You’ll see this touchscreen Ultrabook used extensively over the next month or so as I explore and demonstrate software and operating system elements. In this video I want to answer one of the most often asked questions – why have a touchscreen on a laptop when your hands need to be near the mouse and keyboard?
I’ve been using touchscreen devices since 2007. For over 1 year I used a touchscreen netbook as my only laptop, It was running Windows XP (not tablet edition) and had a resistive touchscreen. Even with all those limitations there were scenarios where I found using touch to be an advantage. Sometimes it’s not natural but sometimes it’s worth it.
We’re waiting for a price on this productive tablet from Tegatech but if it’s anywhere near what Viewsonic are proposing for the equivalent (we assume same OED) Viewpad 10 – around 550 Euros for an entry-level version- it will be well worth checking out.
Update: The launch is postponed untilt he 15th due to global Windows Phone 7 launch events.
We tested the Viewpad 10 at IFA last month so we’re already fairly confident that the performance and responsiveness is acceptable and with Windows 7 Pro, 2GB of RAM, a 32GB SSD and 3G option, it really would make an interesting modular PC. Take it from me, someone that has been using a ultra mobile PC and netbook exclusively since March, you will be able to use this as a desktop PC for most day-to-day scenrios.
As with all Windows-based tablets, I tend to look immediately for a docking port and unfortunately, it’s missing on the Tega v2. (and Viewpad 10.) I can not overstate the usefulness of a docking port and docking cradle on a productive tablet, especially when you’re looking at having to charge during the day and with the possibility that 10 inch in portrait mode makes a superb second screen.
With a confirmed (we checked out the hardware at IFA) 4hrs of battery life possible, it’s not bad for an 800gm PC with a 10 inch screen.
Our only issue is that if you’re using the 16GB drive version, there won’t be much storage space left after Windows has gobbled up most of it.
As for the included Android Open Source build, well, it’s interesting. You might find some use for it. A sideloaded Amazon Kindle app comes to mind if you fancy holding an 800gm book but we don’t see Android as being a key feature here.
As we mentioned, we don’t have prices for the Tega V2 yet but we do know that Tegatech have now expanded operations into Europe and US which is perhaps a sign that the pro-mobile segment is benefiting from the consumer tablet craze.
Our hands-on with the similar (unconfirmed but we suspect the two devices are coming from the same production line) Viewpad 10 is shown below.
Most of you will have heard about the Archos 70, part of the new range of tablet devices being launched over the next few months. Archos have stripped away their recording software and docking station, bumped up the processor, improved the operating system and hit a very competitive pricing point. Add features like HDMI, USB host, capacitive multitouch, multiple video format support and you’ve almost got a full Android Tablet specification list. It’s not complete though. While 800×480 might be acceptable as a resolution, the lack of Google applications isn’t. No Gmail. No free Google Navigation, No Contacts sync and of course, no Google Market. We’ve experienced it on the Archos 5 and it really is noticeable.
Having said that, if you consider the Archos 70 as a sofa tablet, car tablet, holiday tablet and bedside tablet, you’ve got a video and audio player that returns a great browsing experience and offers a stylish way to view photos and ebooks. If you’ve got a way to ‘sideload’ some Android applications you’ll also benefit from some really great applications for entertainment and communications.
Pricing is $275 and it’s coming in Sept or Oct. Note that it might ship with 2.1 but 2.2 will, apparently, follow-up very quickly.
We’ve had some hands-on at IFA and this is how it went…
One does wonder why you’d run Android on an X86 platform that can’t even get near an ‘always-on’ capability that, if missing from Android, turns it into a very strange experience, especially if you don’t have any Google apps available. Viewsonic have chosen to include the Android build on the Viewpad 100 to give users a simple user interface option and in that respect it works but if you want to get back to the serious side of the device, it’s a 2 minute process that you won’t want to do very often.
Fortunately the Windows 7 side of the Viewsonic tablet appears to be very well built and makes much more sense. We’ve got an N455 (Pinetrail platform) CPU driving Windows 7 Home Premium and the capacitive touchscreen allows for 2-point multitouch. All Windows 7 tablet features are working. Win 7 on Pinetrail with 1GB of RAM is certainly a low-end setup but it works to provide a nice fast Web experience. As Windows tablets go, the Viewpad 100 looks good, feels good (if a little heavy in one hand) and performs acceptably. 4-4.5hrs battery life (we checked power drain) isn’t fantastic but at that weight and screen size, it’s not bad. Oh, and by the way, the 16GB SSD might not offer too much in terms of storage after the OS’ are loaded on but it seems to be fast. You’ll have to use the microSD slot for storage.
The price of 549 euros is competitive in the 10 inch Windows TabletPC space and we should see this at the end of October in the UK with Germany and other EU countries feeding in after that.
We’ve got a video coming up later and we’ll get the device into the database soon but for the time being, here are some photo’s to take a look at.
As the rumours surrounding the HP Windows 7 tablet continue to swirl and with no official response on the matter, no one is quite sure if the project is dead or not. For those who like the form factor and who aren’t interested in owning an Apple iPad, the Jumper JK01-TT may be of interest.
It’s a 10.1 inch tablet running Windows 7 and sports a 1024 x 600 multitouch display. The JK01-TT is powered by a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450, 2GB of RAM and a 250GB hard drive. It comes loaded with WiFi, 3G, USB, 4 in 1 card reader, 2MP webcam, accelerometer with autorotation and a 3000mAh battery.
I would estimate a possible 2 – 3 hours run time if you’re lucky but given its 1.2kg weight and slim dimensions (11.4 inch x 5.9 inch x 0.8 inch) it does make for a small, full-featured tablet.
As an added bonus the Jumper JK01-TT ships with a docking station, wireless mouse / keyboard and is available at Ownta costing €556.92
Archos Lounge (translation) are reporting (source: ITNews) that the Archos 8 Family will be available by the end of summer. The range will run from 3 inch to 10 inch, will be Cortex A8-based (Ti OMAP as with the current Archos 5 Internet Tablet) and will……oh I so want to just copy the whole article from Archos Lounge but the wouldn’t be fair on them. Hop over there, check it out and let us know what you think here.
Did someone say Multitouch=Capacitive? The big outstanding question for me has to be Do they have Android 2.x with Google Apps?
We’ve had a few hands-on sessions with the Hanvon Tablet at IDF and CES and found it to be an interesting device that works smoothly and productively. The 1.6Ghz Menlow platform seemed to provide good performance. There have been hints that there’s a second version though and JKK managed to uncover it today by visiting the Hanvon booth at CeBIT. It’s the BC10C built on the Intel Celeron 1.3Ghz ULV743 CPU, an expensive but powerful CPU.
The BC10C includes 2GB RAM, 10 inch multitouch capacative screen, 250GB HDD, 2 x 2Mp webcams and has a weight of only 900gm.
JKK spoke to us earlier on a MeetMobility update (embedded below) and has produced a demo video too; also embedded below.
As for the price points, JKK is quoting 500-600 Euros for the BA10E and 600-700 for the BC10C. I get the feeling that the BC10C will be more expensive than 600-700 Euros based on the costs of the parts in it but let’s wait and see. Maybe Hanvon are looking to make a big splash with these two devices when they launch.
