APPLE AND SAMSUNG BATTLE

The news this week has been the battle of Apple and Samsung fighting it out in the court system. The High Court of Australia ruled to lift the ban on the sale of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. This announcement was a huge win for Samsung who has been in an ongoing global patent fight with Apple in several different countries around the world.

iPad 2 vs Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

There are both similarities and differences when it comes to comparing the two tablets.

First of all, the price tag for both models is roughly $500. Both tablets allow convenient access to popular websites like Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks. They also include great web browsers, email, and other applications that are quite useful.

Both tablets include tons of free and paid games and offer the ability to watch shows through popular websites like Netflix or YouTube. Both offer the ability to stream live for several hours on a fully-charged battery.
Excellent peripherals and apps are available for making voice or video calls. They are both very convenient and user-friendly for taking photos, playing music, recording audio, and making videos. A bad point that both tablets have in common is that if the battery fails, it cannot be removed by the user but rather a service technician which is obviously not so convenient.

There are differences between the two tablets as well.

The Samsung Galaxy 10.1 is more lightweight than the iPad 2. Apple traditionally provides apps that are constrained to its system only which makes the iPad 2 less flexible than the Galaxy 10.1. This however creates a safer system that is less vulnerable to glitches and application mishaps. There were some apps that were not available on the Galaxy 10.1 such as Netflix and Skype but they are now currently supported. There are still some apps that are not always available for the Galaxy 10.1 however since it can download non-Apple apps, it can support other great programs like Adobe Flash which is not supported on the iPad 2.

As the battle continues between Samsung and Apple over patent infringements, consumers are the deciding factor in determining which tablet is the best. Samsung remains the closest rival to the iPad so until other companies enter the smartphone and tablet race more competitively, we can expect to see the best to offer as far as PC tablets coming from Apple and Samsung.

IPAD RULES?

iPad versus Netbook-Tablet Hybrid Head to Head

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 - by Ray Willington

Apple's iPad has left an indelible mark on the Tablet PC universe. It wasn't that long ago when just about everyone gave up on the tablet. Just about every notebook manufacturer in existence tried their hand at making a tablet at one point or another, and just about everyone hung it up by 2005. For whatever reasons, tablets never managed to catch on in the consumer industry, but now, things are different.

Consumers have shown a willingness to adapt somewhat and try new things. Some thought ultraportables would never catch on; their steep price tag and small screens didn't make sense to some, but road warriors have proven that these diminutive machines do actually have a place in society. Netbooks have a similar story. Many credit Asus' Eee PC line with really kickstarting the netbook craze, and even today, these tiny, inexpensive laptops are selling like hotcakes to individuals who just need a simple machine for web browsing and e-mail to take on the go. No bells and whistles leads to lower costs, and lower costs lead to increased attention and sales.

The iPad has arrived during an interesting time. It's a time in which many consumers are re-evaluating their computing needs, and they're striving to decide whether a full-sized notebook, a netbook, a tablet or something in between is best for them. The iPad has definitely driven more people than would traditionally consider a tablet, to investigate the iPad's usage model. That said, does it really make sense to buy this device over a netbook, or better still, a netbook / tablet hybrid? We covered the ins and outs of Apple's first tablet in our full review, but this article is intended to dig deeper and investigate whether an iPad or netbook / tablet hybrid is best suited for you. These two are the most similar of the machines currently available in terms of price, form factor and usability.