All considered, Samsung's Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) is a pretty good tablet at a really good price. However, I find myself wondering why Samsung bothered creating it. The tablet bears no real improvements over its eerily similar predecessors; the few changes that it does have are either lateral or marginally regressive.

If the company's goal was to offer a respectable 7-in. tablet at a lowered cost, I think a far more customer-centric approach would have been to deliver an ICS upgrade and a hundred dollar price drop to its existing 7.0 Plus model (which is still awaiting Android 4.0, with a vague promise but no specific time frame for delivery). As it stands, the Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) lacks any "wow" factor and leaves Samsung's existing Tab users looking like second-class citizens in a waiting game with no end in sight.

(A similar situation may unfold with the company's upcoming Galaxy Tab 2 10.1-inch model, which is slated to be released on May 13 at a price of $400. Although review units weren't available at press time, it appears that, like the 7-in. model, the Tab 2 (10.1) will offer few significant changes over its predecessor -- which has also yet to be upgraded to Android 4.0.)

In addition, Google's I/O developers' convention is just over two months away. Asus has already discussed plans to release a $250 between now and the end of June, and Google is rumored to be working on a that'll be in the $150 to $200 range for this summer.

In short, anyone in immediate need of a low-cost 7-in. tablet would do well with the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0). But with tomorrow's technology almost upon us at budget-level prices, it's hard to recommend dropping that cash on yesterday's technology today.