Hasta La Gadget!

A tony prep school in Knoxville, Tennessee has made it mandatory for every student between grades 4 and 12 to own an iPad. That might be a good idea, someday! But being this far ahead of the curve shortchanges students. More »

We’ve seen the Kindle DX fail as a textbook alternative, but the iPad marches ever onward as a pioneer of wireless education. Or so it seems, anyway. This time the tablet has set its sights on a private school in Knoxville, TN, where all students from fourth to 12th grade will be required to carry iPads starting this August. Webb School students can either provide their own slate or lease a WiFi-only model for $20 a month. Just like administrators at Seton Hill University, the folks at Webb School see the iPad as an eventual replacement for traditional textbooks, as well as a tool for interactive learning. We’ve voiced our skepticism about the in-school iPad trend before, and while we still wonder just how effective the devices might be in the classroom, we’re interested to see how this thing turns out. You know, we love the Oregon Trail and everything, but don’t today’s students deserve to see more than pixelated trailblazers dying of digital diphtheria?

[Thanks, Jordan]

Tennessee’s Webb School makes iPads mandatory, still looks down on note-passing originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 08:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yowtch. The Motorola Xoom was largely considered the big tablet his of this year’s CES, thanks in no small part to the fact that it was really the only one running Android 3.0 Honeycomb–the first version of the mobile OS designed specifically with tablets in mind.

So, how much will you have to pay for this eagerly awaited device? One would imagine the company would undercut the price point of the tablet’s chief competition–Apple’s iPad and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. Nope. If these leaks are to be believed, the tablet is going to carry a rather lofty unsubsidized price tag of $799.99.

The news comes from a “tipster” over at Android Central, complete with a sheet featuring the minimum advertised price of the Xoom and other devices, all subsidized and a heck of a lot cheaper than Motorola’s upcoming tablet.

College students eagerly awaiting India’s ambitious $35 tablet are going to have to put their dreams on hold — there’s been a delay. Earlier this week, the Times of India reported that the Indian government dropped HCL Technologies, the company responsible for manufacturing the great democratic tablet, for failing to follow through on the 600 million rupee (or $13,198,416) guarantee — apparently a disagreement over production costs is to blame. Last summer, the country’s Human Resource Development Minister, Kapil Sibal, made a number of appearances toting a mockup of the Android-based tablet, and promising a launch date of January 15th. Officials say the project is still on track and should be ready this summer. However, while the government seeks a replacement for HCL, skeptics continue to sound warnings that parts alone will cost more than $35. We’d like to chalk this up to haters hating, but we can’t seem to forget what became of the $10 laptop.

India’s $35 tablet delay dashes hopes, destroys dreams originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Jan 2011 06:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After seeing Android tablets galore at CES, it seems strangely fitting that a device bearing the CherryPad moniker could top off this month’s tablet news dog pile. Specifically, Mobile Magazine is sharing “unconfirmed details” about a new 7-inch Cherry-branded tablet that’s said to run Android 2.2 “at a minimum” and feature a 1024×600 capacitive multi-touch display, front and rear three megapixel cameras, a 1GHz Cortex A8 cpu, and either 8 or 16GB of flash memory. Other goodies on the sequel’s spec list include an integrated HDMI output, accelerometer, microSD slot and even an unlocked GSM antenna. Unfortunately, these enhancements won’t be available at the old CherryPad’s $200 price point — which was pretty much the only thing the original had going for it. Instead, the new device is rumored to cost $300 to $400. The same source also reports that an official announcement is expected in just a few weeks, so in the meantime, we’ll pass the hours debating whether it makes more sense to name tablets after fruits or rocks.

Second-gen CherryPad rumored to feature better specs for a bigger price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Jan 2011 19:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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