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HTC Jetstream unboxed and shown off on video

HTC's first 10-inch tablet, the Jetstream, has been given the full unboxing treatment, but is it worth the astronomical price tag?

Joe Svetlik Reporter
Joe has been writing about consumer tech for nearly seven years now, but his liking for all things shiny goes back to the Gameboy he received aged eight (and that he still plays on at family gatherings, much to the annoyance of his parents). His pride and joy is an Infocus projector, whose 80-inch picture elevates movie nights to a whole new level.
Joe Svetlik
2 min read

The HTC Jetstream is the company's first 10-inch tablet -- don't worry if you haven't heard of it though, as it hasn't been announced for the UK yet. If it proves to be decent however, then who knows, it could well make its way over here.

SlashGear has got its hands on the tablet and given its first impressions, and we must say, it looks mighty good. Here's hoping for a UK release.

Build quality is top notch, with the chassis described as "superb." It comes with HTC's own Sense for Tablets UI, so if you've ever used the Flyer, its 7-inch effort, you'll know what to expect. If you've only used an HTC Android phone before, you'll still be able to pick it up pretty quickly.

Inside is a Qualcomm APQ8060 1.5GHz processor, powering it all with hardly any delay, and on the back is an 8-megapixel camera complete with 1080p video recording. That's pretty astonishing for a tablet of this size. Just a word of warning: it's going to look pretty conspicuous if you  hold it up while trying to snap co-workers unawares.

It runs Android 3.1, which is optimised for tablets, and comes with 32GB memory. You can add in another 32GB using an SD card. 

But obviously, specs that look good on paper aren't necessarily enough to result in a decent device. The HTC Flyer has impressive specs, but recent reports suggest it's been discounted at Best Buy in the States, and while it isn't quite in the same league as the HP TouchPad price cut, it's still not a good sign.

With an eye-watering $700 (£450) price tag, the Jetstream is in iPad territory, making it seem steep -- especially when you consider Amazon's Kindle Fire will sell for a fraction of that (in the US at least -- there's still no UK release confirmed for either the Kindle Fire or the Jetstream). It'll be interesting to see how much people are willing to pay for impressive specs in the face of cheaper competition.

We'll bring you more on the Jetstream as it happens. Would you want to see it in the UK? Let us know on our Facebook page.