$350 Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 vs $400 iPad 2: Ultra-Tablet Prices Finally Starting to Fall

Whether or not you believe 2011 was the year of the tablet computer, many of the best devices from last year are finally seeing their prices fall. That includes the marked down $400 iPad 2 and $350 Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 at Best Buy. The Galaxy Tab is on sale, but it's been out long enough that it will likely stay at that price. It's $100 less than the price it debuted with, and the same goes for the iPad 2.

No matter what kind of tablet people are looking for, the under $400 price is definitely part of it. Although the magic price for non-iPad tablets seems to be $200 (Kindle Fire), more and more consumers are getting familiar with what a $200, $300 or $400 should look like. Consumers are getting smarter, in other words, and that means manufacturers have to get smarter too. Asus, for example, is about to update its popular Transformer Prime TF201 with new software and features. Because that device is one of the only Android tablets running the Ice Cream Sandwich/Android 4.0 system, it means Asus is doing a better job than most companies with keeping their customers in the loop.

While the Samsung Galaxy 8.9 Tab is scheduled to get the Android 4.0 eventually, we don't have a date yet. We've lined up the iPad 2 and the Galaxy Tab 8.9 for shoppers to compare, so begin the slideshow for the details. Let us know in the comments if you've checked out the iPad 3 or if you just can't swing the $500 price.

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