Photo: laihiu / Flickr

The long-awaited Samsung Galaxy Nexus is finally available for purchase in some regions, and early reviews of the Android Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone have begun rolling in. Suffice it to say, the general sentiment across major tech publications is positive, with some calling the device their favourite Google Android handset released yet. Below are extracts from some reviews.

‘Favourite Android device’ in the world

BGR’s Jonathan S. Geller writes: ‘This is almost comical at this point, but the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is my favorite Android device in the world. Easily replacing the HTC Rezound, the Motorola DROID RAZR, and Samsung Galaxy S II.’ He explains that the latest Google mobile OS could be more intuitive, but it certainly is powerful, and that ‘Android 4.0 is coupled with the best smartphone Samsung has ever produced and easily leapfrogs any other competitor’s device.’

Best Android phone ever made

Joshua Topolsky over at The Verge is equally smitten with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. He writes: ‘The Galaxy Nexus is the best Android phone ever made. It’s one of the best smartphones ever made, and with a couple of minor tweaks (particularly to the camera), it could be the best smartphone ever produced.’ He mentions its size – with a colossal 4.65-inch display – could be off-putting to some. Importantly, he says that Android Ice Cream Sandwich ‘is a fantastic OS.’

Good, but not great

The folks over at TechRadar are not as smitten as BGR or The Verge. They write: ‘We had real high hopes for the Galaxy Nexus and genuinely expected it to take the place of best smartphone on the market today. But it hasn’t.’

The review continues: ‘If you were to take away Ice Cream Sandwich, hardware-wise, you’d not have much to write home about compared to what else is out there.’

All in all, while impressed with the device, they don’t think the Samsung Galaxy Nexus as a piece of hardware is the home run it could have potentially been.

General trends

Having read through several Samsung Galaxy Nexus reviews, the general trend seems positive. There’s almost universal approval for Android Ice Cream Sandwich, and there’s belief that Samsung has, against all odds, topped what it achieved with the Samsung Galaxy S2. Once we’ve spent solid time with it, we’ll share our thoughts on the handset.

Photo: salendron / Flickr

A slightly tweaked version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is scheduled for release in Germany a few short months after Apple won an injunction that prohibited the sale of the tablet PC in the nation.

New design, kind of

The new tablet will go by the name Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1N, with Samsung having to make just two changes to the design be allowed to release the device. The one change is the positioning of the speaker on the tablet PC, and the other change – a much more significant alteration – is the bezel on the tablet.

The change to the bezel is in the form of a thicker metallic outer rim, such that there is less black showing on the tablet PC’s surface. It’s a small yet visually significant change, that makes Samsung’s device easily distinguishable from Apple’s – a distinction even Samsung’s lawyers struggled to make.

How we got here?

Back in August, Apple won a Europe-wide injunction that prohibited all sales of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. While it was overturned elsewhere around the continent, Germany held firm, hence the required change. Now that Samsung’s managed to find a workaround, it’s likely Apple will put the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1N under scrutiny again, new bezel or not. After all, a slight change to speaker placement and the bezel can hardly be called a case of ‘slavishly’ copying Apple, surely?

This is only the start

In the latter parts of 2010 and in early 2011, we said that the major standoff in mobile devices would be between Samsung and Apple. For smartphones, this is already the case. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1N has some way to go still before it causes any stress for the iPad, but that won’t stop Apple from making life difficult for Samsung. We’ll be keeping a keen eye on developments on this front.

Photo: Amazon

On the heels of rolling out the Amazon Kindle Fire tablet, the folks at Citigroup say that the online retail giant is working on a smartphone scheduled for release in 2012. If this is true, Amazon would be a full-fledged competitor in the highly lucrative mobile devices space currently dominated by manufacturers Apple and Samsung, and platform owner Google through Android OS.

Supply chain research

Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney issued a research note making the unexpected claims about the Amazon Kindle smartphones. ‘Based on our supply chain channel checks in Asia led by Kevin Chang, Citi’s Taipei-based hardware research analyst, we believe an Amazon Smartphone will be launched in 4Q12,’ he writes [via AllThingsD].

The thorough research report breaks down who would be involved in the manufacturing process, with FIH manufacturing the device and Hon Hai (who own the controversial Foxconn business) will be supplying components through their TMS business. Mahaney says ‘We believe the smartphone will adopt Texas Instrument’s OMAP 4 processor and is very likely to adopt QCOM’s dual mode 6-series standalone baseband given QCOM has been a long-time baseband supplier for Amazon’s E-reader.’

Price aggressive

True to Amazon’s recent strategy of competing aggressively on price – as evidenced by the dirt cheap Kindle e-readers and Amazon Kindle Fire tablet – Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney thinks that Amazon Kindle smartphone will be priced aggressively, too. He predicts it could cost in the region of $150 to $170 to make one, and they may sell each unit very close on that price point. He writes: ‘For a normal brand like HTC, they need to price the product at US$243 to make 30% gross margin. If Amazon is actually willing to lose some money on the device, the price gap could be even bigger.’

It’s also widely expected that the Amazon Kindle smartphone will run on Android, with the online retail giant reportedly paying Microsoft a royalty for each unit sold. That Android patent licensing campaign is clearly going very well for the folks in Redmond.

Photo: Microsoft Sweden / Flickr

Gavin Kim, who was Samsung’s VP of consumer and enterprise services, has left the company to become general manager of Microsoft’s Windows Phone team. The move comes at a time when fortunes in the smartphone industry are very different for the two companies. Samsung is winning and Microsoft is not (well, not directly, at least), and Kim’s experience in helping Samsung become a smartphone juggernaut in a short 18 months could be of great use to Microsoft.

Why he’s moving

BGR broke the story of Kim’s departure, interviewing him to find out the motivation behind his leaving. He said: ‘In my experience, there is an already fervent base of Windows Phone supporters out there and they all get it. They are passionate, and already very vocal about it … so, it is really my new job to make sure we reflect that message clearly in our product and marketing collaborations with all of our partners to create more Windows Phone believers.’

He explained that his role includes helping set the Windows Phone 7 product roadmap, as well as developing relationships with ‘consumers, carriers, device manufacturers, developers, and partners.’

Product management incredibly important

For Microsoft, the appointment of Samsung VP Gavin Kim as general Manager of the Windows Phone team is a small step in a series of moves the company needs to make if it is to win in the smartphone market.

Microsoft’s sales problems are currently two-parted – their presence and clout with mobile carriers is really small, and consumer demand for the extremely polished mobile OS platform is low, too. The problem for the company is one feeds the other: if the carriers have Windows Phone 7.5 handsets on display, customers will be more interested. If customers start demanding Windows Phone 7.5 handsets, the carriers will, well, carry them. It’s starting that feedback loop that will be Gavin Kim’s challenge.

Photo: liewcf / Flickr

Apple’s reign as the number one smartphone manufacturer in the world has been short-lived, with Samsung toppling the Cupertino giant. Strategy Analytics issued a report, saying that the South Korean consumer electronics giant saw its handset sales grow a remarkable 44 per cent quarter-on-quarter.

Big numbers

Research firm Strategy Analytics reports that Samsung had shipped 27.8 million smartphones over the last quarter, taking 23.8 per cent of the smartphone market. That’s nearly one in every four smartphones shipped being a Samsung handset. For comparison, Apple sold 17.1 million units of its smartphones, giving it 14.6 percent of the market, and relegating it to second place. Nokia rounded out the top three.

Big things really fast

Samsung play for the smartphone market only started in earnest last year with the Samsung Galaxy S smartphone. It quickly went on to become one of the fastest-selling Android handsets in the world. This year, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S2, which became the fastest selling handset in the company’s history, the fastest selling of any Android handset to date, and the second-fastest selling phone in the world second only to Apple’s iPhone 4.

Speaking on their findings, research firm Strategy Analytics wrote (via Bloomberg): ‘Samsung’s rise has been driven by a blend of elegant hardware designs, popular Android services, memorable sub-brands and extensive global distribution.’ The firm continued, writing: ‘Samsung has demonstrated that it is possible, at least in the short term, to differentiate and grow by using the Android ecosystem.’

Sony’s turn?

What cannot be understated is the meteoric growth Samsung smartphones have experienced. Only last quarter did Apple breach the 20 million smartphones sold barrier, and the South Korean consumer electronics giant is fast encroaching on the 30 million units sold landmark. Remarkable. We’ve long said that Samsung and Apple would be the leaders of the mobile devices market, and based on this evidence, it looks like it is going to take a lot of effort to catch up with them.

Photo: Des Geeks et des lettres / Flickr

The Samsung Galaxy Note-tablet-PC-come-smartphone that was announced at IFA 2011 finally has a tentative release date. The handset come slate PC will be available in the UK from the beginning of November, if a listing on online retailer Clove is anything to go by.

1 November, under £500

The anticipated Samsung Galaxy Note UK release is 1 November at a retail price of £495 plus VAT on Clove, reports TechRadar. For that money, you get a device with a 5.3-inch Super AMOLED HD display, powered by a 1.4GHz dual-core processor. It has 16GB of internal storage, with a microSD card that can hold up to 32GB. A stylus pen, which is a rarity on smartphones and tablet PCs these days, is included, too. Connectivity comes in the form of high-speed HSPA+, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, as well.

Smartphones and tablets blurred

At 5.3-inches and with calling functionality, the Android-powered Samsung Galaxy note is neither entirely a tablet PC, nor entirely a smartphone. If anything the device only serves to further blur the fast blurring lines of handsets and tablet devices, particularly those running on Google’s Android platform.

Google recently unveiled the 4.65-inch Galaxy Nexus smartphone that runs on Android 4.0. That device is only 0.35 inches shy of the 5-inch Dell Streak tablet PC. When exactly is a smartphone a smartphone, and when is a tablet a tablet or, alternatively, are those just differing devices for what is ostensibly the same type of device, but just in varying form factors? Confusion.

Sales should be interesting

The Samsung Galaxy Note UK release could be a landmark occasion, regardless, for the South Korean company that has relentless momentum in the smartphone market. In fact the momentum is so irresistible that a recent report suggests that the consumer electronics giant may be the number one smartphone manufacturer in the world.

Photo: abulhussain / Flickr

Ice Cream Sandwich, the next major update of the Google Android mobile OS platform, is expected to launch next week at Samsung’s Unpacked event, according to reports.

YouTube you secret spiller

The report comes from Cnet, citing a placeholder video titled ‘Android ICS launch’ on the official Android Developers YouTube channel. This has since been changed to ‘This live event is no longer available. Sorry about that,’ but the change did not happen before wandering eyes spotted the evidence of what was being planned. I can’t imagine what Android ICS would stand for if not Android Ice Cream Sandwich.

This is unsurprising, though

What is important to note, though, is that this release date surprises nobody, with Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt previously saying that the new Google mobile OS would be released some time in October or November.

What Samsung will show.

The release of a major Google Android mobile operating system is always accompanied by the release of a new smartphone, made by an Android handset developer and often released under Google’s own ‘Nexus’ brand of smartphones.

It is expected that Sammy will get the honour of unveiling the newest Android smartphone OS with the unveiling of the Nexus Prime, widely expected to be the world’s first Android Ice Cream sandwich handset.

Why Ice Cream Sandwich is a big deal

Other than having a fantastic name, Android Ice Cream Sandwich brings with it a heap of new features, as well as the introduction of a coalition of smartphone manufacturers and carriers who have promised to deliver OS updates more promptly in future. Yet, by far the most significant thing about ICS is that it will unify Google’s operating system for tablet PCs and smartphones, as opposed to a ‘tablet for a specific platform’ approach that has been taken with Gingerbread on smartphones and Honeycomb on tablets.

The Samsung Unpacked event takes place next week Tuesday, 11 October.

Photo: carsten.knobloch / Flickr

While Samsung has been embroiled in a high profile legal spat with Apple, that is arguably doing big damage to its business, the company was still able to exceed analysts’ expectation with its latest quarterly earnings numbers. The Samsung Q3 2011 profit figures topped the expectation of analyst by posting $4.2 trillion won (£2.27bn) as opposed to a consensus estimate of just 3.4 trillion won as per a Reuters poll.

Up but still down

What’s important to note is that while the Samsung Q3 2011 profit figures topped what onlookers were expecting, it still falls some 14 percent short of the numbers the company put up this time last year. Having said that, even, it is 12 percent higher than what Samsung managed last quarter, so the company is certainly in ascendancy after an uncharacteristically rough patch.

Thank you Galaxy S2

Much of this profit likely comes from continually high sales of the Samsung Galaxy S2. The Google Android-powered smartphone has been a top-seller since it was first released, and has gone on to sell more than 10 million units since its release.

Speaking to Reuters, Kyung Woo-hyun, a fund manager with Daishin Asset Management echoed the sentiment, saying: ‘The Galaxy S2 probably played a key role in boosting the company’s earnings and it will continue to do so pretty much unchallenged, until Apple unveils a better version of next new iPhone’. Incidentally, Apple has unveiled its next smartphone, which, somewhat surprisingly, has been met with a lukewarm response in some circles and downright disappointment amongst some of the company’s more vocal onlookers.

What’s next?

While the Samsung Q3 2011 profit figures surprised, what Sammy has to do next to win is not beyond anybody. In short, the company is expected to make a major play for the highly lucrative mobile devices business that Apple currently controls. No easy task, but that is where all the major industry profits and thick margins lie.

Photo: Samsung

The fast growing Samsung Galaxy Tab family of tablet PCs has gotten another member in the form of the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. As the Plus in the name gives away, this device is an update of the original 7-inch Samsung tablet, as the South Korean company continues to experiment with different form factors for tablet devices.

First at 7

Quick to remind everyone that Sammy was one of the first – if not the very first – tablet manufacturer with a 7-inch device on the market, Samsung Mobile boss JK Shin points it out in the statement accompanying the launch of the device. ‘Samsung pioneered the seven-inch tablet market with the launch of the GALAXY Tab, marking an innovation milestone in the mobile industry,’ he says [via BGR]. He adds that ‘Building on the success of the GALAXY Tab, we’re now delighted to introduce the GALAXY Tab 7.0 Plus reloaded with enhanced portability, productivity and a richer multimedia experience. GALAXY Tab 7.0 Plus is for those who want to stay productive and in touch with work, friends and content anytime, anywhere.’

Enhanced how?

From a hardware perspective, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus has a 7-inch display with a resolution of 1024 x 600. It’s powered by a dual-core 1.2Ghz processor, and has front and rear-facing cameras. There is embedded HSPA+ data, and it runs on Android Honeycomb 3.2 – the latest version of Google’s tablet PC operating system.

Where you can get it

Little is known about Samsung’s rollout plan for the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, regarding specific release dates and pricing. The South Korean consumer electronics giant has, however, revealed that the Tab 7.0 plus will be available in various markets through a staggered rollout, with Australia and Indonesia receiving the tablet PC at the end of October. Markets to follow thereafter are Southeast and Southwest Asia, Europe, the US, Latin America, the Middle east, Africa, as well as Japan and China will follow.

Photo: viteez / Flickr

Though Windows Phone 7’s adoption is still not at the levels Microsoft would like them to be, the company’s mobile revenue is growing at a rapid rate on Google’s back. A report compiled by Goldman Sachs estimates that Microsoft is on course to make $444 million in patent licensing revenue from Android vendors in fiscal year 2012.

Google’s problem

Over the last 12 months, Microsoft has been threatening handset manufacturers who run on Google’s Android mobile OS platform with lawsuits if they didn’t pay a licensing fee for patents inherent in Android that Microsoft originally owned.

HTC was the first major vendor to cave into the Microsoft patent license agreement, allegedly paying Microsoft $5 for every Android device sold. A string of smaller vendors soon followed suit, with Microsoft recently announcing they had entered into an agreement with arguably the biggest Android fish of them all – Samsung.

Samsung the big difference maker

Of the $444 million Microsoft Android revenues will total, it is thought that Samsung would make up as much as $180 million of that annually. Microsoft PR announced the deal with Samsung in a press release yesterday, writing: ‘Microsoft announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., to cross-license the patent portfolios of both companies, providing broad coverage for each company’s products. Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will receive royalties for Samsung’s mobile phones and tablets running the Android mobile platform. In addition, the companies agreed to cooperate in the development and marketing of Windows Phone.’

A serious problem?

The Microsoft Android revenue stream is undoubtedly an annoyance to Google, but there’s a high chance it could become more than just irritating – over time, it could serve as a deterrent for developing Android handsets, with manufacturers diversifying to their own platforms or some other third party OS. While that eventuality seems highly unlikely for the currently high-soaring Android platform, who knows what the future holds.