Archive for the ‘Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet’ tag
eReader & Tablet News – 10/20/2010 2 comments
Verizon has announced that it will be selling the Samsung Galaxy Tab for $599.99 starting November 11.
Popular mobile applications, including V CAST Music and V CAST Song ID, VZ Navigator®, Slacker Radio, Kindle for Android, BLOCKBUSTER On Demand® presented by V CAST Video, and the exclusive golf game, “Let’s Golf,” will be available on the Samsung Galaxy Tab. In addition to text, picture and video messaging, the Samsung Galaxy Tab will also feature V CAST Apps, Verizon Wireless’ mobile storefront offering hundreds of applications for businesses and consumers at launch.
Verizon Wireless customers can add a monthly access plan beginning at $20 a month for 1 GB on their Samsung Galaxy Tab. For additional features and specifications on the Samsung Galaxy Tab, visit www.verizonwireless.com/galaxytab.
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Ectaco has had the jetBook mini ereader available for pre-order on its website for a while. Today the company announced that the mini is now ready to ship. The mini is priced at $99.95 from Ectaco and includes free shipping to the US and Canada. The mini is already available from Amazon as well. I would expect some discounting pretty soon.
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There is more news from Barnes & Noble. The bookseller is having a “very special event” next Tuesday, October 26 at its Union Square store to which it has invited reporters. If I were a gambler I’d be putting my money on this being the NOOK 2 announcement.
B&N also announced today that it has partnered with Blackboard, Inc. to enable college students to access and use interactive etextbooks and other digital content from the B&N catalog within the Blackboard Learn platform.
With the integration, students can access and purchase content from Barnes & Noble’s vast catalog of over 1 million titles, including e-books, e-textbooks, relevant study aids, test prep guides, periodicals, and hundreds of thousands of trade and professional titles, directly within the online course environment.
This integration easily connects faculty and students to NOOKstudy, the free e-reader and study application from Barnes & Noble, enabling them to navigate through digital content and assignments to make their studying efforts more efficient and effective. It streamlines the ability of faculty to assign e-textbooks and digital course content that students can access and purchase. In addition, faculty can assign specific readings within assigned materials pointing to the exact location where they are available in the NOOKstudy environment. Students can go straight from Blackboard Learn to the assignment and begin reading and studying.
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Amazon has put another Kindle 3 software update out as a public beta. Version 3.0.3 is just described as including general performance improvements. If you want to download and install the beta you can do so from the Kindle software update page.
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Starbucks today officially launches its previously announced Starbucks Digital Network (SDN) in partnership with Yahoo! in US company-operated stores. SDN will feature selected news, entertainment and lifestyle content in addition to local content over Starbucks’ free in store Wi-Fi connection.
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eReader & Tablet News – 9/25/2010 no comments
There have been rumors that Entourage has a smaller version of the Edge in the works. The Digital Reader was able to get
a few photos and some details of the new Pocket Edge.
The Pocket Edge will have a 6-inch Visplex (not the newer Pearl) e-ink display and a 7-inch LCD screen. The new model is said to weigh about a pound, and will come in both Wi-Fi only and Wi-Fi plus 3G via Verizon. This looks quite promising.
Photo – The Digital Reader
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Samsung may be working on a 10-inch version of its Galaxy Tab. Gary Twohig, general manager of Samsung Mobile in Ireland, said in an interview with the Silicon Republic that the larger tablet would be launched in the first half of 2011. The reference to the 10-incher has since been edited out of the article.
(via TNW, where you can see what was edited out)
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Dell apparently has plans to introduce a 7-inch version of its Streak tablet. Michael Dell briefly showed off the new tablet onstage at an Oracle event this week.
(via WSJ)
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Today is the start of Banned Book Week, an annual celebration of the freedom to read that was started in 1982 by the American Library Association, American Booksellers Association and the Association of American Publishers.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab Coming to Four US Carriers 1 comment
There was a rumor that AT&T would be getting the Galaxy Tab, but fortunately they are not the only ones. Sprint, Verizon and T-Mobile will also get Samsung’s new tablet.
Samsung announced this today at a press conference in NYC and also says that a Wi-Fi version of the Tab is in the works. Samsung also announced three accessories that will be available for the Tab:
- Keyboard dock: Ergonomic, comfortable full-size keyboard with 7” Galaxy Tab replaceable inserts that doubles as a charger for power and synchronization of media and data. The dock also has a stereo output jack for connecting to speakers or a stereo system. Price: $99.99.
- Desktop Dock: Doubles as a Galaxy Tab charger using the Micro USB wall adapter that comes with the Tab; allows users to view movies, display as a digital picture frame and listen to music. Also has an HDMI output to view HD content on HDTV enabled with 1080p resolution and provides HDTV connection to play content from the Galaxy Tab to a television. Price: $49.99.
- Car/GPS Dock: Positions Galaxy Tab inside car for turn-by-turn GPS navigation instructions and traffic updates. Attachable to windshield or dash and rotates between landscape and portrait modes. Price: $99.99.
No word on pricing for the Tab itself yet. Samsung’s press release says that the Galaxy Tab will be available “in the coming months.” Verizon’s press release is more encouraging (though equally indeterminate) and shortens that to “in the coming weeks.”
Verizon will also be packing the Tab with its usual ware: V Cast Music, V Cast video on demand, V Cast Song ID, VZ Navigator and the games Let’s Golf and N.O.V.A. — not sure if these are the full games or just demos.
The Tab will also have access to Samsung’s Media Hub for more content:
In addition, the Galaxy Tab will include future access to Media Hub, Samsung’s own content service, offering a vast lineup of critically acclaimed films and TV programs for rent or purchase. Samsung is working with the biggest and best names in entertainment, including MTV Networks, NBC Universal and Paramount to assemble a robust library of movies and TV programming, including new release films, next day TV episodes and even full TV show seasons. Media Hub also allows the user to expand the entertainment experience, allowing content purchased to permanently own to be shared with up to five devices that carry the Media Hub application.
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eReader & Tablet News – 9/14/2010 1 comment
A roundup of some brief ereader and tablet related stories.
The annual Ipsos Mendelsohn Affluent Survey (via Advertising Age) of heads of households making $100,000 or more annually has found that the affluent are spending 12 percent more time on the internet, reading 16 percent fewer magazines and are buying more ereaders and tablets.
Nothing surprising there, except that there are still lots of magazines that don’t have iPad editions yet.
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Engadget was the apparent beneficiary of an AT&T leak yesterday and reported that Samsung’s Galaxy Tab will find a home with that carrier in the US.
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Infinity Publishing has signed an agreement with Kobo to make Infinity ebooks available through the Kobo ebook store. Infinity is a publishing company that caters to self-published authors. For a package price of $199, Infinity will turn an author’s existing work into an ebook, assign an ISBN to the title, and handle distribution.
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Graphic.ly has announced that it will be offering single issues of Marvel comic books on its desktop reader. Graphic.ly is the first desktop digital comic reader to be able to offer single issues of Marvel comics.
Many of the popular Marvel titles will be available at Graphic.ly, including Iron Man, Kick Ass, Amazing Spider Man, Captain America, Astonishing X-Men and more.
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Random House has announced a partnership with Seattle-based Smashing Ideas’ ePublishing group to bring multimedia children’s book apps to mobile devices. Smashing Ideas is a digital media agency whose recently formed ePublishing Group is headed up by Ben Roberts, co-creator and developer of Alice for the iPad.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab News no comments
Samsung would like wireless providers to bundle the Galaxy Tab with mobile phones to keep the price lower for customers.
Samsung’s global head of mobile device sales and marketing, Lee Don Joo, indicates in an interview with the Financial Times that Samsung would like to see the Galaxy Tab bundled with consumers’ regular cell phones on a single data plan with a single bill, rather than having consumers pay for two separate connections.
The WSJ was told by a Samsung executive that most likely the Tab would cost $200–$300, depending on subsidies from wireless service providers.
Both articles also say that Samsung will only be selling the Galaxy Tab through service providers and not directly to consumers. In fact, the Galaxy Tab is at the moment available for pre-order at Amazon.de for €799 (via CrunchGear).
Meanwhile, Electricpig reports that a Galaxy Tab prototype has already been rooted by German Android developers Sera-Apps.
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IFA 2010 Videos no comments
A roundup of a few of the video reviews from IFA 2010 in Berlin.
Sony PRS-650 Touch Edition eReader
Charbax from ARMdevices.net has done an excellent video of the Sony PRS-650 ereader. The IR-based touchscreen is a major improvement from Sony, though they really should have included Wi-Fi.
Samsung Galaxy Tab
The Samsung Galaxy Tab looks like one of the nicest 7-inch tablets out there. It’s quite fast and responsive. This video is from CNETTV.
Toshiba Folio 100 Tablet
Toshiba’s Folio 100 tablet comes with a 10.1 inch touchscreen. It is powered by Android 2.2 and comes with Nvidia’s Tegra 2 chipset. This video is from Netbooknews.com.
ViewSonic Viewpad 7
Viewsonic’s 7-inch tablet runs on Android 2.2. The Viewpad 7 has cameras both front and back, and with its 3G connection could be used for video conferencing. The display resolution is 800 x 480, which is lower than the Samsung Galaxy Tab. This video is from Shinymedia. ViewSonic’s booth at IFA is very noisy.
iRiver Cover Story eReader
Another video from Charbax, this one of iRiver’s Cover Story ereader, which has a touchscreen. Not sure how well this one is going to do against the Kindle and the new Sony ereaders.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab no comments
Samsung has officially announced the Galaxy Tab today and is unveiling it in Berlin at IFA. Some of the specs:
- Android 2.2 (Froyo)
- 7-inch TFT-LCD; 1024 x 600
- Cortex A8 1.0GHz processor
- Full HD video playback
- Adobe Flash support
- Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 2.5 G (GSM/GPRS/EDGE)
- Gyroscopic sensor, geo-magnetic sensor, accelerometer, light sensor
- 16 GB or 32GB internal memory; card slot
- Size: 190.09 x 120.45 x 11.98mm (7.48 x 4.74 x .47 inches); weight 380g (13.4 ounces)
It’s too bad Samsung couldn’t use their Super AMOLED display, as that would have made it more viewable in sunlight. It probably would have made the Tab more expensive as well.
The Tab will have access to the Android Market and Samsung will have some apps of its own design available as well.
The Readers Hub is where you will do your ereading on the Tab, and Kobo announced on their blog today that the Kobo reading app would be powering it. For periodical reading you will have PressDisplay and Zinio. This is a good score for Kobo, and it can’t hurt Borders either when the Tab comes stateside.
Like the Dell Streak, the Galaxy Tab has telephony functions and can be used for video conferencing. Obviously with a device of this size you will want to be using a USB headset. A front facing camera as well as a rear facing video camera are part of the package.
Samsung says that the Galaxy Tab will be launching in Europe in a couple of weeks. The US, Asia and other markets will get the Tab in coming months.
The video below was uploaded to YouTube by PhoneArena.
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eReader & Tablet News – 8/25/2010 no comments
The fracas that the Wylie Agency brought about last month when it decided to unilaterally publish 20 classic (but still under copyright) ebooks via its new Odyssey Editions exclusively through the Kindle Store has apparently come to an end. A joint statement by Markus Dohle , CEO of Random House and Mr. Wylie indicated that they had come to an agreement on the matter.
Reportedly Amazon will remove 13 of the 20 books released by Odyssey, but the ebooks should return to Amazon under Random House’s auspices, although that may mean Amazon will loose its exclusivity. I just checked a few of the titles and all were still available and still shown as published by Odyssey Editions.
Random House will also resume a normal business relationship with Wylie, which had been suspended during the dispute.
So it looks like Random House has won, but Wylie’s move hopefully will do something to speed up the digital publishing of publisher’s backlists, which would be a win for readers.
For more on this see the WSJ.
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Samsung will reportedly be stopping production of e-paper based ereaders, citing the high cost of the displays. The company is not completely abandoning the ereader space though, as it plans to launch an LCD-based ereader next year.
Samsung has also released a teaser video of the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which is below. According to the video the Galaxy Tab will be at IFA 2010 in Berlin.
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Ok, this is rather morbid. At last there is an iPad version of the trivia game “Celebrity Dead or Alive.” This is a game that “tests players knowledge and know-how of which stars are still the life of the party and which have permanently retired their dance cards.” $0.99 at iTunes. Great.
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Hanvon Technology Co., the largest Chinese ereader manufacturer, has announced that it will be using Freescale Semiconductor’s i.MX51 applications processor for its next generation ereaders.
The first Hanvon ereader to use the new 
processor is the E-800, which sports an 8-inch e-ink screen with 1024 x 768 resolution and weighs “only” one pound.
Freescale’s flagship i.MX51 processor delivers a compelling blend of features and functionality to meet the stringent requirements of eReader products. The processor combines an 800MHz ARM Cortex–A8 CPU with a large L2 cache memory to deliver high performance for fast rendering and page turns. It also includes advanced power management features to help extend battery life and increase usage between charges, while innovative ultra-low standby power schemes extend battery standby time.
In addition to i.MX technology, Hanvon’s eReader will also incorporate Freescale’s MMA7660FC low-power capacitive accelerometer and MC13892 power management IC, resulting in highly advanced eReader products that deliver extremely low power consumption in a slim, ultra-thin design.
In other Hanvon-related news, the Daily Yomiuri newspaper yesterday reported that the company will start providing Japanese content to Chinese readers. Tokyo-based Creek & River Co. has contracted to supply Japanese manga, novels and magazine articles to Hanvon.
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ebrary, which is a provider of digital content and technologies, announced today that it has partnered with CHOICE to offer digital editions of more than 1,000 of Choice’s recent Outstanding Academic Titles (OAT). CHOICE is the premier source of scholarly reviews. More from the press release:
Spanning all academic subject areas including Business & Economics, Education, History, Language & Literature, Music, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Religion, and Sciences, ebrary’s CHOICE selection features leading publishers including Cambridge University Press, Duke University Press, Harvard University Press, Oxford University Press, Routledge, University of California Press, University of Chicago Press, Wiley, and Yale University Press. The titles may be previewed at http://site.ebrary.com/lib/choicetitles.
Additional key features and benefits:
- Available anytime through any web enabled device including the iPad—no cumbersome downloads.
- Ability to subscribe to and purchase additional titles that seamlessly integrate.
- 24/7 web-based training with a real person.
- Free MARC records.
- COUNTER-compliant usage statistics.
- Powerful tools for easy researching:
- Multiple options for searching, navigating, and browsing.
- ebrary InfoTools™, which turns every word into a portal to additional information on the web. InfoTools can be customized to link patrons to the resources of libraries’ choice.
- Notes and highlights that are automatically stored on a personal bookshelf.
- Ability to copy/paste and print text with automatic citations and URL hyperlinks back to the source.
- Personal bookshelves with moveable folders that can be shared with others.
- Much more!
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Samsung Galaxy Tab Tablet no comments
In an interview with the WSJ today J. K. Shin, president 
of Samsung Electronics mobile communications division confirmed that the company is planning to release a tablet no later than the third quarter of 2010. The tablet will be called the Galaxy Tab.
No official specs or pricing yet, but the picture to the right has been appearing around the Web. Some rumored specs (at Tinh te via Boy Genius Report) include Android 2.2 (Froyo) and a Super AMOLED display that should be more viewable outdoors than an LCD display.
