From Phablet to Tablet
Samsung product strategy executive Hankil Yoon told reporters back in February: “Honestly, we’re not doing very well in the tablet market.”  That was, of course, more than 10 million 5-inch Galaxy Note sales ago.  The company had just introduced its new phone/tablet ‘Phablet” to the North American market the month before Yoon made his candid statement.

No tablet maker has done “very well” up to this point when compared to the Apple iPad. Compared to the 29.7 million iPads sold from Q4 2010 through the first half of this year, Samsung sold only 1.4 million Galaxy Tab and Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablets (its ongoing patent infringement case with Apple probably hasn’t helped sales either). But 5m+ ‘phablet’ sales in the Note’s first five months and 10m so far is nothing to sneeze at. Now, Samsung is banking that it can transfer the stylus-enabled versatility of user input inherent in its successful smartphone/tab to establish a separate identity in the full-size tablet market.

An August 6 company press release already announced that the new tablet is rolling out worldwide this month and provided a comprehensive list of specifications (sans price). The main purpose of today’s launch event was to show the new stylus-enabled tab off.

Creativity Tools
As fully demonstrated at Samsung’s New York event, the new Galaxy 10.1 provides for a compelling new twist – a full-sized tablet that features a touchscreen but also uses a stylus to fluidly interact with a wide array of productivity and creativity tools, such as Polaris Office and Adobe’s premium creative application, Photoshop Touch (make sure to check out the video at the end of this post).

The tab includes AllShare Group Cast, which allows users to share and collaborate on documents, presentations, or images without needing to load files separately. There’s also AllShare Play, which allows content to be shared with a large group in real-time by connecting the new tablet to Samsung HD TVs, tablets, laptops, and other consumer electronic devices on the same network. And for the enterprise, the new tablet offers Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, virtual private network capabilities, and on-device encryption.

Hardware
The Galaxy Note 10 ships with a 1.4 GHz quad-core processor, 2GB RAM; and a 5 MP primary camera (with LED support light) and a 1.9 MP webcam up front. It weighs 1.31 pounds (600g). Atop its horizontal edge are the power/sleep  and volume controls, along with a microSD slot (with 64GB capacity), an IR blaster, and a headphone/earbud jack. Cellular models will include a slot for a SIM card next to the jack. Two speakers are situated along the left and right bezels.

The new 10.1-inch stylus-enabled Android tablet runs 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, has Wi-Fi a/b/g/n (2.4/5GHz), Bluetooth 4.0 (with apt-X high-quality audio), and USB 2.0 hosting. It also includes an accelerometer, digital compass, gyroscope and light sensor. The Wi-Fi-only version comes with S-GPS and the 3G version has A-GPS. The tablet supports split-screen use, providing users the ability to view two apps on the screen simultaneously. For example, the user can surf the Web and watch a video at the same time using the Pop Up Play feature. A Smart Stay feature tracks the user’s eyes – it stays on as long as you’re looking at it. In addition to MHL3.5mm, the tablet’s IR transmitter allows users to use it as a universal remote.

S Pen Stylus – “We Stylin!”
You can type using a soft keyboard, or use a finger like any other touchscreen tablet. But the new 10.1 Note provides the versatility of the S Pen Stylus to navigate the Android user interface and take screen shots, jot down notes or sketch/draw pictures into many of the tablet’s native apps.

The Note 10.1′s S Pen, which fits inside a long cavity at the top of the tablet, has undergone a number of performance improvements since the original Galaxy Note. The pressure-sensitive stylus uses an active Wacom digitizer for precision digital inking and a button along its side controls multiple functions. This button can also activate a “lock” to disallow other means of input, so users can rest their palms or hands on the screen while they are drawing or jotting down notes. The plastic tip at the other end of the stylus serves as a handy digital “eraser.”

Making Its Case
At its relatively high list price considering its relatively low-res display, it was very important that Samsung  hammer home Note 10.1′s differentiating capabilities today at its New York media event.  Senior VP of Global Marketing, Younghee Lee told those in attendance that the Galaxy Note line represents a “new category of smart mobile devices.” By focusing on multi-tasking and content creation while positioning the stylus pen as an integral tool for serious tablet use, the company did a good job in making its case today.

Joe Hopkins