Within the last few days you probably saw the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Tablet, what some are calling the first real competition to Apple®’s iPad™. The Samsung Galaxy Tablet will be released on all 4 major carriers in the US and the price and launch date varies depending on the carrier. T-Mobile is the first to release the Galaxy Tab on November 10th and will sell it for $399.99 with a 2 yr contract + data plan. Verizon will be next to launch on November 11th but will offer it for $600 without a contract. Sprint plans to release it on November 14th with a similar structure to T-Mobile offering it for $399.99 with a 2 yr contract + data plan.

The Galaxy Tab features the latest Google™ Froyo 2.2 platform, a 7 inch LCD screen, Adobe® Flash®, front and back camera’s, a multi-touch screen that weighs less than a pound, WiFi, USB and Bluetooth connectivity and includes Samsung’s new Media Hub app which comes pre-installed and brings entertainment directly to your fingertips. It also sports a pretty impressive battery life of up to 7 hours of movie playback time.

Is it Really Competition for the iPad?

It certainly seems like it could be a contender. By leveraging the Android™ platform it does have some advantages over the iPad. The Samsung Galaxy Tab has complete multi-tasking capabilities allowing full mobile apps to continue running in the background. It comes with USB support and offers USB connectivity allowing users to connect USB supported devices to their tablet. It also features Adobe Flash capabilities and support through its Android platform. Now I know there has been a serious debate on whether or not mobile devices should support Flash, but the reality is there are plenty of websites that use Flash and by restricting its use you restrict what content users can access. This is more important than ever on a tablet because users are looking for more functionality in the way of media, e-books, and news content; like being able to view your favorite TV shows from network sites.

Will the Samsung Galaxy Tablet be able to compete on sales figures? Only time will tell, but I have a feeling Android enthusiasts will be excited to snatch it up and get in the tablet game. The price point feels competitive and with all carriers in the game it will give users options when it comes to how they get their tablet fix.

How does Development Differ from Phone to Tablet?

Now that Android has joined the tablet game, I think it is a good time to discuss briefly the differences that must be considered when developing apps for Tablets vs. Smartphones.

Designing a mobile app for a tablet device is not as easy as placing your already created app on the new device, there are a few items that you should consider in order to get the most out of your app. When designing and developing apps for tablet devices you must think about screen resolution and how your app will look on a larger screen in both landscape and portrait mode. If you don’t take this into account, your app could look distorted or be missing out on important space available to you that wasn’t available before. You might be able to add more info or graphics to make your app even more engaging. Enlisting a skilled graphic design expert can help you achieve the best user interface design for your app on a tablet. You should also think the functionality and features that are now available on the tablet that might not have been available on your Smartphone platform. A larger screen gives you more real estate for text and images. Zoom capabilities and multi-touch functionalities offers the developer an opportunity to interact with the user on a different level. An expert mobile application developer can help you narrow these new features down, figure out what is important to you and help you take advantage of the best features for your app and business.