This is the first time we’ve seen a product built with an Intel Atom processor using Android including, the Google Marketplace application, Flash and Air. Add an 11.6″ multitouch screen and a target weight of 800gm with 6 hours battery life and you’ve got a very challenging project indeed. Neofonie hopes to make it happen with the WePad.
The WePad is part of an ecosystem of software, content and hardware that works together to offer a way for companies to have end-to-end control over delivery of their content. An 11.6 inch 1366×768 multitouch display is the centerpiece of this tablet that runs on an Intel Pineview (netbook) platform. (Full specs below.)
There’s no technical reason that Android can’t run on an Intel platform and in fact there are X86 builds out there for you to test but its when you add ‘Flash’ ‘Air’ and ‘Google Marketplace’ that you get a feeling for the timescales and risks involved in this project. Even the battery life is a little on the overzealous side. We’ve never seen an 800gm device running on any sort of X86 platform return 6 hours battery life with a 11.6 inch screen. 4hrs is a far more realistic figure in our opinion.
The strategic partner in this operation might be Siemens and the idea might be good (we’re particularly interested to see if Google allow their marketplace on such a device) but the hardware build looks very expensive, the project feels like its going to take a long time and it looks like there are risks involved on the way. We’re not getting too excited just yet but we’re going to try hard to put our German ‘Pad’ company in contact with their German ‘Pad’ company to see if we can get a visit/hands-on/interview set up. Stay tuned.
Update: More WePad information is going to be announced. Partners will be announced this week and pricing and availability on the 12th April. See Facebook fan page.
Our pricing guess: 800 Euro with 3G, without content/3G deal/subsidy.
English information (PDF) is available.
Specifications (Translated, Via newgadgets.de)
- Display: 11,6″ 1366 x 768 Pixeln, Mutitouch
- Processor: 1,66 GHz Intel Atom N450 Pineview-M
- Storage: 16 GB NAND Flash (optional 32 GB internal/ 32 GB SD Card)
- Webcam: Yes (1,3 Megapixel)
- Interfaces: 2 x USB , SD Cardreader, Audio output, SIM Card Slot, Multi-Pin Connector
- Adobe Flash / Adobe Air: Yes/ Yes
- Applications: WePad AppStore and Google Android Marketplace
- Multitasking: Yes
- Battery: Lithium-Ion Polymer (Life: ca. 6 hours)
- Supported eBook formats: All open plus Premium (WeBook), From H4/2010
- Connectivity: Bluetooth 2.1, WLANn, optional 3G
- GPS: ja (optional)
- Body: Magnesium-Aluminium
- Size: 288×190x13mm
- Weight: 800g (850g mit 3G)
- Other: Ambient Light Sensor, Accelerometer, Stereo Speakers, internal microphone.
That just looks like a chaotic mess of icons and widgets … Who do you think that’s really targeted for? Specs aren’t going to sell these IMHO
I think Neofonie are trying to set an ecosystem up for the German newspaper/magazine business. Content deals will be hard/expensive for Apple to strike so there’s a good chance that a local company with good partners and contacts could make a real go of this in Germany.
So this is a country specific device? I guess I missed that …
They won’t be averse to a global deal i’m sure but their focus seems to be on the German media ecosystem.
Note, This a rebranded Pegatron tablet seen at CES.
Apart from maybe the iPad, I don’t see any of these new and upcoming tablets succeeding in the marketplace. Why? It boils down to form factor. 800-850 g (almost 2 lb) is friggin’ heavy — the thought of it alone makes me not want to pick it up, much less bring it along with me wherever I go and using it for a prolonged period of time. For me personally, the practical weight threshold for a tablet is 1 lb (~454 g). Even the iPad is a bit heavy, but hey it’s Apple, they can get away with certain things. Bottom line: if a ubiquitous computing device, which I see the next-gen tablets aspiring to be, is heavier than a pound, it’s going to fail. The best they can hope for is to be relegated to a niche market.
When you add all the other accessories needed to make it function correctly (keyboard, stand etc), or protection from scratches etc, you might as well have a netbook with a touch screen and a 10hr battery. I really don’t see the point of the WePad or iPad or HP Slate.
Thanks for sharing. Share is caring after all.