Samsung betting big on Galaxy Tab 10.1

Samsung Electronics appeared to be full of confidence as it launched its second-generation tablet PC, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Korea on Wednesday at the company’s headquarters in southern Seoul.

Shin Jong-kyun, chief of the global electronics company’s mobile business unit, pledged to sell more than five times more tablets than last year, despite the first Galaxy Tab not having sold as well as Samsung would have preferred. 

The previous tablet with a smaller 7-inch display reportedly sold about 450,000 units at home, and about 2 million globally, but it’s already old news that many of the units are said to be sitting in inventory.

Apple’s iPads, in comparison, have sold around 26 million.

Shin said upgrades for the 7-inch tablet were imminent.

While there may have been some disappointment over the first tablet, Samsung was determined to stay upbeat, and industry watchers agreed that the positive outlook may be justified.

Running on Google’s Honeycomb 3.1 operating system, the new tablet is lighter and thinner than Apple’s iPad 2.

The Galaxy Tab 10.1’s LCD display ― slightly bigger than the 9.7 inches of the Apple tablet ― also boasts higher pixels than the iPad and is said to have a crisper image quality.

The Tab 10.1 was priced at 671,000 won ($632) won for the 16GB model and 748,000 for the 32GB model. Apple’s iPad 2 is priced at 640,000 won and 770,000 won, respectively, for corresponding memories.

Regarding smartphones, Shin recently said Samsung expects sales to top 60 million this year, beating its annual target.

But stiff competition from Apple, ironically one of Samsung’s biggest clients ― is inevitable as the California-based company is expected to unveil the iPhone 5 as early as September.

Samsung and Apple are also currently enmeshed in a legal battle over patent rights.

Samsung has already launched the 10.1 tablet in overseas markets such as the U.S. and Southeast Asia.

By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)