ICD Ultra tablet revealed: 7″ screen, Android 2.0, powered by next-gen Tegra
You may remember our story last month about the Vega tablet from Innovative Converged Devices (ICD). The Vega, with a 15.6″ touch screen, was stated to be the first in a family of devices that included a 7″ model. As promised, ICD has just revealed its new model in the size that most interests us here at Pocketables! Named the ICD Ultra tablet, the Vega’s little brother features a 7″ WVGA resistive touch screen (a WSVGA capacitive version is said to be coming in time for the launch), and as we previously speculated, similar hardware to the Vega with a few surprises.
The currently available specifications include the Android 2.0 OS powered by the nVidia Tegra chipset, 512MB DDR RAM, 512MB NAND flash memory, a 4GB local storage in the form of a built-in SD card, a microSD slot, 1.3MP webcam, USB 2.0 connectivity, headphone jack, HDMI output, dual microphones, accelerometer, and an FM radio. Support for wireless connectivity covers all the bases with Bluetooth 2.1, b/g WiFi, and 2G/3G data. Physical dimensions are fairly compact at 7.32 x 6.22 x 0.8 inches (WxHxD), although it will weigh a bit more than expected with a target weight of approximately 21.2 ounces.
Where the potential surprise lies is the identity of the Tegra processor. The team over at Engadget, who had some hands-on time with the Ultra and revealed it on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon the other night, state the processor is a 1Ghz nVidia Tegra T20. Sources indicate this is the next-generation Tegra 2, making the Ultra among the first devices to be powered by this exciting new chipset. As a reminder, the Tegra 2 is speculated to feature a powerful dual-core ARM-based general CPU and updated 3D graphics hardware.
Engadget reported the prototype had “blazing fast” performance when web browsing and even playing back 1080p full HD video, although they noted the software was still at an early stage of development and ICD was working on optimizing and finalizing everything for launch.
As for price, no solid figure is currently available, but ICD is aiming for a price in the range of $249, with the potential for subsidized/free versions available from wireless partners with data plans.
I was initially intrigued by the previous announcement of the ICD Vega tablet, but now with the ICD Ultra’s impressive specs and attractive price I am even more excited! With a Tegra 2 chipset, the Ultra tablet would be powerhouse amongst all other ARM-powered tablets on the market right now, though I get the feeling we will be hearing about a lot of other new devices featuring the Tegra 2 next month at CES.
Could the Ultra be the ultimate MID tablet some of us have been waiting for? Or is something even better about to show up in Vegas in the next 2 weeks?
Head over to ICD’s official site for more info/images and check out the clip below from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to see the ICD Ultra in the flesh (about half-way into the video).
