Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Tegra 3 tablet gaming hands-on and pictures (video)

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  • November 12, 2011 at 9:22 am

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Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime hands-on

The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime 10.1-inch Android tablet is coming in December and it’s coming in hot. It will be the first mobile device to run on the quad-core (or should we say penta-core) Nvidia Tegra 3 chip. The Tegra 3 promises both amazing performance, with three times higher graphics performance than the Tegra 2, and as we’ve seen in our initial coverage, it will also offer better battery life, since it features a fifth low-power core which takes over automatically to reduce energy consumption.

The Eee Pad Transformer Prime is set to debut for $499 in December, while a keyboard dock accessory will also be offered, essentially turning it into a ‘laptop’, hence the the transformer part. It will initially come with Android 3.2 Honeycomb but a promised Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update will soon be in the works.

A Brazilian blog, Ztop, managed to get its hands on the tablet and has posted some first pictures of the Transformer Prime, showing off its thinness against an iPhone 4 and a Droid RARZ and getting friendly with the keyboard dock. There is also a hands-on video showing the tablet’s gaming abilities running the game Shadowgun; you’ll find it all after the break.
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Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core mobile chip revealed: more power, better battery life (video)

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  • November 9, 2011 at 5:23 pm

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Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core mobile chip

The Nvidia Tegra 2 monopolized Android Honeycomb tablets this year and we already knew that Nvidia had a successor in the works with the codename ‘Kal-El’. Today Nvidia has come clean with a host of new details on the project and the official Tegra 3 name, and yes mark it down as the first mobile quad-core CPU, yeah ever.

Nvidia is claiming that the new Tegra 3 chip will offer up to five times the performance of the Tegra 2 with its 1.3GHz quad-core Cortex A9 processor and three times the graphics performance with a new 12-core graphics unit. What’s more interesting is that Nvidia has included a fifth, low-power 0 to 500MHz “companion core”. When you don’t need the power afforded by the quad-core unit, the companion core takes over, taking care of light-weight tasks, like listening to music, or during standby. The chip is also intelligent enough to scale the main 4 cores between single, dual and quad-core modes on demand as well.
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Panasonic Toughpad A1 and Toughpad B1 rugged Android tablets announced (video, specs)

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  • November 8, 2011 at 12:46 pm

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Panasonic Toughpad A1 rugged Android tablet

If you find yourself in the freezing snow, under the scorching heat of the desert, getting wet or dropping your thing on the asphalt, then take note. Panasonic has just announced a duo of Android tablets for extreme handling and extreme conditions. Bear in mind that Panasonic is no stranger to rugged computing; it has long marketed the Toughbook laptop to military, law enforcement and heavy industrial users.

The new tablet duo consists of the 10.1-inch XGA LED 1024 x 768 Toughpad A1, which will be available next spring for $1299, and the 7-inch Toughpad B1, which will be coming in the fall of 2011. They both feature a military grade rugged design with water and dust-resistance.

The Toughpad A1 is an Android 3.2 Honeycomb tablet with a Marvell 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of storaga. It has a GPS receiver, optional integrated 4G or 3G connectivity, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 and 2-megapixel front and 5-megapixel rear cameras. What you would be more interested to know is that it’s military standard MIL-STD-810G and IP65 certified rugged with 4-foot drop rating, water and dust resistant and is safe for use in extreme temperatures from 14 to 122 degrees Fahrenheit. The chasis is made of magnesium alloy encased with ABS and elastomer.

Panasonic claims a daylight-readable 500nit LCD display with anti-reflective and anti-glare coatings. Embedded hardware security for FIPS 140-2 compliance with hardware encryption and software encryption. Panasonic hasn’t skimped on any features here and course all these add up, making the Toughpad A1 a 10.5x 8.4x 0.7 inch, 2.1 lbs (952g) beast.

Panasonic is marketing the tablet for business use, like law enforcement, healthcare, field sales, utilities and military.

You can catch a video of the Toughpad A1 getting some seriously rough handling after the break.
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B&N Nook Tablet announced, $249 shipping November 18th, a paler shade of grey (video)

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  • November 7, 2011 at 1:29 pm

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B&N Nook Tablet

We already saw all the details of the Nook Tablet, Barnes & Noble’s response to the Amazon Kindle Fire last week. Barnes & Noble has today officially unwrapped its Nook Color successor, and things are looking good for the book retailer.

The Nook Tablet shares the same unique Yves Behar design like the original Nook Color (which by the way is now selling for $199), save for a lighter grey paint job, and a slightly slimmer design. Inside however it’s been vastly improved. The Nook Tablet runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread underneath, but like its predecessor, the experience is very customized and is content and book centric.

It’s donned with a 7-inch 1024×600 IPS VividView touchscreen display and runs on a dual-core 1GHz processor with 1GB of RAM. It has 16GB of built-in storage and a micorSD card slot for up to 32GB additional space, trumping the Kindle Fire. You can check out how the Nook Tablet fares against the $199 Kindle Fire in our comparison. The Nook Tablet weights 14.1oz and is 0.48 inches thick. Battery life appears to have been boosted with a claimed up to 11.5 hours of reading or 9 hours of video.

The Nook Tablet comes with Netflix and Hulu Plus out of the box, and is capable of playing 1080p HD video. Other loaded applications include, Pandora internet radio, Chess, Crossword, Sudoku, Media Gallery, NOOK Friends and email. As with the Nook Color, you will not have access to the official Android Market, but rather B&N’s own Nook apps market — though it remains to be seen how fast this can get hacked and loaded with custom ROMs for full market access, like the Nook Color. Barnes & Noble is offering a new ‘Nook Cloud’ free storage service with the device and free trials for Rhapsody, MOG and Grooveshark.

You can pre-order the Nook Tablet today for $249 from B&N, shipping on November 18th. The Nook Simple Touch device, with an E-Ink display, is now just $99 (from $149) and has received improved rendering software for faster page turns, while, as we’ve mentioned, the Nook Color can be had for $199 (from $249).

A host of presentation videos are after the break.
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Nook Color price to drop to $199, getting update with Hulu Plus and more music services

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  • November 4, 2011 at 5:34 pm

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B&N Nook Color charging on a stack of books

Yesterday we brought you the news on Barnes & Noble’s upcoming tablet, the Nook Tablet, which will retail for $249. It only makes sense that the previous generation Nook Color, which currently retails for the same price, will see a price drop. B&N is planning to cut the Nook Color’s price by $50 to $199. It will also be getting a software update, version 1.4, with Hulu Plus and additional music streaming services from Rhapsody, MOG and Grooveshark with free trials — Pandora is already included with the NC.

We are still doubtful that it will have much success even at the discounted price, since the Amazon Kindle Fire will also retail for $199, while the more capable Nook Tablet is only $50 more. You can check out our Nook Tablet vs. Kindle Fire and the original Nook Color vs. Kindle Fire comparisons. In any case, it’s good news for existing Nook Color owners who will be getting more from their e-Reader/tablet soon. Even better, you can grab yourself a Nook Color for free, just by entering our simple giveaway.
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B&N Nook Tablet vs. Amazon Kindle Fire comparison

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  • November 3, 2011 at 7:13 pm

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Amazon Kindle Fire vs. Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet

Barnes & Noble is preparing its own 7-inch budget and book/magazine-centric Nook Tablet to rival the Amazon Kindle Fire. Where the Nook Color was lacking, the Nook Tablet has more than made up for it. On one hand, the Nook Tablet, has a faster processor than the Kindle fire, it’s lighter, has double the RAM and on-board storage and can take microSD cards. On the other hand Amazon has a huge cloud presence and a bigger library in terms of content — books, music, movies. The Amazon Appstore also has a bigger selection of apps. Confused? Well, we’ve got all the details for both devices for you in a handy comparison chart, which you’ll find after the break. You might also want to check our initial Kindle Fire vs. Nook Color comparison.
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Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet leaked; Nook Color successor to take on the Kindle Fire

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  • November 3, 2011 at 6:52 pm

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B&N Nook Tablet leak

So, remember the event that Barnes & Noble has scheduled for this coming Monday the 7th? Remember, when we were talking about a Nook Color successor to take on the Amazon Kindle Fire? Well, information on B&N’s new tablet/e-Reader has leaked ahead of the event, and we have it here for you.

The new device from B&N will simply be called the ‘Nook Tablet’. As you can see, it’s very similar in appearance to the Nook Color; but what you can’t see is that it’s thinner, at 0.48 inches (from 0.5 inches for the NC) and lighter at 14.1 oz (from 15.8 ounces). The Nook Tablet is getting a much needed processor upgrade, with a new 1.2GHz dual-core OMAP 4 processor, 1GB of RAM (double that of the Kindle Fire) and 16GB of built-in storage (again double the Fire’s capacity). You will be able to expand storage through the microSD card slot, something the Fire is missing.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus tablet uses Exynos SoC, is now shipping from Amazon

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  • November 3, 2011 at 4:23 pm

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus

Android handheld devices with dual-core processors are a dime a dozen (or so to speak) nowadays. But not many run on Samsung’s Exynos system on a chip (SoC). There’s the Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone and well now there’s the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus tablet. So what’s so special about Exynos? Well, pitted against the competing dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S3, NVIDIA Tegra 2 and TI OMAP 4 SoCs, the Samsung Exynos comes out as king. It’s got both serious processing and graphics chopping jaws, as was clearly demonstrated by some serious benchmark performance from the SGS II.

The Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus packs a dual-core 1.2GHz Exynos processor, a 7-inch 1024×600 resolution display (unfortunately it’s not AMOLED) with a 3-megapixel rear and 2-megapixel front cameras. The tablet runs Android 3.2 Honeycomb and was supposed to appear on U.S. retail channels on November 13th. Well Amazon US seems to have jumped the gun a bit and is already shipping the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus for the advertised price of $400. You are well warned now, if you were looking to grab yourself a skinny little performing tab.
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Motorola Xoom 2 10.1-inch and Xoom 2 Media Edition 8.2-inch Android tablets announced with UK and Ireland mid-November release date (specs, pictures, video)

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  • November 3, 2011 at 10:30 am

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Motorola XOOM 2 10.1-inch Android tablet - Home screen, front

Motorola has officially announced the Xoom 2 and Xoom 2 Media Edition Android tablets. We can’t say we are surprised here, as the two tablets have been long-rumored. The Motorola Xoom 2 is a business-centric 10.1-inch HD display tablet running Android 3.2 Honeycomb (obviously no Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich at launch as this is a Galaxy Nexus exclusive). It measures 253.9 mm x 173.6 mm x 8.8 mm and weights 599g (1.32lbs) – 100g lighter than the original Xoom.

The Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition, shrinks down to an 8.2-inch HD panel measuring 39mm x 216mm x 8.99 mm and weighing 386g (0.85lbs). Otherwise, in terms of specifications the two tablets are similar. Both run on 1.2GHz dual-core processors with 1GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. They have a Gorilla Glass displays and a splash-guard coating, something we’ve recently seen on the Motorola RAZR, to protect them against accidental spills.

Motorola claims that the Xoom 2 Media Edition will be easier to hold because of the smaller footprint, while it has a wide 178-degree viewing angle. Graphics performance is also mentioned to be 20% better than the original Xoom. The Xoom 2 also comes with a host of business centric applications and Motorola will be offering a stylus as an accessory.

There is no word yet on U.S. availability, but the two tablets will be available in the UK and Ireland mid-November. The Xoom 2 with initially retail for £325+VAT ($520) and £299+VAT ($480) for the Xoom 2 Media Edition. Motorola has confirmed that the two tablets will eventually be getting Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich shortly after Google provides the code to Motorola.

Full specs, pictures and video after the break.
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Nook Color 2 to be announced on November 7th, B&N sends out invites for a Nook event

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  • October 31, 2011 at 10:11 am

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Barnes & Noble Nook event

With Amazon preparing to ship the Kindle Fire on November 15 and the original Nook Color celebrating its one year anniversary in mid-November, we’ve been hearing a lot of noise building up on a second generation LCD touchscreen Nook.

Barnes & Noble has just sent out invites for a Nook related event for Monday the 7th of November in New York, and we would guess that the company will reveal the ‘Nook Color 2’. Although the original Nook Color doesn’t fare badly against the Kindle Fire, we expect that B&N would want to beef up the processing power of a Nook Color successor to match or supersede that of the Fire. It will also be interesting to see where B&N will price any new devices, to match or beat Amazon’s $199 offering.

In the meantime, why don’t you enter our giveaway for an original Nook Color.

The hottest Ice Cream Sandwich you will ever get: the complete guide to all the major new features of Android 4.0

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  • October 20, 2011 at 5:10 pm

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Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich

Google has advanced its mobile operating system by leaps and bounds in just three years and Android is finally maturing. The latest version of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, which was announced this week, brings a host of usability improvements, new features and a lot of polish.

Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) is a major upgrade, particularly for mobile phones, as it also brings Android Honeycomb functionality to smartphones. ICS will run on both smartphones and tablets. If you are new to Android, you might want to check out our beginners’ guide on what is Android ICS.

The changes in ICS are numerous and it’s easy to get lost in the details. We’ve compiled all the major improvements and new features of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich in a simple, compact list. Head over the break, for your large dose of piping-hot Ice Cream Sandwich goodness.
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HP TouchPad gets webOS update for better performance and new camera app

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  • October 18, 2011 at 10:40 am

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HP TouchPad webOS software update 3.0.4

HP had promised to continue to provide over-the-air updates for the now discontinued TouchPad and today we have the first proof of HP’s commitment.

HP has just released software update 3.0.4 for the TouchPad, which will be distributed automatically via Wi-Fi to all devices. The update is said to make the TouchPad snappier, something we’ve found was needed. The new software also includes a new camera app, again something that was lacking, improved messaging and several interface tweaks to make things look nicer.
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Stuff-Review giveaway: win a B&N Nook Color, leather case and 4GB microSD card

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  • October 12, 2011 at 4:55 pm

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Nook Color and leather cover Stuff-Review giveaway

We’ve decided it’s about time for another giveaway and what would be a better gift for a tech (and book) loving Stuff-Review follower than Barnes & Noble’s e-Reader/tablet, the Nook Color.

We’ve covered the NC extensively in our original review, and our overall opinion was quite positive. You can also check how it holds up to the one year younger Kindle Fire. We’re giving away our trusted review unit, running the official version 1.3, together with a B&N leather cover to protect your loot and a SanDisk 4GB microSD card to store all your extra media.

The competition is a simple tweet/retweet and follow until we reach 2,000 followers. To win, simply retweet or tweet about this competition (including @stuffreview and of course the link to the competition in your tweet) and follow us on Twitter. We will pick a winner as soon as we reach 2,000 followers and notify the lucky one, both on this page, and via Twitter.

Full rules can be found after the break.
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