As promised, Samsung has released its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in New Zealand, making it available at Vodafone stores amidst international turmoil that has seen sales of the device banned in some places.

Samsung New Zealand head of handheld products, Stefan Lecchi, says he believes the Galaxy Tab will lead the New Zealand tablet market.

"It's a truly outstanding device,” Lecchi says, "with a huge range of features to appeal to business users and tech enthusiasts alike.

"We know it's going to be a huge hit with kiwis."

Powered by Android 3.1, aka Honeycomb, the Galaxy Tab is the thinnest tablet currently available in the world, at 8.6 millimetres. The iPad 2 is 8.8 millimetres, according to Apple's website.

The 16GB 3G model will retail for $999.99, matching the price of the similarly-specced iPad 2.