Samsung debuts new Galaxy Tab 2 on Android Ice Cream Sandwich
Samsung surprisingly announced a new 7-inch tablet, the Galaxy Tab 2, on Monday, that will be the company’s first to run on Google’s new Android Ice Cream Sandwich operating system.
But, while the device is new in name, the hardware specs aren’t much of a leap forward, but rather a variation of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus with less powerful hardware.
The Galaxy Tab 2 is powered by a 1-gigahertz processor and packs a 4,000 mAh (milliampere-hour) battery. The Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus runs on a 1.2-gigahertz processor and a 4,100 mAh battery.
Both Galaxy Tabs have a 3-megapixel/720p camera on the back, but the Galaxy Tab 2 has a VGA front-facing camera while the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus has a 2-megapixel front facing camera.
The two slates also use a 7-inch touchscreen with a 1024 x 600 resolution and 1-gigabyte of RAM. And while the Galaxy Tab 2 will ship on Ice Cream Sandwich when it arrives in March, Samsung has promised an update to Ice Cream Sandwich for the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus too.
The Galaxy Tab 2 will launch in both a Wi-Fi-only and 3G version in Britain, with other countries to follow, Samsung said. Storage will come in either 8-gigabyte, 16-gigabyte or 32-gigabyte options and the new tablet will include a microSD card slot for those who want to expand further.
Samsung hasn’t announced pricing details on the Galaxy Tab 2, but ideally the pricing will be about the same or less than the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, which starts at about $400.
RELATED:
Samsung says ‘Galaxy S III’ is in the works
Apple iPad 3 Mini? A 7-inch iPad is coming, analyst says
Pantech Element, a waterproof Android tablet, review [Video]
Follow Nathan Olivarez-Giles on Google+, Facebook and Twitter
