Hussain M Elius

Apple’s fabled iPad is now on the shelves (in a store not quite near you!). Whether you like controversial but oh-so-sexy Apple products or not is a matter of debate, but the “Oooh! Shiny!” factor hasn’t quite worn out just yet, but it’s not the only kid in the block when it comes to, the not new but revived, tablet form factor. Some of these tablets are in the various stages from “barely announced” to “working prototype”, many of which were shown off at this years Consumer Electronics Show.

HP Slate
This particular tablet will run on Windows 7 with touch optimised user interface, setting it apart from the iPad running the iPodOS. It will have a slightly smaller screen and five hours of battery life compared to ten on the iPad, but on the plus side, it has a 1.6GHz processor, flash for your Facebook games, USB Port, pen support so you can use it as a digital sketchpad, web cam in the front as well as the back for all your video conferencing needs, and a conventional SIM card tray so you can use our trusty Bangladesh-wide internet on-the-go. Not to mention that it can run all the applications you already run on your desktop. Cost? A cool US$549

enTourage eDGe dualbook

One look at this thing and you can tell something is different. Two screens, combined with a hinge that holds a speaker. It’s not just an e-reader and an Android (a Google OS) netbook bolted together either. This truly shows how tablets aren’t just for everyday Joes, but more so academia. The concept is great for school. In one hand you can read, while on the other touch screen, you can take notes and annotations. It’s available now for around $499.

Microsoft Courier
Yet another dual screen? I think not. Unlike the enTourage eDGe it doesn’t have an e-ink display. Also unlike the eDGe it is not only for the academia, but diverges into a more multi-purpose front. With two seven inch multi-touch screens, this Wi-Fi ready device is rumored to be priced around $500 and weighing only a pound. Running on the Windows CE this isn’t the jack-of-all-trades that iPad wants to be, but rather wants to be your ultimate and infinite journal. And from the demo videos, one can tell it does what it does remarkably well.

WePad
The Neofine WePad has similar form and function of the Apple iPad. It’s just bigger, stronger, and cheaper. The choice of OS is a little peculiar: a Linux derivate with Android on top. That’s Linux with Linux inside. Take that Intel! It boasts a 11.6 inch screen compared to 9.7 of the iPad, and also a faster processor, a webcam, 2 USB ports, SIM card slot, card reader, and flash support. Unfortunately compared to iPads ten hours battery life, it only has six. Also, although it has been announced to be cheaper than the iPad, it’s not up for sale just yet.

Notion Ink Adam
Last, but not least, this Indian company plans to bring forth an Android powered tablet featuring Pixel QI screen. Supporting video at high quality 1080p where iPad sports only 576p, this 10-inch device boasts a 3 mega-pixel camera (on a swivel, no less) and HDMI and USB ports whereas the iPad has none. Its secret weapon is the aforementioned Pixel QI screen which lets you jump from backlit for web browsing, to non-backlit for when you are reading. This, coupled with Tegra 2 power can make the battery life jump from 16 hours to a mind-boggling 160. Unfortunately the screen, the manufacturer and the device are all untested. It’s one thing to promise the moon, and another to deliver it.

Published in Rising Star, The Daily Star, 14 April 2010