Tablets are becoming the new, hot item to have in today’s tech world. Samsung has answered the call by releasing their new and very improved Galaxy 10.1 touchscreen tablet. Running the Android Honeycomb 3.1 operating system on a 10.1 inch high definition LCD screen, the new Galaxy has much to offer, but much to be desired as well.

Specs
The new Galaxy 10.1 is far more powerful than the first generation Galaxy. Besides the operating system, the two most noticeable changes to the new Galaxy is the storage and processor. The Galaxy 10.1 has an internal 32GB(16GB also available). This is a big change over the old Galaxy as it used a external microSD(16GB, upgradable to 32GB) memory card for its memory. The other major change is the processing power. The Galaxy 10.1 comes with the dual core Nvidia Tegra 2 CPU that has an output power of 1GHz for each processor. The old Galaxy came with the Cortex A8 Hummingbird 1GHz, which was very good in its own right. With twice the processing speed, the Galaxy 10.1 has the power to play games and video with amazing speed and quality. Another huge upgrade is the display of the Galaxy. The Galaxy 10.1 is named just so for its 10.1 inch display. Producing 1280x800 high definition output at 1080p, the new Galaxy has the ability to play HD videos with its new processors with great color and speed. The old galaxy only had a 600x1024 pixel display with only one processor, so Samsung has made quite the jump for display and processing power. The dimensions of the new Galaxy are something to be seen as well. Measuring in at just .34 of an inch in depth, the new Galaxy is quite thin. Also, the dimensions of the screen are around 3 inches larger than the old Galaxy and the doesn’t weigh much more than the old Galaxy at just under 20 ounces(like holding a full bottle of soda). Overall Samsung definitely went back to the drawing board for their new Galaxy 10.1.

Operating System
The operating system (OS) is one of the major focal points of the Galaxy 10.1. The Samsung Galaxy 10.1 uses the Android Honeycomb 3.1 OS(by Google). This is a big jump from the old Android Froyo 2.2 OS. One of the major changes to the operating system over the old is its ability to present images and applications more smoothly. One of the biggest complaints about the old Android OS(even 3.0) was the fact that a user could visibly see improper rendering of images or application animations. Another great upgrade from the new OS is the support for Open Accessory. What this means is now users can plug their joysticks, music devices, storage devices etc... through the USB port. The downfall of this: Users are still not able to manage external storage devices. Though Google is said to be working on this, but there still hasn’t been a solution. Another great feature of the Honeycomb OS: It is Flash and Java enabled. This has been a hot topic for smart phones, gaming systems, and mobile devices alike. Many videos(including most all Youtube videos) use Adobe’s Flash player to display video. Many mobile devices refuse to allow Flash due to the problem of being a power hog, thus making battery life lesser. The Samsung Galaxy has somehow managed to skip over this problem, though many other similar devices are now using Flash as well. Google has said that the Honeycomb 3.0 is just a stand in until it releases the much anticipated Ice Cream Sandwich OS later in 2011.

Connectivity
The Samsung Galaxy 10.1 is a Wi-Fi only tablet. Where as the old Galaxy used a carrier for online connectivity. The old Galaxy could be carried through just about any major carrier, where as the new Galaxy is said to be only carried through Verizon(though other carriers could come up later). This does not mean that you have to get Verizon to get online as you could connect to your home router for online capabilities, however, if you wanted to go mobile and wanted to use your own connection rather than a hot spot, you would have to subscribe to Verizon. This is isn’t a bad thing as Verizon is one of the most reputable carriers in the U.S.. The Samsung Galaxy 10.1 uses a 802.11a/b/g/n 2.4GHz/5GHz for easy and fast connection to your wireless router or service. The Samsung Galaxy also has the ability to make phone calls through a Google app to make this tab complete in the ability to connect with others.

Camera/Audio/Battery
The video and picture capturing capabilities of the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 definitely put it out in front of other mobile devices. With 1080p display capability, the Galaxy 10.1 has taken video and picture taking to a whole new level. The Galaxy 10.1 provides a front 2.0 Megapixel and a rear 3.0 Megapixel auto focus with flash camera for ultimate picture and video capturing. The Galaxy 10.1 has the ability to capture video in 720p high definition. With HD video ability becoming more and more a norm, this puts the Galaxy 10.1 above many others in the tablet department. This feature is ultimately important when it comes to video conferencing through Skype and other video conference applications. The audio on the Galaxy is an internal stereo speaker set. While it is nothing fantastic, they are hidden so that you can’t see them for a more aesthetic look. There is also an audio jack for headphone use. The battery on the Galaxy 10.1 is a Li-Polymer that has up to 14 hours of battery life and up to 1000 hours of standby time.

Overall the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 is an excellent tablet, especially at its price compared to its competitors. The 32GB runs at around $599.99 and for the 16GB $499.99. The ability to run Flash and Java is huge plus, along with its HD video capturing capabilities. Its lightweight and compact feel while still giving a 10.1 inch 16:9 ratio HD screen is also a big plus for it. The only downside to the Galaxy 10.1 is its inability to accept expandable storage and the lack of plug-ins for SD Cards and other items. It does, however, have a USB 2.0 plug in for flash storage and other accessories. Also the Android has limited apps as of right now compared to the Ipad 2. This, along with many other things, may change with the introduction of the Ice Cream Sandwich OS.