Please excuse the formalities. This is a review post. I received a Samsung Galaxy Tab for one week to play with and enjoy from Verizon Wireless in association with Kyle Communications (holla Lady Michelle, Lady Kyle, and Sir James). I did not keep this item. I did not receive any money for this review. It was not edited by Verizon Wireless, Kyle Communications, or the Sears Wish Book of 1985. I always give you my honest opinions when I review any item, that’s a Royal Guarantee. Hello friends from the FTC, can I get on to talking to the Money Saving Lords and Ladies in the Court of the Queen of Free now?
When you were a child, did you ever dream of getting a toy that you knew you were never going to get? Did you leaf through the pages of the Sears Wish Book with stars in your eyes planning on where you’d put said dream toy?
For me, it was a grocery checkout lane that looked just like the one at Great Scot where my mom shopped. It had a working cash register, a conveyor belt that I’m guessing didn’t really move (I hope not), groceries, money, a real miniature shopping cart, and of course food to ring up. Please no one buy me any of this stuff. I have no room for it in my house, nor the time to play with it.
I think we probably all still do this as adults, especially if you’re on a debt slaying journey. I had the opportunity to play with a fantastic toy this past week that’s on the “Dear Santa, it would be so cool to have this but it’s not going to happen for us” list.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab from Verizon Wireless is smaller than iPad, bigger than a smart phone (and obviously smaller than a breadbox). I joked that it was the size of a Senior Citizen’s cell phone but you can’t actually make calls on it. I would guess it’s about the size of a Kindle (but I don’t have one of those either). It has AMAZING screen clarity, a camera (talk about a wide angle lens) that records both stills and video, all of the wonderfulness that is the Android App Market (I love me some FREE apps!), speedy memory, the ability to transform into a WiFi Hotspot and power several devices, Swype (touch screen typing has never been so easy!), and much more.
I literally haven’t played with a cooler toy. I spent a lot of time checking my Yahoo Fantasy Football Leagues, browsing Facebook and Twitter, reading and responding to e-mail, playing fun FREE games like Angry Birds, Word Search, Connect 4, and my new favorite Mole! Mole! Mole! I wacked those little moles with glee. Plus more than once, I connected my laptop to the web with it to scan all of the great holidays deals and do some blogging. I didn’t have a chance to watch a movie over it but I have a feeling it would have been a delight. Every member of the Royal Family gave it a go and found it to be functional and fun.
Although, I think I probably spent the most time bonding with the Tab. I played with it for a couple of hours of riding to and from the Queen Mum’s over the Thanksgiving weekend. I was amazed at the speed on the road traveling through areas that I would normally consider “black holes” for mobile service.
I can’t imagine why you would purchase a Kindle either since you can use the free app on the Galaxy Tab and then access tons of free Kindle downloads on Amazon.
Even if you could swallow the initial price tag (ow), obviously the number one draw back on this toy is the monthly service plan. *Sigh* Unless you can pony up the monthly cost to play with this toy within your leisure budget, then it’s not a good bet for you. I could see minor exceptions if you owned your own business and needed it to interact with clients. Maaaaayyyybeee. Only if you promised to pay 100% cash on everything, mmmkay? It’s the Royal Way.
And so it remains on my “Dear Santa, I know I’ll probably never have one but gee whiz this is cool!” list. It was fun while it lasted, Galaxy Tab. Be good for your next reviewer. I’ll miss you. Sniff, sniff.
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