Velocity Micro's Cruz Tablet has Android 2.1 with full Flash support

Some alleged spy shots of a brand-new Android tablet materialized in our inbox this afternoon, and after sending a few e-mails and making a quick phone call, we can confirm they're 100 percent legit: boutique PC retailer Velocity Micro's getting in the tablet game something fierce, with a whole new lineup of touchscreen devices it's dubbed "Cruz." Designed to compete with both e-readers and tablets, Cruz will appear in both 4 x 3 and 16 x 9 configurations over the coming months, with the high-end devices sporting 7-inch capacitive multitouch screens, 800MHz processors and Android 2.1 (complete with Flash 10.1) right out of the box. Best of all, Velocity Micro tells us they'll be relatively affordable -- all will arrive under the $300 line. A company rep couldn't tell us whether Android Market would be included or when exactly the tablets are due, but he hazarded a guess of "late summer." Hit up our gallery to see the first prototype.

[Thanks, Kendall]

Velocity Micro Cruz Tablet prototype

[ashleythehottiest Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:14PM]

Wonder what type of measures they took to keep it under $300.

[GenericMessage Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:16PM]

@ashleythehottiest


You'll notice most of the little android tablets are under $300.

I think its the Android part itself. No licencing fees maybe?

[pauldyhugs Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:17PM]

@GenericMessage agreed, no licensing fees= lower overhead= better for consumers! thank you google!

[kingofwale Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:17PM]

@ashleythehottiest

well, when you don't have to charge the Apple tax, I'm sure it's do-able.

[Chizzed Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:53PM]

@ashleythehottiest

Yea I'd definitely love to see a run through with this device before purchasing. Sounds really good, so probably something missing from the overall experience.

[SCXFAN Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:00PM]

@kingofwale Just when I thought I was about to read something original, I was proven wrong with the old so old "Apple tax" comment.

Trolls will be trolls, now and forever.

[DrDr Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:10PM]

@ashleythehottiest

Shitty LCD, slower CPU than the iPad, didn't spend a dime on software development.

Apple made many compromises with the iPad, but a good display was not one of them. I want a tablet that is a direct replacement for a kindle, and none of the competitors measure up.

[ac2913 Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:14PM]

@DrDr

screen looks like it stinks....the pics are NOT 2.1..looks like 1.5/6 cant tell....still affordable though...

[reiththestud Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:30PM]

@ac2913
I downloaded the android SDK and ran the 2.1 emulator. That's the background that boots up by default. So it's not out of the question for this to be 2.1

[Anatidae Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:40PM]

@ashleythehottiest After seeing Apple's quarterly statement, I wonder if they could sell their high end iPad for $300 or so and still make a profit.

[jwdav Posted Apr 23rd 2010 2:14AM]

@Anatidae After seeing Microsoft's financial statement, I wonder if they could sell Office for a buck and still make a profit.

[305BuddyLuv Posted Apr 23rd 2010 8:34AM]

Am up to buy one.

[Duckman Posted Apr 23rd 2010 5:44PM]

@reiththestud width of the app drawer button says 2.1 to me

[jessamorkans Posted Apr 26th 2010 10:43PM]

@ashleythehottiest Price is $199 for the CruzReader and $299 for the CruzTablet. They're both the same hardware, pretty much, with the Tablet having a 2MP web cam, included charge dock and multitasking ability. Reactions. http://j.mp/velocity-micro-cruz-impressions

[dimithra Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:15PM]

I think its about time you go home Sean (bro)

[sajd4000 Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:15PM]

every company is releasing its dragon!!

[kingofwale Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:16PM]

If it doesn't have Flash, THEY BLEW IT!!!!!

[pauldyhugs Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:18PM]

@kingofwale Android 2.1 (complete with Flash 10.1) right out of the box. read the post...........

[SolidSnake Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:30PM]

@kingofwale
This joke was funny 2 weeks ago. Now it's just... Meh

[credo Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:40PM]

@SolidSnake
If its not funny... Oh never mind.

[reiththestud Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:17PM]

Looks good. I hope this android tablet thing catches on and more developers start getting onboard. So long as the hardware is as elegant the iPad. As for the HP Slate, yeah, desktop OS's should stay on the desktop.

[SCXFAN Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:01PM]

@reiththestud For under $300?

Don't worry,it won't be.

[reiththestud Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:25PM]

@SCXFAN
You might have a point there. But for $300, it will probably have a lot less smug.

[xGigglesx Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:18PM]

you know i wish these tablets would come out already >> or at least have a release date when they are unveiled

[Kwame Nkrumah Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:28PM]

Is this another Joojoo?

[McNinja Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:32PM]

@Kwame Nkrumah Is this another troll post?

[Kwame Nkrumah Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:33PM]

@McNinja

Are you another idiot?

[Kamil R Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:39PM]

@Kwame Nkrumah
Are you another hopeless apple fanboy? Too much and it can corrupt yo... ohh wait.

[Chizzed Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:41PM]

@McNinja

Yea lack of Apple branding equates to immediate hate from Kwame.

[Jacob1 Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:48PM]

@Kwame Nkrumah No it is not another Joojoo. It's affordable, runs Android, and looks much more compact. Why do you ask?

[JojoMojo Posted Apr 23rd 2010 4:03AM]

@Jacob1 Really? It looks uglier than the JooJoo to me. Although it is cheaper, I will give you that. Seems to be made of cheap components IMO.

[MattsZ Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:32PM]

Everything looks good on paper, but full flash, 7" screen, ~$300 price range...

After 1 hour of Hulu, you can call it quits until the next recharge.

[DonnyChi91 Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:54PM]

@MattsZ Why is it that whenever someone announced a Tablet with Flash, people immediately say "So much for battery life" You do realize that Flash is only running if you view it, right? If you want to mind your battery, then don't use it.

A device that doesn't do anything will have long battery life. But what's the point if it doesn't do anything? What's the point of a media tablet if I can't view all or even most media? Or a web device that can't view all the web.

[N900 Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:58PM]

@DonnyChi91 It's basically a "grasping for straws" argument.

[MattsZ Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:13PM]

@N900 Grasping for straws? Really?, this isn't a device I'd purchase to read books on, is it really grasping at straws when I'm mentioning a feature that this product is anchoring on? Get a grip, the strongest marketing point on this device is actually it's weakest points, full flash 10.1 isn't designed for a device like this in the first place.

[cloud858rk Posted Apr 23rd 2010 1:22AM]

@MattsZ Running flash isn't going to use anymore battery than watching a non-flash video would. Flash 10.1 offloads onto the GPU.

[raiden8383 Posted Apr 23rd 2010 2:01AM]

@cloud858rk That is what I am about to say.

[erikreinertsen Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:48PM]

I think it needs even more price differentiation. $300 vs $500 for the iPad (which, let's be honest, is the measuring stick right now)? It's not just functionality, it's screen real estate too. Doesn't help that it looks cheap too.

But hey, if the dock comes included, that's another point against Apple.

[AndrewNeo Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:50PM]

Funny.. those pictures are of a device running 1.5 or 1.6, not 2.1..

[DrDr Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:11PM]

@AndrewNeo

Maybe not. I don't think we have ever seen a truly vanilla build of 2.1.

[Programmer Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:35PM]

@DrDr

The Droid and the Nexus One are Vanilla Android 2.1

[aseaofflames Posted Apr 23rd 2010 3:08AM]

@Programmer But the calendar, gallery and music icons are different than the ones on my droid running 2.1

[Cheetoh Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:52PM]

When I first saw this, I was searching for the Android version. Then I saw the headline. I felt very stupid.

But, yey! Flash! Velocity Micro also makes some good products also, in my opinion.

[Raikus Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:57PM]

Price is $199 for the CruzReader and $299 for the CruzTablet. They're both the same hardware, pretty much, with the Tablet having a 2MP web cam, included charge dock and multitasking ability.

More specs and details here: http://besttabletreview.com/velocity-micro-unleashes-the-cruz-android-2-1-tablet-and-ereader/

[timotim Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:58PM]

Forgive me but, Im not really understanding the whole sub 8" tablets. Whats the appeal? Who needs a five " tablet?

[zsmorr Posted Apr 23rd 2010 2:19AM]

@timotim
Who needs a 9.7" tablet? The people that want them I guess.. I could see the benefit of a device like the archos 5 or dell mini 5. Something that does less than your computer, but has a significantly bigger display than the average smartphone.. and almost as portable... I wouldn't get one, but I can see why some people would.

[Fatherfork Posted Apr 22nd 2010 10:58PM]

"Late Summer"

[AstroSeven Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:03PM]

yay: prototype + speculated price + speculated release date. Sounds as awesome as wonder womans plane

A7

[schismal Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:04PM]

For as much flak as Apple (deservedly) got for making the iPad homescreen an enlarged version of the iPhone home with wider icon spacing, these unskinned Android tablets commit even more egregious crimes against UI.

And this is coming from an Android fan,

[AstroSeven Posted Apr 22nd 2010 11:08PM]

@schismal

thats what widgets and wallpaper changes are for. It would be a downer if this thing didnt support market.