By Sree Sreenivasan
DNAinfo Contributing Editor
Among my friends and colleagues, I am known as a devoted Apple user.
The last five computers I've bought have been MacBooks and my next purchase will be the MacBook Air (in fact, I am waiting for one of four-year-old MacBooks to die, but it's not cooperating). I recommend Apple products to everyone I know. I was disheartened to learn that Steve Jobs is again on medical leave because I think he's one of the greatest business leaders in history.
So it surprises people when they discover I don't own an iPhone or an iPad. Both are terrific products that I have tested, used and recommended extensively. But they haven't been right for me.
About the iPhone: I am a long-time Sprint customer who loves the $99 "all you can eat" data plan for my BlackBerry, so switching to the higher-priced AT&T plans wasn't appealing. Also, I like the BlackBerry's keyboard, so I wasn't ready for iPhone's virtual keyboard.
About the iPad: As I said the first day it came out (on CNN and to anyone who'd listen), I want it to have a camera so my kids can easily talk to grandma. I found it too heavy to carry around comfortably or hold without resting it on a table or against my knee. And the price of the 3G model starts at $629 and heads fast to $829.
That doesn't mean I didn't covet the iPhone or iPad. Surrounded as I am by folks with one or both, I've had plenty of iEnvy.
But over the last two months, that's changed completely. I've been testing two Samsung products that I think not only hold their own against their Apple rivals, but might also be better in some respects. One is an iPad competitor called the Galaxy Tab; the other is an iPhone substitute called the Epic.
Samsung has sold 1.5 million Galaxy Tabs, and more than 10 million Epics.
Here are six things I learned using these products:
• I PREFER 'EM TO THE iPAD & iPHONE: The Galaxy Tab is smaller and lighter than the iPad. It fits in my suit jacket's breast pocket. It has two cameras so you can take photos and video and also do live video chats. The cameras on the Tab take outstanding photos and videos and you can upload them instantly to YouTube or share them via e-mail. It has a built-in panorama setting in the camera which takes striking, unusual images, instantly stitching together up to eight photos. And, yes, it plays Flash.
And it isn't just me. A colleague named Ulysses has been carrying his around since he got one for Christmas. He tells me it's now his "best friend" and that it's the first thing he opens in the morning and the last thing he sees at night.
The Tab is cheaper than the iPad and has been recently reduced by Sprint by $100 to $299.99 with a two-year contract and $499.99 if you want it without a contract. T-Mobile offers its $599.99 Tab (with a $200 instant discount and a $50 web-only discount) for $349.99.
The Epic is a fully functional smartphone, has a virtual and full keyboard and takes excellent photos. And it has offered 4G since November. Samsung cut the price of the Epic from $249.99 to $199.99 with a new line or upgrade, two-year service agreement and $100 mail-in rebate. That matches the $199 price of the new Verizon iPhone (coming Feb. 1).
One innovative feature on both products is Swype, which allows you to use the virtual keyboard by sliding your fingers across the letters to form the word you want. It takes getting used to, but works well - so well, in fact, that I almost never use the Epic's physical keyboard (there isn't a physical keyboard on the Tab).
• THERE'S ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT: Netflix doesn't work on the Galaxy Tab yet. And neither does the amazing Flipboard app that makes iPad a newslover's dream. It doesn't have the battery life of an iPad. The Epic, in particular, needs a lot of work on its battery life. The Android marketplace - not as big as the Apple market - needs help: it's cluttered and needs reorganization.
• AN APPLE FAN CAN LIKE OTHER PRODUCTS: I am such an Apple snob that I felt pity for Windows users. Their tech lives aren't as good as mine, I'd say to myself. They are not as efficient, they are missing great Apple features and they are wide open to viruses. I couldn't see myself ever liking a non-Apple product as much as I liked the MacBook, the iPod, etc. But here I am, extremely pleased about these items not made by Steve Jobs and Tim Cook, who is once again running things in Jobs's absence.
Note to all the fellow Apple fans who are about to attack me on Twitter, Facebook and email: My preferring something else is not an indictment of your purchases. Those are terrific products and will get better with each iteration. I have full confidence that the next version of the iPad is going to be a game-changer. Again.
• THERE ARE MANY TABLETS & PHONES COMING: This month's Consumer Electronics Show featured many new tablets that are coming out later this year. In addition to those based on the Android operating system, there are tablets coming from companies including BlackBerry, Motorola, etc. We are going to see a wave of innovation on both the tablet and smartphone platform in ways we couldn't have imagined. Not all of these will survive in the marketplace, but the shakeout will be exciting.
• COMPETITION IS A GOOD THING FOR APPLE — AND FOR US: You might recall that there used to be many rivals in the MP3-player space, but all lost out to the iPod. That's not going to happen here. There are going to be many worthy rivals for Apple's products. That will force Apple to experiment on features and prices in ways they might not have had to before.
• THERE ARE SOME EXCELLENT ANDROID APPS: Here are some Android apps you might want to try (search for them all in the Market section of Android). For games, Angry Birds (the game looks gorgeous in that big size) and Janix Millionaire; the Hootsuite application for Twitter; the Kindle application (I read a full novel on it); and the US Newspapers app. The range of Google apps: Google Sky Map, Google Shopper and Google Earth. That's just a start, of course. I am collecting suggestions at this link: http://www.facebook.com/SreeTips/posts/118624608210009
What do you think? Are you interested in any of the non-iPad tablets? Do you like the new features? Post your comments below or on Twitter @sree.
Every week, DNAinfo contributing editor Sree Sreenivasan, a Columbia journalism professor, shares his observations about the changing media landscape.
