Acer's been busy doing a presentation over in Beijing today, and the highlight of the show was the first sighting of the company's 7-inch Android tablet. It's described by
Shufflegazine as "pretty fast with sensitive touch," though CEO
Gianfranco Lanci was apparently reluctant to disclose any of the specs. He told the gathered press to expect it in the fourth quarter of this year, which sounds all kinds of 2000-and-late, but we have to consider the fact that only a couple of months ago Acer was telling us it
wasn't going to enter the tablet realm
at all. What's interesting is that Lanci described network operators as an "obvious" sales channel, suggesting the slate has an integrated 3G module, while it also looks like the silvery bottom of the device is occupied by a QWERTY keyboard not unlike that found on
Amazon's Kindle. Interesting times lie ahead, that's for sure.
[Thanks, Imran]
posted May 27th 2010 2:56AM
I like that form factor.
@Devin
Looks like a color Kindle
@Wesscoast
Yep, does look exactly like a color Kindle. Should be very interesting. By Q4 2010, Android 2.3 (Gingerbeard) should be out.
However. if Acer wants to include Android market in it, it'll at the very least need a camera and a compass/accelerometer (and maybe GPS), given Google's current strict licensing requirements.
@Devin
Once Q4 comes around, there is gonna be a device twice as good, can't stand when companies do that and then expect you to buy the're product. Sony does the same thing (xperia, etc).
@seanGadget
You can't say that cause we don't know the specs! It could be anything
@Devin
yeah that looks like a nice form factor. Small enough to be able to hold in 2 hands and thumb type + physical keys!
@Wesscoast and the guy looks like another Ballmer holding an HP slate.
@jakey Mmm.. Gingerbeard!...
o.0
@Devin Booo on the BEP quote. They suck beyond the ability of all words to quantify.
@Devin
its a good form factor. and call it a tablet instead of an ereader and you dont get criticized for it not having an e-ink display. good move, acer.
@sshole "Mmm.. Gingerbeard!..."
The stuff everyone throws away in January because it's dried out and tasteless.
@Devin
You can take it with one hand without having to worry about touching anything in the screen. Nice.
@Devin
love your avatar
Q4? So I'm guessing Q1 2011 for general availability then?
Looks surprisingly thin! And I like the addition of a keyboard!
Wow, this actually looks gorgeous!
Horse Shit
@assb10yr
Self-referential comment.
@Sogeking Takes one to know one FeckFace!
@assb10yr I don't think that comeback works in this situation.
I would love to see a tablet with a keyboard similar to this device but have the keyboard pull or slide out from the back of the tablet so the keypad is hidden behind the screen until needed. This would make the device a tablet that converts into a netbook lol.
@Crusader Rabbit you i would like an N900 style slider (with tilting screen)...i guess we will get there some day...
with and hard keyboard, its would be less annoying when you are holding it and typing it. This might actually clear on-the-go typing issues that iPad is facing.
@Vistronaut Horse manure!! Have you even touched an iPad let alone use it.
looks like borats manager, the only use I can see it this is casual browsing and emulators, is there an omnigraffle clone for android as that would be handy too.
Spoiler alert:
It will be laggy as all hell, and lack the key features we'd all expect it to have.
@jareth86
Spolier alert:
You are annoying as hell, and lack the brains to see this is a great device and gorgeous as hell. You sir are a troll.
@jareth86 spoiler alert, it will support flash.
@(Unverified) You seem to think I'm an apple fanboy; I'm just cynical. (and on a side note, any tablet that doesn't support flash is useless and not worth considering.)
More images and a video plz!!!!
Stupid companies! when are they ever going to get it? We want, 7 to 9" screen 16x9 minimum 720p AMOLED if possible, camera on the back 5 MP minimum, front camera capable of HD broadcasting, tegra 2 and able to receive and make calls from it with the latest Android OS. JUST DO THIS and win!!!
@operation northwoods
Yes, they are stupid. I mean that multi billion dollar company YOU run must be raking it in. What is it you make again?
@operation northwoods only Apple can do it fool
@operation northwoods I'm sure someone could do it, it just that companies expect that no one would pay the $1200 price for it.
@cloud858rk Actually, that'd be a ton more if I factor in the screen being 7 to 10 inches AND AMOLED.
@operation northwoods:
Don't speak for everytone.
Don't need even one camera. Don't need it to be a cellphone. Just Android with a good touch screen and maybe a keyboard like this, or a slide-out keyboard, an SD slot or 2, and HDMI out.
Everyone has different requirements. I can't see why someone would possibly want to take photos and make phone calls with a 9" slate device. The thing should focus on computing and media, in my mind.
v a p o u r w a r e ! ! !
@kyphem Acer? really?
Can I order a Froyo, 2ghz processor and a side of nividia Tegra 2 plz.
at least someone knows how to do it.
Where are all the 10inch tablets? They're releasing all small/crappy tablets and they'll wonder why the iPad out sells them all.
I'm really hoping Google will release a Google branded tablet this year to demonstrate what an Android tablet should really be.
@smitty5569 it'll happen, Eric Schmidt was talking about it a couple months, for under 400, it's gonna kick ass, but I'm feeling this too.
@smitty5569 They are running out of money now. Selling ads can only support so much free development. That's why their developer conference lasted only 2 days.
@smitty5569
Small does not equal crappy. 7" is plenty large. If you use the 4.3" screens you will understand that even at that relatively small size, it's big enough to pretty much do anything comfortably except browse magazines.
Bump it up to 5" - 7" and it's a perfect balance between mobility and usability. 10" is too damn big. Devices at those sizes are in-situ devices or carry short-distances-during-use devices and they must be cradled.
7" means you will be able to treat it very similarly as a mobile tablet/phone form factor and still gain the benefit of the larger screen.
If I had an option to buy an iPad sized device and a device of this size I would buy the 7" device and will even pay more for it (provided it has functionality).
Wonder if this is also going to end up with a < 6-hour battery.
Now this is what Engadget should be calling BREAKING news!
If this thing can act is a color e-reader for magazines and such and is $299 I will seriously consider buying.
@TheHypnotist You're assuming magazines will make their content tailored for this thing. That's a huge assumption.
Price it at 300 bucks, Stewie will feel the heat :D
That's just a big Acer phone/media player