ViewSonic brought its offerings for Mobile World Congress out on Friday, starting with tablets. The previously-leaked ViewPad G70 hopes to claim the budget title by combining Android 4.0 with a seven-inch screen. Prices are kept down by using a two-megapixel rear camera and a VGA front camera, although it has 1GB of RAM, a microSDHC card slot, and mini HDMI; ViewSonic hasn't identified the processor.
ViewSonic will unveil a seven-inch Android tablet at Mobile World Congress next week, Pocket-lint learned. Likely to be called the ViewPad G70, the device should run on Android 4.0 and a 1024x600-resolution touchscreen. It should also have the firm's custom ViewScene interface, but it ought to still keep access to Google services and access to the Android Market.
ViewSonic gave us a quick look at its upcoming hardware at the CES show. This included the 10-inch ViewPad 10e and dual-booting 10pi and 7-inch E70 Android tablets and ViewPhone 3. The phone will cost $280 and be unlocked when it ships in March, supporting AT&T and T-Mobile networks.
ViewSonic has finally announce a launch time-frame for its ViewPad 7e tablet, which is scheduled to arrive before the end of October. The Android-based tablet features a seven-inch display with 800x600 resolution, presenting Android 2.3 with ViewSonic's own "ViewScene 3D" interface overlay. Features are modest compared to high-end Android tablets, however the device aims to focus on the entry-level market.
ViewSonic has announced its first ten inch Android-only tablet, the ViewPad 10e. The Viewpad 10e has a 9.7in. IPS LCD display with 1024x768 resolution. Like its smaller sibling the ViewPad 7e, the Viewpad 10e uses a 1GHz, single-core Cortex A8 processor, 512MB of RAM, and 4GB onboard storage expandable to 36GB with an SD card. It will use the Android 2.3 and ViewSonic's proprietary 3D interface.
ViewSonic's entry-level ViewPad 7e tablet introduced at IFA is now available for pre-order on Amazon for $200. It sports a seven-inch display with a 1024x600 resolution and a 1GHz, single-core processor, along with 512MB of RAM. Android 2.3 is onboard, overlaid with a 3D interface.
Microsoft continued its campaign of profiting from Android's success on Thursday with new patent licensing deals through Acer and ViewSonic. The deals will see each pay royalties for their Android devices, such as the Iconia Smart and ViewPads. In spite of Acer being one of the first Chromebook makers, only ViewSonic of the two will also pay royalties for any Chrome OS devices it makes.
ViewSonic will bring three new tablets to the IFA show in Berlin. There are two 7-inch devices, with an Android 3.2-powered one called the ViewPad 7x and a cheaper, more e-reader like model in the ViewPad 7e. A 10-inch ViewPad 10pro will have Windows and Android with dual-booting.
After introducing several new tablets last week at Computex, ViewSonic has unveiled another seven-inch model, the ViewBook 730, with an entry-level feature set. The device offers an 800x480 touchscreen and Android 2.2, rather than the tablet-optimized version of Google's mobile OS. The 1GHz ARM Cortex-A8 processor is capable of 1080p video output via HDMI, while a front-facing VGA camera supports video chat.
ViewSonic today gave owners of its unusual ViewPad 10 dual-boot tablet an upgrade to Android 2.2. The hybrid is leaping from the aging 1.6 and now gets access to a much more recent web browser, voice search, and many apps that were previously off-limits. No mention was made of official Flash 10.2 support, although the Windows 7 boot doesn't have that issue.
ViewSonic has delivered the ViewPad 10, a dual-boot 10.1-inch tablet solution that runs both Android and Windows 7. The device centers on a large capacitive touchscreen display with a 1024x600 resolution with an LED backlight. An Intel Atom 1.66Ghz single-core processor paired with 2GB of DDR3 RAM powers the device.
ViewSonic Europe on Friday kicked off its Mobile World Congress presentation by introducing a dual-SIM Android phone, the V350, and a dual-boot, 10-inch ViewPad 10Pro. The former has a 3.5-inch touchscreen and uses Android 2.2. It can answer calls coming to either SIM card's phone number at the same time and is geared the most towards Europeans and Asians who have more than one provider.
Google may be planning to keep Android 2 and 3 segregated in a long-term split of the platform, according to a ViewSonic source on Monday. The 2.4 update, once thought to be called Ice Cream, is now said to be a continuation of Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) that would simply add backwards compatibility for dual-core apps on single-core phones. Ice Cream, Pocket-lint heard, should be Android 3.1 and would keep the two apart in features and the interface.
Google's Android 2.3, has now been ported by Android-x86.org for use on Intel x86-based netbooks and some other mobile tablets. While the work is still in progress, the currently available software allows sound and Wi-Fi, though the Ethernet connection, 3D capabilities and mouse control are under development. A 64-bit build environment and Java 1.6 are needed to compile the OS.
Viewsonic has unveiled the its contribution to the plethora of Android smartphones available on the market, the Viewpad 4. The handset runs Android 2.2 (Froyo) and incorporates all the typical Android smartphone hardware. It centers on a 4.1-inch WVA capacitive touchscreen display and is powered by a 1GHz Snapdragon processor by Qualcomm.
Carriers in Taiwan aren't yet feeling a significant pinch from the iPad and other tablets on their netbook sales, those in the island's telecom industry said Thursday. Subsidized netbook sales only dipped slightly in November, to 14,000 computers from a peak near 16,000. It came despite the iPad having been on sale for months and some carriers, like Far EasTone, selling devices like the ViewSonic ViewPad, Digitimes said.
One of ViewSonic's tablets, the seven-inch ViewPad 7, has appeared for pre-order on Amazon. While the specs are no surprise, the price is $120 more expensive than ViewSonic promised just two weeks ago. The $600 price matches that of the Samsung Galaxy Tab that also uses Android 2.2 and has a seven-inch screen.
ViewSonic today planned out the US launches of its two tablets. The ViewPad 10 is both its most direct competitor to the iPad and also one of the more unique designs. It boots both Android 1.6 and Windows 7 and has netbook-like hardware, including a 10-inch screen, a 1.66GHz Atom, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of flash storage.
ViewSonic at IFA today filled in many of the details surrounding its dual-booting ViewPad tablet. Now dubbed the ViewPad 100, the 10-inch slate runs on a 1.66GHz Atom and uses either Windows 7 or the now old Android 1.6; either side appears to use a reference design but supports multi-touch. It uses just a 16GB solid-state drive, but an SDHC card slot provides most of the bulk storage.
Ahead of an official unveiling at the IFA expo due to kick off this Friday, ViewSonic has confirmed its 7-inch Android tablet, the ViewPad 7. It will have phone functionality as well, making it the largest phone tablet out there, beating out the five-inch Dell Streak. Users can access the web thanks to a 3G connection in addition to making voice calls, or sending text and MMS messages.
Photos and specs of what is believed to be ViewSonic's 7-inch, Android-powered tablet, the ViewPad 7, have been leaked. Confirmed earlier this week by the maker itself, the device will sport a 3G connection, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a GPS sensor. The part number, VPDA7500B-1, was also revealed by an "inside man" for Pocket-lint.
ViewSonic today confirmed its ViewPad plans with an early tease of what it will unveil at the IFA technology show next week. New to the mix is a 10-inch model; the likely ViewPad 10 will use an Intel Atom chip and run both Android and Windows. It's expected to have 3G, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and both front- and back-facing cameras.
