tablets

Will Amazon produce its own Android tablet?

As we reported, a recent New York Times blog post suggests that Amazon is looking into producing more hardware beyond the Kindle. Ironically, Lab126, the division of Amazon that is behind the Kindle, is located in Cupertino, Calif., not far from Apple. And Nick Bilton at the Bits Blog points out that the job board at Lab126 has "a flurry of listings related to electronics hardware, with titles like supply chain project program manager, hardware engineer and RF systems engineer."

While some of the positions will be devoted to future generations of Kindle devices that may integrate touch screens and color (last year, Amazon acquired Touchco, a multitouch hardware company), Bilton says "there's also a good chance these engineers will be recruited to build other gadgets that Amazon is prototyping in its secret labs."

The question, of course, is what sort of gadgets could Amazon be looking into building? Well, one of the anonymous sources in the article gives a small hint, saying that "more hardware products would be a means to an end and that Amazon wants to make more devices for consumers that would enable simple purchasing of Amazon content including its digital books, music and movie rentals and purchases."

I know from speaking to Ian Freed, Amazon's vice president of digital (yes, that's his title), that one of the things that Amazon loves about the iPad is that it allows users to access and purchase Amazon products, whether it's e-books or anything else Amazon sells. The article states that Amazon looked at entering the mobile phone business (again, according to anonymous sources), but that the project seemed "out of Amazon's reach."

So, in my mind at least, the most logical extension of Amazon's vision--and the product that it makes the most sense for it to build and sell--is a small Android-powered tablet that manages to undercut the pricing of Apple's competing iPad products. (I use the plural because Apple is rumored to be prepping a smaller iPad. Whether that's true or not is anybody's guess). … Read more

Dell Streak officially priced for U.S.

For everyone who's been waiting for a real Android tablet to step forward and stand up to the iPad, the Dell Streak is finally making its way to the U.S.

Officially priced today at $299 (with two-year AT&T contract) or $549 contract-free, the Dell Streak will be available directly from Dell as early as this Thursday.

All you Android fans who've registered for presale priority will be given first crack at ordering, along with free two-day shipping. General orders will open up on Friday.

Is it a good deal? We're not thrilled that the … Read more

HP readying WebOS tablet for early 2011?

A few tidbits about Hewlett-Packard's plan for WebOS are leaking out from a company meeting held Monday.

Engadget said Tuesday it heard from several "trusted sources" present at the all-hands employee meeting that HP Senior Vice President Todd Bradley pointed to the first quarter of 2011 for when the company would be shipping a tablet loaded with WebOS. The sources also reported that the internal code name for the project is Hurricane.

Bradley, the former CEO of Palm, heads up HP's Personal Systems Group, which absorbed Palm in July, along with its mobile operating system, WebOS. … Read more

Lots of Android on Verizon's leaked roadmap

Boy Genius offered a load of dish Monday on Verizon Wireless' roadmap through 2010 and 2011. Some of the rumored devices we've heard about already, but not everything has been discussed before. According to the tipster, Verizon will have a Motorola Droid Pro global phone by November, two other global handsets from Samsung and HTC, a Moto Android device that will resemble the company's long-departed Q smartphone, and Android-powered tablets from Motorola and Verizon. And on the 4G front, Boy Genius predicts that Verizon will have LTE service across 75 percent of the country by April 2012 and … Read more

Bill Gates on giving, batteries, tablets, and more

NEAR LAKE TAHOE, Calif.--Bill Gates says it's gratifying to see the computer industry that he helped start turn some of its attention to broader societal challenges.

"I think there's increased awareness of using innovation to help in more than just profit making," Gates told CNET in an interview on Friday, following his speech at the Techonomy conference. "When I think back to the conferences I went to earlier in the industry, we were pretty darn focused on popularizing software and personal computing. Nothing wrong with that, but it's nice to see the evolution.&… Read more

Best Buy getting into tablet market?

Robert Stephens, CTO of Best Buy and founder of Geek Squad, has tweeted photos of a tablet that the company could be working on to sell under its Rocketfish brand.

There's not much to know about the device yet, such as what OS it will run. In a follow-up tweet to another user who asked if it will run Android, Stephens said Friday, "The question is: Is 2.2 ready for the tablet interface?" I think it is, though not without some work on the UI.

The tablet device looks very similar to the maybe-defunct HP Slate, … Read more

Report: Motorola, Verizon prepping media tablet

Motorola and Verizon are working together to produce a tablet specifically for watching television content, according to a report in the Financial Times on Tuesday.

The tablet is said to have a 10-inch screen and will use Google's Android operating system. The premier feature of the tablet will be the ability to access Verizon's FiOS cable service from it, according to the FT's anonymous sources. The tablet is said to be "thinner and lighter than the iPad," and will allow tethering. It will also support Adobe Flash, according to the report. There will also be … Read more

Report: Next iPad likely to include camera

The next version of the iPad is likely to sport the camera that many were hoping would be on the first model, at least according to information uncovered by AppleInsider.

A document of Apple's iPad management policies, which let IT departments govern the features that corporate users can access, makes mention of the ability to disable the use of the camera. AppleInsider believes this offers some evidence that the company is planning to add a camera to upcoming models.

As a further breadcrumb, AppleInsider also cited a job listing from Apple for a "Performance QA Engineer, iPad Media&… Read more

The iPad evolved: Four killer features

At first a bit of a utilitarian mystery, the iPad has evolved, for me, into a practical device.

A previous post notwithstanding, the iPad 3G has finally become, practically speaking, what it is: a tweener device, but one staking out distinct territory between a smartphone and a laptop.

3G and weight: these, I have come to realize, are two of its best features. Thanks to 3G and its gossamery 1.5-pound portability, I can whip it out anywhere and work, navigate with the GPS, or just relax. And I am doing this with increasing regularity sans laptop.

Always on, always … Read more

Report: RIM's Blackpad set to take on iPad

Rumors about a Research In Motion touch-screen tablet are gaining momentum.

First we heard that RIM would make a tablet that would have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity and arrive by December. Then we heard that RIM bought the domain Blackpad.com. The latest comes from Bloomberg, which on Friday posted a report citing two anonymous sources saying RIM's Blackpad is coming by November--and it's coming to take on Apple's iPad.

The tablet will be called the Blackpad, according to Bloomberg. Its touch screen will measure 9.7 inches, similar to the iPad, and the price will be &… Read more