Samsung and Acer set to compete with iPad with new Android offerings
The Samsung Galaxy Tab, Acer Iconia Tab, Eee Pad Transformer, Kindle Fire and HTC Flyer enter the tablet market
by Robin Schroffel
Will 2012 be the year of the Android? Google’s open-source operating system has been growing in popularity ever since the first Android-equipped mobile phone, the HTC Dream, went on the market in late 2008. Just over a year later, sales of mobile handsets using Android began surpassing Apple’s iPhone in Japan and the U.S., and by mid-2011, downloads from the Android Market were outpacing those from the iPhone’s App Store by 13 per cent.
Android’s growth shows no signs of slowing, and it appears that Google and its manufacturing partners now have their eyes on taking over a tablet market that has been dominated by Apple to date. Apple’s lead over Android in the tablet market will almost certainly last longer than it did in the mobile handset space – Apple more or less invented the tablet market, after all – but it may only be a matter of time before it disappears.
This is a reflection of the ongoing evolution of the tablet market. While tablet culture still tends to revolve around recreational activities like playing Angry Birds – a March survey from Google’s AdMob team indicated that the top five things tablet users are doing are gaming, surfing, emailing, reading the news and accessing social networks – their utility as a business tool is fast becoming apparent.
They can be a useful alternative for on-the-go email and Internet, as well as being a powerful option when delivering presentations to clients. Most important, perhaps, is their ability to combine portability and viewability, something that’s particularly useful when you need to bring your key documents and spreadsheets on the road with you. That’s particularly true of the new wave of Android-powered tablets. Some analysts believe that they foretell the future of the tablet market, one that is focused as much on function as form.
This isn’t to suggest that the Android tablets are ugly – far from it, in fact. From the award-winning tablet-notebook hybrid Asus Eee Pad Transformer, which won the 2011 Stuff.tv Gadget of the Year award, to the ultra-thin Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, many of these not only measure up to Apple’s product but also come at considerably more attractive price points. For those who aren’t married to a particular brand, it’s an option well worth considering.
THE ESSENTIALS
| Optimal Prime
Perhaps the best feature of this tablet is that it bridges the gap between notebook and tablet with a unique clip-on keyboard dock accessory. The QWERTY keyboard includes keyboard complete with dual USB ports and a battery extension that can increase the tablet’s 9.5 hours of battery life to 16. And unlike the vaunted iPad 2, the Eee Pad Transformer supports Adobe Flash 10.2. |
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| Galactic Invader
Weighing in at only 380 grams, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is aesthetically quite similar to iPad 2. It has a seven-inch touch screen and is extremely thin, with durable Gorilla Glass that displays colours with exceptional brightness. The Galaxy Tab offers mobile printing capabilities and a power-saving mode that kicks in when the battery is low, something that’s rare among tablets. |
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| Hot Stuff
The Kindle Fire from Amazon isn’t available in Canada yet, but it offers a standard seven-inch colour touch screen with an extra-wide viewing angle perfect for magazines, books, movies and TV shows. At 413 grams, it’s easily transportable, and its eight gigabytes of internal memory can hold 80 apps plus up to 10 movies, 800 songs or 6,000 books. |
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| High Flyer
In many ways, the HTC Flyer is the most grown-up of the Android tablets. Major selling points include its Wi-Fi printing capabilities, a digital pen that can be used for signing, highlighting and annotating digital documents and note-taking software that allows users to add photos and sound to notes as well as make audio recordings of meetings. |
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| Ace High
With its 10.1-inch screen, the Acer Iconia Tab A500 is a bit on the bulky side compared to most tablets, but those who enjoy a full screen size will be thankful for it. The well-travelled will appreciate its travel pack adapter with multiple AC converters, which makes it possible to plug in no matter where you are. |
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