Tab's player are awesome.  The music player is a nice touch as well.  The built in speakers are louder and crisper than most phones, but that is too be expected.

The back camera is decidedly better taking great videos and respectable stills which I would rate as somewhere between a good smartphone camera and a low end point and shoot.  With a 7-inch 1024x600 viewfinder, what you see is really what you get.

The apps are all pretty standard Android faire

The apps are all pretty standard Android faire.  The Wall St. Journal android tablet app is an example of the type of apps I expect we'll see from this new category of device.   Most good Android apps like Facebook expand out to the full screen.  Some, like Weather.com's app have a black box around them and are smartphone sized.

Speaking of voice commands, the Tab is awesome in the car. Maps and GPS are second to none on this and they listen to your voice commands.  Turn by turn is great and Google Maps scales out for the extra pixels making directions very easy to follow.  Voice actions is also great for picking out songs to listen to rather than having to navigate manually.  These things are true differentiators (though something you can also do on on any Android 2.2 phone.

Another area where size matters: Home screen space.  You can put many more applications and widgets on each screen and that allows for more creative usage.  I have a social page, a business page and a media page as well as a homescreen with 28 apps ready to launch.

The biggest question is about form factor

The biggest question is about form factor and use case.  The people in the tablet market likely already have smartphones.  If you use the Galaxy Tab in the way Samsung advertises (and you certainly will), what is the point of having a smartphone?  Smaller screen, shorter battery life, more expensive plan?  It becomes expendable.  Your smartphone quickly becomes a feature phone or a "backup".

Still, I think there is a market for this product.  It fits somewhere in between a netbook/iPad and a Kindle/Smartphone.  It is as portable enough to be put in a pocket, yet it has the power of a much bigger device which can't be.