MOTOROLA XOOM
The Motorola Xoom is coming out this year along and it will feature the Android 3.0. These Honeycomb tablets will be a major competitor on the market as they will come at various price points and slowly edge out a nice slice in the pie currently dominated by the iPad and other Windows Tablets. At the moment, the Motorola CEO (Sanjay Jha) has stated that the Motorola Xoom (Wi-Fi only version) will be released at a price range of $539.99 - 599.99. The regular version is scheduled to be sold with an $800 price tag. There is no release date available but it seems that the Wi-Fi model will hit the US first, and then later be launched in Europe. We are hoping for a release date before April 2011. I first noticed the Motorola Xoom at the Verizon store and it caught my attention right away. It seems as if the iPad finally has a competitor that will give it a run for its money. This tablet is actually similar in its design to Apple's toy but seems more dangerous and wild. The device comes in at 9.8 by 6.6 inches and weighs 1.5 pounds. This makes it very easy to carry around without straining your muscles too much... but I still cannot imagine walking around with it the entire day. It is awesome that with each generation these gadgets keep packing more power and getting lighter. There must be some sort of limitation to how much we can do with them, but it seems that the end is nowhere near in sight and that keeps things very exciting. Features:
The Display Is What The Xoom Is All About Until some company releases a device which is as comfortable to look at as the Kindle 3 but capable of showing color and HD images as the Xoom can, we will always have to choose which one we prefer more. Some people simply use the devices differently; one might choose to read outside while the other only picks up a book before going to sleep. This is where the display matters, as the Xoom has an LCD screen which is better for reading indoors but not that great to look at right before sleep. The medical association states that watching electronic displays too close to bed time might improve the chances of insomnia. The Xoom's 10.1 screen (1280 x 800) makes it perfect for reading magazines and comics on the device. The aspect ration on the device feels a bit taller than the iPad but still crisp and clean. There are plenty of apps which allow for .CBR formats to be read on the Droid so this shouldn't be a problem for the people who deem this feature necessary. The screen has a high responsiveness rate which makes it easy to scroll, choose and select files on the screen.
For a regular user this gadget will be more than enough to do all of the tasks such as watching movies, browsing online, checking e-mails, listening to music or reading any of the eBooks out there. There will definitely be some nice games that also take advantage of the software as the specs of the Xoom match and beat some of the Net Books out there and those can be used for light gaming as well. Angry Birds for example is definitely playable. Speakers The sound is quite clear and works great at a mid-range volume level but cranking it up can produce some bad distortion and feels as if the speakers are getting damaged. Overall it works better with music and movies then the simple sounds such as an e-mail or calendar notification. The music app has been completely redone so you can forget the small and buggy media player from your Droid phone. This was looks and functions much better. It Is All About The Battery I believe that the Motorola should receive an award here. This little beast can play a video continuously for over 8 hours without breaking a sweat. This is better then anything I have ever seen before and is definitely its strong point. One charge could easily last you on a plane flight from the US to Europe and none of the functionality would be limited. Flying to Asia is a bit of a stretch, but I haven't seen any other tablet that could pull that off yet. The Cameras Being able to shoot pictures and videos from your tablet is always a nice feature to have but because of the size, shooting pictures might not be the most comfortable thing to do. It seems a bit ridiculous to have such a big screen in front of you as you attempt to focus on a person a few feet away but it does work. The main problem is that as with any of the other LCD displays, the sun glare during mid day is almost unbearable and you will not see much on the screen when trying to shoot a picture. The 5MP camera does produce decent shots as well as 720p video which does stutter at times but is still enjoyable to watch. I think that the front camera is more exciting as it allows for you to do video chats and other standard options which makes it a very cool feature. Is The New OS Better For those that have been following the Xoom, they might already know that the Honeycomb is basically a new version of the regular droid OS. The main difference that you will notice right away is that it looks like something taken out straight out Tron. The soft neon combined with the hard angles really made me feel as if I am in the movie myself. It definitely works and is one of the coolest ways to move around while retaining all of the regular features such as changing the wallpaper, opening apps and other tasks that you are already used to. Multitasking is possible as the device allows for more than one program to be open at the time. There is also a small indicator showing the time and the amount of battery life which is left. The browser is also bigger and makes this the closest to a netbook or laptop replacement that I can think of. If you are already used to the Google Chrome then you will simply love the browsing experience here. Carrying It Around At 9.8 inches wide by 6.6 inches tall (with a thickness of a half inch), the device isn't massive (albeit a little unwieldy when held in portrait), and its 1.5 pound weight gives it heft without killing your arms -- though it still strains your muscles a bit if you're holding the tablet up for an extended period of time. Applications Tested and Working:
Some Apps such as New York Times, and LogMeIn are not currently working. Not sure if this is to do with the actual OS compatibility or the way that the Xoom displays its contents. Do The Positive Outweigh The Negatives There is a lot to like about the Xoom as this is definitely the best looking and most functional Droid OS available. This also becomes its week point as it feels that, straight out the box, the OS is still in beta mode as you will encounter some glitches and bugs on your travels. There aren't many apps designed specifically for the device at the moment, but that has to do with the fact that it is still brand new. As the upgrades start pouring in, I think that this Motorola might really begin to shine and make a great tablet for anyone that puts their hands on it.
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How powerful is it