Samsung announces slimmed down Galaxy S II smartphone and upsized Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet

Ahead of Mobile World Congress 2011, which officially kicks off today, Samsung has unveiled the successors to its Galaxy S smartphone and Galaxy Tab tablet at its Unpacked event in Barcelona. At just 8.49 mm thick, Samsung is touting the Galaxy S II as “the world’s thinnest smartphone,” while thanks to its larger 10.1-inch TFT display, the next iteration of the Galaxy Tab will be known as the Galaxy Tab 10.1.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

The other device to get an update is Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. Also powered by a 1GHz dual-core processor, the device will be one of the first running the tablet-centric Android 3.0 (Honeycomb). It will sport the same widescreen aspect ratio of its predecessor, but upsized to 10.1-inches with a higher 1280 x 800 pixel resolution.

The Galaxy Tab 10.1 shares a few features in common with the Galaxy S II smartphone. There’s the 2-megapixel front-facing camera (up from the 1.3-megapixel camera found on the original Galaxy Tab) and an 8-megaipixel rear-facing camera (up from 3.2-megapixels), which again provides the ability to record 1080p Full HD video.

There’s also W-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, USB 2.0, gyroscope, accelerometer, digital compass, proximity sensor, HSPA+ 21.1 Mbps support and choice of 16 or 32GB storage capacities. Bluetooth support is of the 2.1 + EDR variety and there’s no microSD card support. It measures 246.2 x 170.4 x 10.9mm and weighs 599g.

Unlike the Galaxy S II, Samsung has signed a deal with Vodafone to exclusively sell the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Asia and Europe from March. The company hasn’t yet released details of when the Tab 10.1 will be available in the U.S.

Galaxy S II

Running Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), the Galaxy S II packs a 1 GHz dual-core processor, 4.27-inch Super AMOLED Plus display and 8-megapixel rear camera, along with a 2-megapixel front facing camera for video calls. The 480 x 800 Super AMOLED Plus display increases the number of sub-pixels by 50 percent for improved image sharpness, contrast ratio and color gamut. It also provides a wider viewing angle and increased outdoor visibility than first-generation Super AMOLED displays.

The device’s dual-core processor enables multitasking capabilities, while its improved 3D hardware capabilities are designed to deliver fast and smooth 3D games and video. Its video credentials include the ability to play and capture 1080p Full HD video using the 8-megapixel rear-facing camera. The grunt under the hood also enables a new custom TouchWiz 4.0 user interface and the inclusion of Samsung Hubs, which are integrated mobile applications categorized by Social, Readers, Game and Music.

Samsung is also pushing the business credentials of the phone with the inclusion of enhanced conferencing and connectivity services from Cisco, what it calls “the most comprehensive mobile implementation of Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync,” and secure remote device management from Sybase.

In addition to UBS 2.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, and DLNA, the Galaxy S II also features support for Bluetooth v 3.0 + HS, boasts optional NFC connectivity and supports HSPA+ 21.1 Mbps. There’s also an accelerometer, A-GPS, 2-megapixel front-facing camera, digital compass, proximity sensor and gyroscope and choice of 16 or 32 GB capacities, expandable via microSD cards of up to 32 GB.

The Samsung Galaxy S II measures 125.3 x 66.1 x 8.49mm and weighs 116g. It is expected to be available in Q2 2011.--gizmag.com