Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 4G is Australia’s first 4G tablet

There’s a good chance that Telstra’s 4G network offers faster internet speeds than your home ADSL connection, which is why it’s exciting to see the company release the first tablet to support the fast network today, the Galaxy Tab 8.9 4G from Samsung.

Available in either a 16GB version for $720 or a 32GB version for $840 outright, the 4G tablet boasts a 8.9-inch screen, 3MP rear camera and 2MP front camera, and a huge 6100mAh battery to cope with the demands of the super fast network. Powered by a dual core 1.5GHz processor, it’s got enough grunt to handle HD video playback, as well as pretty intense gaming experiences.

The Tab 8.9 4G is shipping with the 3.2 Honeycomb version of Android, although Telstra has promised an upgrade to 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) in the near future.

It seems like a pretty well specced device, but the major selling point is the super fast network speeds. Telstra is also offering the tablet on a range of 24 month plans, each of which includes some much-needed data. Prices for the plans start at $49 a month for 24 months including 1GB of data, and go all the way up to $99 a month, which includes a whopping 15GB of data each month.

With the iPad 3 just around the corner, the question is whether the fast 4G network on the 8.9 will be enough to entice shoppers away from Apple’s market-owning device.

Price: From $720
Web: Telstra