Categories
Gadgets

Global Apple iPad Tablet Market Share Over 80%

A new report by market research firm, IDC, has thrown some interesting numbers with respect to the worldwide tablet and eReader market. According to their latest study, the Apple iPad currently constitutes over 87.4% of all “media tablets” shipped during the third quarter of 2010. That is 4.2 million units sold out of the total 4.8 million tablets sold worldwide during this period.

IDC however points out that it has set some criteria to differentiate tablet computers from eReaders which means Windows tablets and Amazon bestsellers like Kindle were not considered “tablets” and hence were not part of the study. IDC says, only electronic devices that measured between 5-14 inches and were equipped with color displays and lightweight operating systems were included in the study.

Despite this, iPad still owns a major share of the market. IDC notes that putting the tablets and eReaders under one umbrella will still keep the iPad on top at 79.5% market share.

Although 2010 was considered the year of the tablets, it is in 2011 that we will be seeing most of the competition. With devices like Motorola Xoom and Blackberry PlayBook on the pipeline, it will be interesting to see how the iPad market share stands one year down the line.

Categories
Gadgets RIM

Blackberry PlayBook 3G Version Launching In March?

A number of Blackberry Playbook variants are speculated to launch in the next few months. Firstly, a Wi-Fi only version of the Playbook tablet is expected to launch soon after RIM’s financial year ends in February this year. Besides this, 4G LTE and WiMax variants are also learned to be in the pipeline.

Now another source has claimed that Research In Motion is also gearing up to launch a 3G variant around the end of March or in April. According to this source – apparently a Blackberry administrator who is in the know about RIM’s plans – this device could launch well before the 4G LTE variant launches – presumably in April this year.

Do note that we still do not have anything official at this point in time about either the 3G or 4G variants. So, take this with guarded skepticism for the moment.

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Gadgets

Notion Ink Adam Shipping Today – February Shipments Advanced

After weeks of anticipation, the Notion Ink Adam will finally go on sale starting today. In a fresh blog post, CEO Rohan Shravan has updated his customers that all FCC labeling related issues have been resolved and the device is cleared for launch. The units are expected to ship from the company’s manufacturing partner’s plant in China on Wednesday.

In what could be interesting news, Shravan has also noted that customers who were initially notified to be receiving their product in February will now see an advancement of the shipping date. Consequently, these customers may start receiving their Adam units in the last week of January. Shravan writes,

“We are tying to pre-pone ALL of the February shipments! So if your status read February, it should be changed to the last week of January. February was suggested to you all because we were not sure of how the FCC will work out (based on which we need to decide on the procurements), and added buffers while giving you the time lines.”

Have you pre-ordered one? Are you excited about receiving your unit soon?

Categories
Accessories Gadgets

New iPad 2 Case Design Features SD Card Slot & DisplayPort Jack

Around the time the Consumer Electronics Show was underway, we got to hear a lot of details about the features on the upcoming second generation model of the iPad. This new launch from Apple is expected to come with wide-range speakers at the bottom of the device besides slightly modified edges and back.

Now there are more details about the features on the next gen iPad. A new set of cases that have been made public by a Chinese accessory manufacturer shows a couple of new features – an SD card slot and a mini DisplayPort jack. The iPad 2 case contains a slot on the rear upper left corner that is possibly to house the SD card. Also, another slot at the center of the top edge is shaped in such a way that it indicates the possible provision for a mini DisplayPort jack.

iPad caseiPad 2 case

No word on the authenticity of these pictures. So, we will have to wait for more official word.

Categories
Apple Gadgets

More Details About New iPhone & iPad Hardware

Apple could be bringing some sophisticated display technology to the next generation iPhone and iPad. We had recently pointed out that the price of iPad 2 display screens on third party vendor sites were significantly higher than older versions that hint at a possible enhancement of technology.

Now, artwork included with the new version 1.1 of Apple’s iBooks application gives us more evidence of this upcoming display enhancement. The list of artwork includes icons named iPadx2 and iPhonex2 that have icons sized double that of icons named ‘iPad‘ and ‘iPhone‘. While it may be a tad too premature to comment on this rightaway, indications are that these larger sized icons may be to accommodate the screen resolutions of the upcoming devices that, at 2048×1536 pixels may be double that of the current generation devices.

Not just this, we have also heard about the GPU specifications on iPhone 5 and iPad 2. According to some quarters, the new iPad and iPhone variants will be equipped with a dual core SGX543 GPU and a new A5 multi-core chip as CPU.

While all of this indicates a device much more powerful than the current variants, the only concern now is that of the battery performance. Will Apple be able to accommodate all of these performance enhancements without significantly affecting the battery life of the device? This will be worth the wait.

Categories
Gadgets

Notion Ink Adam Matte And Scratch-Resistant Display Concerns Explained

Over the weekend, a number of Notion Ink customers who had pre-ordered an Adam begain raising concerns about the possible disparity between the advertised and real nature of the display. A member of the NotionAddicts forum wrote about a response from the Notion Ink support team that read,

“The Device would come with a Screen Protector which is Matted and scratch Resistant.

The Bare Screen is glossy but is not scratch resistant”

This response gave way to a lot of concerns that Adam, unlike advertised, may not carry a matte display and could instead come simply with an optional screen protector that would offer a matte finish.

If you are one of those concerned about this specification, Rohan Shravan from Notion Ink has offered his clarification on the blog. He writes,

“Adam comes with 2 layers of Matte Surfaces, one on the LCD screen, other through the Matte Screen protector on the outside Glass. Inside layer cuts the gloss on the LCD layer and colors are not washed out. For the outside glass we are using specially designed matte covers which users at their end can decide to use or not. It is finger stain resistant (oil component) and has same matte properties as on the LCD. The glass in itself is further scratch resistant.”

Shravan’s clarification should put any doubts about the nature of the display to rest. We however wonder if customer support – accused by many as inconsistent – will continue to remain Notion Ink’s Achilles heel. With the first batch of devices expected to be shipped starting later this week, we hope Notion Ink sorts out this problem before the company opens up for the next set of pre-orders.

Categories
Apple Gadgets

New iPad Spare Parts Put Online For Sale

More details about the upcoming Apple iPad 2 keeps coming in. Last week, we had heard about a possible launch date of April 2 or 9 for the new iPad that might come without a home button. Now, according to a posting on a third party vendor site, the iPad could come equipped with a vibrating motor – something that the current version lacks.

It is not clear if GlobalDirectParts – the company that has published this part has inadvertently mislabeled an iPhone part as one for the iPad, but given earlier leaks from this vendor, we are tempted to believe that the vibrating motor is indeed one for the iPad.

Besides, the vibrating motor, the site also has an “iPad 2 LCD screen” for sale. Interestingly, this “out of stock” product is priced $218.19 that is significantly higher than the $144.99 that the company charged for the LCD screen on the original iPad early last year. Given these higher costs, there is a likelihood, that the new iPad could actually come with the much rumored retina display. What do you think?

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Gadgets iPad Qualcomm Verizon

Apple iPad 2 Features Include SD Card Slot, Dual GSM/CDMA Chipset?

We have already written quite a bit about the iPad 2 that is likely going to have a release date somewhere around in April this year. Earlier reports have also suggested that the new iPad is going to be thinner and sleeker than its predecessor with a new screen technology similar to the retina display on iPhone 4 – although some sources have speculated that such a move is improbable considering the costs involved.

A fresh report however notes that the new iPad could come with a display similar to the retina display with “super high resolution“.   The source further claims that the screen will stay at 10 inches and will also feature front as well as rear cameras along with a built in SD slot. We also hear that iPad 2 could come with a dual GSM/CDMA chipset manufactured by Qualcomm which will mean both AT&T and Verizon could carry the iPad simultaneously.

This new chipset manufactured by Qualcomm marks Apple’s migration from its existing chipset manufacturer Infineon for all its mobile devices. Reports also suggest that Apple’s new A5 processor which is said to have blazing fast speeds will be making its way to the iPad 2, but there are no confirmations regarding this as yet.

Categories
Gadgets

New Notion Ink Adam Pre-Orders And Shipping Information Details Revealed

American and European customers who have pre-ordered a Notion Ink Adam should start receiving the device starting next week. In a new blog post, Rohan Shravan has revealed that FCC and CE clearance details should be up on the organization websites shortly. Also, Notion Ink will start printing labels starting Monday and will start shipping on Wednesday.

The Notion Ink blog post also talks about the probable date for the second set of pre-orders. It is expected to happen after the initial set of shipments are done. Shravan says,

“Pre-order 2 has yet not started because we are waiting for deliveries in US and European countries (that would mean that we are just a few days away from it). But this time we are not going to do the mistakes we did last time. Last time we missed a lot of you, this time we will communicate with a lot of you to make it easier for those who were disappointed last time.”

So that’s happy news for those who have pre-ordered already and those who are anxiously waiting for the counter to open again!

Categories
Apple Gadgets

iPad 2 US Launch On April 2 Or 9?

There is still a lot of debate on whether Apple might advance the launch date of the next generation iPad to earlier than April. A few days back, Digg founder Kevin Rose had claimed from sources that the iPad 2 could possibly be announced on February 1 with a possible launch a week or so later.

However, according to a German website, the launch is not expected to happen before April. The site cites from sources that the launch date for iPad 2 is scheduled for either April 2 or April 9. Also, like with the earlier announcements, the iPad 2 is expected to launch first in the United States with an international launch rumored for July.

The site claims that the iPad 2 will feature dual cameras (for FaceTime and for taking pictures) and retina display. However considering that we have already heard a lot of things in this regard, we will just swallow the proverbial grain of salt and move on.