At the IFA show in Berlin, Germany we have seen many new e-readers and tablets being shown off, such as the ViewSonic Tablet, the BenQ Tablet, and the Samsung Galaxy Tab. All of those tablets are quite dandy, but today we got our hands on the new Toshiba Folio 100 Tablet PC!
This Tablet is great! Tt comes bundled with Google Android 2.1. Many people are reporting that it uses 2.2 out of the box, but that is not the case.
Now let’s talk hardware. This device has a 10.1 inch compacitive multi touch screen interface, with a resolution of 1024×600 pixels. The Folio 100 measures 28 centimeters by 18 cm by 1.4 cm. There is an Nvidia Tegra 2-processor under the hood and 16GB of built-in storage, which can be expanded using an SD card. Battery life should give you around 7 hours of constant use and WI-FI for surfing the internet. Toshiba mentions that there will be 3G support for this soon, as they try and get agreements with major telecom providers. You will also be able to use Bluetooth with the Folio 100, so you can use it for Skype phone calls. Finally, it has a HDMI port, USB port, and built in speakers.
Toshiba has loaded the Folio 100 with a mix of its own software and third-party apps. Each device comes preloaded with the Opera browser, Toshiba Media Player, FBReader, Fring (for video calls), Documents To Go, and Evernote. Toshiba has also decided to not rely solely on the Android Marketplace for apps, although it does have full access to it. The company is encouraging developers to create apps specifically for the Folio 100. Developers can visit this LINK to find out more information on application development.
The Folio 100 Wi-fi will be available in Europe in November for 429 Euro. The Folio 100 3G comes in Q1 2011 for 529 Euro. No word on American release dates as of yet, but we surmise with it should be around Q1 2011 for the WI-FI and Q2 with the 3G.
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Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
