Samsung announces availability for the Galaxy Tab 8.9 to the world today in NYC. The newest Tab will offer users a 8.9inch display w/ 1280 x 800 resolution + Gorilla Glass, is only 8.6mm thin (447 grams), running Android 3.1 w/ TouchWiz UX, powered by a 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 2MP front-facing & 3MP rear-facing cameras w/ autofocus , LED flash, 1080p HD video playback, and 6100 mAh battery. Officially launching on October 2nd with pricing for the 16GB at $469 and the 32GB at $569. Details on the Galaxy Players lie after the break followed by the official release.
The Samsung Galaxy Players are Android-powered media players which is a great idea for Samsung to do and bring here to the US. They run the latest version of Android with v2.3.4 w/ TouchWiz, Wi-Fi + Bluetooth enabled, dual cameras (VGA in front & 3.2MP in the back) email/calendar/contacts, and access to the Android Market & Samsung Media Hub. The Galaxy Player will ship as a 4.0 version w/ 4inch display (priced at $230) and the 5.0 version w/ a 5inch display (priced at $270) on October 16th.
Samsung Mobile Announces New Expansion of Galaxy Family with Addition of Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 8.9 and Samsung Galaxy Player™ 5.0 and 4.0
Ultra-thin & powerful Galaxy Tab 8.9 available for pre-order right now; available in stores nationwide on October 2
Galaxy Player™ 5.0 and Galaxy Player™ 4.0 available for pre-order starting September 27; available nationwide starting October 16
DALLAS – September 26, 2011 – Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile), the No. 1 mobile phone provider in the U.S.1, and Samsung Electronics America today announced the immediate availability of the Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 8.9, along with the upcoming availability of the Galaxy Player™ 5.0 and 4.0.
The Galaxy Tab™ 8.9 joins the Galaxy Tab™ 10.1 as the thinnest mobile tablets currently available in the U.S. market, measuring at 8.6 millimeters. The Galaxy Tab 8.9 shares many other features and services with the Tab 10.1 including Samsung’s TouchWiz® UX. This unique user interface was created to integrate with Android™ 3.1, Honeycomb, to deliver a truly customized and interactive tablet experience. The TouchWiz UX includes:
Live Panel: Magazine-like widget view for immediate access to weather, social updates, email, news, photo gallery, all on the home screen
Mini Mode Tray: One-touch overlay access to commonly used applications-Task Manager, Calendar, World Clock, Pen Memo, Calculator and Music Player
Clipboard: Advanced copy & paste functionality allows Galaxy Tab 10.1 users to store photos, Web pages, YouTube links, etc., for easy sharing via email and social network sites
Indicator Quick Panel: Quickly toggle on/off connectivity, notifications, sound, brightness and settings in lower right-hand corner of the display.
Photo Editor: Rotate, crop and adjust colors on high quality digital images
The Galaxy Player™ 5.0 and 4.0 offer a premium entertainment experience without the need for cell service, in a choice of form factors that are extremely pocketable. The large 5-inch and 4-inch touchscreens are an excellent option for enjoying games, music, videos, e-books and social media while on the move. The Galaxy Player 5.0 and 4.0 weigh just 6.4 and 4.2 ounces respectively, delivering powerful entertainment, communication and information without the bulk of portable DVD players or laptops. The Galaxy Players are powered by Android™ 2.3.5, Gingerbread, complete with a new, streamlined user interface and are enabled with Wi-Fi™ (802.11 b/g/n) connectivity for quick and easy access to online services and Web search. In addition, the two devices are designed with front and rear cameras for video chat and photography. Both Galaxy Players will support Samsung’s Media Hub content service in the future through a software update.
“These three additions to the Galaxy family of products are impressive examples of our commitment to offering consumers an unrivaled array of choices for entertainment and information on-the-go,” said Dale Sohn, president of Samsung Mobile. “People want their mobile device to fit their lifestyle and the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and Galaxy Players offer unparalled power and portability to meet the widest consumer needs.”
The Galaxy Tab 8.9 is built with a dual-core T250S processor, WXGA TFT display (1280×800 resolution) fortified by Gorilla® Glass. The portable tablet includes a 6,100 mAh battery for hours of entertainment without needing a recharge. This premium hardware is packaged in a sleek, portable design weighing less than one pound (447 grams).
The Galaxy Tab 8.9 is packed with entertainment, productivity and content sharing services to make the device a true focal core of the user’s consumer electronics ecosystem. The list of powerful services includes:
· Samsung Media Hub: Choose from more than 5,000 popular and acclaimed movie and TV titles to download for rent or purchase. Upcoming new release additions to the Media Hub library include “Fast Five,” “Horrible Bosses” and “Green Lantern.” The added service, Media Hub Show, uses an HD Extender to playback content on TV through an HDMI cable from the Galaxy Tab 8.9 dock or adaptor.
· Samsung Music Hub: Choose from more than 13 million songs to download into an intuitive playback system. Music Hub also provides extensive background information, with access to all artist bios, discographies and reviews.
· Samsung Readers Hub: The lightweight design and large display make the Galaxy Tab 8.9 an ideal device to access the Readers Hub robust library of more than 2.2 million books, 2,000 newspapers and 2,300 magazines.
· Social Hub: Users can aggregate email, instant messaging, contacts, calendar and social network connections into a single interface through the service’s “Feeds” and “Messages” files.
· Google™ Mobile Services: A suite of Google Mobile Services is preloaded on the Galaxy Tab 8.9 including access to more than 250,000 applications on Android Market™, Gmail™, Google Search™, Google Maps™ 5.0 with 3D maps and Google Talk™ with video and voice chat.
· AllShare™ service: Provides seamless content transfer between the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and other DLNA-enabled devices such as HDTV’s, monitors and digital cameras.
· Rear and Front-facing cameras: The rear-facing 3-megapixel camera and front-facing 2-megapixel camera including flash and autofocus, 1080p video playback and full support of video chat and digital imaging
· Polaris™ Office: Instant access to documents, spreadsheets and presentations to view and edit while on the move
· Swype: Re-size the keyboard, move the virtual keyboard anywhere on the screen and type faster by swyping
· Mobile Printing: Print documents and pictures wirelessly from the Galaxy Tab 8.9 to any compatible printer.
Additional features of the Galaxy Tab 8.9 include:
Enterprise Solutions and Services:
Full support for Exchange ActiveSync version 14
On device encryption
Cisco VPN (Virtual Private Network)
Sybase® MDM (Mobile Device Management)
Cisco WebEx™ mobile conference solution for meetings on the go
FindMyMobile:
· If the Galaxy Tab 8.9 is lost or stolen, the user can locate the device on a map, and track it live as it moves, remotely lock the device to prevent unauthorized access and delete personal information stored on the device.
