There has been quite a stir over the price of the much anticipated Samsung Galaxy Tab. We've seen a few various prices for the device, and those range from $399.99 to $599.99 on and off-contract. Many believe and have voice their opinions that the Tab is overpriced, and I'm here to say that it's not. There are currently two new-era tablets on the market right now and they are the Apple iPad and HP Slate. The iPad runs between $499 and $820, the Slate sits at an even $800.
I don't expect a lot of people will be drooling over the lower, on-contract price of the Galaxy Tab, but it is priced appropriately according to its direct competition, the iPad. The supposed off-contract pricing begins at $499.99 for the Wi-Fi only model and from what we've seen peaks at $599 for the Wi-Fi + 3G model. The Wi-Fi only model of the iPad is also $499, and carries half of the internal capacity, at 16GB. Simply put, if you still think the price tag of the Galaxy Tab is high, then it's that size matters. Of course, the iPad is made of tougher materials and undoubtedly has a longer battery life, but it is much larger. I often wish it was just a little smaller and less of a burden to lug around (I know I sound terrible by saying that). I believe Uncle Steve may have gotten this one wrong, 7" may be the tablet sweet spot. The screen should be plenty big for the tablet's purpose, as it's more lightweight (more portable, almost pocketable, and good for one-hand use), and it sports one thing that many iPad owners long for, a camera. Actually, it has two cameras, one front-facing, and one on the rear, which means you can do video chatting from it. Two more things it touts that my iPad only wishes it had is a slot for expandable memory (not that I have even filled 16GB) and Adobe Flash support. Don't get me wrong though, I thoroughly enjoy my iPad, and I use it a lot. There are just some things I would change about it and many of the upcoming tablets address those issues.
If people fuss about the price of a tablet and size as an issue, it would only make sense to fuss over the price of no-contract phones as well. You sacrifice even more screen size and functionality for pocketability and weight. Yet, most off-contract (smart) phones start their pricing at $399.99 and up. Take, for instance, the Samsung Captivate. It carries almost identical specs to the Galaxy Tab (save the front-facing camera, a better rear camera, half the built-in memory, and the lack of 3G connectivity on the Tab). The price of the Captivate with no contract is $499.99. These two devices being evenly priced makes perfect sense, but if anything is overpriced, it'd be the phone, not the tablet.
If you still feel that the Tab isn't priced suitably, there are other options for you and even a chance that some of the other Android tablets will be set cheaper. For example, the Archos 7 home tablet only costs $199.99 and will have a lot of the same functionality. However, Archos has been around for a while and have failed to "wow" me in any way. I had a previous iteration of the Archos tablet and I must say, Android was not meant to be used on a resistive touchscreen. With that being said, it isn't the name you're paying the extra pennies for, it's the quality and the alluring hardware. I have yet to get my hands on a Galaxy Tab, but have set my sights. I agree with the pricing and see it fit. $500 isn't the easiest knot to swallow, but it's the price you pay for wanting to poke and prod at the latest and (hopefully) greatest.
