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At today’s CTIA press event Samsung officially announced the Galaxy Tab 8.9 along with a second look at the upcoming Galaxy Tab 10.1. As the name suggests, the Galaxy Tab 8.9 features an 89.-inch display at a resolution of 1280×600 with a slim and light profile. It weighs in at just 470g and measure 8.6mm thick. It shares many of the specs with the bigger Galaxy Tab 10.1 including a dual-core 1GHz processor, 3MP rear camera, and 2MP front-facing camera. Perhaps the biggest thing to note is that the Galaxy Tab 8.9 is set to be the first Android 3.0 Honeycomb tablet to feature a custom user interface, though it won’t ship with what is being called TouchWiz UX out of the box. That will come in a later update.
We are live at CTIA and will be bringing our own hands-on impressions of the new line of Galaxy Tabs later on. For now, see the full press release below:
Samsung Unveils GALAXY Tab 10.1 and GALAXY Tab 8.9,
World’s Thinnest Mobile Tablets
Samsung GALAXY Tab 10.1 and GALAXY Tab 8.9
to feature the first customized Android™ 3.0 experience
ORLANDO, March 22, 2011 – Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., the global leader in Android™ mobile devices, announced two new additions to its family of GALAXY Tabs, the GALAXY Tab 10.1 and GALAXY Tab 8.9, the world’s thinnest mobile tablets, measuring just 8.6 millimeters.
The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 feature Samsung’s own TouchWiz user interface implemented on the Android™ 3.0 (Honeycomb) platform, offering superior multi-tasking and enhanced user interaction and navigation.
“The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 are remarkable examples of Samsung’s constant innovation and show our dedication to designing premium tablets that fit the unique needs of consumers around the world”, said JK Shin, President and Head of Samsung’s Mobile Communications Business. “By combining Samsung’s innovations in design and display with
our exciting new user experience, we’ve created a new class of products that will lead the tablet market.”
Thinner & Lighter
The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 are the thinnest mobile tablets available. The GALAXY Tab 10.1 weighs 595 grams and 8.9 weighs 470 grams. Combining the GALAXY Tabs’ ultra-thin form factor with a lightweight design adds to the outstanding mobility of these two products.
Super Fast
The new GALAXY Tabs will support HSPA+ network speeds of up to 21Mbps as well as Bluetooth® and Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n connectivity to deliver rapid mobile download speeds and reduce data transfer times. Also, the GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 include a 1GHz dual core application processor for a powerful multimedia and web browsing experience.
Customized User Experience “Samsung TouchWiz UX”
Samsung’s TouchWiz user experience is designed with a Live Panel menu users can customize to display a variety of content on the home screen including digital pictures, favorite Web sites and social network feeds.
In addition, the interface includes an application tray of commonly used features such as task manager, calendar and music player which can be launched while other major applications are also in use, including large file downloads and document editing. This Mini Apps Tray provides a mixture of convenience and flexibility previously unheard of with tablet devices.
The Ultimate Entertainment Hub
The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 are pre-loaded with Readers Hub and Music Hub giving consumers instant access to more than 2.2 million books, 2,000 newspaper (49 languages), 2,300 magazines (22 languages), and 13 million songs. The devices are also designed with Samsung’s Social Hub, which will aggregate email, instant messaging, contacts, calendar and social network connections into a single interface.
The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 feature a 3 megapixel rear camera and a 2 megapixel front camera, providing smooth transition and seamless 1080p HD video and Flash playback for a rich entertainment experience.
Ready for Business
The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 will include an industry leading suite of solutions designed to give enterprise customers and IT managers more security. Developed in collaboration with industry-leading partners such as Cisco, Sybase, SAP and Citrix, Samsung’s enterprise mobility solutions will provide flexibility and connectivity for mobile workforces, ensuring that users are able to operate more efficiently on–the-move.
GALAXY Tab 10.1
GALAXY Tab 10.1, with its WXGA TFT LCD display (1280 x 800) powered by 1GHz dual core AP, is 8.6mm thin and weighs only 595g. It is the perfect device for sharing and enjoying media content with family and friends. In addition, with its surround-sound stereo speakers and support for Flash 10.2, the GALAXY Tab 10.1 will deliver premium entertainment experience whether watching videos, movies or playing games.
GALAXY Tab 8.9
At just 8.6mm thin and weighing only 470g, the GALAXY Tab 8.9 is the perfect device for today’s mobile professional. Whether writing emails on a trip or reading an eBook on the couch, the GALAXY Tab 8.9 provides the ultimate tablet experience without compromising mobility.
The GALAXY Tab 10.1 and 8.9 now join the original 7-inch GALAXY Tab to provide consumers with an unmatched array of choices to select the mobile tablet experience that fits their needs the best.
Samsung’s entire line of GALAXY Tabs will be on display at the Samsung booth (#2440) at CTIA Wireless 2011, March 22 through March 24.
“features an 89.-inch display”
Oh my.
Yay. Now I have something to look forward to use.
Touchwiz UX … Ugh
TouchWiz… just lovely; the one thing that I absolutely hate about my Samsung Fascinate and now they’re going to bloat down the tablets with it. Owners of these tablets can look forward to Android OS updates 5 to 6 months behind the official release dates. :(
Touchwiz is optional and doesn’t ship with the tablet. Price & specs are perfect! Way to go Samsung. NOW we have a tablet war!!!
Wi-fi only versions? Cost? Anticipated release?
@nors
Android Police is reporting
8.9 Wifi:
16gb- 469$
32gb- 569$
10.1 wifi
16gb- 499$
32gb- 599$
Release dates:
10.1 – June 8th
8.9 – early this summer
They are wifi only initially, 10.1″ w/16GB is $499 & the 8.9″ w/ 16GB is $469.
It should be noted that the LG G-Slate will now FAIL with a 8.9″ at $829 (unsubsidized).
I like the prices. Now ths should make things a little more competitive :)
As most readers of Phandroid are, I like to get the latest and greatest devices first. So, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy Tab 7″. I love the device and go back to it more than I expected, even though I own an iPad as well. However, if Samsung is not willing to upgrade me to Honeycomb in March, then I will never purchase another Samsung Android device. Does anyone feel that I would have been safer with Motorola or HTC, or is this an epidemic?
Why announce something, only for it to not ship for 4 months? Pointless. As much as I dislike Apple’s nanny-knows-best philosophy, at least they announce-and-ship within a matter of weeks….
I have an iPad 2, but I will definatly get one of these at that price. I love gadgets! :)
it needs to be much cheaper than a 350 ipad 1 since it lacks so much tablet content. the tablet content is why you would want a… tablet. for the 350 you can get many many high quality movies, more magazine apps, more games, just so much more content in general. if you see non tablet apps compared to tablet optimized apps (minus the cheap small font android tablet apps), you’ll see why tablet apps are essential.
@jody yea not optional, just not there at ship. a future update will grace these tablets with touchwiz. and unless the user decides to forgo updates for the life of the device its not “optional”
Apple fan boy here.
It’s good to see competitive price war. Win win situation for consumer.
I know there are lot of samsung fan so this should be good one n it looks decent.
App will eventually catch up but I do still see quality difference.
It’s almost impossible to think great apps like p vs z n air video is still absent from droid market. I do own a droid x but that is only till iPhone 5 lands on Verizon.
I will always only go for apple product however. Just personal preference.
@dakang Exactly. The Press Release states they “are the thinnest mobile tablets available”. Except they’re not, you know, available.
These tablets have some great pros but a few cons as well.
proprietary port??????? REALLY?!?!?
not releasing till summer and 1GHz dual-core hummingbird–seems a little behind already
is Touchwiz going to muck up updates???? most likely.
Does this mean there’s no hope for a dual-core Tegra 2 7″ Tab?
I’m not interested in the 10″ form factor at all, and the 8.9 inch seems like a waste as the “in-between” size.
I really want a 7″ tablet with the horsepower of the bigger boys.
1280×600 means no native HDMI content…Fail. Price and packaging are excellent but by the time they actually arrive Tegra 3 will be only 2 months away. If they could deliver this with the rest of the honeycomb tablets they would sell a shitload but it will be too little too late.
@Jvmxtra
I will only go for non-apple products. . . just personal preference ;)
CNET reported that the resolution on the 8.9 inch is the same as on the 10.1, 1280 x 800. Can that be right? The press release doesn’t give the resolution for the 8.9.
A couple of other questions I’ll need answered.
1) What ports does it have?
2) Does it have a way to expand the memory?
3) Does it have 1GB of RAM or just 512MB?
That will be one 8.9 32GB for me please! :)
I wasn’t sure about the touchwiz UX but from watching the live stream, it doesn’t seem like they bloated it too much so I’ll definitely get one.
Bit disappointed about the 3MP camera tho, what year is this? 1999? 5MP should have been minimum… Anyway that’s not too bad I don’t plan on taking too much pictures with this anyway.
*looks at prices and points at Samsung*
This guy gets it!
Seth: Yes it have 1280×800 resolution
1.)port: 30 pin connector with Kit for USB 2.0 and SD cards
2.)tablet have also micro sd slot
3.) 1gb RAM
I’m in for an 8.9 then probably. Super impressed with the price point and the wifi only versions being the first to be released.
Samsung really does get it with these tablets.
Wait, so it will come with stock Honeycomb at first?
I really like the design . They both look awesome but im prefering the 8.9 so far (10″ with a screen ratio of 16:9 looks a bit strange actually ) , and for the first time ever i feel like i need a tablet now :P . Thinnest ever , way to go Sammy !
Also , Samsung manufactures some neat hardware if i may say so .I bought a SGS 6 months ago and ive yet to have any problems with it :) . Updates may come a bit late .. but not as late as you guys in the US are getting them .
If u go to engadget they have a video of the touch wiz, actually not to shabby. They definitely scaled down the cameras I bet for cost, weight, and thinnes issues trying to compete with the ipad2. But a 10.1 inch honeycomb pad for 499 wifi, can’t beat that
@phannymay
What a bunch of nonsense. This isn’t iOS, stop pretending it is. Android tablets do not need tablet specific software like the heavily fragmented iOS does.
@mrmojoz
Speaking of nonsense. Android tablets DO need tablet specific software. You have a bigger screen. Take advantage of it otherwise you are wasting your money if all it has is scaled up phone apps.
As long as this isn’t locked and can be rooted I think I’m going to get the 8.9″ tab. After playing with the Xoom I felt as though it was just a little to big and heavy to use comfortably. The 7″ tabs are just a little to small to take advantage of non mobile sites.
@ Atlas The beauty is that both tabs are extremely light. You could get either one and be happy with the weight.
I wish they would release it before June. I wonder if making it skinnier is causing the delay? I want to play with one of the 10.1 tabs! Hurry up Sammy
Getting this asap. 8.9 perfect hardware
They announce it early so they can get people to bypass other tablets releasing earlier at higher prices. Consider it a dirty tactic…..but it works.
K, so on the Touch interface. Yea it’s shipped later, but it’s a collection of widgets and add-ons NOT an interface. I am with everyone else and would like quicker upgrades without waiting on Samsung.
Is it just me or are ALL the other new tablets starting to look second rate?
The custom UI worries me as I was thinking of buying a tab 10.1, what if they decide to issue an update to load that with crapware too?