Hasta La Gadget!

According to some new numbers, Samsung Galaxy Tab buyers are returning their devices at a much greater rate than iPad buyers. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 percent of folks who have picked up Samsung’s tablet have returned the thing (the number is being reported as closer to 16 percent elsewhere). Compare that two percent for the iPad.

It’s hard not to draw comparisons to the whole netbook/Linux mess, in which remorseful buyers started returning devices by the boatload. In that instance, the problem was pretty straightforward in retrospect–people were choosing netbooks loaded with Linux over Windows because the things were cheaper without the Microsoft premium.

Once they actually got the devices home and powered them up, the disappointment settled in: these non-Windows devices, well, weren’t Windows. Which is to say, of course, that they lacked the familiarity users weaned on Microsoft expect from a device–also, the software support.

Looking at the Samsung Galaxy numbers, I’ve got to wonder if the situation isn’t similar. Now that carrier subsidization has helped lower the price of the device, the think has become a bit more appealing to consumers (though, not all that appealing, apparently, judging by the numbers). Once users actually get their hands on it, the Galaxy Tab fails to live up to its promise.

There are two obvious reasons for this. First, there’s the fact that, as Google has reminded us, time and time again, Android 2.2 just isn’t optimized for tablets (wait for Honeycomb, they tell us. Second, and perhaps more importantly, it’s not an iPad. Sure it does some of the things an iPad does, and heck, it even kind of looks like an iPad, but like the aforementioned Linux netboooks, one of the device’s primary flaws is its inability to be its primary competitor.

The iPad has arrived in India, and the reaction is, well, mixed. A number of India-based gadget sites are excitedly reporting the long-awaited event, which finally arrived nine months after the device first officially hit the market in the US. Others are rightfully pointing out that everyone in the country who wanted an iPad has already picked one up via the “graymarket.”

And then there’s the fact that Samsung’s Galaxy Tab–Apple’s chief competitor for the consumer tablet market at present–has already launched in that country. Actually, the arrival of Apple’s iPad (which is priced 20-percent higher than its US counterpart) has actually driven down the Galaxy Tab’s price tag.

According to the majority of Indian news sources, the iPad’s arrival in the country was met with little to no fanfare from Apple itself. Theories range from the company attempting to stave off a riot, to the realization that, as mentioned above, everyone who wants the thing already owns the thing.

I’m leaning a little more heavily to the latter. After all, Indian tech sites, like the rest of the world, are reporting on the rumors surrounding the device’s follow up. The question, then, is whether India will have to wait another nine months for the sequel.

Ever wish real life was more like the Internet? While it might be a while before your cat starts writing its own poorly-spelled captions, one enterprising Copenhagen resident decided to take the concept of email notifications to his real-life mailbox. Using a modified wireless doorbell and some electrical engineering know-how, he set up a device that alerts him on the third floor whenever anyone puts a letter into the ground-floor box. That way, he doesn’t have to run downstairs only to come back up empty-handed.

The system is essentially a switch on the mailbox, so whenever the box is opened, it trips the wireless doorbell, which then sends a signal to a box upstairs, lighting an LED. It’s a pretty cool idea, coupled to what Hack a Day called a “simple circuit”. If you check his blog, you can follow along with his instructions and make your own, if you’re the soldering type.

[via mimeproject, Hack-a-Day]

Okay, okay, it’s not exactly iPad numbers, but it’s certainly enough to secure the company a number two spot in the ever more crowded consumer tablet space. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab hit the two million mark in its first three months (Apple sold 7 million in the same time period, for those keeping, you know, tabs…).

Not too shabby for a seven-inch Android tablet–especially considering the fact that Google has yet to officially release Honeycomb, the first tablet-optimized version of the open operating system (we saw a preview of it on Motorola’s Xoom tablet during CES, but that’s about it).

Samsung’s sales figures have been fueled, in part, by global availability. The tablet is available in Europe, North America, and Asia at present.

Hey Android developers–start those engines. An SDK preview for Google’s upcoming tablet-specific operating system, Honeycomb (that’s Android 3.0), is online now for your downloading pleasure. The SDK features system images, non-final APIs, and other not-fully-baked goodies to help you get started on your Honeycomb-specific apps.