July 2011

Lenovo adds two similar, but different Android tablets
Added two new Lenovo tablets to our comprehensive Media Tablet Table. Both the Lenovo IdeaPadK1 and the ThinkPad Tablet have 10.1-inch 1280 x 800 pixel screens, run Android 3.1 on Nvidia Tegra 2 processors, have 2mp front and 5mp rear cameras, and weigh about 1.65 pounds. The difference is that the IdeaPad K1 is a playful consumer tablet available in different colors whereas the ThinkPad Tablet is entirely more businesslike with a pen in addition to multi-touch, a multi card reader, both USB and microUSB, and an optional keyboard that pretty much turns the tablet into a versatile notebook. [See updated Media Tablets table] -- Posted Monday, July 25, 2011

ARBOR launches 2.2 pound rugged POS tablet
ARBOR Technology of Taiwan has introduced the Gladius G1050, a slender but rugged 2.2-pound Atom Z530-powered tablet with a 10.4-inch touchscreen. Designed for point-of-sale and a warehousing and similar applications, the G1050 has strong data capture functionality (RFID, 1D/2D scanner, AF camera, keypad) as well as optional Gobi3000 WWAN. The device can also handle 4-foot drops, extreme temperatures and carries IP54 sealing. [See description and specs of the ARBOR Gladius G1050 POS tablet] -- Posted Monday, July 25, 2011

TouchType launches SwiftKey X for Android smartphones and tablets
TouchType announced SwiftKey X for smartphones and SwiftKey Tablet X. The launch builds on the company's original Android keyboard app SwiftKey that came out a year ago and has had more than 1.5 million downloads. SwiftKey X predicts and corrects by observing how a user composes text and then predicts what they will likely type next. It also uses cloud-based personalization that learns from a user's message history to offer a custom-fit prediction and correction experience unique on mobile or tablet. Finally, it conducts real-time analysis of the user's touchscreen typing precision to improve word accuracy and predictions. [See SwiftKy X page] -- Posted Friday, July 15, 2011

Detailed review: Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
Samsung was widely credited with offering the first serious competition to the iPad with their original 7-inch Galaxy Tab. Now they're upping the ante with the sleek 10-inch Galaxy Tab 10.1. Dan Rasmus took a detailed look at the elegant new Samsung tablet and found it to be a great value. But there are still some stability issues and he'd like to see more features. [See detailed review and specs of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1] -- Posted Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Projected-capacitive now dminant touch technology
DisplaySearch reports that projected capacitive became the leading touch screen technology in terms of revenue in 2010. Growth has been explosive since being popularized by Apple in 2007, and many tablet PCs manufacturers have adopted it. In 2011, projected capacitive shipments are expected to grow by more than 100% Y/Y, and will account for 70% of all touch screen revenues. Over 60 companies are supplying projected capacitive in 2011. -- Posted Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Toughbook H2: Panasonic drops a Core-i5 into its (formerly) Atom-based tablet
Panasonic announced the Toughbook H2, a rugged handheld tablet computer that appears to be the successor of the H1 Health and H1 Field tablets. The new H2 uses a 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-2557M processor for a major performance boost, though battery life remains at 6+ hours and there is still no fan. The rugged tablet (6-foot drop, IP67) receives Panasonic's "TransflectivePlus" 10.1-inch display that pioneered in the Toughbook 19, more memory and larger disks, and also external ports (USB, serial, LAN). [See description and specs of the Panasonic Toughbook H2] -- Posted Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Unitech unveils impressive PA690 rugged handheld
Unitech introduced the PA690 rugged mobile computer. Powered by a 806MHz Marvell PXA320 processor and running Windows Embedded Handheld 6.5, the PA690 has a large 3,8-inch touch screen with 800 x 480 pixel resolution. There's a 5-megapixel cameras that can also record VGA MPEG-4 video, a 1D barcode reader (or 2D imager) as well as RFID, GPS, dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, u-blox GPS, and 3.5G WWAN. The PA690 comes with two keyboard options, has a 5-foot drop spec, and IP65 sealing. [See description and specs of the Unitech PA690] -- Posted Monday, July 11, 2011

Apple iOS stats
In a July 7, 2011 press release, Apple announced that there now are more than 200 million iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users worldwide, more than 425,000 apps available, more than 100,000 native iPad apps, Apple has paid more than US$2.5 billion to developers, and more than 15 billion apps have been downloaded. Apple sure has come a long way since cartoonist Garry Trudeau relentlessly ridiculed the Newton. -- Posted Friday, July 8, 2011

iPad increasingly used by military
In an article entitled "The iPad goes to war," InfoWorld executive editor Galen Gruman discusses how military manufacturer Harris Corporation has been pitching the use of Apple iPads in all sorts of battlefield applications, doing the job done up to now by more expensive dedicated rugged gear. That's because the iPad is inexpensive, troops are familiar with the technology, and Apple designed the tablet to work in many environments (plus, presumably, the elegance and ease of use of the tablet). This is absolutely a trend to be watched by makers of ruggedized equipment. [See iPad goes to war] -- Posted Friday, July 8, 2011

comScore: Android widens lead, RIM drops to third
comScore has reported key trends in the U.S. mobile phone industry during the three month average period ending May 2011. The 3-month moving average of the 77 million US smartphone subscribers showed Anrdoid in the lead with 38.1% (up 5.1 from three months ago), Apple second with 26.6% (up 1.4), RIM dropping to third with 24.7% (down 4.2), Microsoft 5th with 5.8% (down 1.9), and Palm 2.4% (down 0.4). -- Posted Wednesday, July 6, 2011

TechRepublic cracks open the HP Touch Pad
Our friends at TechRepublic have cracked open another tech gizmo, and this time it's the about-to-be-released HP Touch Pad. Their verdict? Easier to take apart then the iPad 2, but more difficult than the Moto Xoom. The Touch Pad is built more like a PC, which is good for repairs, but it's also what makes it a bit thicker and heavier. [See TechRepublic crack open the HP TouchPad] -- Posted Friday, July 1, 2011

Laplink unveils new technology to reshape category
Laplink has been an industry leader in synchronization and file transfer since its inception in 1983. Now Laplink announced enhanced sync technology with a promise to "reinvent sync" with the new Laplink Switch & Sync and make it easier than ever to sync multiple PCs and Macs. Also included is a free transfer utility to automatically switch from a PC to a Mac, the only software of its kind. Unlike other software, Laplink says, its technology is a complete sync solution. Users define what to sync rather than copying files to separate folders to be shared across multiple devices. [See Laplink press release] -- Posted Friday, July 1, 2011

Detailed review: HTC Flyer
HTC was the company that practically put the Pocket PC on the map. And HTC has continued to make among the best and innovative smartphones. Now they are getting into tablets. Dan Rasmus took a detailed look at the handy 7-inch HTC Flyer, found some interesting innovation, but not a home run. [See detailed review and specs of the HTC Flyer] -- Posted Friday, July 1, 2011