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Evolve Three's Maestro C tablet has a swiveling bezel stand and a screen-protecting keyboard (video)
Evolve Three's goal of creating the world's most versatile touchscreen tablets seems to be going swimmingly so far -- first the boutique Australian outfit introduced the triple-booting Maestro, and now it's got an Oak Trail slate on the way with some most intriguing hardware. You see, not only does this Maestro C have a 1.5GHz Intel Atom Z670 inside, 2GB of DDR2 RAM and most all the bells and whistles you'd expect from a netbook PC, it's also got a bezel that physically rotates -- turning into a chunky kickstand and exposing ports at the same time -- and a removable wireless keyboard that doubles as a hard-shell protector for the entire 10.1-inch capacitive touchscreen. There's also a 32GB "high performance" SSD, optional 3G connectivity, a pair of stereo speakers and once again, three operating systems (Android 3.0, MeeGo and Windows 7) to choose from at startup. The only things keeping us from purchasing our customary two units is lingering worry that the other shoe has yet to drop... not to mention a starting price of $729, sans optional keyboard.
Evolve III Maestro slate triple-boots Android, MeeGo and Windows 7 (video)
We inevitably miss things at tradeshows, and here's one we regret -- we didn't catch this obscure Australian tablet in the flesh at CES 2011. Apparently, this Evolve III Maestro was casually chilling at Intel's booth with Android, Windows 7 and a 1.83GHz Atom N475 CPU inside, but representatives were willing to reveal grander plans if you spent a little time with the device. You see, come Q2 2011, the slate will graduate to a dual-core Oak Trail CPU, and add MeeGo to the stack for a grand total of three operating systems. TabletPCBuzz says Windows 7 and Android are getting eight and sixteen hours of battery life on the Oak Trail chip respectively, and the tablet weighs less than two pounds. It's hard to say what other features the Oak Trail version will have, but even the existing tablet isn't a pushover, with a 10.1-inch, 1024 x 600 capacitive touchscreen, 2GB of DDR3 RAM, up to 32GB of solid state storage, 3G and 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and a pair of full-size USB ports on one edge. Sources suggest the original will find a $500 price point, with the Oak Trail commanding an additional $100. After the break, you'll find a disappointingly static video, but follow the links below for a walkthrough of the MeeGo UI and all the specs you could want. [Thanks, Garf]
