Here is some bad news for die hard LG fans. The “Optimus Pad” tablet – LG’s answer to the Galaxy Pad as well as the iPad and every other device with a ‘tab’ or a ‘pad,’ suffix or prefix – will not be ready for a year end launch as was earlier announced. In fact, the Optimus Pad was slated for a grand unveiling at the IFA in Berlin, something that never took place. Consumers still had hope of the tablet making it to the market by the end of the year, though now that has also been deemed improbable. Instead, LG has made it clear the tablet can only be expected towards the beginning of next year. But here again, doubts continue to linger as some point out that the Optimus Tab won’t be ready till the middle of 2011.
The reason for the repeated slippages is this: LG is awaiting the formal launch of the Android 3.0 Gigerbread and has in fact cancelled the launch of the Android 2.2 powered Optimus Tab primarily on the basis of reports of the Android 2.2 Froyo being not optimized to excel in a tablet environment, being more suited to smartphones. And it’s none other than Google itself that has made the confessions further stating that their next version of the Android, the Gingerbread, will be the first Android OS that will be suited perfectly for a Tablet device. While the OS itself is open source, Google still maintains a leash on the App store, which means any tablet running the Android OS having version less than 3.0 won’t have access to the Android MarketPlace.
The hardware is ready at LG, the second largest electronics house in South Korea. What’s not ready is the software side of it. However, LG might still have the Optimus Tab to show off at the CES next year along with perhaps more concrete time frame as to when the tablet might eventually enter markets.
Lg’s decision has also come as a surprise to many as there already a lot of tablets in the market having the Android as the OS. There are some big names in it as well, like Streak from Dell that is currently based on Android 1.6. More recently, its domestic rival Samsung has also launched the Galaxy Tab which has been received well. What is also unique with the Galaxy Tab is that the tablet will have access to the Android Market in spite of it being based on Android Froyo. What this means is users of the Galaxy Tab will be able to choose from the thousands of available apps, though some of the apps might not perform to their optimum in the tablet. Even then, it’s better to have something rather than nothing. We only wish the same thing rings true with the boffins at LG dealing with Optimus Pad.
With a keen interest in tech, I make it a point to keep myself updated on the latest developments in technology and gadgets. That includes smartphones or tablet devices but stretches to even AI and self-driven automobiles, the latter being my latest fad. Besides writing, I like watching videos, reading, listening to music, or experimenting with different recipes. The motion picture is another aspect that interests me a lot, and I'll likely make a film sometime in the future.
