T-Mobile just announced availability of the Samsung Galaxy Tab Android tablet, and it looks like they’ll be the first to actually sell the device on November 10. That’s just a day before Verizon will launch its version of the Galaxy Tab, and four days before Sprint does the same. 

Unlike Verizon – which will sell the Galaxy Tab unsubsidized at $599 with month-to-month data plans – T-Mobile will cover come of the cost of the tablet in exchange for a two-year data contract.  The up front price will be $449, $399 after a mail-in rebate. 

Data plans will be available with 200MB or 5GB of use per month.

For more information, check out this product page at T-Mobile.com.

Asus was touted as one of Microsoft’s launch partners for Windows Phone 7 in February, but the hardware maker was a no-show at this month’s official product kickoff.  Is is possible that Asus’ plans for Windows Phone 7 smartphones have been scrapped?  Not according to Forbes.

“Regarding Windows Phone 7, we haven’t yet decided yet we would like to do,” Asus Chairman Jonney Shih told Forbes.  That said, the first WP7 smartphone with an Asus logo is expected to launch in 2011.

Asus has built and sold Windows Mobile powered PDAs and smartphones for years, and continues, with partner Garmin, to offer the nuvifone M10, which runs Windows Mobile 6.5.3.

Mac users were told at the Windows Phone 7 launch earlier this month that a software tool would be made available to allow syncing between WP7 handsets and the Mac OS; now, a beta version of that tool – called Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac – is available for download.

Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac allows Windows Phones to sync “music, videos, photos and podcasts from iTunes and iPhoto.”  It is best understood and categorized as a media syncing tool rather than a full-featured sync solution.  Windows Phone 7 does most of its Personal Information Management (PIM) syncing via the Cloud.

You must be running Mac OS X 10.5 or above to use the Connector for Mac software.

After nearly two years of waiting, Windows Phone 7 is now a reality.  The first handsets powered by the new mobile OS won’t be available for purchase until early next month, but some reviewers have gotten their hands on final hardware and the first round of reviews has begun. 

Here’s a brief summary:

Walt Mossberg: WP7 is innovative, but not particularly compelling for most users.  Mr. Mossberg is concerned about the relatively small library of apps, lack of basic features like copy-and-paste and tethering, but thinks things will improve over time.  [Full Review]

Engadget / Joshua Topolsky: Fast and responsive, Windows Phone 7 offers a beautiful and usable UI.  Great soft keyboard.  Built-in Office support “one of the biggest differentiators” of WP7. “[T]here’s a lot to like or even love in WP7,” but it’s “not there yet.”  [Full Review]

Paul Thurrott: Without question the most glowing review, Mr. Thurrott (who has written a book on Windows Phone 7) believes the new OS is a “game changer” that will help set the course for future smartphones.  While not perfect, the OS is highly usable and useful and will be tweaked and improved over time.  [Full Review]

Ars Technica / Peter Bright: Metro UI is “brave.”  What WP7 does it does well, but there are a lot of things it just doesn’t do.  In the final analysis, Windows Phone 7 is a good first step and “a winner.”  [Full Review]

The wait for the 7-inch Galaxy Tab Android tablet will soon come to an end – at least for Verizon Wireless fans.  Verizon will launch the tablet on Thursday, November 11, for $599.

The Galaxy Tab will run Android 2.2 “Froyo” and include Wi-Fi and EV-DO Rev A 3G mobile broadband for always-on connectivity. Data plans will start at $20 for 1GB of usage, but just like the iPad on AT&T, users will be able to choose whether or not they want the data plan, and if they do it won’t require a contract.  There’s 512MB of RAM, 2GB of onboard flash storage, and an included 16GB microSD card.

$600 seems a bit steep for this device considering its smaller screen size and app library vis-a-vis the iPad.  If Samsung wants to compete with the most popular tablet device ever sold, it would seem they should be a bit more competitive in their pricing.  But the Verizon Galaxy Tab is $30 cheaper than the base iPad Wi-Fi + 3G model, so we’ll soon see how many users are willing to spend about as much for a tablet that doesn’t have a fruit logo.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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