A pre-CES announcement by Freescale has furthered the speculation surrounding tablet PCs with rumours still circulating about Apple’s endevours into what is set to be one of the must-have gadgets of 2010.
The US company that produces chips for a range of tech manufacturers have made an impressive claim in not only revealing reference designs for a tablet PC, but giving it the highly desirable price point of less than $200 (around £125).
– Hottest gadgets and breaking news from CES 2010
Using their ARM-designed processor, Freescale claim that the tablet could run using Android or Linux operating systems and would include Wi-Fi and 3G capabilities. Although no potential vendors for the device have yet been announced, Freescale say they are confident the product could be available as early as this summer.
Labelling the tablet as the ‘missing link’ of computing, Freescale’s senior VP, Henri Richard, said: "The PC has been stale in terms of its ability to innovate. Smartphones have been making progress… but they have limitations,"
Whilst Freescale’s tablet design marks an important stepping-stone for tablet PCs, we are still left waiting for any confirmation of the highly rumoured and eagerly anticipated Apple tablet, with the widely predicted ‘iSlate’ expected to receive its unveiling by Steve Jobs by the end of the month.
Link: Freescale
