Reports: Toshiba To Showcase Android Honeycomb Tablet With Tegra 2 Chips At CES
Toshiba is reportedly preparing an Android tablet featuring a dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 processor for release sometime in the first half of this year.
Engadget on Monday said Toshiba, which currently has a 5 percent share of the global PC market according to Gartner, will showcase a tablet running the upcoming Google Android OS, code-named Honeycomb at CES this week. The report also says the device will include Nvidia's Tegra 2 chip, a mobile Optimus 2X dual-core CPU that includes Nvidia's GeForce GPU capability and mobile 1080p HD video processing.
Although the device's name is not yet known, Toshiba's tablet reportedly features a 10.1-inch, touch-screen display with 1280 x 800 pixel resolution, Toshiba Adaptive Display technology, and a 5-megapixel rear camera as well as a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. The 1.7-pound, 0.6-inch thick device will come with USB and HDMI jacks, a single mini-USB socket, an SD card slot, GPS and Bluetooth support, and a spill-resistant rubberized back.
According to The Associated Press, Toshiba expects to launch the tablet by the end of June at a price similar to that of Apple's iPad, which goes for between $499 and $829 depending on configuration. The release will mark the first time Toshiba has offered an Android tablet device in the U.S, although the company says it plans to continue in this direction.
’We are going to embrace this category, and we are looking to develop a family of tablets,’ Jeff Barney, general manager of digital products for Toshiba America, told Reuters on Monday.
A number of manufacturers are adopting the Android platform for mobile devices. In May, Dell announced that it would launch an Android-based Dell Streak tablet. In July, Asus switched from Windows 7 to Google's Android OS for its EP101TC tablet PC.
Last month Andy Rubin, vice-president of engineering at Google, who is in charge of the company's Android division, offered a demonstration of Honeycomb , which is expected to be optimized for tablets rather than smartphones, as it allows applications to adjust to the tablet's larger screen and split its views to multiple panes.
Next: Reports Of Tegra 2-Powered Tablets
In addition to support for Google's Android Marketplace for downloading applications, Toshiba's tablet will include access to Toshiba Places, Toshiba's online marketplace for downloading content such as games, movies and music, as well as Toshiba BookPlace, its online market for buying e-books, according to The Associated Press.
Last month, several online reports said Nvidia's Tegra 2 processor is being adopted by several smartphone and tablet manufacturers and Digitimes reported that a number of them had placed orders for the Tegra 2, including HTC and Motorola. According to Tech Trader Daily, Citigroup analyst Glen Young recently said Samsung has placed a large order for Tegra 2 chips with Nvidia.