Archos announces new Android tablets to rival iPad

Posted on 2 Mar 2010 at 12:52

Portable electronics manufacturer Archos has announced a new pair of tablet computers running Android which could rival the iPad.

Archos already sells an Android-based WiFi-equipped tablet with a 5in screen, but its newest models have even larger screens. The Archos 8 Home Tablet has an 8in screen, weighs 400g, is 12mm thick and has 4GB of storage. The large bezel around the screen looks very odd, but at least it provides plenty of space to hold the Tablet without obscuring the touchscreen. It's due to be available in May for £130.

The company also announced the smaller 7in Archos 7 Home Tablet, which looks like an Android-equipped version of its existing Archos 7 touchscreen portable media player. A 2GB version will be available for £130, but the 8GB version looks like better value since it will cost just £150. Both are due to available from April.

Archos has yet to confirm whether its new tablets will come fitted with 3G mobile broadband, or which version of the Android operating system they will use. The latest version of the Android operating system, 2.1, isn't currently available for all Android smartphones. In contrast, the latest version of Apple's iPhone OS, 3.1, is available for all iPhone and iPod touch models.

It'll be interesting to see what Archos' Android tablets compare are like to use compared against Apple's 9.7in iPad which will come in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions and will be available both with and without 3G. Apple has yet to announce UK pricing for the iPad, but it's expected to be more expensive than Archos' tablets. The 16GB WiFi-only model will cost US$500 (approx. £333), while the 16GB 3G version will cost US$629 (approx. £420).

Author: Alan Lu

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