I took delivery of my spanking new Toshiba Thrive tablet in December 2011 and the first thing that hit me was, “Men, this thing is big!”. The thickness of the Thrive is, conservatively, about twice that of the iPad 2. And the 10.1 inch screen is noticeably larger than iPad’s 9.7 inch screen.

At the moment, I am torn between using or dispensing with the case that I bought along with it. The case does not do too much justice to the aesthetics of The Thrive. It makes it even more noticeably bulky, with its width about that of a regular netbook computer.

My choice of Toshiba Thrive over other tablets was not without a lot of mental exertion.

For the records, and strictly a personal opinion, the iPad still remains the most widely accepted tablet because of its quality build, quality of apps, popularity, the perceived status symbol it confers and, well, as a fashion accessory to some.

However, for the serious-minded geeks out there, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the iPad is not in the least functional. From simple tasks like attaching multiple files to emails (not even the premium app Goodreader can attach more than a file at a time) or viewing flash enabled sites (which unfortunately is not going away anytime soon) to more serious tasks like accessing the iOS file system, nothing comes easy or straightforward on the iPad.

It really was a very long search, no thanks to the endless streams of tablets coming into the market. However, my search was being guided by 6 key considerations, based on my present circumstances and needs:

1. COST : A budget of $400
2. ACCEPTABLE BATTERY LIFE
3. SCREEN SIZE : Preference for 10.1 inch tablets. I read a lot of A4 formatted PDF files.
4. 3G CAPABILITIES
5. APPS : Acceptable availability of apps for the OS platform of choice
6. EXPANSION PORTS : Presence of any or all of the following ports; MicroSD, SD, mini or full HDMI and mini or full USB.

At the end of the day, the following tablets made the first cut based on possessing at least 4 of the criteria listed above:

- Samsung Galaxy 10.1
- Archos 101 G9
- Lenovo Ideapad K1
- Acer Aconia A500
- Toshiba Thrive

It is very common place to find a lot of these tablets touting very similar features (1Ghz NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor; 2MP and 5MP front and rear facing cameras; 1GB RAM, etc) and only differentiated by brand names and inconsequential features. However, two of these tablets were able to separate themselves from the pack, thereby making my second cut:

1. Samsung Galaxy 10.1 (a.k.a Beauty)

Regarded as the iPad of the Android world, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is indeed a fantastic device and undoubtedly, the Android tablet with the best user experience.

Slim, light and quite pretty, the device compares very favourably with the iPad 2 and possesses very similar design and features (no wonder Steve Jobs was pissed!). And with a 10-hour battery life, it tips the scale in probably being one of the best Android device around.

Unfortunately, just like the iPad, it lacks expansion ports. None at all!

2. Toshiba Thrive (a.k.a. The Beast)

Weighing in at 1.66 lbs and with 0.62 inches thickness (almost twice the thickness of iPad 2), the Toshiba Thrive makes no pretences at being slim or pretty. It was intended as a near laptop replacement, thanks to its array of expansion ports; Full HDMI out, Full and mini USB, Full and mini SD (max 32GB), SDHC and SDXC (max 2TB).

With the Thrive, the possibilities and expandability of the full USB port are almost endless. It accepts your regular keyboard and mouse (wired or wireless), flash drives, portable drives,etc. And to top it all, the tablet is about the only one that has a user replaceable battery!

Simply put, the Thrive is for those that expect a lot more than an iPad.

Probably the only snag with this tablet is the relative limited battery life. The max you can probably squeeze out of it is about 8 hours.

Since I pride myself as a geek, I guess it wouldn’t come as a surprise that I settled for The Toshiba Thrive.

I will not bother with a detailed review of this “big boys’ toy,” as it is already awash on the internet. However, I can not help but mention again that the the Thrive comes second to none in terms of port expandability. Of course, this is the reason for its bulk.

Full Expansion

It has a full HDMI port, SD slot, full USB and mini USB slots. Thankfully, there is a well stocked computer accessory store in my neighbourhood where I made a quick purchase of a USB flexible keyboard, USB optical mouse and a USB game pad. Since the Thrive has only one full USB port, I also got a USB hub to connect my multiple USB peripherals.

I am sure that the wireless keyboard option too would work, but let’s just say that I am watching my pennies at the moment, so I didn’t buy it.

The keyboard and the mouse work like a charm, simultaneously, via the USB hub. I was so emotional about this, so much that I felt like shedding a tear.*sniff*.

Game Pad

However, I was not so lucky with the game pad. I read somewhere before now that the device is a little bit choosy about game pads. I also understand that there is a need for game developers to incorporate necessary codes into their games for USB game pads to work with them. However, I heard the Xbox console works well on it though.

The key advantage here is that the Toshiba does not require any specialized or proprietary accessory to work with. Your regular PC USB peripherals would do just fine! However, these peripherals should not be used too extensively except when the Thrive is connected to a power source as they may cause just a little more drain on the battery.

I do not intend to “root” (“jailbreak” in Apple parlance) this device just yet, but that is the only way Android OS would recognize NTFS hard disk file system. However, I had no problem assessing my FAT formatted flash drive or the exFAT formatted external hard drive.

exFAT is the preferred filesystem format for mobile devices and it supports hard disk size of up to 512 Terabytes (in theory). From experience, for drives with high capacity, I would advice the use of powered external drive against USB powered ones because the USB port my not have enough voltage output to power this category of drives.

Wireless Connectivity

Though I strongly wished the Thrive has a 3G modem built in, however, the speed of my Cobranet powered home Wi-Fi provided even better browsing and download speeds for use on the tablet. I was able to make a number of device software updates quite smoothly, including that of the stock OS from Android honeycomb 3.1 to version 3.2.1 in a few minutes.

There is a “thriving” community on the net for the Toshiba Thrive at www.thriveforums.org. I am hoping that the community would come up with a way to use regular USB 3G modems on the thrive as it is one of the few USB peripherals not yet supported.

It is great having the feeling that I OWN this device, with no Apple-like restrictions. I can actually tinker with it to my heart’s content.

Over the next few weeks, I will be exchanging my views on this device and Android OS in general.

Stay tuned.

Across the world, Nokia adopted a strategy that has worked so well for them in the past and is still working up to some extent.

The strategy is very simple,create a phone and then split it into different variants with certain features removes. A classic example of this is the Nokia 5800 split into two different phones namely the 5230 and the 5530.

The Nokia 5230 features the same screen size of 3.2 inches that is on the 5800 and has 3G connectivity while the Nokia 5530 features a 2.8 inches screen with XpressMusic branding and WiFi.

Even on lower end phones like the Nokia C1 and C2. The main difference between the two is that the C1 is a single SIM phone while  C2 is a dual SIM phone.

Samsung on the other hand seems to have widely fine-tuned and adopted the strategy across their whole mobile product line and across the different operating systems that they support.

A very good example of this is their Galaxy line of phone and tablets. Do you want a 4 inch mobile? Get a Galaxy S. Is it a 3.5 inch display that you fancy? Get a Galaxy Ace. For 3.2 inches, you can get the Galaxy Gio.

If you want to get a tablet, you are offered different choices too with Samsung making a tablet for practically anybody that wants to get a tablet.

You can either get a 10.1 inch version, a 8.9 inch version or a 7.7 or 7 inch version, should you want a tablet of more compact size.

Even when you look at lower end Samsung phones like the Chat series, there is the the Ch@t 222 and Ch@t 322 with one of the major differences been the optical trackpad.

Platforms

On the Operating System level, Samsung has various operating systems running on their wide array of phones. These include: Android, Windows Phone 7, Bada and TiZen.

Last year, Samsung shipped a total of 300 Million devices which goes to prove that they may finally overtake Nokia this year as the number one handset maker in the world, thanks to their versatility in production and distribution.

MeeGo was a Linux-based collaboration between Nokia and Intel in the mobile OS space. No-one really knows what happened with that project, as no single MeeGo device is out in the market till date.

No; the Nokia N9 is not MeeGo. It is just branded MeeGo.

Anyway, Nokia pulled out, Samsung jumped in with intel and a couple of others – and the platform got the new name Tizen. I don’t know about the name though. It sounds…. sigh.

Anyway, before that time, Samsung had been working on Bada as a mobile OS for low and medium end devices. Baba has done fairly well with a number of devices numbering over a million in the market till date.

However, from this year, Bada is to be merged into Tizen by Samsung. Samsung has promised that the current Bada applications and the SDK will be backward compatible with the new OS.

Tizen’s development environment will be largely based on HTML5 which is rapidly becoming the preferred development environment for mobile apps and services.

Apparently, Samsung intends to continue their multi-platform strategy, supporting Android, Windows Phone and Tizen platforms in their different range of mobile products.

A number of Tizen smartphones are expected from Samsung this year. Now, that’s fast. Why was MeeGo development so slow? Why did it take nokia so long to produce a MeeGo phone – and then it turns out that it is not actually MeeGo, but Maemo/Harmattan?

Will we ever have answers? But then, does it really matter anymore? Life goes on.

In a previous article of mine titled Change Is In The Air: Goodbye to Symbian?, I said this of BadaOS:

Bada? I don’t know. Bada is a poor copy of Android. If I want Android, I go buy Android.

Perhaps that was a bit too unflattering.

Every major mobile OS besides Android has slipped in market share since 3rd quarter 2010. The list includes Symbian, iOS, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone. The only platform other than Android with numbers on the rise is Samsung’s Bada OS, up to 2.2% from 1.1% last year. According to Gartner, that means Bada has a higher market share than Windows Phone (1.5%) right now.

Perhaps we are wrong ignoring it because its marketshare is still small. If it is growing, it shouldn’t be ignored. Consider that with all the buzz about Windows Phone, BadaOS is bigger.

From Samsung Jet To Bada 1.0

Back in January 2010, I reviewed the Samsung Jet, a non-smartphone that Samsung promoted as “smarter than a smartphone”. It was not too long after the release of the Jet that Samsung announced BadaOS.

In my informed opinion, the Jet was a fore-runner of BadaOS. I have had a brief hands-on with a first generation BadaOS device, and the similarities are too clear through and through.

A long-time regular on Mobility blog, SpacyZuma, also gave us a review of his Samsung S8500 Wave, so you can check that up.

Enter Bada 2.0

Of course, BadaOS 1.0 was unfinished and not quite polished. However, the latest iteration, Bada OS 2.0, has been re-worked. By how much, we are yet to see.

But in my opinion, perhaps BadaOS can be a viable alternative to Android OS. They are similar in functionality and UI. However, the apps ecosystem on Bada is not as robust. Still, it is growing.

Perhaps time will tell by how much.

Eyes On The Samsung S8600 Wave 3

There have been about ten (10) BadaOS devices released till date, and the Samsung S8600 Wave 3 is the flagship device. I will have my eyes on that baby in 2012 and lay my hands on it in the shortest possible time for a detailed review.

What do you think? Does BadaOS stand a chance? Is the growing marketshare an indication of anything? If someone is looking for functionality similar to what Symbian and Android offer, can Bada become a platform to run to?

Samsung’s Galaxy range of Android mobiles has been a runaway hit in the market globally. As a matter of fact, the saying, “There is a Galaxy for everyone” is becoming commonplace. That is because indeed, there is a Galaxy for everyone.

The Samsung Galaxy Gio is a mid-tier offering running Android 2.3 (Gingerbread). The display is 3.2 inches and there’s a 3.5 megapixel camera thrown in for good measure.

My unit came pre-installed with Android 2.2 (Froyo), but after connecting it to a PC running Samsung Kies software, I was notified of an available upgrade to Android 2.3.3. That version seems to be the latest version available for the Gio. Some other devices got 2.3.5. But I’m not sure of any huge advantage of the latter over the former.

The capabilities and weaknesses of the Android OS are well known – standard Android Gmail, email, web and wifi, among others – so I won’t go into those details here.

The question is, how well does the Gio meet the needs of the segment that it is targeted at?

Generally, it does it well. Audio playback is loud – significantly louder than what the N9 throws out (which is not saying much, as the N9′s audio playback is not quite loud). But you get the comparison.

Video playback is pretty limited: None of the XviD, AVI and MPG files that I tried on it played. MP4 played without issues though.

I had problems typing on the 3.2-inch display. Whether this is due to the display not being so responsive or due to the layout of the on-screen QWERTY keyboard, I am not certain. However, I have typed more comfortably on smaller displays.

The 3.2 megapixel camera is one of the better ones out there and has autofocus functionality. Without a flash though, forget about taking pictures in low-light situations.

The Galaxy Gio is another Android smartphone that doesn’t stand out in any special way – and its not meant to stand out. Its one of the devices that you buy when you don;’t have the cash to splurge on the higher range Galaxy devices.

You get most of the functionality at much lower cost. Afterall, the Gio costs only about N35,000 in the market. That is a good deal.

Look what dropped in at Mobility Towers yesterday – the Samsung Galaxy Gio S5660! Etisalat Nigeria gave units of the Gio out at their 3rd anniversary event yesterday, so we got one.

This is not the first time that we are getting a free smartphone from Etisalat either. The Huawei U8180 was first. Our thanks to the Etisalat PR team and agency.

Quick Description

The Galaxy Gio is the smartphone (at least one of the available options) that you buy if you want a Galaxy but cannot afford the S-class – and you don’t want to buy a budget droid.

In other words, the Gio is mid-range. You get most of the functionality, but the Android and Samsung/TouchWiz experience are there. Specifically, you get:

• a 3.2″ capacitive display without the AMOLED touch
• an 800 MHz processor
• 158 MB internal storage (plus microSD slot) and 278 MB RAM
• a 3.2 megapixel camera
• Android OS v2.2 out-of-the-box, but upgradable to v2.3
• No DivX/XviD/WMV video support
• no TV-out
• no Flash support in the web browser
• a 1350 mAh battery

It seems a nice enough package for the target market.

Setting Up

Setting up was trouble-free, as it should be. I configured my Gmail account, and all my contacts, calendar entries and email were on board in minutes. Next up was Twitter. Then Facebook. All easy pie.

Firmware Update

The Gio came with Android version 2.2.1 out of the box. After setting it up last night, the first thing I did was connect it to a PC running Samsung Kies to see if the v2.3 update was available.

The mobile gods must have been happy with me, because an update was available. It didn’t take more than 20 minutes to get the Gio updated and purring on Android 2.3.3, which is the latest version for this particular device.

PS: Ye gods, I am still waiting for my N9 update (by the way, can/should one wink at the gods?).

Ready to Roll

I have pulled out my microSIM from the N9 and managed to get it into the Gio by adaptation and I will be using it as my primary smartphone for a number of days.

I have over 70GB bonus data on my line, so Android can guzzle all it wants. Already, from 8pm last night when I set it up till this morning, 82MB of data has been used. That’s almost 100MB in 12 hours (and I slept 6 of those hours).

But all is well. I’m covered. While on the subject, I have been getting lots of help requests from Android users who are freaked out at how their devices consume data like its going out of date tomorrow. I have an article in the works with tips to help you guys out, so hang in there!

Any questions about the Gio or a feature on Android that interests you? Please submit in the comments box below.

We recently witnessed the released of the latest android version; Ice Cream Sandwich.  After the post was published on Mobility Blog, several people began to ask if some previous android phones will receive the ICS update. About 3 days ago, Samsung Italy confirmed that the following Samsung devices will receive the ICS update asides the already confirmed Nexus S:

• Galaxy S2
• Galaxy Note
• Galaxy tab 10.1
• Galaxy Tab 8.9
• Galaxy Tab 7.7
• Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus

This should be great news to the folks who have these devices. The update might not come until early 2012 though.

[source]

Samsung have announced the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, an improved version of the original Galaxy Tab. This new device runs Honeycomb (v3.2), has sleeker looks, and at 9.9mm is thinner than its ancestor which measured 12mm.

It is powered by a Dual-core 1.2GHz processor, has 1GB RAM, same 3.2 MP camera, same battery, but also supports USB Host.

This looks like the tablet that I have been waiting for (though I am also very curious about the Amazon Kindle Fire). It is scheduled to be released by end of October, but no pricing info has been revealed yet.

Samsung GALAXY Tab 7.0 Plus Specifications

Network	HSPA+ (HSDPA 21Mbps/HSUPA5.76Mbps) 900/1900/2100 EDGE/GPRS 850/900/1800/1900
Processor	1.2GHz Dual Core
Display	7-inch WSVGA(1024X600) PLS LCD
OS	Android 3.2 (Honeycomb)
Camera	Main(Rear) : 3 MP AF with LED Flash Sub (Front) : 2 MP Action Shot, Panorama Shot, Smile Shot
Video	Codec : MPEG4, Divx, Xvid, H263, H.264, VC-1, WMV7/8, VP8 Format: 3GP,MPEG4, WMV, AVI, MKV Playback : 1080p Full HD Recording : 720p HD
Audio	Codec : MP3,WMA, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, AAC, AAC+, e-AAC+, AC-3, Flac Midi(SMF), WAV, OGG apt-X Bluetooth Codec Music Player with SoundAlive
Value-added Features	Samsung Apps
	Samsung Kies 2.0 Samsung Kies air (downloadable via Samsung Apps)
	Samsung TouchWiz: Live Panel, Mini Apps
	Social Hub - Integrated Messaging (Email, SMS, SNS, MMS), Contacts/ Calendar Sync - POP3/IMAP Email & Exchange Active Sync
	Readers Hub/Music Hub (will be available for download via Samsung Apps after launch)
	Google™ Mobile Services - Gmail™, Google Talk™, Google Search™, YouTube™, Android Market™, - Google Maps™
	Smart Remote
	Enterprise Solutions
	Adobe Flash
	Document Editor
Connectivity	Bluetooth® technology v 3.0 USB 2.0 HS & Host Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4 & 5 GHz) Wi-Fi Channel bonding & Wi-Fi Direct
Sensor	Accelerometer, Gyro, Digital compass, Ambient Light, Proximity
Memory	1GB (RAM). 16/32GB Internal memory. microSD (up to 32GB)
Size	193.65 x 122.37 x 9.96 mm, 345g
Battery	Li-on 4,000 mAh

Okay, let’s do this the easy way. Repeat after me:

1. In the beginning, there was Maemo from Nokia
2. Maemo merged with Mobline from Intel and became MeeGo
3. Then MeeGo got married to Tizen
4. Tizen. Tizen. Tizen. That’s the new name.

So, what is Tizen? Good question!
Tizen is a new open source project that is the home of the Tizen software platform, a mobile and device operating system based on Linux and other popular upstream projects.

Like MeeGo, the Tizen project will support multiple device categories, including Tablets, Netbooks, Handsets, Smart TV, and In-Vehicle Infotainment systems.

The Linux Foundation will host the project, where Tizen development will be completely open and led by a technical steering team composed of Intel and Samsung. The Limo Foundation is also involved here.

Meanwhile, what happens to Nokia and MeeGo, especially with the launch of the N9? Well, the N9 is not really MeeGo. It is Maemo 6 Harmattan branded as MeeGo (which sort of suggests that MeeGo wasn’t quite ready, just as Nokia had claimed).

Will Nokia hold on to the Maemo part of MeeGo for their disruptive activities? Seeing that they are in bed with WindowsPhone already, it does not seem plausible that they will jump in with Tizen. But what do we know?

Anyway, that’s the low-down. Say bye-bye to MeeGo, and hello to Tizen.

Source. Also, you can visit the Tizen homepage for more details.

As I have said before, Samsung have a winner in the Galaxy range of smartphones, and the Galaxy S II has just reinforced that position by selling 10 million units in 5 months.

Its predecessor, the Galaxy S, sold the same number in about seven months. Impressive stats, really. Here’s a toast to the Galaxy S II.

Source

I had a chat with a friend this morning. She is not a geek by any stretch and uses a BlackBerry 9300 Curve 3G. Yep; the phone pictured to the right.

It is a smartphone with a QWERTY keyboard. She loves and enjoys the keyboard. She told me that she was getting bored already and would love to get a new smartphone. She was looking at Android. And Samsung. I thought it was a good move.

Then she dropped the spoiler: she didn’t want a touchscreen smartphone. She finds touchscreen devices difficult to use, she said. They require too much attention and concentration to use, she said. Simply put, she wants a non-touchscreen smartphone.

An Extinct Specie
It may not have dawned on you yet, but I do not know of any smartphone that was released this year 2011 that does not sport a touchscreen. Not one.

The last non-touchscreen device on any smartphone platform was launched last year, 2010.

You read that right. My facts may be a bit off, but if I am right, that would be the Blackberry 9780 in November 2010.

The E6 launched with a QWERTY keyboard this year has a touchscreen display. I mentioned that to her. She declined. If it had touchscreen, she didn’t want to hear of it, so I didn’t bother with any of the new BlackBerry or Android QWERTY devices.

The New Age
But the reality is, she will have to adjust if she wants to use a smartphone. I had to adjust, though my preference lies with non-touch QWERTY too. Many others have had to adjust.

Let’s call it the evolution of the smartphone and the adaptation of humanity. Adapt or go extinct.

My first pure touchscreen device was the Samsung S8003 Jet back in January 2010. It was a non-smartphone marketed as “smarter than a smartphone”. The touchscreen experience wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Today, I use another pure touchscreen device as my primary smartphone, the Nokia N8. It is not terrible, but I miss my QWERTY keyboard.

One thing is for sure, whether it is with or without a hardware QWERTY keyboard, we are in the age of the touchscreen.

The fallouts of Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility are already being seen – as expected. This is all the more pertinent since Google has made it clear that the purchase was not just about Motorola’s patents.

Samsung are investing more in their own OS, BadaOS. Not to be left out, HTC are also considering buying their own OS, though no concrete steps have been taken in that direction.

As I suspected, all those public statements of solidarity were just PR. The game has changed, and individual manufacturers must adjust.