Tablets Unveiled at IFA 2010

IFA 2010, the technological fair being held in Berlin, Germany, is seeing a host of tablets (listed below) being unveiled, this time round. Most of these devices are being pitched as iPad rivals.

Samsung Galaxy Tab

The Samsung Galaxy Tab is an Android 2.2 based tablet. It has a 7″, 1024 x 600 pixels touchscreen. The ARM cortex A8 processor, with a clock speed of 1GHz, drives this device.

Despite being smaller in size than the iPad, this tablet includes quite a number of features which were omitted in the Apple gadget. Plus, at 380g, it is much lighter than the iPad (730g) too. You can take pictures and videos with the 3MP camera on the back. You can make calls as well – both voice and video calls. For voice calls, you’ll need to use the loudspeaker or Bluetooth gear. For video calls, there is a 1.3MP webcam built in the front. There is support for Adobe Flash 10.1 too.

The Galaxy Tab integrates multi-media abilities. You can watch HD videos as well. A number of file formats like MPEG4, DivX, Xvid, H.263 and H.264 are supported. This tablet will be available in 2 memory configurations – 16GB and 32GB models. Apart from this internal memory, there is SD card storage too. A maximum of 32GB cards are supported.

Networking-wise, Bluetooth 3.0, WiFi 802.11n and 3G connectivity are offered. A full web browser is supported as well.

Like the iPad, this Samsung tablet will also allow access to an eBook store, called the Reader’s Hub. This store will contain books, magazines and newspapers.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab is said to be arriving in the UK this October. Vodafone has been named as the carrier at present. Another rumour goes to say that prices for the 16GB and 32GB models will be €699 (£582) and €799 (£666) respectively, in Europe.

Toshiba Folio 100 Tablet The Toshiba Folio 100, like the Samsung Galaxy Tab, is an Android-2.2-powered tablet; only, it is larger in size with a 10.1″ LCD multi-touch screen. However, the resolution sported is the same – 1024 x 600 pixels. This device is strongly entertainment oriented, as indicated by its specs. The new nVidia Tegra 2 processor, which is capable of handling 1080p videos, is employed within. Plus, an HDMI port is also present, for linking to a high definition TV. And then, most importantly, it supports Adobe Flash 10.1.

Here again, there’s support for WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G networks. A 1.3MP web camera is also present. Apart from the HDMI, this tablet also boasts of 2 USB ports and an SD card slot. On the inside, there’s 16GB of storage space.

The Tegra 2 platform integrated in this device, is said to consume less power. Thus delivering a longer battery life. The Folio 100 is expected to give up to 7 hours of runtime.

On the whole, this device weighs 760g.

Compared to the Samsung Galaxy Tab, the Toshiba tablet is relatively cheaper. It is said to be priced at €399 (~£330) and might hit markets in November. However, the initial models might not feature 3G ability. Toshiba will most probably be releasing 3G-ready Folio 100s next year.

ViewSonic ViewPad 100 and ViewPad 7 Tablets

ViewSonic unveiled 2 tablets at the event. The ViewPad 100 and the ViewPad 7. Here are the details:-

The ViewSonic ViewPad 100 is a 10″, 1024 x 600 pixels tablet. It can dual-boot between Windows 7 and Android 1.6. The Windows 7 is meant for the official work, while the Android is meant for the leisure. On the inside, this tablet houses the Intel Atom N455 processor, which clocks at 1.66GHz.

This means, it should be faster than the iPad and the Samsung Galaxy Tab (which feature only 1GHz processors). A 1GB DDR3 RAM and a 16GB SSD are present in this gadget. Other specs include USB connectivity, a mini-VGA port, WiFi, Bluetooth, a G-Sensor, A-GPS, a microSD card slot for up to 32GB cards and a 1.3MP front facing camera. A SIM card slot is also present in this tablet. However, the current version is said to be a non-3G one. Hence, the SIM card might only be used for making calls, or at the maximum, access the internet via EDGE or GPRS.

Now, the question that comes to mind is, why Android 1.6 and not Android 2.2? The Intel Atom processor used in this device, does not officially support Android versions higher than 1.6.

ViewSonic ViewPad 7 is an Android 2.2 tablet. It has a 7-inch multi-touch display, with LED backlight. It packs in almost similar kind of specs like the ViewPad 100, except this smaller tablet also has a rear-facing camera for taking photographs and videos.

The ViewPad 100 is supposed to be priced at €549 (£458), and the ViewPad 7, at €399 (£333). They’ll most probably make their way to market shelves in October.

Watch out this space for more.