Windows 8 D9 demo

source – engadget.com/ By Ross Miller

Acer’s dual-screen Iconia laptop is bold, for sure — eschewing a physical keyboard for another display — but its LCD panels are also mighty glossy. If you’ve got a light in the vicinity above you, there’s gonna be glare — we saw it on stage, and we just saw it now in person. That said, the screen is clear and the touch functionality is pretty clever (five fingers open up a widget where you can scroll through other touch-friendly apps). The keyboard, on the other hand, is pretty hard to use — even the rep admitted there’s a learning curve. You can’t rest your fingers down without hitting something, of course. We managed to browse to Engadget, but it took several tries. Check out the photos below!

Update: Now with video! It’s after the break.

Acer Iconia first hands-on!

Oh, hello WindPad! MSI just took the wraps off its 10-inch, Windows 7 tablet during the company’s Computex press conference. The tablet is powered by a 1.66GHz Intel Atom Z530 processor, 2GB of RAM, and packs a 32GB SSD that boots Windows 7 Home Premium, though MSI has created a Wind Touch UI layer. While they were showing early prototypes, it will have two USB ports, an HDMI and a webcam when all is finalized. According to an MSI product manager on hand, the WindPad 100 will hit the market later this year for around $499. We just caught a few minutes with the tablet so hit the break for some early impressions and a short hands-on clip.

MSI WindPad 100 hands-on

The 10-inch tablet is made entirely of plastic — it does feel quite cheap, but on the other hand it’s incredibly light (it’s only 1.7 pounds). The prototype they had out didn’t have any of the final ports, but eventually it will have an HDMI jack that should be able to output 720p video to an HDTV. Our biggest concern about the tablet comes with the speed. We noticed it taking a few seconds for applications to launch, and the Wind Touch UI was incredibly sluggish. Speaking of the interface, it’s just a basic skin on top of Windows and should provide easy access to applications. The 1024×600-resolution capacitive display did seem responsive, though we would have rather it had a higher resolution.

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We don’t say this very often, but some products are just worth the wait. And well, the ExoPC Slate looks like it’s going to be one of those very products. After months of following along, we finally got to spend some quality time with the 11.6-inch slate at Computex, and came away surprisingly impressed. Read on after the break for our impressions of this Windows 7 tablet, what that funky UI is all about, and a video of the Slate in action. Oh, and after you’ve done all that, don’t forget to feast your eyes on the gallery below.

ExoPC Slate hands-on

When it comes down to size, the 11.6-inch ExoPC Slate fits right in between the 12.1-inch JooJoo and the 9.7-inch iPad. And though it’s better held in two hands, it’s still just as thin and light as Apple’s tablet. Overall, we were quite taken with the build quality of the prototype device we saw, and the fact that it manages to make room for two USB ports, an SD card slot and an HDMI out. There’s also a VGA webcam along the top bezel. Internally, the tablet packs an 1.6GHz Intel Atom N450 processor, 2GB of RAM and a 32GB SSD. On top of all that, the Slate promises full 1080p playback thanks to its Broadcom Crystal HD chip. While our experience with the HD solution has been flaky at best, we did witness a high-def clip play smoothly on the screen.

But the hardware and specs of the ExoPC aren’t what impressed us the most about the tablet. Nope, the capacitive touchscreen and the custom software layer on top of Windows 7 stole the show. While we found the 1366 x 768-resolution screen to be super reflective and ridden with poor viewing angles, it was extremely responsive to light taps, swipes and multitouch gestures within Windows 7 Ultimate and ExoPC’s own UI. And the latter is just the sort of thing we have been looking for in a Windows 7 slate. We’ve taken to calling it the Connect Four interface, but regardless of what ExoPC officially calls it, the Win 7 layer is incredibly unique and simple to navigate with a finger. Each of the circles can be customized to contain a different program or website shortcut and there are added setting controls along the peripheries. The video demo should speak for itself, but after just a few minutes of playing around with the device we had gotten the hang of closing apps by dragging them to the side and getting back to the main menu. Interestingly, the ExoPC guys aren’t just relying on regular Windows applications — they have created polished, touch-friendly e-book, music and photo gallery programs. They’re also working with other developers to create an app store. However, those that prefer a standard Windows 7 tablet experience won’t be disappointed — you can easily get back to the OS and they plan to ship it with a stylus for navigating menus / handwriting input.

Here’s where we’d love to tell you the wait is over, but unfortunately it isn’t. ExoPC has a ways to go in terms of working on the LCD quality and the UI integration, but promises that the tablet should be ready by early September for $599. Of course, we’ll believe that when we see it, but at least we’re one step closer to knowing that there are some very solid and innovative Windows 7-based tablets out there.

Update: Our bad for not mentioning the promised battery life. According to ExoPC, the two-cell battery should last five hours on a single charge, but a bit longer when playing video using the Broadcom card. We’d say that we’re probably looking at more like three hours with WiFi on, but we won’t know until we actually get to test it.

The MID is officially now shipping, with the base (chrome-free) model going for €199 (about $245).

Specs:

• 5 inch 800×480 resistive touchscreen
• CPU 667Mhz Samsung ARM
• Android 1.5
• 1GB built in storage + microSD
• battery life 6hrs
• car mount + car charger but no GPS nor navigation software

• Intel® Core™ i5-520M vPro™ Processor 2.4 GHz, 3 MB L3 cache) with Turbo Boost Technology
• Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 32 (MUI), Bonus Media: Microsoft® Office Professional 2007 60-Day Trial, Microsoft® OneNote® 2007
• 12.1″ WXGA LED backlight bright LCD with wide-viewing angles for better outdoor viewing
• Active digitizer (pen input)
• Intel® HD Graphics
• Built-in webcam with dual digital array microphones for video chat
• 2 GB DDR3 1066 MHz SDRAM memory (2 GB + empty slot)
• 160 GB S-ATA, 5400 rpm hard drive² (protected by Fujitsu Shock Sensor)
• 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN
• Intel® Centrino® Advanced-N 6200 WLAN
• Integrated Bluetooth Wireless
• Modular Dual-Layer Super-Multi DVD Writer
• Embedded Fingerprint Sensor, integrated TPM, Security Panel
• Integrated ambient light sensor³
• Full-size, spill-resistant keyboard with touchpad (includes scroll sensor)
• High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) port
• User-cleanable dust filter
• Main battery: Lithium ion (6-cell, 5200 mAh)
• One-year International Limited Warranty

The price of the unit comes to show that for now only business will benefit from it.

source – alltouchtablet.com

This is just a rumor at this point, but it’s definitely one we’d file in the believable column. According to NewGadgets.de, HP’s planning to update its 12.1-inch tm2 convertible tablet with Core i3 and i5 processors in June. Considering we’ve heard that Intel will be releasing its Core i5 ULV processors around then, this certainly makes sense — after all, we’d expect HP to swap out the current Core 2 Duo ULV processors for something more powerful, yet power efficient. Time will tell if the new chips make it into the multitouch laptop, but it’s good to know that HP’s still working on at least some sort of Windows 7 tablet.

Engadget got their hands on the Eee PC T101MT, unfortunately it seem that ASUS have not made much progress from the T91! Here is the wrap up of the review:

What can we say? We wanted the Eee PC T101MT to be that perfect tablet / netbook mutt. But for $499, we simply cannot recommend it. Sure, you can upgrade to Windows Home Premium for a bit more cash, but at that point you’re spending $550 and still getting a pretty shoddy touchscreen experience. While the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t has a better capacitive screen, we found its performance and viewing angles to be pretty unpleasant. We wish we had better news, but we’re still in a place where we can’t say there’s a well-rounded netvertible out there. And for that, our search continues…

for more you can visit engadget’s full review with images and video of the device.

ASUS Eee PC T101MT review

Velocity Micro’s Cruz in both 4 x 3 and 16 x 9 configurations:

• 7-inch capacitive multitouch screens,
• 800MHz processors
• expandable SD card storage
• Android 2.1 (with Flash 10.1 support build in).
• price under $300.

[Thanks, Kendall]

Check out engadget’s photo gallery of the Velocity Micro Cruz Tablet prototype

HP is working on a slate PC with an 8.9 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display and a 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 processor. We’ve known that much for ages. What we haven’t really known is how the Windows 7 tablet will stack up against the competition, because all we’ve seen to date is the information HP wants us to see. But the folks at Conecti.ca got their hands on a real, pre-production model and the verdict is… that it’s alright, but nothing too special.

I have to say, I’m disappointed but not surprised. I’ve spent some time with a number of convertible tablets with Intel Atom processors and various versions of Windows, and they tend to suffer from a couple of problems. The operating system just isn’t that easy to navigate using touch-only controls — even with Windows 7 Home Premium’s advanced multitouch gesture support. And they tend to feel sluggish when performing some tasks, such as auto-rotating the display. I suspect this is at least partially due to the low power processor.

What is interesting is that the Spanish site conecti.ca has removed their early review of the HP Slate from their site by a direct request of Hewlett Packard Mexico. What this could mean is lets hope HP will do a little more work to improve the performance of the Slate. It turns out in the end that close cooperation between Software and Hardware producers is vital for delivering a good product in the end(as is the case with Apple and the iPad).

The Viliv S10 tablet netbook series, originally slated for an April 22 release late this month has been pushed forward to various dates listed below, as seen on Dynamism. One customer who ordered a Viliv S10 received an email with the reason “delayed by the factory”. This might also explain why it hasn’t shown up at Best Buy like other Viliv products have.

Atom Z530 CPU, 64GB SSD models -> April 27
Atom Z530 CPU, 32GB SSD models -> May 5
Atom Z530 CPU, 60GB HDD model -> May 7
Atom Z550 CPU models -> May 10

A little more time to save up those pennies for the $1,000+ Atom Z550 / 64GB SSD / 3G / Windows 7 HP model!

Source: Engadget, SlashGear

Netvertible is a term that defines a convertible tablet PC with netbook hardware inside. It’s not an official term, but this also happens with touch tablets, which don’t have really an official naming yet. A netvertible is the best choice when it comes to buying a tablet PC shaped computer with the advantages that derive from the netbook specifications: size, battery life and price. To be frank with you there are also downsides to a netbook tablet PC and the biggest is performance, or the lack of it.

If you think netbooks are slow wait till you get your hands on a netvertible, which is even slower because of all the software that needs to run in background consuming precious CPU time just to detect and translate user touch in cursor coordinates (and sometimes levels of pressure). This doesn’t mean that it’s not usable, but it’s not what you would call a seamless user experience. In this article I’m going to make a list of the best convertible netbook tablet PCs on market today and list their pros and cons. At the end of the article you’ll also find a list of the upcoming netvertibles. So without further due, let’s jump directly into the fire with the first contender.

ASUS EEE PC T91MT – 434$

This is probably one of the oldest netvertibles on market today, but it’s got what it takes to be one of the most portable out there. There are actually two models,one that sells for 434$ and comes with Windows XP and a 16GB SSD + 16 GB SD Card bundle and one that sells for a little bit more, at 479$, and brings Windows 7 and a 32 GB SSD Drive.

Main specs:

• 8.9 inch screen with multitouch and 1024 x 600 pixels resolution and 256 levels of pressure detection
• Intel Atom Z520(1.33GHz, 512KB L2 Cache, FSB 533MHz
• 1GB RAM (max capacity is 2 GB)
• 32GB SSD or 16 GB SSD + 16 GB SD Card slot options are available
• two SD card slots for further expansion
• 8.86 inches, 6.46 inches, 0.99 inches and 2.12 pounds wight
• WLAN 802.11b/g/n @2.4GHz, Bluetooth2.1 + EDR
• Windows 7 Home Premium or Windows XP Home Edition options
• 4.5 to 5 hours typical battery life
• black and white colors are available

ASUS EEE PC T91MT has the advantage of very low wight which is always great when dealing with tablets that you’re supposed to hold in hand all day long. At a little bit over two pounds you’ll hardly feel the need to hold it with two hands. The Atom Z CPU is a little slow by today’s netbook standards but it gets the job done rather nice thanks to the low power consumption and is helped by the speedy SSD drive. Overall this is one of the most quiet netvertibles out there, another thing you’ll appreciate.

ASUS EEE PC T91MT can be used with both finger or stylus, so you can write on it and interacting with the OS by flipping your fingers all over. A customized ASUS touch optimized interface is available on demand. You can read more about ASUS EEE PC T91MT here on the official site or watch our video review.

Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t – 499$

Moving on to larger screens we get the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t with a 10.1 inch multitouch screen, capacitive model. This essentially means very sensitive touch inputs can be detected accurately by the S10-3t. Also this will increase power consumption a bit over classic resistive touchscreens and overall weight went up to 3.31 lbs, not much more than the ASUS EEE PC T91MT, but enough to realize it’s heavier to hold in hand for prolonged periods of time. Amazon lists only one model, at 499$ but more expensive models are down the pipe and will bring a slightly faster CPU (@1.83GHz) and 2 GB RAM.

Main specs:

• 10.1 inch LED capacitive multitouch display with 1024×600 pixels resolution
• Intel Pinetrail Atom N450 CPU at 1.66GHz
• 1 GB DDR2 RAM, upgradable to 2 GB
• 250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
• Intel GMA 3150 with shared graphics memory
• Windows 7 Starter
• 8 cell battery for up to 10 hours battey life
• 6.9 inches, 11 inches, 0.59 inches and 3.31 lbs
• 802.11b/g/nBluetooth, 1.3 megapixel webcam

On paper and in real life the Lenovo S10-3t is faster than the ASUS EEE PC T91MT, but it’s also heavier and noisier, two things you might want to consider when buying a netbook tablet if mobility and noise is what you seek for. If you want to read more about the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t you can do so here, where we’ve wrote more about it. We also have a comparison article with the ASUS EEE PC T101MT.

ASUS EEE PC T101MT – 499$

This is one of the most mediated convertible netbook today as it was announced a while ago and just surfaced in some online stores. Reviews are positive now, as the problems we’ve signaled in the first preview and hands on of T101MT were solved. If you get one now expect the same build quality and performance you get from the Lenovo S10-3t. Your choice comes down to price and whether you need to use a stylus (possible on the T101MT resistive screen).

Main specs:

• 10.1 inch LED resistive multitouch display with 1024×600 pixels resolution (multitouch needs Windows 7 Home Premium)
• Intel Pinetrail Atom N450 CPU at 1.66GHz
• 1 GB DDR2 RAM, upgradable to 2 GB
• 160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
• 35W/h polymer battery rated for up to 6.5 hours of use
• WiFi 802.11n, Bluetooth
• 0.3 megapixel Webcam
• Windows 7 Starter
• 10.39 inches, 7.13 inches, 1.22 inches and 2.86 pounds

Compared to Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t, the ASUS EEE PC T101MT is lighter, supports stylus handwriting, but has a lower battery life. The screen responsiveness is worse, but not by much, as you can see in the video demo from our second review of T101MT.

Gigabyte TouchNote T1028 – 538$

This is one of the most interesting convertible netbook tablets around, from my point of view, as it features a 720p resolution screen with a 10.1 inch diagonal (but not multi-touch). This means that you can be quite productive on the go with the Gigabyte TouchNote T1028, if you’re patient with the old generation ATOM CPU and your have eagle eye vision.

Main specs:

• 10.1″ Touch TFT-LCD WSVGA, 1366×768 with LED back-lighting
• Intel AtomTM Processor N280 1.66GHz
• 1 GB DDR2 RAM, upgradable to 2 GB
• 250GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
• 92% full-sized keyboard
• WiFi 802.11n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
• 3.5G Module HSDPA support + optional 802.16 WiMAX
• Battery Li-ion 6 cells ~4500mAh
• 10.4 inches, 8,4 inches, 1.61 inches and 3.26 pounds
• Windows XP Home Edition

Even if initially the Gigabyte TouchNote T1028 was pretty expensive, things have changed and they’ve aligned the pricing with competing products, so now the only reasons not to get the Gigabyte TouchNote T1028 is the Windows XP antiquated OS (which can be replaced by the way), the older generation ATOM CPU which is not so power effective as the new Pinetrail models and the lack of multitouch function. Anyway, you read more about it here.

Viliv S10 Blade – 1127$

Wow, an 1000$+ netbook tablet? Yes, but it’s the king of all netvertibles and comes in many versions you can choose from (some cheaper of course). For this kind of money you get a 2.0 GHz Atom CPU, a 64 GB SSD drive, a 720p display with multitouch and Windows 7 Home Premium OS, all in an amazing 2.67 lbs package.

Main specs for the whole series:

• Intel Atom Z CPU (Z530@1.6GHz or Z550@2GHz)
• 1 GB RAM
• 60 GB HDD or 32/64 GB SSD
• WiFi 802.11n, Bluetooth, optional HSPA modem
• 10.1 inch resistive Multitouch screen with 1366 x 768 pixels resolution
• 42 Wh battery that will last up to 10 hours of continuous use and 7 hours movie playback
• Windows XP or Windows 7 Home Premium
• 2.67 lbs (1.21 kg) weight
• stylus and 3G antenna for better signal reception

Even if the Viliv S10 Blade is pretty expensive, starting  at 699$ (see list of models here), which is at least 200$ more than other 10.1 inch competitors, you get more performance and high build quality. It’s up to you to decide if it’s worth the money. If you want to know more about Viliv’s S10 Blade take a look here at this preview article.

What comes next?

Haven’t decided yet? Well, there are a few models of convertible netbook tablets down the road expected to hit stores in a few months and here’s a list with some of them (actually only one for now):

• Gigabyte T1000 series – will come in two models: T1000P and T1000X, with the more expensive one featuring multi-touch vs single touch and a bigger 6 cell battery (vs 4 cells)

Occasionally we’ve had strangers — very likely non-Engadget readers — coming up to us and ask, “Sorry mate, but is that the iPad?” To which we reply, “No, it’s the Dell Mini 5.” This may sound like a silly boo-boo to make, but there is this common misconception of the iPad being just “a bigger iPhone” while not knowing how much bigger it is (despite our best effort). To clear this up once and for all, we’ve brought the two devices in question together — the Mini 5 / Streak smartphone on the left, and the iPad on the right. Now it’s up to you guys to spread the love.

As a bonus, we also threw in various phones — HTC HD mini, Nexus One, Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, and HTC HD2 — to pile on top of Apple’s latest toy, just to kill the Sunday afternoon. No magical and revolutionary devices were harmed in the making of this article.

[Thanks for the toys, Chris and Andy]

iPad vs. Dell Mini 5 / Streak… fight! (Bonus: smartphone pile-on)

Entelligence is a column by technology strategist and author Michael Gartenberg, a man whose desire for a delicious cup of coffee and a quality New York bagel is dwarfed only by his passion for tech. In these articles, he’ll explore where our industry is and where it’s going — on both micro and macro levels — with the unique wit and insight only he can provide.

A few months ago, some videos leaked from Microsoft showed a book-like device with two touch screens and a stylus. The user is seen researching, creating and designing content in a manner that looks both intuitive and innovative. Called Courier, the product doesn’t (yet) exist beyond the conceptual videos, but it shows Microsoft is thinking in some new ways. Ross Rubin discussed Courier’s role for creative professionals last week but I think there’s even more at stake here — I think the concept shows computing models are evolving. Here’s what Courier represents to the market:

The pen isn’t dead. The pen’s been searching for a place in computing for more than a decade. We’ve seen experiments in all different types of pen computing from the PC to the PDA and the phone. They’ve all pretty much failed, and today’s hot commodity is capacitive touch. Microsoft’s Courier video shows how the pen can play a prominent role in the evolution of computing interfaces. While fingers are great for many things, there are tasks better served by the ability to manipulate at the pixel level. Handwriting and the ability to take written notes is one of them. Content creation and painting is another. It’s clear Microsoft knows all this — in addition to Courier, there’s the Deskterity project that melds pen and touch on Surface.

Microsoft can move beyond Windows. It wasn’t that long ago that Microsoft thought the UI for other devices and platforms needed to mimic Windows. Windows CE devices all had tiny start menus and task bars which were totally unusable in a small form factor. The result were clunky devices trying to replicate a desktop experience designed for a large screen with input from a mouse and keyboard. One of the reasons that Windows 7 slate PCs look so un-interesting is that Windows 7 just wasn’t designed with those devices in mind. The net result is that Microsoft appears to be designing and optimizing for the form factor. We’ve seen this before with Surface and the beginnings of a new design with Windows Phone 7. If Microsoft can make the Courier experience familiar enough that consumers can embrace it while optimizing for the dual displays and pen we could see a nice breakthrough in next generation UI.

Tablets aren’t just about content consumption. The Courier UI shows a lot of interaction between the user and the device for content creation. While designers are the example shown, Courier appears optimized for researching, note taking, journaling and other tasks that might require a combination of different media types interacting. As appliance computing becomes more common, users will need both the ability to consume as well as create and interact. Courier shows some new thought and how we might evolve beyond mouse and keyboard while still able to create and design.

The Courier video is impressive not only for technology it showcases but the thinking behind it. UI enhancements such as the “book spine” that holds content placed on the clipboard and the integration of connected content show some out-of-the-box thinking that’s refreshing to see from Redmond — it’s cool that Microsoft is thinking about life beyond Windows and what it might look like. I’m personally hoping that there’s more than just some conceptual animation and Microsoft is able to turn this set of ideas into a real product offering.

Did you order a Enso zenPad? If so, you’ll be happy to hear that the company has decided on a concrete release date; its website is now ticking down the days, hours, minutes and seconds until May 8th, when Enso claims they’ll finally ship the rebranded Smit MID. Problem is, if you ordered your zenPad on March 22nd — the day we wrote about it — you will have waited 47 days by the time the device ships, exactly two days too many to get a PayPal refund. But more importantly, manufacturer Smit has now disavowed any knowledge of a deal, and Enso itself has admitted that the zenPad as such does not currently exist. We’ve done quite a bit of digging and even spoke with an Enso founder to get the whole story. Enough promises have now been broken and lies told that if we were you, we’d request refunds ASAP, but if you still want to hang on for a chance at a $155 Android tablet, you can hear the whole tale right after the break.

read how the story unfolds at engadget.com

We’ve talked about the HP Slate tablet quite a few times here, but there’s nothing different to it than other Atom powered slate tablets besides the HP brand name and the endorsement from Microsoft. Of course a brand is a brand, and this is a reason people look carefully for deals that seem too good to be true, like the Hiton HT960 tablet device which will be 100$ cheaper than the HP Slate (which will sell for 549-599$).
Of course there are some trade offs to be made, like the not to sleek looks and the somewhat lower hardware specs: Windows XP instead of Windows 7 and 16 GB SSD storage instead of the 32GB default of the HP Slate. What do you think? Is it worth it or we’re dealing with another hoax?

version 1.2, 26.03.2010

source – http://wepad.mobi/en

We’ve talked a few times about the HP Slate tablet, presented by Steve Ballmer during CES 2010, which is supposed to be a direct competitor to the Apple iPad slate tablet. A lot of rumors have appeared during past months about this mysterious product, but not much more than that.

Today it’s time to take a first look at the specs and see also at a short video with the main features, which by the way, seems a direct hit on the iPad’s lack of USB port, webcam/digital camera and memory card expansion slot. As you can see below the HP Slate is essentially a netbook tablet, the only way you can fit a fully operational OS and a long lasting battery into the same case.

But before we get to the video let’s see the main hardware features of the HP slate:

• 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z530 processor
• 32GB of Flash storage (speedy, which is always good)
• 1GB non-upgradable RAM (too bad it doesn’t come with 2GB of RAM)
• SDHC card slot
• 5-hour battery life
• VGA front-facing camera and 3-megapixel camera at the back
• USB port
• 8.9-inch 1024 x 600 capacitive multi-touch display

Price is not yet set but expected to fall right in between 549 and 599$. It’s a little bit more than the entry level iPad, but considering you get a fully fledged computer running Windows 7 (possibly Home Premium) I say is worth the extra cash. What I believe it will be sub par compared to the iPad on the user experience front, as I don’t think the Atom Z CPU is not capable or offering a seamless experiencecompared to the iPhone OS found on the iPad. And I’m not speculating. I’m certain of this as I’ve already tested the Asus EEE PC T101MT with an Atom Pinetrail CPU that was very sluggish on common tasks.

But this it arrives on market (sometime this year, till then here’s the official HP page for Slate) here’s the video presentation below:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeDalRBjyJo

And a comparison photo that highlights the strong points of both HP Slate and Apple iPad, as seen by Engadget.

It was three months ago, in the midst of the most tablet-centric CES in recent memory, that we first laid our hands on Notion Ink’s impressive Adam prototype. Since then, we’ve been on the lookout for signs that the small Indian startup will actually deliver on the tablet’s lofty promises, and while that still seems to be on track, the latest update from the company’s founder is casting doubt on the originally planned June release date. Stressing the need to agree subsidization deals with telecoms for the 3G-equipped device, Rohan Shravan explains that “some want to give you Adam for Thanksgiving, some for summer holidays.” Add in his resolute commitment to only going ahead with the tablet when it’s fully capable of running Flash (seriously Adobe, the thing can do 1080p video, but Flash makes it wince?), and you have a significantly more elastic release window than we were originally led to believe. All the same, Rohan couldn’t leave us without some titillation, and he also promises “amazing freedom” on the email front and a number of content collaborations that he’s not yet allowed to announce. If you ask us, we just want something — anything — with a Pixel Qi display; we’ll make up our own content, just give us the hardware already.

[Thanks, Srikanth]