It may have taken a long time for the competition to respond to Apple’s iPod and iPhone. Not so with the iPad: All sorts of companies — Google, Sony and Research in Motion, to name a few — are sitting up and taking notice of the iPad, thanks to Apple’s claim that it sold a million of its tablets in less than a month.
Since then, rumors of half-a-dozen new tablets have leaked out. Tablets haven’t been this hot since Moses came down from Mount Sinai.
But with all the news, there’s a lot of confusion. And, so far, none of the tablets are available for purchase, and most haven’t even been officially announced. It’s all vaporware at this point.
That said, here’s an overview of some interesting tablets we expect — or hope — to see this year. And don’t miss our earlier roundup of even more non-Apple tablets.
Verizon, Google Working on a Tablet
Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam confirmed last week that Verizon has been “working on tablets” with Google, combining hardware and Google’s services “to make it a great experience.”
Google hasn’t commented on this, but a few months ago it released a video of what a Google tablet might look like. Considering the company’s dominant position in services like search, e-mail, maps and calendars, it could be an extremely powerful rival to the iPad.
On the other hand, Google doesn’t have a lot of experience designing hardware. Its smartphone, the Nexus One (developed in conjunction with HTC) is far from becoming a smash hit.
Photo: nDevilTV/Flickr
Acer’s Tablet Launches in 2 Weeks
Acer is rumored to be presenting a tablet device in less than 2 weeks. Numerous sources suggest the hardware giant would be unveiling a Chrome OS–based device at the Computex show in early June. That would make it the first device to run Google’s operating system tailored for netbooks.
Yet, there have been rumors that Chrome OS might not be ready for prime time until later this year. That doesn’t necessarily mean Acer won’t be unveiling the tablet next month — it’s still unclear whether Google sees Android or Chrome as the ideal platform for tablets.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt said the two operating systems might eventually merge, but right now, Android’s popularity and multitouch capabilities might make it a more likely candidate for Acer’s tablet.
Dell Tablet Coming on AT&T in Late Summer
Dell’s Mini 5 — also known as Streak – will be coming this summer (Europe first, North America a bit later). It takes a different approach than most wannabe iPad killers: It’s significantly smaller, with a 5-inch display, and features a powerful 5-megapixel front-facing camera, 3G connectivity and a 1-GHz processor.
The Mini 5 will be coming on AT&T, running the Android OS. Smaller than a tablet but bigger than a smartphone, it’s an open question whether anyone actually needs a device this size.
Photo: Dell Mini 5 by nDevilTV/Flickr
HP Kills Tablet Project. HP Resurrects Tablet Project. Stay Tuned
First, Steve Ballmer appeared with a mysterious HP Slate at CES 2010 in January. Then, two months later, Hewlett Packard released a video of the device. Soon after we got some neat-sounding specs: a 1024 x 600 widescreen display, 1-GB RAM, USB port, 3-megapixel camera.
However, a leaked prototype was slow and buggy, and HP was rumored to have murdered the project entirely.
A new report says HP, which recently acquired Palm for $1.2 billion, simply opted to murder Windows 7 as the tablet’s operating system, and that it might go with Palm’s WebOS instead. The project is now code-named HP Hurricane and, according to an HP insider, could be released in the third quarter of this year.
Photo: HP Slate (HP)
Sony Still Looking at Opportunity
Consumer electronics giant Sony must be working on its own tablet, right? Guess again: The company refuses to commit.
“We have been taking a deep look at developing a tablet for a number of years, not just because of Apple, but because it creates some interesting opportunities,” Mike Abary, vice president of Sony’s IT Products unit, told Bloomberg last week.
If it does decide to join the grand tablet wars, Sony, with its popular PSP platform, could curb Apple’s advantage when it comes to mobile gaming.
But so far, all talk of a Sony tablet is just so much hot air.
Blackberry “Companion” Tablet
BlackBerry is looking to copy Apple’s “smartphone first, tablet later” formula, preparing a tablet-like device with an 8.9-inch display, according to reports.
Not a lot is known about it at this point. It is supposed to launch in December, and will serve as a “companion” device, which might mean you’d use Bluetooth to connect it to your BlackBerry and get online wherever Wi-Fi isn’t available.
MSI Tegra-Powered Tablet
Micro-Star International is launching a tablet powered by the powerful Nvidia Tegra chip, to be presented in June. The device will likely appear in stores this summer.
Users will be able to chose between 8.9- and 10-inch models, and between Android and Windows 7 ones. The pricing, according to Engadget’s report. will be “extremely aggressive.”
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