The Motorola XOOM seems to be settling down finally so that we now have a clearer idea of what its going to cost. However, its going along expected lines here, which means one should be prepared to dig deeper into their pockets so as to have a XOOM in their hands. For the 3G enabled version of the Motorola tablet has been priced at $800 though there is some solace in the form of the Wi-Fi only XOOM which will come for 200 grands less at $600. This has been confirmed by Motorola Chief Executive Sanjay Jha in an interview with Reuters.
A $600 price tag for the Wi-Fi only XOOM seems reasonable and at par with the 32 GB Wi-Fi version of the iPad. However, the XOOM might steal the show here as the Motorola tablet come with a lot more features that are non existent on the Apple offering. As Sanjay Jha points our, “Competing with Apple you have to deliver premium products.”
However, Apple will enjoy a price advantage with the iPad 3G version as the same with 32 GB on board comes for for $729 compared to $699 for the Motorola offering. Motorola as yet does not have a XOOM with smaller internal memory though it definitely is better equipped than the iPad. Which means it will be an interesting contest here – a feature rich but slightly higher priced XOOM vs the iPad with less to offer along with less price.
Then there is also the Honeycomb factor involved. Google is already pegging the XOOM as the showcase tablet for the Honeycomb, the first version of Android that has been developed with tablets in mind. Apple’s iOS in turn is a mobile operating system optimized for use in a tablet. So there is also the Honeycomb vs iOS factor involved.
However, there are no release dates available as yet except that the 3G version is likely to hit stores sometime in February or March followed by the Wi-Fi version in April.
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.
