The touch screen tablet industry is currently dominated by Apple’s iPad device. Not that there are no other devices such as the Archos, but even those fail to live up to the standards that Apple has set in the industry. Simply put, Apple has reinvented tablets and their iPad is the forerunner of the industry.
After the last Web 2.0 Expo however, it appears that Apple is not going to stay as the only main player in the industry for long. Rumors about a Google made tablet have already been making rounds as early as the time when iTablet started popping up and the only other major Google based question aside from “when the device will be available” was “which” –as in “which OS will be used, Android or Chrome?”
The matter seems to have been settled as of last week as Google showed off a touch screen tablet that is reportedly using NVIDIA technology, the latest Android operating system and native Flash and AIR support. Google’s device seems to be loaded with all the big features that are already present in the iPad such as web browsing, eBooks (thanks to Google Editions), Android apps and of course, media playback. The addition of Flash and AIR support will give Google and advantage over the iPad as Apple’s products will never be able to support Flash based content.
And yes, the Android browser will be supporting HTML5 and h.264 content as well.
There are those who believe that the tablet wars will be a bigger version of smart phone competition with Android offering a fierce fight but Apple still able to hold its’ ground. However, looking at the industry as it is now, the iPad has only been able to establish itself in the US with the global market still wary of the tablet device.
With industry experts already telling many buyers to wait for the Android tablet before making a choice, it appears that Apple just missed its chance to fully indoctrinate the market.
Tags: Apple-iPad, Google-Android, Google-Chromium, Google-Tablet