Tech and life

Apple have been amazing innovators during the last decade – the iPod, iPhone and now the iPad… and the competition have struggled to keep up. Only now do we have excellent alternatives to the iPhone. So how long will it take the tablet manufacturers to catch the iPad? Already, I’ve heard of journalists, politicians and councillors being equipped with this 1st generation game changing device. Have they jumped in too soon? What have the competition got in store?

Well, here’s a quick round-up of the tablet devices which are with us now or should hit the shelves in the coming months. It’s not a comprehensive list as some of the major players haven’t announced details yet. And if you’re reading this post a year or two down the line, have a giggle at our 1st generation devices and marvel at how quickly technology moves on!

10-inch+ screen

Kno: two 14.1 inch touchscreens connected by a hinge (digital textbook); shipping for the holiday season 2010; Price: TBA

Pioneer DreamBook ePad L11: 11.6 inch; Windows and Android OS; 2GB RAM; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity; 1.3MP camera; 6GB, 32GB and 64GB hard drives; to be released September 2010; $640

MSI WindPad 100: 10-inch; Windows 7 OS; 2GB RAM; 32GB storage; Wi-Fi, 3G and Bluetooth connectivity; webcam; available late 2010; $499

MSI WindPad 110: 10-inch; Android 2.1 OS; 2GB RAM; 32GB storage; Wi-Fi, 3G and Bluetooth connectivity; webcam; available late 2010; $399

Mouse LuvPad AD100: 10-inch; Android 2.2; 512MB RAM; 8GB flash memory; Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi+3G configurations; $470-530

Archos 101: 10.1 inch; Android 2.2; 8GB ($300) and 16GB ($350) versions; expected late-September 2010

Archos 9: 8.9 inch; Windows 7 Starter OS; 1GB RAM; 60GB storage; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth; 1.3MP web camera; $400; available now

Hannspree: 10.1 inch; Android 2.2; 512MB RAM; 16GB; to be released in November 2010; probably around $500

Viewsonic ViewPad 100: 10 inch; Windows 7 and Android 1.6 OS; 1GB memory; 16GB storage; 1.3MP camera; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity; to be released about October 2010; expected to be about £549

Toshiba Folio 100: 10.1 inch; Android 2.2 OS; 16GB storage; 1.3MP webchat camera; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity; about £330; to be released in Europe in next couple of months; no plans as yet for a US release

7-inch screen

Samsung Galaxy Tab: 7-inch; Android 2.2 OS; 512MB RAM; 16GB and 32GB versions; full phone capability; dual cameras (3MP and 1.3MP); connectivity: 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth; Available in Europe from mid-September 2010; $500-$1000? Price point may be $200-$300 with US carriers

Archos 70: 7 inch; Android OS; 8GB ($300) and 16GB ($350) versions; expected about mid-October 2010; $275

Elocity A7: 7 inch; Android 2.2 OS; 512MB RAM; 4GB flash memory; 1.3MP camera; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity; shipping possibly beginning of November 2010; $370

RAmos W9: 7 inch; Android OS; no word on pricing or availability yet

Viewsonic ViewPad 7: 7 inch; Android 2.2 OS; 512MB memory?; Wi-Fi, 3G and Bluetooth connectivity; full phone capability; dual cameras; released about October 2010; expected to be about £350

Huawei S7: 7 inch; Android 2.1; 256MB RAM; Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity; 2MP camera; available now; £299

The much hyped $35 Indian tablet should arrive in January 2011. Dimensions 8.9×7-inch; Android OS; 2GB RAM; Connectivity: USB and Wi-Fi. However it’s recently been revealed that this is just the subsidized Chinese Hivision SpeedPad

5-inch (and less) screen

Dell Streak: 5 inch; Android 1.6 OS; 16GB memory; 5MP camera; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and 3G connectivity; Price: TBA; but is it a big smart phone rather than a small tablet?

Archos 32: 3.2 inch; Android 2.1; 8GB storage; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth connectivity; camera; now shipping for $150

Why are tablets the new ‘must have’ gadget?

Well for some, there’s the cool factor. But from the functionality point of view, of course the screen is bigger than on a smartphone and this has benefits not least making the device easier to view making it a good e-reader and ideal for content consumption. A tablet is easier to pass round among friends and share stuff, say photos, compared with a netbook. But a 10 inch tablet is not as good as a smartphone on a crowded commute when you don’t have a seat. It’s obviously more portable than a laptop but I suspect that data entry, touch typing, screen size and storage capacity will keep laptops around for some time to come.

As you can see, many of the planned new devices will be running the Android OS. However, a recent post on Techcrunch foresees a major shakedown in the five or more upcoming tablet platforms as they compete for market share. And Google has said recently that Android Froyo isn’t optimized for tablets and that the next versions will be optimized for the form factor. So perhaps we’re better off waiting until next year before we take the plunge.

I predict that the coming wave of tablets will put an end to the netbook market, so we’ll soon be choosing from smartphones, tablets and laptops for our mobile companions. I’ve got a feeling it’ll also hit the iPod Touch market to some extent. I for one was on the verge of buying my first Apple product – the new iPod Touch 4, but now I wonder if I should just wait a while and take a look at the 5-inch or 7-inch tablet offerings. The larger screen size would be nice but of course the larger form factor is not quite so ‘pocket’ friendly. Any thoughts?

This is my first post on tablets. I’ll probably post regularly on this topic when more are released.

Latest tablet news

For the latest in tablet news, have a look at:

Best tablet Review

Touch Tablet PC

Android and Me

Google Docs: Android Tablets – Holiday 2010: Great round-up of the latest Android tablets, constantly updated

Sign up with Lazyfeed and follow the topic ‘tablets’.

Further reading

To iPad or Not to iPad: That is the Tech Question – PC World

A Big Tablet Can Never Beat a Smaller Smartphone

Samsung Galaxy Tab vs Apple iPad: tablet showdown

It’s really hard to predict how PCs and laptops will evolve over the coming years but with the success of the iPad and the forthcoming launch of a number of tablets including a possible PalmPad from HP, it seems certain that tablets and touchscreen enabled devices are going to play an increasingly important role in our digital lives.

For years now, we’ve had touchpads on laptops and netbooks and most of us have become quite adept at using them. I personally still prefer to plug in a mouse as I find it easier to use. One of the problems with the touchpad is that it’s possible to lightly brush over it when typing and inadvertently move the insertion point in your document. There’s a good recent article on Digital Inspiration about disabling the touchpad when you don’t need it.

But when you think about it, touching a metal pad to move a cursor on a screen is perhaps slightly removed from what we really want to do. How much better to be able to touch a screen and say drag files and folders round. Touchscreens have obviously been around for quite some time now, but the impetus from touchscreen smartphones like the iPhone and now the iPad tablet seems to be pushing us increasingly towards touchscreen devices. I still think the mouse will be with us for some time to come on the desktop PC. Ergonomically, it’s not quite so comfortable to touch a monitor screen on a desk at eye level directly in front of you over long periods but certainly for laptops and netbooks where the screen is much lower, a touchscreen plus keyboard or a full tablet device seem to be the obvious evolution of the interface.

So over the coming years, I think we’re going to see more tablet PCs, touchscreen laptops and touchscreen netbooks. Or perhaps I’m just stating the obvious here. How do you think the user interface will evolve? Would you want a touchscreen on your netbook? Or are you going to move completely to a tablet?

Update (9th Sept 2010): Here’s an interesting video on the future of touch screen technology.

From touchpad to touchscreen: evolution of the interface is a post from Tech and Life. If you’re reading it in full elsewhere, it’s been copied without consent. Please go to Tech and Life to read the original post and many others in the archive.

Image credit: Anonymous Collective

The iPhone is the phone everyone wants these days. 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity, loads of apps to choose from and install, and lots of street-cred. But for some, perhaps this or any smartphone with a monthly data plan is just too much for our budget, or for our needs. A cheaper prepaid or ‘pay as you go’ phone might be sufficient for you as it is for me.

A month ago, I decided it was time to move on from my ancient Samsung clam phone and try and move with the times. I did have a shopping list of things I was looking for in a new phone. First, with advancing age and deteriorating eyesight, a good-sized screen was a must. Second, I never was a great fan of texting on a standard phone keypad so I really wanted the option of a QUERTY keyboard. Finally, I wouldn’t consider myself a power user, at least not yet, so a ‘pay as you go’ or prepaid phone rather than a contract would be ideal.

It didn’t take long to decide on the LG KP500 Cookie, a full touchscreen phone for those on a budget. I can read the 1.75 x 2.75-inch screen (240 x 400 pixels) without putting on reading glasses, the touchscreen has the option to bring up a QUERTY keyboard and it’s available on a Pay and Go contract in the UK. I went for the O2 Pay and Go plan. I’ve also bought an 8GB SanDisk microSD card to store pictures, videos, and MP3s and have added a black silicone cover and protective screen.

After a month or so with it, I have to say I’m really pleased with the phone. There are lots of features I like – quick access to speed dial numbers by swiping your finger across the display to turn the page; yellow note reminders which you can leave on the nice bright screen, along with a good sized clock and calendar. It has a 3.2 megapixel camera and can record video in QVGA at 12fps. It has a media player that plays most popular digital music formats – WMA, MP3 and AAC audio and 3GP and MP4 formats for video. It also has a stereo FM radio. The built-in accelerometer brings the QUERTY keyboard into view in landscape mode. You can also play slideshows from your photo gallery on the screen. When viewing your photos individually, you can swipe your finger across the image to bring up the next or previous image. The phone comes with a range of Office document viewers – you can open and read XLS, DOC and PDF files in this mobile. The menus are quite intuitive and I pretty much know my way around already. Utilities also include a calculator, unit converter and, of course, reminders and alarms.

I’ve loaded up a number of tech podcasts onto the microSD card and I can listen to them through the speaker or the headphones. I’ve already blogged about trying to get at least half an hour of brisk walking each day and I can listen to podcasts through the headphones while I walk and am alerted of any text or calls that come through. Connectivity includes Bluetooth and USB to upload and download files to my PC.

On the downside, I would have preferred a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack rather than the proprietary LG jack and the camera isn’t brilliant at 3.2 megapixels and has no flash.

One other thing to watch when using the QUERTY pad in reply to a message is that if you stray slightly away from the letters X and Z you may hit ‘Send’ by mistake and you’ll instantly send an unfinished message – as I’ve done a couple of times. The LG PC Suite for uploading and downloading files between phone and PC is a little cluncky and it takes a little longer to upload podcasts for listening than I expected. And of course there is no 3G or wireless, just the EDGE, GPRS and GSM networks, so web browsing is not a realistic option. Basically, if you need internet on the move, this phone isn’t for you.

Still all in all, a great little phone for keeping in touch – a nice bright touchscreen that’s easy to read, yet the phone is just the right size and at a good price. It’s about 20% smaller than the iPhone 3G and weighs just 89g. And on a Pay and Go plan. Well worth considering if a smartphone with web browsing isn’t what you need.