The Samsung Galaxy Tab ($399 with a two-year contract on T-Mobile as of November 11, 2010) is the first Android tablet that has what it takes to challenge Apple's dominant iPad. Available from five domestic wireless carriers--AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, and Verizon--the Galaxy Tab's hardware is similar across providers. The big differences lie in service pricing, whether the carrier takes advantage of the Tab's mobile-hotspot capability, and whether the device has a SIM-card slot (CDMA-based Sprint and Verizon units lack this feature). Overall, you can expect the Tab models to be similar in use, with minor differences in which apps are installed from the get-go.
As for pricing, T-Mobile has set its rates in a way that makes its Galaxy Tab stand out from the crowd in several noteworthy ways. For one thing, you can use the mobile-hotspot feature (also known as Wi-Fi sharing) at no additional charge under both monthly and prepaid mobile broadband plans; in contrast, Sprint charges $30 extra per month for the feature. Also, the device supports HSPA 7.2 and can benefit from T-Mobile's HSPA+ network in the markets that have the service.

Judging from my extended use of the Tab, it's clear that Samsung has succeed in delivering the smoothest implementation of Android on a tablet to date--and it has done so on a smoothly designed piece of hardware that's a far cry from the generic slabs that have cropped up from Asia. What's also clear is that, while the Galaxy Tab is a fine 1.0 product, the tablet has room to grow.