galaxy - 14/17 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jan

Are Samsung Galaxy S Froyo Updates Being Held Back Because Of Cost?

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Android OS, Captivate, Epic 4G, Fascinate, Froyo 2.2, News, Samsung, Vibrant

Last Updated: August 13th, 2011

A few weeks ago, Samsung USA tweeted that Froyo updates for the Galaxy S phones are being delayed due to further testing. Then, just 4 days ago, AndroidSPIN reported that the Vibrant update (if not others) wasn't rolling out so that the Vibrant wouldn't steal the Vibrant 4G+'s thunder. And now the saga continues, as a new anonymous source has stepped forth to clarify the issue.

Reportedly an insider who has stepped "... across the NDAs [to] explain the issues behind the Android Froyo update to the Samsung Galaxy S phones in the United States," he/she says:

To explain the political situation, first, a primer on how phone firmware upgrades work for carriers.

Jan

Samsung's Budget-Minded Galaxy Mini Revealed, Has Froyo - Cue Angry Mob

Posted by David Ruddock in Galaxy Mini (Tass), Galaxy Q, News

We won't lie - it's a slow news day in the world of Android. And with all the bad press Samsung's been getting today over an alleged filing of a class-action suit regarding the Froyo update on US Galaxy S phones, we're going to stay on the lighter side of things (for now).

Meet the Samsung Galaxy Mini. Isn't it adorable? Unfortunately, its diminutive size comes with an equally diminutive feature list:

240x320 screen (presumably less than or about 3" in size)
Android 2.2.1
Bluetooth 3.0
Device measures 4.3" x 2.4" approximately
microSD slot
TouchWiz UI

I can't imagine there's a Hummingbird buzzing inside this little guy, so it'll be interesting to see if the TouchWiz UI overlay makes the phone unbearably slow.

Dec

Samsung Breaks 1 Million Galaxy Tabs Sold, Shooting For 1.5M By End Of Year

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Galaxy Tab, News

Last Updated: July 2nd, 2011

Holy crap, that was fast. Less than a month after being released in the US (and a bit longer in some parts of the world), Samsung has managed to move over 1 million Galaxy Tabs - which may or may not be surprising, given the range of opinions on the device (although I just thought it was super). Despite the Tab being available in 64 countries, roughly 100,000 of the sales are in Samsung's homeland of South Korea. (Minor note: it's not clear whether this is units sold by Samsung to stores, or units sold by stores to consumers.)

_{Yes, this is a Galaxy S, not a Galaxy Tab.}

Dec

T-Mobile UK Delays Android 2.2 Update For Samsung Galaxy S Devices Yet Again After Announcing It Was Ready

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Froyo 2.2, Galaxy S, News, Samsung, T-Mobile

T-Mobile UK is certainly digging itself into a ditch on this one, and seriously pissing customers off in the process. You can't really blame people for being upset: after promising the Froyo update for Samsung Galaxy S owners by November 30 via FOTA, then reiterating just two days ago that the update was ready to roll out, they've now pushed it back at least a week. Turns out they're also not going to be able to do it over-the-air, either - rather, it's going to be installed with Samsung KIES instead. The official post on T-Mobile UK's support forum:

Hi folks

I've been talking to the handset team and the Samsung people today and the latest news is as follows.

Nov

Samsung Galaxy Tab Review: Getting A Handle On The Tab

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Galaxy Tab, News, Reviews, Samsung, Tablet Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

Last week, Samsung was awesome enough to send us the T-Mobile variant of their Galaxy Tab for review. As of this writing, I've spent a full 9 days using the 7" tablet - more than enough time to get an intimate feel for it. Without giving too much away off the bat, I have to say that I'm fairly impressed with it, despite having a few minor niggles.

So what does the Tab do right, and where does it come up short? Read on to find out.

Hardware

Build

The first thing you notice about the Tab is that it's very solid; at nearly 14 ounces, it has a good heft without being too heavy.

Nov

Ubuntu Hacked Onto Samsung Galaxy Tab

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Development, Galaxy Tab, News

As the saying goes, where there's a will, there's a way - and there's always a will among the guys (and gals) at XDA-Devs. This time around, it's booting Ubuntu on the Samsung Galaxy Tab; unfortunately, though, it's not without a fair number of kinks at this point.

XDA member dviera88 discovered that the method used to boot Ubuntu on the Epic 4G also works on the Galaxy Tab (unsurprising, given just how similar the two are). He's provided a nearly 13-minute video detailing how to get it up and running and providing a quick usage demonstration. Heads-up, though: it's shot on his Epic 4G, so the video isn't great.

Nov

First CyanogenMod 6.1 Build For Samsung Galaxy S GT-i9000 Released In Beta Form

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Development, Galaxy S, News

We have good news and bad news (x2), world. The good: the first CM6.1 build for the Samsung Galaxy S has been released. The first (and worst) bit of bad news: at this point, it looks like it's for the GT-i9000 only, and not the US versions of the SGS (though I'm no dev, so I'm not positive). The other bad news: this is apparently a very bug-laden release ("Holy crap, it's full of BUGS!").

Developers codeworkx and coolya have been working on this for quite some time, while keeping the very impatient SGS owners regularly updated on their progress via the CM forums.

Nov

Unboxing & Quick Hands-On With The T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy Tab

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Galaxy Tab, News, Reviews, T-Mobile, Tablet Reviews

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

What a nice surprise to come home to: Samsung was kind enough to send us the T-Mobile variant of the Galaxy Tab, and boy, is this thing beautiful. So far, I've only had about 30 minutes to play with it - just enough time to setup my email and preferences, do a little web browsing, and, naturally, play a game of Angry Birds (or 5... you know how it is).

Obviously, I only have limited impressions and a gaggle of pictures thus far - but the full review should be forthcoming in a few days, so be sure to check back.

Nov

US Cellular, AT&T Announce Their Versions Of The Samsung Galaxy Tab - Former $399 On Contract, Launching November 19; Latter $649 Starting November 21

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in AT&T, Galaxy Tab, Samsung, US Cellular

It all started as a despicable rumor, but now AT&T's charged ahead and made it official - its version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab will indeed cost $649, which is $50 more than the other carriers' versions and $30 more than the cheapest 3G-capable iPad. Disappointing as that may seem, a $50 virtual gift card for Samsung's Media Hub is included, as is a bunch of bloatware nobody wants (sigh). At least you get relatively cheap pay-as-you-go plans - $15 for 200MB of data and $25 for 2GB of it.

On the other hand, US Cellular will also be piping the seven-inch tablet, albeit for $399 on a new two-year contract and $499 off contract, the same as Sprint.

Nov

What's New/Coming In Android Devices: White EVO 4G, Galaxy Tab For Sprint & Verizon, Droid 2 Global, Samsung Continuum, And Droid 2 Global Delayed

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Continuum, Droid 2 Global, Droid Pro, EVO 4G (Supersonic), Galaxy Tab, LG, News

Last Updated: November 21st, 2010

It's definitely starting to feel like holiday season is winding up - a ton of devices that we've seen in the pipeline previously are now making it to market at long last. Let's take a look:

Samsung Galaxy Tab

The Verizon and Sprint versions of the Galaxy Tab have launched already, and the device will be coming to Sprint in short order (11/14) as well. Quick recap of the specs:

7" 1024x600 screen
Both 3G and Wi-Fi
Android 2.2
1 GHz Hummingbird CPU
13.8 oz.

So far the reviews seem to be fairly mixed on the Tab. Right now, only the Verizon variant is listed at Wirefly, but we expect that to change shortly.