UNINNOVATE / Engineering At Its Finest / Since 2006

We previously mentioned that the US version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab was artificially restricted from making phone calls. Devices sold in countries outside of the US are able to make phone calls, while devices sold inside the US have that ability removed.

Well, less than a week later, hackers have already found a solution for the T-Mobile version of the Galaxy Tab. By installing the European version of the base software on a US model, the calling features are re-enabled.

This is not yet a perfect solution. The European version of the Galaxy Tab software doesn’t support the 3G wireless bands needed by T-Mobile, so for the moment this breaks the ability to browse the web over 3G on the tablet. But hackers on the xda developer forums are already working on a solution for that issue.

Samsung released the Galaxy Tab this week in the US. The Samsung Galaxy Tab is tablet similar to Appie’s iPad, except that it’s slightly smaller in size and runs the Google Android operating system. According to reviews, it is a solid product and is the first real contender to the iPad.

The Galaxy Tab has mobile connectivity with 3G data and voice capabilities. But while the European versions of the Galaxy Tab can make phone calls, the US version cannot. Reportedly based on demands from US cell phone carriers, Samsung removed the ability to make telephone calls from the US version of the product.

While Samsung may choose to manufacture a different product with different internal hardware for different markets, that is not the case with the Galaxy Tab. The product does not lack the internal hardware to make voice calls. In fact, the Verizon version of the Galaxy Tab allows you to make an initial phone call from the Galaxy Tab to activate the device when you first open it, proving it has the capability. After the device is activated, it no longer allows calling.

Why did Samsung spend R&D effort to remove features from their flagship tablet product and make there product less attractive? The Samsung Galaxy Tab is too big for most people to use it as a main mobile phone since it doesn’t fit in your pocket. It’s not likely to cut into traditional phone sales. However, the near monopolistic control that the four major US phone carriers exert on the market has resulted in the US getting yet another inferior cell phone product with an artificially limited feature set.

What’s the difference between these two computers?

They have almost the exact same internal hardware. Both have a 1.2ghz Intel Atom CPU and come with a keyboard. Both are about the same size and sell for around the same price – a few hundred dollars. You can plug both of them into a TV and use them to browse the web to play online videos.

One is an Acer One Aspire Netbook. The other is a Logitech Revue. The Logitech product is designed to be plugged into your TV (as part of the Google TV initiative) while the Acer product is designed to be portable.

So why then are all major online video services blocked on the Logitech Revue? We’re talking about pretty much every video network – ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, Hulu, Hulu Plus, and even SyFy. Why is the exact same web browser running on a nearly identical computer four feet away from the TV able to watch online video while another computer connected to the TV can’t? The only difference between the two units is that one is supposed to make watching video online easier, providing the networks with more viewers of their ad-supported content.

Major television networks are spending time and money developing new ways to make sure that you can’t watch their videos on your computer – if your computer happens to be hooked up to a TV. They are going out of their way to alienate an entire new generation of viewers.

Meanwhile, anyone under 30 either knows how to easily download illegal copies of TV shows or has a friend that does. Often the illegal versions are available sooner, are better quality video, and don’t contain advertisements.

In a desperate attempt to cling onto old business models, television networks are stretching logic to its very limits. After spending millions developing websites to stream their videos, they are spending even more money to make sure you can’t watch them. Instead of providing an easy way to watch videos with the advertisements still intact, they are driving their viewers to piracy. Didn’t they learn anything from the music industry?