Android, Tablet Computer | featured news

Apparently, the iPad isn't the only tablet in town capable of selling out. While the Asus Eee Pad Transformer might not have the big-name appeal of its Apple rival, the $399 16GB Honeycomb tablet managed to sell out online at Best Buy's website in its first day on sale.

Apple will remain firmly in control of the tablet market through 2015, according to market research by Gartner, which also shows Google’s Android will take the baton from Nokia’s Symbian to dominate the smartphone market through the same time period. Experts agree, though, that it will be strong ecosystems, allowing for tablets and smartphones to deliver a combined experience, which will take the day, possibly weakening Research in Motion’s capacity to deliver in a new environment.

Let's cut to the chase -- the iPad 2 that Apple just released pulls further ahead in the battle with the only real competitor on the market: the Android OS 3.0 "Honeycomb" Xoom tablet from Motorola Mobility. In our previous comparison of the first-gen iPad and the Xoom, the Xoom showed its mettle as a serious contender, beating the iPad in areas such as its inclusion of cameras and ability to mirror its video display.

Microsoft's dominance is starting to fade as Macs, smartphones and tablets grow more popular.

The first portable devices announced for Verizon Wireless' new, high-speed wireless data network are a smart phone and a tablet from Motorola, both designed to take advantage of network's speed with cameras for videoconferencing....

Google Mobile Platform VP Andy Rubin literally arrived with a bag full of tricks at the D: Get Into Mobile Conference, showing publicly for the very first time an Android "Honeycomb" tablet. The roughly 10-inch, Motorola device was sleek, black, thin and sported an Android interface unlike any we've seen before. There was a very clean homepage, but the app page looked almost Apple iPad-like. Plus, when Rubin brought up the Gmail app, it looked almost exactly like Gmail on the iPad.

Customers interested in Samsung's Android-based Galaxy Tab can now purchase one from Verizon Wireless for $600.

“For the holidays, the tablets will be mostly Android-based, plus the iPad,” said Mike Vitelli, Best Buy’s President of North and South American business, in an interview.

Early reports indicate Europe will pay a pretty penny for Samsung's Galaxy Tab, but the 7-inch tablet may cost a good bit less when it comes to US shores -- the Wall Street Journal paraphrases a Samsung executive who claims it could run between $200 and $300 depending on the all-important carrier subsidies.

Google is apparently planning on launching its own tablet device, but instead of relying on its already popular Android OS, this tablet will run Chrome OS. The rumor mill pegs Google's tablet launch date as November 26, which also happens to be “Black Friday" ...