
Samsung Galaxy Tab Return Rates Hit 16 Percent | AllThingsD - stretchwithme
http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/20110201/16-percent-of-galaxy-tabs-are-returned/?mod=ATD_skybox
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ralphc
I've had a Galaxy Tab since they first came out, and I use it just about
daily, in bed, on the exercise bike, in a jacket pocket out to Starbucks. I
think the size is perfect, and with only one exception (TMZ) the apps have
scaled to the 1024 x 600 screen resolution. The big advantage of the Tab is
that it's here and got good reviews. I waited just about all of 2010 for an
Android tablet, the Adam, Joojoopad... and I'm skeptical of any Android
tablet's ship dates. Maybe by the 2011 holiday season I'll have the choice of
good quality Android tablets I thought I would have at the 2010 holiday
season, but I'd have had use of the Tab for a year. My real complaint with it
is this is my first experience with Verizon. I'm supposed to have a "month-to-
month", no contract data plan, months I don't want 3G I just don't pay, but my
account seems to be accumulating past due amounts? Any ideas?

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EnderMB
As an owner of an original Samsung Galaxy (i7500) I can safely say that I'm
not surprised. Samsung's approach to Android has been to quickly release poor-
quality phones with broken firmware and little thought in regard to the actual
user-experience.

If I'm honest, it shocks me that people still buy Android phones from Samsung.
Nearly everything they've released for Android has been of poor quality, yet
they sweep their old products under the rug and release something new and
shiny for Android fanboys to gawk over. I cannot help but believe that the
desire for a platform to come out on top suppresses much of the deserved
criticism some Android phones face.

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yardie
Unfortunate owner of i7500 here. What a nightmare that was. The only thing
stopping me from getting a SGS is previous history with their product and the
uncommitted upgrade answers from the VP.

I'll also never touch a Sony Ericsson for the same reason.

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yequalsx
From my understanding Apple spent a lot of time getting the form factor right
for the iPad. A lot of thought went into ensuring the OS was adequate for the
device. None of Apple's competitors was expecting a marketplace for tablet
devices like the iPad.

All of iPad's competitors right now are jokes. It's as if companies think it's
the shape of the device matters more than the experience of using the device.
I guess knowing this is the difference between creating a market and just
trying to build devices for a market.

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ergo98
_From my understanding Apple spent a lot of time getting the form factor right
for the iPad. A lot of thought went into ensuring the OS was adequate for the
device._

The device is too big and too heavy. The OS far from optimal for the device.
That the Galaxy Tab is a pretty marginal device, with a slew of weaknesses, in
no way validates anything that Apple has done with the iPad.

The iPad is a superior device to the tab. However I, and billions of other
people, haven't opted to buy it. The market waits for something that fits our
needs better.

 _It's as if companies think it's the shape of the device matters more than
the experience of using the device. I guess knowing this_

What does this even mean? It sounds like some sort of iPad-owner defensive
reaction to a smaller tablet. Samsung couldn't suddenly make Android tablet-
ready, but as above you're drawing the wrong conclusion.

A 7" tablet with a unoptimized OS does not invalidate a 7" tablet. A tablet
with an unoptimized OS does not validate every facet of a tablet with a more
appropriate OS.

As one aside, and to go slightly conspiratorial, the lack of decent Android
competitors to the iPad falls largely on Google's shoulders. It strongly seems
like Google was of mixed emotions about tablets, desperately wanting devices
bigger than a smartphone to be owned by the ChromeOS project. They ignored the
market, undermined the market, and only came around after lots of delays, all
while ChromeOS slowly pushed its way into the light.

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arethuza
I honestly think the iPad size is spot on - a larger one would be too clumsy
and a smaller one would sort of defeat the purpose of a device a bit.

It might be a bit on the heavy side (and I had to think about that) but I
guess it is a trade off with battery size - and I'm pretty pleased with the
battery life.

I'm not a particularly enthusiastic smartphone user (I have both a work iPhone
and a personal Android phone) - I use the iPad far more than my phones.

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srik1234
I think it is still a bit early to rule out 7" tablets, since Tab is the only
7" device in the market now and running a non-recommended OS.

"Price" could be a deciding factor in this case. $649 is a ridiculous price. (
[http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00480P67K/ref=asc_df_B00480P67K141...](http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00480P67K/ref=asc_df_B00480P67K1414228?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=asn&creative=395093&creativeASIN=B00480P67K)
) Pricing it above iPad is unbelievable. Someone who pays $649 (or $599
through discount stores) expects a greater value than iPad experience, which
Froyo does not meet.

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ZeroGravitas
They've published the audio and transcript from the Samsung official that
apparently said sell-through was "quite small" and in reality they said "quite
smooth".

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yardie
_apparently said sell-through...was "quite smooth"_

What the hell does that even mean? When someone asks for a quantity you give
them a number or an estimate of a number (big,average,small). When you want to
describe squishy things then you can use smooth in the sentence (ie, the UI is
smooth, workflow is smooth, this ice cream is smooth).

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dagw
_What the hell does that even mean?_

That sales, as a function, have derivatives of all orders?

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ugh
It didn’t seem so bad when I tried it. As it stands nothing I would buy
instead of an iPad but I couldn’t find any glaring flaws. Using it felt like
using a smartphone with a somewhat larger screen, maybe not particularly
optimized for its form factor but ok. I would be interested to know why people
return it.

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daimyoyo
There is one major reason why people are returning the GT. The iPad launched
with an operating system (OS 3.2) that was designed specifically for it's form
factor yet Samsung chose to launch their flagship device with regular, off the
shelf Froyo. Perhaps the return rate will go down(and the huge number of
unsold tabs will finally start moving) once Honeycomb finally premiers. I know
that's what's holding me back from buying it. Imagine an iPad that could only
run iPhone apps in that cheesy 2X mode. No thank you.

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ergo98
Android does natively support quite decent resizing, so it isn't quite as bad
as the 2x mode.

While a slicker, more polished interface will do wonders, I do suspect that a
lot of the returns right now are still network effect issues: People who get
the Tab as a present and then wonder why they can't run all those cool apps
that their iPad toting friends have, etc. I would expect that return rates are
much higher than iPhone return rates on smartphones as well, for the same
reason.

That is changing, of course. The app situation -- and the network inclusion --
is quickly improving.

The Tab only makes sense as a device significantly discounted below the iPad.
That it is actually the more expensive option is just perverse.

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ZeroGravitas
The Tab got some good reviews, some people comparing it favourably with the
iPad. And they did rejigger some of the included apps for the bigger screen.
Most of the negative chatter seems somewhat _ideological_ , what with it
apparently having the "wrong" size or "wrong" OS rather than any specific
issues caused by these decisions. Even if this return rate applies across the
globe they've sold more than I would have expected.

Since people repeatedly harp on the price, which has always been the same or
less than the iPad+3G I'm guessing that the continued lack of a Wi-Fi only
model is the real bone of contention (and/or the fact that tablets in general
are too expensive for most folk, even/especially those who've already spent
thousands on a slightly smaller, data-connected touchscreen slab that they
carry as a phone).

I'm guessing the lack of Wi-Fi only was the (unforseen?) consequence of
Google's restrictions on device capabilities which meant you needed a 3G radio
and phone capabilities to get access to the Market. Google is supposed to have
relaxed these and a Wi-Fi only model has been teased, though whether that will
be eclipsed by the 2nd gen or not is a matter of timing.

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srik1234
Price is a deciding factor:
<http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2379100,00.asp>

If anyone is competing with iPad, they better price it appropriately. There is
no reason for a typical consumer to choose a tablet that costs more than iPad,
unless it provides a damn good experience that is beyond the iPad experience.

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masklinn
Why would price be a deciding factor in the return rates, which happen _after_
the buy decision has been made?

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space-monkey
I bought a Mac Mini and returned it last year. If it had cost 1/2 as much, I
wouldn't have returned it. It just didn't do enough for me to justify the
price. If something turns out to be worth less to you than (the return value -
time and irritation cost of doing the return), you return it.

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dlokshin
What's the typical return rate on a consumer electronics product? Say a Garmin
navigation system or something like that?

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mikecane
I don't know what this statistic really means and I doubt anyone yet does. For
years I've encountered people on the Net who think nothing of ordering the
latest device just to "try" it and return it! They've stated so outright. So I
wonder if this 16% does nothing but reflect _those_ kind of people who make
things miserable for everyone else who just want to buy?

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btipling
I love my Galaxy Tab. I guess some of it might be because of Honey Comb.

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mhb
iSchadenfreude

