Tablets

CES: An iPad for babies? You're never too young

LAS VEGAS--If you want your kids to get a leg up on their future digital careers, consider starting them young. Very young. The Vinci is a touch-screen tablet for babies and infants up to age 3 that helps tots learn about the world and stimulates their curiosity through interactive content.

Introduced at CES and launching in the first half of 2011, the Vinci has a BPA-free silicone handle that fits little hands, a 7-inch screen, a micro SD card slot and USB connectivity, built-in speaker and microphone, as well as a 3-megapixel camera. In order to protect wee ones from … Read more

SoundFreaq SFQ-02 Sound Step, hands-on

LAS VEGAS--One of my happy surprises of 2010 was a Bluetooth speaker dock called Sound Platform from an upstart company called SoundFreaq. Stylish yet unique, with a premium sound, generous extras, and a down-to-earth price, the Sound Platform came out of nowhere to deliver a product few others can match.

So this year, in spite of being torn in a dozen different directions to cover tablets at CES, I made time to visit SoundFreaq to see what it's cooking.

For the company's sophomore product, SoundFreaq is going smaller, more portable, and more affordable. The SFQ-02 Sound Step is … Read more

ViewSonic ViewPad 4, hands-on

LAS VEGAS--More products seem intent on blurring the line between smartphones and tablets. The 5-inch screen on the Dell Streak, for example, really threw us into a philosophical tailspin. It was awkwardly large to make calls with, but too small for tablet-style Web browsing and productivity.

In spite of ViewSonic's insistence on calling the ViewPad 4 a tablet, I have no qualms telling you that it's really a smartphone. As the name implies, the ViewPad 4 uses a 4.1-inch screen, putting it behind the 4.3-inch screen used on the Motorola Droid Bionic and other unabashed smartphones. … Read more

CES: NEC dual-screen tab great for packed trains

LAS VEGAS--We've seen a few dual-screen devices at CES so far, including the massive Kno Textbook Tablet and the 14-inch hybrid tablet-laptop Acer Iconia. Japan's NEC, though, has introduced a dual-screen tablet compact enough to use on those notoriously crowded Tokyo trains.

The LT-W Cloud Communicator has two 7-inch TFT LCD touch screens and weighs only 530 grams (18.6 ounces). It feels like it can almost fit in a large pocket, and would fit well in a satchel or purse.

The device, which runs Google's Android 2.1 operating system on an ARM Cortex processor, has … Read more

CES: ZTE announces new LTE Android tablet

LAS VEGAS--Mobile device maker ZTE welcomed a trio of additions to its tablet family at CES.

All three are 7-inchers running Android and each has a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera, plus a VGA front-facing camera. Other specs vary slightly between the tiered models. The ZTE Lite tablet, for instance, features Android 2.2 (Froyo), 800x480 screen resolution, a 600MHz processor, and Dolby Surround 3.0 for an audio boost.

The more upscale ZTE Lite 2 tablet boasts a 1GHz processor, a 1,024x600-pixel screen, and DLNA support. It has 4GB internal memory. Both the Lite and Lite 2 are already available … Read more

CES: DisplayLink app makes iPad a wireless Windows monitor

DisplayLink announced an $1.99 application today that turns an iPad into a second monitor wirelessly connected to a Windows computer.

The application works with Windows XP, Vista, and 7 and requires an iPad with iOS 3.2 or later, the company said. It's configured with the DisplayLink software that the company offers for its primary line of business, USB-connected display technology.

"The productivity benefits of multiple displays has been proven, so leveraging the idle screen of the iPad while computing is ideal for parking and for running applications like instant messaging, e-mail, social networking, Web browsing, and … Read more

CES: Dell teases Streak 10 tablet

LAS VEGAS--No shortage of Dell news today.

On Thursday at its press conference, Dell debuted the Streak 7, but right after that presentation the company showed a very quick look at the Dell Streak 10.

The Streak 10 will have a 10-inch screen and will be geared toward business and enterprise users.

Expect built-in support for VPN and other business-related features.

No work yet on release date, price, or if there will be a consumer version.

CES: Sony's tablet not aiming to be an iPad killer

LAS VEGAS--The tablet Sony has plans to release stands out at CES because it's actually not here, but mostly because Sony appears to stand alone in that it isn't positioning it as an iPad killer.

The company briefly noted that it's got a tablet in the works during yesterday's press conference.

"We'd really like to take the No. 2 position (in the tablet market) by 2012," Kunimasa Suzuki, deputy president of Sony, said at a roundtable discussion with company executives here today. Unlike the gobs of Android-powered tablets introduced this week, Sony sounded … Read more

CES: Samsung's 4G Galaxy Tab revealed

LAS VEGAS--On Wednesday, Samsung announced a Wi-Fi version of the Galaxy Tab, but apparently it thinks we can't get enough Galaxy Tab news. It's probably right.

On Thursday the company, along with Verizon Wireless, announced the 4G LTE-enabled Galaxy Tab.

Unlike the Wi-Fi-only Tab, this one gets a significant upgrade in at least a couple of areas. Samsung will upgrade the rear-facing camera from 3 to 5 megapixels.

Also, the CPU gets a slight speed boost, from 1GHz to 1.2GHz, using the same Cortex A8 Hummingbird processor.

Besides those details, the rest of the specs (so far) … Read more

CES: Dell Venue smartphone debuts

LAS VEGAS--At its press conference on Thursday, Dell unveiled its new Venue smartphone.

We'll have some hands-on impressions shortly, but here are the initial specs and info.

Dynamic 4.1-inch AMOLED screen with Gorilla Glass 8-megapixel camera Runs Android 2.2 and full Flash 10.1 implementation Offers the full Dell Stage interface with Stage widgets

Pricing and availability: details in the coming weeks.