Where Is My Tablet?

Nothing against the iPad, but I chafe at the thought of owning another device which needs Steve Jobs’ approval for me to use as I wish.

I want a tablet computer. Please don’t ask why. I’m not sure I can explain why. Must I?

Think of it as an obsession. I’m talking to you shoe lovers!

The whole tablet genre has been around for awhile, but it wasn’t until Apple produced the iPad that anyone really cared.

Sorry Microsoft. Earlier Windows based tablets were pretty much non-starters. That’s gotta sting in Redmond!

As CNBC reported last fall:

Big news for Apple and Apple investors: The iPad is the highest-scoring product that a leading consumer satisfaction index has ever tracked.

It’s just I don’t want an iPad!

Nothing against the iPad, but I chafe at the thought of owning another device which needs Steve Jobs’ approval for me to use as I wish. That’s why I already have a love/hate relationship with my iPhone. It’s the geek in me pushing back.

After the Consumer Electronics Show I expected a boatload of new non-Apple tablets running Android, the Google produced operating system. Over 100 were introduced at the show. Few have appeared.

Motorola is unveiling it’s new Xoom tablet tomorrow. It’s too pricey.

There are tablets from Huawei and eLocity that look promising (though a friend from PCMag.com said of the Huawei, “Looks like another lousy low-end tablet to me.”).

Here’s what I’m looking for:

  • Capacitive touch screen
  • SDHC card slot
  • Front facing camera for video chatting
  • Android operating system
  • Wifi and Bluetooth. Cell connectivity not necessary
  • USB connectivity

I’d like to use a tablet computer with my camera, but at the moment there are no Android apps which recognize the RAW formats my Canon delivers. I expect that itch will soon be scratched. The same goes with apps to play poker online.

When a tablet that fills my needs comes out and costs less than $400 I’ll be ready to buy. It hasn’t happened yet. It will.

What’s taking so long?