Most Android tablet designers seem to have feature checklist dysfunction, and an unhealthy fixation on Apple's iPad.
The first "real" Android tablet (that shipped with the tablet version of Android, called Honeycomb) was the Motorola Xoom. And its main selling point seemed to be that it wasn't an iPad. Likewise, the Samsung Galaxy Tab's designers decided its big selling point would be that it came in three sizes. Besides that, both tablets can be best described as "like an iPad, but" slightly improved, hardware-wise. And unable to run the iPad's 65,000 tablet apps.
Two Android tablet manufacturers are making designs that stand out, though ... for one reason or another!
Asus: The shotgun approach
Asus, maker of the venerable Eee PC netbook, seems to have decided that what the tablet world needs iskeyboards. Lots of them. That's why it's releasing the Eee Pad Transformer, which has an optional laptop keyboard-and-touchpad attachment, and the Eee Pad Slider, which is basically a small tablet with a slide-out keyboard.
There aren't too many specifics about the Slider yet, besides what was previewed at CES. As the Eee Pad Transformer's launch approaches, though, it's starting to look like Asus is going to at least some trouble to customize it. According to the product site, the keyboard attachment doubles as (in essence) a spare battery ... and the included Polaris Office apps and MyCloud virtual desktop will let you create documents, spreadsheets, and presentations, and control a PC or Mac, respectively. Those are kind of neat, but I think it says something about the Transformer that its killer feature is that it can pretend to be a different device altogether.
HTC: "Quietly Brilliant"
In contrast, the 7-inch HTC Flyer tablet was designed from the start around something unique that the iPad 2 doesn't have: A pressure-sensitive stylus. And while there have been Windows PC tablets that used styli, this is the first time we've seen a modern Android tablet with a capacitive touchscreen, which also used such an accessory.
Of course, introducing a unique hardware feature is risky, since you can't be assured that app developers will take advantage of it. So the Flyer will ship with a deluxe version of HTC's Sense interface, that's packed with neat ways of using the stylus. You can annotate books, doodle on photos, or take handwritten notes that sync with the Evernote service. And between the HTC Watch videos and HTC's partnership with the OnLive streaming video game service, those who choose the Flyer over the iPad might not feel too bad about missing out on the iTunes store.
Worth buying?
I have a feeling that most people who buy Android tablets do so because they either love Android or hate Apple. One size doesn't fit all, though, and a unique feature that's not available on Apple's devices might help to draw people away from them.
Will the Transformer or Flyer win out? Only time will tell. In this market, though, "winning" for anyone other than Apple might involve catering to the long tail ... and these tablets look better-positioned than others to do so.
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