For those who like to… ehm… get their tablets wet, Fujitsu has you covered with their new Arrows Tab LTE F-01D, which just got announced. The 10.1-inch Arrows Tab features a WXGA display, dual-core CPU running Android 3.2, 1.3 megapixel front and 5 megapixel back camera, up to 32GB of flash storage, not to mention that the tablet also is waterproof. Currently, the Toshiba Arrows Tab is set for a launch on Japan’s DoCoMo network next month, and it’s unclear if this tablet will ever see an international release.
Tablets news, reviews & info
Fujitsu launches waterproof tablet computer, the Arrows Tab LTE F-01D
Gateway A60 is an Android tablet with a dual-core 1GHz CPU and 5-megapixel camera
Gateway has began selling the Gateway TP Series A60 tablet, which is actually a rebranded version of the Acer Iconia Tab A500. This isn’t surprising due to Acer being the parent company of Gateway. The Gateway A60 packs a 10.1-inch touchscreen display with 1280 x 800 resolution, 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core CPU, 1GB of RAM memory, 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with AF, 2-megapixel front-facing camera, and 16GB of internal storage expandable with through SD memory cards. The A60 comes with Android 3.1 Honeycomb out of the box and features a variety of connectivity options; WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, and two USB ports. The battery is rated at 6520mAh, which according to Gateway will last you 8 hours. Gateway A60 has been released in Canada for $400 CAD.
Samsung Galaxy Note tops benchmarks and proportionally the price sheets too
The Samsung Galaxy Note, which can be considered an Android tablet/smartphone hybrid because of the 5.3 inches screen. This powerhouse that was introduced at IFA 2011 was benchmarked with Quadrant Standard by Greek site TechBlog. The results? 3,624 for this 1.4GHz dual-core CPU device. The 1.2GHz Samsung Galaxy S II hit 3,396, which means this device is even more powerful than the Galaxy S II. However, the performance is proportional to the price and so, the pricing of this device seems to be no less than €715 ($1,000 USD), which makes this phone pretty exclusive to certain customers who can afford it. Hopefully, the benchmarks are worth the cost, but getting an extra 228 on Quadrant Standard is probably not worth such a big price difference.
Why you should be grateful for Steve Jobs’ resignation as CEO of Apple
You have most likely already heard the shocking news that Steve Jobs has resigned as CEO of Apple. Immediately following this announcement, the world exploded with mixed feelings of his decision. Watching my Twitter feed, I mostly saw hateful comments along the lines of “I hate Steve Jobs” or “Angry about Steve Jobs resigning”. Some people don’t even know the complete story. One Twitter post read “I’m pissed Steve Jobs is leaving Apple”. Reality check: Steve Jobs did not leave Apple. In fact, he is holding a very high position at Apple that you should probably be grateful for rather than upset about.
Samsung Galaxy Note is the 5.3-inch smartphone and tablet hybrid
Here we have it, the Samsung Galaxy Note. To be honest, we don’t quite know what to make of it. With a screen on 5.3-inches, it’s an Android smartphone that’s too big to fit in your pocket, but the larger screen size however makes the device viable for other uses, for instance as a tablet. Apart from the huge Super AMOLED screen with near-retina resolution (1280 x 800 at 285 DPI), the Galaxy Note also comes with a 1.4GHz dual-core processor and a capacitive stylus, which undoubtedly will come in handy in your sketching and note-taking endeavors. It’s said that the stylus is pressure sensitive, which means that most Android sketching apps will have to be re-written to support the Samsung Galaxy Note. Pricing and availability is yet to be announced, but as usual you know where you’ll be able to find out first.
Lenovo announces IdeaPad A1 at $199
At the IFC press today, Lenovo announced the Android tablet IdeaPad A1 for $199. It’s a pretty sweet price, judging from the OS and the specs. This tablet is running Android 2.3 Gingerbread on a single-core Cortex A8 processor, with front and rear facing cameras and a 7-inch, 1,024 x 600 display.
Toshiba AT200 Android tablet: 10.1-inch screen, 7.7mm thick and 1.2GHz processor
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 isn’t the only 10.1-inch screen Android tablet on the market anymore, because here comes Toshiba with the AT200 tablet. Toshiba’s AT200 is only 7.7mm thin (almost a full mm thinner than Galaxy Tab), has a 10.1-inch LCD screen with a 1,280 x 800 resolution, TI OMAP 4430 CPU at 1.2GHz, and supports up to 64GB memory (if micro SD cards are used). The AT200 features a 5-megapixel rear camera and a 2-megapixel front camera. According to Toshiba, the AT200 will ship before the end of year with a promised 8 hour battery life.
HTC Jetstream LTE tablet launched on AT&T, costs a whopping $849
Previously known as the HTC Puccini, AT&T has now officially launched HTC’s latest tablet, now called the HTC Jetstream. The Jetstream has a 10.1-inch WXGA capacitive touchscreen, 1.5GHz Snapdragon dual-core CPU, Android 3.1 and HTC’s Sense UI modification for tablets. Although it’s the first LTE / HSPA+ tablet for AT&T, the price is steep at $699.99 USD on a 2 year contract, or $849 without a contract. If it’s any consolation, you’ll get a $35/month 3GB data plan with the contract, as well as the HTC Scribe digital pen accessory for free.
Sony preparing two tablets, the Sony Tablet P and Tablet S
Next month, Sony is launching two tablets; a foldable dual 5.5-inch screen clamshell called the Sony Tablet P and a more conventional tablet dubbed Sony Tablet S. These were originally codenamed Sony S1 and S2. The Tablet P will weigh only 370 grams and feature a Tegra 2 processor, 4G and WiFi connectivity, 512MB RAM, 4GB flash storage and a 2GB SD card and a 0.3 megapixel front camera. Tablet S will be WiFi-only and feature the same processor and camera as the Tablet P, but will instead weigh 600g, have 1GM of RAM and come in 16 and 32GB flavors. Both these tablets will apparently also be Playstation Certified which means that they’ll support PS1 games and other special content from Sony. Although price and shipping dates are still unknown, retailers have been told that more information is to be expected soon.
Amazon’s tablet will cost ‘hundreds less’ than iPads
According to the NY Post, Amazon will dive into a pricing war when they release their first tablets in a few months. Allegedly, a source tells New York post that the Amazon tablet will cost “hundreds” less than the iPad. The cheapest iPad currently costs $499, and to us, it sounds like Amazon’s upcoming 9-inch tablet will start at $299 USD.
HP’s price slash created immense demand for the TouchPad tablet, so we know that price is definitely an important parameter for tablets. Given Amazon’s track record for good hardware (i.e. Kindle), we’re sure the Amazon tablet will be a hit.
