Galaxy Tab 2
While there was definitely a huge focus on Samsung's new
Smart TV, some other exciting things showed up as well; things like the Galaxy
Tab 2 for example. The original Galaxy Tab did quite well in the market, and
Samsung definitely hopes to build on that success with these new Ice Cream
Sandwich tablets. Coming in both a 7-inch and 10.1 -inch version, the new
Galaxy Tab 2 features a 1GHz Dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and a rear facing
3 megapixel camera. Storage comes in the form of 16 or 32 GB internal memory
with a microSD card slot. The 7-inch Tab 2 also comes in a 8GB internal memory
version.
Samsung GALAXY Tab
2 (10.1- inch).
The actual Tab 2 was on display at the forum and attendees
managed to get a hands on experience of the shiny new tablet. There was limited
time at the booth to mess around with the tablet, so it's full potential still
remains a mystery.
Galaxy Beam
Launched late last year, the Galaxy Beam made an appearance
at the forum. Samsung might be a bit late in bringing it over to our side of
the world, since the western world has had it for several months now.
The Beam isn’t quite as slim and stylish as it's other
Galaxy siblings. A compromise that had to be made to include a projector that's
capable of creating an image some 50-inches big. It's understood that the Beam
isn't meant to be your main device for presentations, but as an emergency
display. One could also potentially get creative with the device and use the
projector for other less formal purposes, like sharing movies or actually
having a decent sized display for looking at pictures stored on your phone.
Lee Jui Siang,
Head of Mobile Phone, Samsung Malaysia Electronics, sharing with the guests the
interesting feature of the new Samsung GALAXY Beam.
Taken in this context, the Galaxy Beam is actually one of
the more innovative smartphones to reach production in a long time. Of course,
for the technical specifications inclined it comes with a 1GHz dualcore
processor with 6Gb of RAM and 8Gb of internal memory (expandable via MicroSD
card slot). The display is a nice and wide 4-inch TFT screen which is a decent
size for any sort of phone. Sadly, it only comes prepacked with Android 2.3
Gingerbread; though there are plans for an upgrade to the newer Ice Cream
Sandwich somewhere in the future.
Both the Galaxy Tab 2 and the Galaxy Beam should be arriving
on our shores in the second quarter of the year. No word on the price point yet
though.
Home Appliances
Home appliances aren't exactly expected to be the highlight
of any sort of big technology showcase, but this time around Samsung really
managed to come up with something worth listening to. Their new line of smart
appliances come equipped with WiFi for tapping into the local wireless network
and can be controlled with a handy-dandy app on your smart phone.
The washing
machine doesn't have as many interesting applications as the air conditioner
(because air conditioning is God’s gift to mankind); but Jimmy Tan did raise an
interesting point about the public perception of side loading washing machines
during the interview
For now these appliances are only limited to an air
conditioner and a washing machine, but somehow there is a feeling that we’re
finally getting somewhere with all this fancy technology. No more getting up to
look for remote controls because the day is too hot; now it's as easy as
pulling out your phone or tablet and changing the settings. Plus, since these
appliances are connected to the local WiFi, you can also control them over the
Internet. Which means you don't even have to be on the same continent to
operate your air conditioning. While turning up the temperature at home from
across the globe might not actually be useful for anything more than going on a
power trip, the remote connection is quite useful for days when you want to
come home to a nice cool living room after a day in the blistering hot sun.
The washing machine doesn't have as many interesting
applications as the air conditioner (because air conditioning is God’s gift to
mankind); but Jimmy Tan did raise an interesting point about the public
perception of side loading washing machines during the interview. According to
the Director of Marketing for Samsung Malaysia, Malaysians have the perception
that side loading washing machines are premium grade appliances, compared to
the more traditional top loading version.
This point becomes relevant to the efforts to modernise
Malaysia as Tan explains that side loading washing machines have a great amount
of energy efficiency and are capable of handling larger wash loads.
