Toshiba previewed its first Android-powered tablet for the U.S. market. Featuring a 10.1-inch diagonal widescreen HD display, the tablet is well-equipped with stand-out performance and features, plus smart technologies that adapt to the way you want to use it. - Photo CES
The new Toshiba Tablet was formally unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show is Las Vegas this week. It is the first is a series of tablet computers coming from the company.
As Philip Osaka, director of product marketing at Toshiba, put it, “We feel it will be the start of a family of products.”
Many consumer electronics and notebook computer makers are diving into the tablet-making business, but Toshiba is the one among them with the most experience with portable electronics.
“We were first with the clamshell laptop in 1985, and we feel the tablet is the next evolution of computing,” Osaka said.
The aim is for the new tablet to function using Google’s operating system Android Honeycomb, which is tentatively expected to come out this summer, if not sooner. Toshiba’s Tablet is set to ship to retailers at around the same time.
The demo model up for inspection at the trade show was running a different Android system, so an exact sense of its ultimate functionality was not possible. One bonus over the Apple iPad, however, is that the Toshiba Tablet will run Adobe Flash.
CES, the world’s biggest trade show for consumer electronics, officially starts Thursday but preview events have been taking place at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show is expected to draw some 126,000 people.
In 2011, global sales for consumer electronics are expected to increase by 10 percent to $964 billion. A big part of that number will be smartphones and televisions, but tablet computers are also likely to gain in popularity as more companies unveil models at the trade show.
Compared to the Apple iPad, according to ConsumerReports.org, most tablet computers were disappointing. The Toshiba Tablet will offer functions the iPad does not provide, such as camera, memory-card and Flash video.
Other innovative products at CES 2011 include 3D TV Technologies by Vizio and LG. Color e-book readers from Mirasol that uses less power. 4G powered phones and car connection solutions implementing 4G from car makers, Ford and Audi.