Samsung hasn't had much to celebrate lately in the legal arena, and the fact that a U.K. judge deemed the company's Galaxy Tab "not as cool" as Apple's iPad seems like it would only rub salt in the wound. However, it's for that very reason that Judge Colin Birss sided with Samsung, ruling that Apple's patent infringement claim, which has been successful in the U.S., is bogus.
Remember being told, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again?" Apple heard the message loud and clear, and applied that philosophy to our legal system where, on appeal, it was able to win a big victory against Samsung. No longer is Samsung allowed to sell its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in the U.S. after U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, ruled in Apple's favor upon a second examination.
Verizon Wireless is having a fire sale on Samsung's first generation Galaxy Tab devices, presumably to make room for recently announced Galaxy Tab 2 tablets, which will be available to purchase on April 22, 2012. For those looking to save a little scratch, the first generation 7-inch Galaxy Tab is now selling for just $50 at VZW, which includes a discount for locking yourself into a 2-year service agreement with a qualifying data plan.
While we’re talking patent trolling, let’s talk about the global Apple-Samsung battle. Apple has been suing Samsung in courts around the world, claiming that the design of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 rips Apple’s patented design of the iPad, which consists of, um, a rectangle with a screen on one face. How they got a patent for that is beyond us, but that template has prompted judges in Australia and other countries to block sales of the Galaxy Tab until the case is decided. Samsung’s getting pretty fed up with it all, and it today, it threatened to withdraw from Australia altogether if the injunction wasn’t lifted soon.
The Apple legal onslaught continues as the iPad maker files suit against Samsung in the UK. The case was brought before the High Court on Monday. Apple claims its case is a counter-claim to a Samsung case originally filed back in June, but no details on that case are known. This move bring the total number of patent cases between the two tech firms to about 20 worldwide.
While most mobile technophiles at this week's CTIA show were drooling over new products that are a couple of months away, Samsung held a small, private "Mobile-ization" event in San Jose yesterday to talk about what's coming from mobile devices that are... several months away. In these days of hyperactive product cycles, that's about the most advanced, long-lead demo/preview one can get.
Samsung this week unveiled a pair of new Galaxy Tab tablets sized 10.1 inches and 8.9 inches. Part of what makes these additions so special is that they measure a scant 8.6 millimeters, slightly thinner than Apple's trend-setting iPad 2, which measures 8.8
We aren’t sure why so many Android tablets have tied their fates to the contract crazy wireless carriers, but clearly it’s a strategy that’s done little more than allow the iPad to continue eating their lunch. Android tablet makers should be under no illusion, the real promise of Google’s tablet OS lies in devices with more functionality, at a lower cost.
Sometimes you have to tip your hat at your opponent and tell them, "Well played." Usually, however, those or similar words of mutual respect are saved for after the fight, when there's a clear winner and loser. Samsung isn't waiting. With Apple having announced its iPad 2 on March 2, Samsung had some things to say about Cupertino's next generation tablet, essentially admitting that Apple once again has set the bar and it's not going to be easy to hurdle.
A recent report in The New York Post 
