For the last 3 weeks, I avoided reviewing my Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 P3100. Mainly because there are thousands of reviews on the Web already. Mine would not have had anything different to say. That is, until today. Because today, Samsung upgraded me from Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich to 4.1 Jelly Bean (over the air, without prompting for my permission - that was rude!). The file download took some time but once the upgrade started (involving a reboot and a cute animation of the Android robot getting his stomach operated), it was completed in less than 5 minutes. And the difference is to be seen to be believed. There has been an obvious improvement in the touch screen experience. Home pages scroll faster and "press to click" happens quicker. The notifications have moved from bottom right to top center. There is a permanent set of useful icons at the bottom - Phone, Contact, Messaging, Internet, Setting, Apps that remain when you scroll between home pages. The troublesome screen-shot button has disappeared from the bottom, leaving only the ones for navigation (and the small button for the mini apps quick launch bar). The weather app and the clock seem to have merged with each other, which looks great although it leaves me dependent on the mini apps bar to set an alarm. Another issue was that I lost all my painstakingly-arranged desktop shortcuts and had to redo all that hard work. But I'll gladly accept that as a payoff for a smoother-looking, smoother-feeling user interface. Android rocks!!!
P.S.: All you guys at Google should take note... coming from a recent convert from the Nokia ecosystem, that last phrase is a solid compliment!
