I know what you've asking to yourself: isn't the Galaxy Tab 8.9 just the Galaxy Tab 10.1 with a smaller display? Well, I just spent a few minutes with the tablet and, yes, that's exactly what it is! Still, I have to say the form factor seems pretty great - it may be .33 inches thick just like the Tab 10.1, but it's easier to grip with one hand, and at just under a pound it's noticeably lighter.

As far as software goes, everything I said in the original TouchWiz UX hands-on remains true - there are some helpful tweaks (notably the expanded QuickPanel), but with all the homescreens wallpapered with widgets, there's some obvious lag. Off the bat …

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We knew Samsung would be making some waves at its Galaxy-themed event in New York City this evening, and now we've got the full details. Turns out the long-awaited 8.9-inch variant of the Galaxy Tab will be available in the US on October 2nd in 16GB and 32GB models for $469 and $569, respectively, complete with the TouchWiz UX overlaid atop Android 3.1.

Next up, the Galaxy Player 4.0 and 5.0 are coming stateside as well, both running Android 2.3.5 with 802.11b/g/n connectivity, 3.2-megapixel primary cams, and VGA front cams for video chat - basically, they're Galaxy phones minus the phone part, you just need to choose whether you want a 4- or …

Read the full story at The Verge.