With few days left for the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas to kick off, everyone seems to be excited about the new crop of tablets that are expected to be revealed at the show. CES’ tryst with the tablets started last year when Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer displayed the HP Slate, a Windows 7 based tablet at the show. It was followed by a bunch of other Windows 7 based tablets from a host of other players.
However, none of those devices ever made to production. The Slate did arrive eventually – but in the form of a niche corporate centric product. Meanwhile, iPad that was launched by Apple last year has been a massive success and was rated as the ‘Best Product of 2010’ by Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg.
A year later, the scene seems to be dramatically different. There was virtually a non-existent market for Tablets during the last CES. Now, we are looking at a complete new industry of tablets with a wide range of manufacturers giving their best shots at coming up with a decent competitor to Apple’s iPad.
Let us now take a look at a few of the noteworthy ones that might be showcased at CES this year. While some if these have been confirmed to be showcased at the show, a few others are still in the rumors list.
HP PalmPad
A reason for HP relegating the Slate to the tablet for corporates was because it purchased the fledgling smartphone company Palm in a billion dollar acquisition. HP now owns Palm’s highly acclaimed (but commercially unsuccessful) WebOS. With such a powerful OS in its arsenal, it was obvious move for HP to develop a tablet based on a modified for tablet version of WebOS. Although it is still a rumor, we do hope the PalmPad does make an appearance at the CES in some form. WebOS as you might be already aware is quite a mature platform and if HP does manage to get it right, it could prove to be a real threat to iPad’s domination.
BlackBerry PlayBook
RIM is most likely to showcase its BlackBerry Playbook at the CES. The device runs an entirely new OS based on the QNX platform. Unlike iOS, which doesn’t support Adobe’s Flash, the QNX UI is in fact powered by Flash. This also means that the Playbook can claim to offer a better and richer internet experience on the device since most websites still use flash technology. The PlayBook boasts of a decent array of specs that includes a 7-inch multi-touch ready, 1024*600 display and well speced front and rear cameras.
Windows 7 Based Tablets
CES 2011 will be a platform for many Windows 7 based tablets. Samsung and Dell are two companies that are largely rumoured to be coming up with these new Windows 7 based tablets. The Samsung device from what we know now is said to be a direct competition to the iPad and would boast of a similar screen size. A notable thing would be the fact that it would be a lot thicker than the iPad thanks to a slide out keyboard that it is expected to sport. Nothing much is known about the other Dell device. Then there are the EeePads from from Asus, which would also include a large 12.1-inch tablet called the EeePad 121. The Eee Pad series would also include a line up of smaller screened Windows 7 based devices. Another biggie that is expected to show a plethora of Windows 7 based tablets is Lenovo.
Android HoneyComb based Tablets
Probably, the biggest threat to the iPad and the upcoming iPad 2 are the wide range of Android powered tablets expected in 2011. Many of these would be showcased at the CES. The list of manufacturers coming up with these Android based tablets is endless too. HTC, Motorola, Samsung, Dell and lesser known players like Viewsonic and Notion Ink are all planning to showcase Android based tabkets at the CES. Motorola has already posted teasers about its upcoming tablet which is currently known by the name “Xoom”. The Xoom would be the first tablet to run Honeycomb – the tablet specific version of Android OS. Then we have HTC, which is already talking about its 4G ready tablet, the HTC Scribe. Dell’s Streak has managed to turn quite a few heads in 2010 and the company is set to follow it up with a a larger screened tablet at the CES called the Streak 7, which will come with a 7-inch display – 2 inches larger than the current Streak. Asus’ EeePad range would also include Android based tablets apart from the Windows 7 based ones we described earlier. Another Taiwanese brand, Acer is also planning its own Android powered tablet called the Iconica at the CES. Like the EeePad, Iconica too would be getting a Windows 7 version. Then there is the talk of Samsung coming up with the successor to the Galaxy Tab as well. The Galaxy Tab which is currently on sale comes with a 7-inch display. The successor would be a larger screened device and would run Honeycomb and might also get a keyboard.
In short, we are looking forward to a real tablet treat at this years CES 2011. It would be interesting to see if these new tablets would actually would be able to make a dent to iOS’ tablet ambitions – especially with the iPad 2 rumors getting stronger each day.
Do you see any of these contenders giving Apple’s iPad a run for its money? Should Apple be worried? Do let us know your views in the comments section below.
