Samsung has announced the forthcoming launch of its next Android tablet in the Galaxy Tab series in the 7-inch Galaxy Tab 2 with Ice Cream Sandwich. The tablet features a 7-inch screen at 1,024-by-600 resolution, a 1-GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, a 3.0 megapixel main rear camera and a front-facing VGA camera for video chat with both Wi-Fi and 3G models available in keeping with the series. The latest device will support an HSPA+ 21 radio, which enables speeds up to 21 Mbps dependent on network capabilities and configuration as well as real-time usage factors.
The 7-inch Galaxy Tab 2 follows the Tab 8.9 and 10.1 which were released last year with both 3G and Wi-Fi radios while being the first tablet in the Galaxy series to support Ice Cream Sandwich, with a confirmed UK launch for March while other territories have yet to be confirmed. Samsung is currently locked in a war of litigation against Apple in regards to its Galaxy Tab series and its design, with Apple repeatedly attempting to ban product sales on the basis of claims that the series violates Apple’s design patents and that the series is intentionally imitating the iPad in order to drive sales.
For the time being, Samsung’s current Galaxy Tab series is freely being sold while the litigation between both companies is being contested here and abroad, with the latest flashpoints occurring in Germany concerning design patents and trademarks. Samsung has yet to confirm any sort of Ice Cream Sandwich update for the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and 10.1 to Ice Cream Sandwich, both of which feature compatible hardware capable of running the update with few issues.
While Samsung has yet to make such confirmations, the tablet series itself is expected to be updated within the next few months in lieu of any sort of showing during trade shows, as it has confirmed that it will not host any new hardware conferences during Mobile World Congress, which will be held on the last week of the month in Barcelona, Spain.
