Yesterday's launch of the Apple iPad pretty much overshadowed everything else, but they are not the only company with a tablet up their sleeves. Asus, HP and MSI are all planning to introduce small tablets in the course of 2010, although that may depend on the iPad's reception. On one hand, many have express disappointment with the new tablet, but it is not exactly like Apple has had a problem selling their products - be they innovative or not - the past couple of years.
If it turns out there really is a market for such tablet devices, others are sure to follow. HP's take (developed in collaboration with Microsoft) on such a tablet was first unveiled by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at CES a few weeks back, but so far details have remained elusive. In a new YouTube video, HP talk a little bit about the device, but it seems to be mostly background information.
It turns out the tablet was originally developed years back as a simple e-book reader, but back then it was way too expensive ($1500 according to HP) to actually make such a product, so they waited. As time passed and technology progressed, HP built onto the device and it is now a full-blooded tablet. Like Apple's iPad, the idea is media consumption (e-books, video, audio etc.) and surfing, but unlike the rival, it sports a "proper" OS (Windows 7) and a webcam.
Asus and MSI also brought a tablet to CES, both based on Nvidia's Tegra 2 platform that was incidentally launched at the same event. Tegra 2 is made for small and mobile devices and sports a dual-core ARM-based Cortex 9 processor that supports multitasking (which the iPad lacks), and Tegra 2 can also handle full playback of 1080p HD video (iPad can only go up to 720p).
Other than that, little is known about Asus' tablet. MSI's will be a 10 incher and very light and mobile, apparently with the full array of features you find on a regular notebook. It should be available in several different configurations, with the most basic one starting at $500.
Sources: Fudzilla, DigiTimes, ITProPortal
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in Off Topic - Anything goes. by Laptopfreak, 07-08-09 19:55