Russia’s Rover Computers joins tablet revolution by launching five Roverpads
The tablet fever that has swept the tech industry this year has mainly been focused on companies from the US, China, Taiwan, and Europe, but more players from other regions are definitely planning to hop onto the bandwagon. A slightly less expected new entry is Russia's Rover Computers, which is taking a leaf out of Aigo's book by launching a raft of five new tablet MIDs covering a range of sizes and specifications.
Cutting straight to the dessert, the star of Rover's show is undoubtedly the RoverPad TegA W70 (shown above). Running Android 2.1 and powered by nVidia's Tegra chipset, the 7-inch tablet with a WVGA capacitive screen is capable of full HD video playback, slick 3D accelerated graphics, and includes 512MB RAM, 4GB flash storage, WiFi, 3G, USB and HDMI connections, and a webcam. I assume it will also include some other standard trimmings such as a microSD slot and accelerometer, found in Rover's other offerings. I also can't fail to notice that the TegA W70 bears a striking similarity to the Compal NAZ-10, aka the Aigo N700, indicating it may also be a rebranded version of the original that uses the Tegra 250 chipset.
From the high point of the TegA W70 follows a range of more value orientated tablets, starting with the RoverPad 3WG70 (above) as the most affordable of the range. This Android 1.5 MID packs the familiar HD video capable Rockchip 2808 CPU, along with 128MB RAM, 2GB storage, a microSD slot, WiFi, and a webcam.
The other two Android tablets in the line-up are the RoverPad Go G50 and RoverPad Go G72, designed mainly for portability. With a 5-inch WVGA resistive screen and weighing only 9.56 ounces, the Go G50 (above) is the smallest member of the RoverPad family featuring a nice pocket friendly design, a Marvell PXA303 CPU, Android 1.5, 128MB RAM, 2GB local storage expandable via microSD, WiFi, 3G, and GPS with included navigation software. The Go G72 (below) is nearly identical to the Go G50 in terms of specifications, but adds a larger 7-inch WVGA screen, Android 1.6, a webcam, Bluetooth, an Ethernet port, and an additional USB port, but the GPS becomes an optional extra.
Last but not least in the RoverPad line-up is the RoverPad Air G70 (below), a 7-inch tablet with a WVGA resistive touch screen, running Windows Embedded CE 6.0, the only RoverPad to do so. Powered by a 667MHz Samsung ARM11 processor, the MID also includes 256MB RAM, 4GB flash storage expandable by microSD, WiFi, optional 3G, accelerometer, a 3MP camera, and an FM transmitter.
New competition is always welcome as consumers should be the ones to benefit, so the entry of Rover Computers into the tablet revolution is a positive development. The company certainly has a potential ace in the form of the Tegra-powered TegA W70. If it really does turn out to be a rebranded Compal NAZ-10 with the next-gen Tegra 250 chipset, it would be even better! The other value-oriented offerings form a broad product line to meet different requirements and budgets. The company has stated that we can expect the RoverPads to start appearing on shelves in October, but pricing is currently unknown.
[Hi-Tech via Engadget]
