Tablet competition heats up as Samsung announces Galaxy launch for November

The tablet industry is beginning to heat up, with Samsung Australia announcing its new Galaxy tablet will be released before the end of the year, cost $999 and will be available through most of the major telcos including Optus and Telstra.

Meanwhile, a new report from the Wall Street Journal also indicates Research in Motion could be preparing to release its BlackBerry tablet as soon as next week, with the gadget to run on an entirely new operating system.

Samsung announced at its press event yesterday the device will launch in November, although an exact date hasn’t yet been revealed. The gadget itself will be available outright for $999, but the company said it expects most people to buy the gadget bundled with a data plan from the major telcos which include Telstra, Optus and VHA.

The gadget runs on the Android 2.2 Froyo operating system, and features 16GB of internal memory with the option to add another 32GB. The tablet will support Flash, plays a variety of video formats including DivX, XviD and MPEG4, and has a battery life of about seven hours when watching video.

Other features include a 7-inch screen, gyroscope, accelerometer and two cameras, one each on the front and back. The back camera features an LED Flash.

Users will be able to download apps from the Android Market, while the Borders eBook application will be available on the device at launch.

The gadget is just one of a number of tablet-like devices set to enter the Australian market, with Dell reportedly showing off its Streak device to several mobile carriers. They follow the successful launch of the Apple iPad earlier this year, which popularised the idea of a consumer-based tablet device.

The launch also comes as the Wall Street Journal reports Research in Motion is gearing up to announce its new BlackBerry tablet as soon as next week at a developer’s conference. Sources indicate the gadget could even be called the “BlackPad”, and will feature a completely new operating system.

The device will have Bluetooth and the ability to connect to 3G networks, but only when tethered with a BlackBerry smartphone.

The new operating system will be built by QNX Software Systems, the report claims, which has relieved fears the gadget would be based on the BlackBerry 6 OS.

The device comes as BlackBerry continues to battle against iPhone in the battle for dominance in the smartphone sector. Although RIM controls much of the smartphone market in the US, Apple continues to gain ground among corporates – RIM’s traditional stronghold.

The releases and rumours indicate manufacturers are becoming serious about a market that barely existed until this year. And while some analysts have questioned the Samsung Galaxy’s $999 price point, Telsyte research director Foad Fadaghi says consumers should expect a wide range of tablets at all costs.

“There are going to be tablets at various price points. For one thing, the Galaxy has some more features than the iPad including a front-facing camera. You’re going to see a lot of different models, some at cheaper prices, some with larger screens, and so on.”

But while some analysts believe the tablet-craze is just a fad, Fadaghi believes these devices play an important role in the media landscape.

“I think the tablet provides an important outlet as a media consumption device. We’ve found that people are very receptive to the idea of moving parts of their digital lifestyle away from the PC and onto tablet computers and smartphones.”

“Consumers are looking for ways to make their life simpler and easier, and if that means not waiting for a laptop to boot up, and if that means not setting next to a full desktop computer, they will look to these kinds of things.”