Best Buy ‘making tablets a focus’ this holiday season, might stock one from Rocketfish
If you waltz into your local Best Buy today, you’ll find precisely one tablet for sale: Apple’s iPad . By the time this holiday season rolls around, though, that’ll all be different. We’ve heard from Steve Ballmer that Microsoft intends for Windows 7 to be powering quite a few tablet devices in the near future, but it’s been somewhat difficult to nail down exact time frames for release outside …
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Watch Before Playing: Finger Balance, Little Things, and Sniper vs. Sniper for Android
Sometimes the best way to figure out whether you should download a new game for the iPhone, iPad or Android platform is to actually see it in action. In this edition of Watch Before Playing, we bring you video reviews of hit titles Finger Balance for the iPhone and Little Things for the iPad, as well as Sniper vs. Sniper for Android.
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Apple iTV gets apps in September, says Digg founder
Apple has a revamped Apple TV dubbed iTV scheduled to launch this September, sources within the company purportedly told Digg founder Kevin Rose.
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Top 10 Android Tablets: Dell Streak Pricing, Sale Date Set
Enterprise Mobile Today: “Google’s open source mobile platform Android just surpassed Apple’s iOS in the smartphone operating system market in terms of sales for the second quarter, and the next big battleground looks to be the tablet market — where Android-based mobile devices will come up against Apple’s impressive iPad.”
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EA Mobile Brings Madden NFL to iPad for the First Time
REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—-EA Mobile™, a division of Electronic Arts Inc., and the world’s leading mobile games publisher, today announced that the fan-favorite Madden NFL videogame franchise is available on the latest digital devices and platforms reaching new consumers.
Read more on Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance

Apple Issues iOS Patch To Block Hacker Bonanza
Apple security engineers may have breathed a sigh of relief after issuing a security update Wednesday to plug some holes in the iPhone iOS, but now it’s time to take a deep breath and hope people install the update.
Read more on NewsFactor via Yahoo! News

Bill Gates on giving, batteries, tablets, and more
In an exclusive interview with CNET’s Ina Fried, the Microsoft chairman and philanthropist talks about his dual passions–software and saving lives–and what he’s up to on both fronts.
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Universal Mind Launches iBrainstorm
Universal Mind, a digital solutions agency, announced iBrainstorm, a multi-device collaboration tool developed for Apple devices. iBrainstorm lets users seamlessly share ideas between the iPad and iPhone, and was designed to easily collect and organize ideas in a collaborative environment.
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DISH Network Introduces World’s First DVR Scheduler App Optimized for the Apple iPad
DISH Network L.L.C., the fastest-growing pay-TV provider in America, today announced a free app for the Apple iPad: DISH Remote Access. DISH Remote Access is the first and only app from a TV service provider specifically designed for the iPad that allows users to control their televisions and manage their programming remotely.
Read more on PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance

White-box tablets spur low-density NAND flash pricing, says inSpectrum
Spot price of low-density NAND flash has gained strong momentum recently, thanks to demand from makers in China trying to product iPad-like devices, according to inSpectrum.
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RIM to challenge iPad with BlackPad
San Francisco – Blackberry maker RIM is adding its name to the list of challengers to Apple’s iPad. The company is expected to launch a touch screen tablet computer in November, which will work closely with the Blackberry smartphone ecosystem and which will be called a BlackPad, according to a report Friday by Bloomberg News.
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Reading on tablets is slower than in print, study finds (Ben Patterson)
Ben Patterson – It could take about 10 percent longer to read the latest Grisham thriller on your iPad or Kindle than it would on the printed page — but you’d probably have just as satisfying an experience doing so, especially compared with reading it on a desktop PC — a recent study found.
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Reading on tablet is slower vs. printed book
Reading on an electronic tablet was up to 10.7 percent slower than reading a printed book, according to a new study. Despite that, users prefer reading books on a tablet device compared to the paper book. Book – IPad – Reading – Paper – IBooks
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Reading Volume Outweighs Impact of Slower Reading Speed on e-Readers
A recent study found that readers using an e-reader such as the Kindle 2 read nearly 11 percent slower than reading the equivalent traditional printed page. While the study seems to suggest that tablet reading devices are inferior to printed books for consuming the written word, it does not account for the convenience and overall higher reading volume made possible by devices like the iPad.
Read more on PC World via Yahoo! News

Toshiba To Debut iPad-Style Tablets Later This Year
Add Toshiba to a growing list of PC manufacturers gearing up to compete with Apple’s iPad in the burgeoning tablet computer market.

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IPad, SchmiPad: 10 E-Readers and Tablets You Can Get Right Now
The iPad may not be out for several weeks, but there are still some excellent choices if you’re looking for a tablet-like device for reading e-books. We compare 10 recent e-readers and tablets.

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Sub $200 Android tablets arrives: is the iPad doomed?
Tech-No-Media: “When the $499 iPad tablet was announced last month, many journalists commented that the device was surprisingly affordable for an Apple product. This may not actually be the case however, as several sub $200 competitors running the Android operating system have appeared.”

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Apple has touched a new market with its iPad device, which is mid-sized tablet PC integrating features of smartphone, eBook reader and PC. Up till now, tablet sector has been under-performing due to high prices as well as limited functionality; they are outshined by normal laptops. Therefore, iPad may not face much competition from other PC vendors.

Google’s Initiative

In January, the search giant had released its own branded ‘superphone’, called Nexus One. After that, Google has also showcased its tablet based on the Chrome operating system. Now, it might worry Apple from the Google’s new initiative. It is predicted that the Chrome-based tablets will offer attractive features and various web based apps that may affect Apple iPad sales.

Earlier this month, a Chrome-based tablet has detailed that boasts a virtual keyboard, contextual control and multiple tabs for multitasking, or please users that requires simple functionality, like surfing the Web, checking e-mails or editing Office docs. The Chrome based tablets will be available later this year, which will use web-based operating system to produce more revolutionary product than Apple’s tablet.

Here, the feature discusses few advances in the Chrome-based tablet, which may pose a threat to Apple’s iPad.

1.    Google’s tablet is for multitasking

Apple has legacy to design products that are complete and the devices for the future. But, Google also knows how to remain on the top. Google will offer multi-tasking in its tablet, which is lacking in iPad. It is reported that you cannot switch over to Safari to read the news, if you are visiting pages.

2.    Web-based apps

Apple introduced its iPhone operating system in the iPad, but a Web-based operating system could deliver several features, which may include off-site storage of data that can be access wherever net connection is available. Further, users can also avail features of cloud computing on the Google devices.

3.    The Web Is the App Store

Apple’s App Store will offer over 140,000 applications available for download to its iPad. But, Chrome operating system will also have competitive advantage over others as the software does not require so many apps, because the Web is its app store.

4. Ubiquity is the key

Apple’s operating system is only available to iPad, while Chrome can run on various devices, which means users will have wide variety of PC vendors to choose from. Further, this means that there will be lot of competition between different Chrome based tablets, which give benefits to consumers with low prices. $499 for an iPad is a great price, but lack of 3G and small hard drive will transfer buyers to Chrome tablets.

5. Chrome OS for light weight systems

Chrome operating systems could not compete with Windows 7 or Mac OS X. But, it is suitable for netbooks and tablets, which comes with basic functionality like Web surfing and basic document editing. Just like Android platform, Chrome based devices can also offer multitouch options, which can match the outstanding multitouch experience of Apple’s iPhone.

Intel wants to put Moorestown chips into tablets
Intel is going after the tablet market for its low-power processors, including an upcoming Atom processor designed for mobile phones, the company said.

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Intel wants to put Atom into tablets
Slate PCs are next growth area for Atom Intel is going after the tablet market for its low-power processors, including an upcoming Atom processor designed for mobile phones, the company said.

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Tablets, Smartbooks Aim To Fill PC-Phone Gap
In the space between handsets and laptops, manufacturers are scrambling to make “smartbooks,” devices like Apple’s iPad. Freescale unveiled its smartbook at Mobile World Congress.

Read more on Enterprise Security Today

Windows tablets fall well short of the iPad
It will be a couple of months before Apple brings out its iPad tablet computer, but other companies are already preparing a new batch of tablets running Windows.

Read more on Los Angeles Daily News