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Even right out of the box, the Samsung Galaxy Tab is an eminently useful device. Turn it on for the first time, click on Applications, and almost everything you need is already there, ready to use. A built-in alarm clock, web browser, calendar, music player, calculator, camera, contacts, newsreader, eBook reader, email, memo pad, file manager, navigation, instant messaging, social networking, office suite, you name it, it's probably already there.

You could probably get by using just the preinstalled applications and wouldn't miss a thing. But the Galaxy Tab is more than just the features it already has. It's a full-fledged tablet computer using the very flexible and open Android operating system. As such, it has the potential to be much more than what it was brand new. This is where the Android Market comes in.

The Android Market features hundreds, if not thousands of applications for the Android operating system, and many of them are absolutely free. So other than the investment you already made when you bought your Galaxy Tab and an internet connection which you may have already paid for, you don't have to shell out anymore for useful, quality apps for your tablet.

Here's some of the free Apps I actually use and highly recommend (tested to work on Galaxy Tabs, Froyo and Gingerbread Android versions):

Antivirus

Better safe than sorry.

Anti-Virus Free (AVG Mobilation) - From the authors of the popular AVG Anti-Virus for PCs. Regularly updated.

Toggle Apps

These apps simply turn a feature of the Galaxy Tab on or off. You don't really need them, since the options are already there on the Tab, but some require a little digging through menus, so these can be potential timesavers if you frequently have to toggle features. These also allow you to maximize the Tab's battery because you can easily turn off certain battery-hogging features (like Wi-Fi or GPS for example) with one press. You could also maximize your data plan by turning it on only when needed.

Airplane Mode Toggle (SchreinerDev) - Turn on and off all wireless functions with a single press;

WiFi OnOff (CurveFish) Turn your Wi-Fi on or off with a single press;

APN OnOff (CurveFish) - Enable or disable your access points with a single press. Great for conserving your data plan consumption if it's not unlimited;

Bluetooth OnOff (CurveFish) - Accidentally leave your Bluetooth connection on after using your car's handsfree or a headset? A single press now turns it off;

GPS OnOff (CurveFish) The GPS receiver can be a real battery-hog. Turn it off with one press;

AutoRotate OnOff (CurveFish) - Toggle the auto-screen orientation lock on or off with a single keypress.

Shortcuts

2G-3G OnOff (CurveFish) - Quick shortcut to the Mobile network settings menu. Turn packet data on or off, change network modes (GSM/WCDMA);

Camcorder Shortcut (Bryan Owens) - One press and your camera is activated and in movie mode. Just press the record button to start. Perfect for those moments where timing is everything;

Tethering Shortcut (KABASOFT) - Instant access to the Tethering and portable hotspot menu.

App Management

App 2 SD Free (Sam Lu) - Move applications between phone memory and SD card quickly. Also provides quick uninstall functions.

Browser

Dolphin Browser™ HD (Dolphin Browser) - Lots of browsers for the Android platform, but this is arguably one of the best.

Instant Messaging

Trillian (Cerulean Studios, LLC) - Manages all of your instant messaging/email/social networking accounts with one app. A bit similar to Meebo IM, but I prefer to use this one, probably because I use Trillian on my PCs as well, and I already have a Trillian account. Still, easy enough to use even if you're a first time Trillian user. And much better than using multiple IM apps.

Social Networking

Seesmic (Seesmic) - Manage your social networks from one single App. Enables widgets with status updates. Much better than the Facebook and Twitter android apps. Those don't seem to update themselves.

Miscellaneous

Font for Galaxy (bottobuche) - Getting tired of the Galaxy Tab's stock fonts? Get new ones with this app. Despite the permissions asked, it DOES NOT make phone calls. It's probably just a remnant from the development kit used. Just does what it's advertised to do. Downloads and installs fonts.

Gauge Battery Widget (Tomas Hubalek) - Excellent battery status monitoring app.

Video

Rockplayer Lite (品雪) - Plays virtually any video file format smoothly.

To find the apps mentioned above in the Android Market, just search for them using their names, or the names of the developers (in parentheses). These apps are not necessarily the only ones of their kind, nor are they necessarily the best. It all comes down to a matter of taste, it just turns out that I like these apps.

If you have any suggestions/recommendations for other useful free apps for the Galaxy Tab, or perhaps better ones than those I suggested, let me know.

Can't get this video out of my head. We're pretty arrogant to think that we're the only beings on this planet capable of feeling emotions. The cat above clearly recognizes the dead cat as a companion that it just can't leave behind, and it does everything it can to revive it. You can sense it's frustration as its efforts prove fruitless, and it's sadness and realization of loss is palpable in the end. We don't need to anthromorphize the cat. It's expressing it's feelings much like any human would. And unlike any human, its emotions are clear and pure, uncluttered by human abstracts such as intent, malice, or conformity. If only animals can speak.

It used to be that techheads and geeks were few and far between. And that's still true, as far as the real techies are concerned. As for "wannabe techies", they seem to coming out all over the place, and worse, they're multiplying like rabbits.

We have the decreasing cost of technology to thank for that. It used to be that tech gadgets cost an arm and a leg. Not anymore. Desktop PCs, notebooks, netbooks, digital cameras, MP3 players, cellphones, etc., have been commoditized to the point that you can buy a perfectly decent sample of any of these things for just a reasonable amount of money. And if it breaks, it's probably even cheaper to just buy new instead of having it repaired. Tablets are likely to be the next big thing to be turned into mere commodities. Manufacturers are launching new models left and right, and the makers who deal in huge volumes like Acer, Asus, HP, etc. are getting in on the action. It's a safe bet that in a year or two, tablets, regardless of make, will be as common as cellphones are now.

I'm not complaining about that. It's good that tech has gone mainstream. Technology should be accessible to everyone, not only to a select few. But still, it has its drawbacks.

Like the emergence of the new breed of "techie wannabees". People who a year or two ago would probably not even bother to or dare buy a new PC, tablet or smartphone are now buying in droves, driven by the techno-lust inspired by the new generation of relatively inexpensive, easy-to-use, and fashionable must-have tech doodads. That's all well and good, but as with all things, a little knowledge still remains a dangerous thing.

Like this person I know who used to lust over an iPhone and a Galaxy S smartphone. Now he wants a Galaxy S II. That's just dandy and all, but he only uses his phone to call and text. He doesn't have a data plan, doesn't intend to get a data plan, and he's not even that interested in browsing the net or even reading his email on the go. He's not into social networks, and on top of that, he's farsighted so he can hardly read his phone without his reading glasses or squinting like Jan-Michael Vincent, if you're old enough to remember him. Despite this, he would evangelize to me how a particular model is so much better because it has an AMOLED display, or this model is better because its processor is 1 GHz while a competing product runs as 800 MHz. When window shopping for a new phone he would dress down a hapless store clerk for suggesting a model without an AMOLED screen when he probably doesn't even know what AMOLED stands for (it stands for Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode). I spotted him a few days ago, and he's using a cheap myPhone. Not that there's anything wrong about using a cheap phone...but you do have to ask yourself what the fuss was all about. Go figure.

Then there's this other person, who bought an iPad 2 even before it was formally introduced here. He bought the top-of-the-line WiFi+3G model, and carries it with him everywhere he goes. On one occasion, a colleague inquired on how much his baby cost. He replied that he bought it in excess of 1,000 USD (converted for clarity from local currency) from a gray market vendor. When asked if he has a data plan for it, he said no, adding that he only uses prepaid credits, and there's no need, since he (braggingly) said that he had a broadband connection at home. To my mind, he's just showing off, and failing miserably at it, showing in the process how much of a techie wannabe and cheapskate he is at the same time. If you can afford to buy an expensive 3G tablet, it's a no-brainer to get a data plan (even a cheap one) for it. If you only plan to use it with your home internet connection, then don't even bother getting a 3G model. And if you can afford a $1,000 tablet, you can afford to buy a cheap data plan. It's like buying an expensive exotic car then mounting cheap wheels and tires on it, just because you claim you don't get out much. Absolutely pointless.

Then there's the time when two people I know were insisting that getting an external keyboard for a tablet was a good idea. Frankly, I think the whole thing is as pointless as watering your plants during a rainstorm. One of them insisted that you can do office work on it if you had a keyboard. You buy a tablet for its portability. You use it to consume content. Tablets, no matter what size, were never really intended for users who create content. Aside from the basics, there really isn't much you can do with it with it...but that's perfectly alright, because that's how tablets were designed in the first place. If you were to go through the trouble of getting a tablet and carrying an external keyboard with you wherever you go and try to do office work on it, then you might as well should have bought a notebook or netbook computer from the start. It's like buying a sleek sports car and fitting it with an offroad suspension and wheels and tires, when you could have opted to just a buy an SUV from the start.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I could go on and on with all the arguments and discussions (friendly ones to be sure) I've had with techie wannabees. Frankly, I'm just getting tired of listening to and dealing with these people.

Oh well. That's progress for you.

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Tech Poseurs....

The much awaited Android 2.3.3 ("Gingerbread") upgrade to the Samsung Galaxy Tab has finally made it's way to the Philippines after months of waiting, and thankfully, installing the update is a relatively painless exercise.

You need the following to perform the upgrade:

• Your Samsung Galaxy Tab (with the older 2.2 "Froyo" Android OS), battery fully charged (just to be on the safe side);

• Data cable;

• The latest version of Samsung Kies (latest version as of this posting is v2.0.0.11044_11_3);

• PC with internet connection.

The time to complete the process depends a lot on the speed of your internet access. In my case it took about half an hour on a modest 1 Mbps DSL connection.

Connect the Galaxy Tab to the PC via data cable and run Samsung Kies. Depending on how you have your Tab set up it will either automatically connect itself to the Samsung Kies application, or it will ask you to select a USB mode. If it does, select Samsung Kies. Once the tablet is recognized the software will inform you of an available firmware update and ask you if you wish to install it. Select "Yes" and follow the rest of the instructions. You will be prompted to backup the data on your tablet, which you ought to do, just in case something goes wrong.

A few suggestions: close other running applications on your PC, stop or pause any other ongoing downloads, don't fiddle with the tablet's menu during the process, don't shut down the PC or tablet, don't disconnect the data cable.

Note that if you use your Galaxy Tab as a phone, you won't be able receive calls or text during the duration of process.

As with all firmware upgrades, the trick for a successful firmware installation is to make sure that the process is not interrupted for whatever reason, and to get it over and done with as quickly as possible.

At this point all you have to do is wait while the update is downloaded. It may take a while if you have a slow internet connection. Once the update is downloaded, it will automatically install itself on the tablet. Later on you will be prompted to restart the tablet and to disconnect/reconnect the data cable.

If all goes well (and it probably should), your Galaxy Tab will boot up with the new Android version.

I haven't been fully able to spot all the differences from the older Android version, but offhand I'd say that the upgrade made some minor tweaks to the interface and slightly improves the response time of the tablet.

For a complete list of differences between Froyo and Gingerbread, try this link.

I wonder if Samsung will come up with an Android 3.0 "Honeycomb" update for the Galaxy Tab. Let's not hold our breath. But let's keep our fingers crossed.

•  Dimension:LxWxD(mm): 122x64x6~9.2mm
• Weight with Batt. Standard (g): 109
• Vibration: Yes
• Battery Capacity (mAh): Standard battery, Li-Ion 1500mAh