The incredible shrinking tablet PC
What is half the size of most slate tablet PCs and packs advanced features found in full-size laptops? Motion Computing says it's the new LS800, which has an 8.4-inch display, is less than 1 inch thick and weighs 2.2 pounds.
About the size of a paperback book, the device is a follow on to Motion's LE1600, the company's flagship full-size slate tablet PC, which it introduced in May. Like its larger cousin, the smaller slate also has internal Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support with a built-in biometric fingerprint reader for authentication.
The LS800 is one of several smaller slate and convertible tablet PCs on the market and it's expected to compete for the same contracts as the ultraportable Sony Vaio U series.
With a price tag of $1,899 and some ruggedized features, the LS800 tablet is designed more for doctors and insurance salesmen than for the average consumer. But with every advance, tablet PC makers are landing more contracts, including more government and education clients.
In fact, tablet PC shipments are expected to double by 2008, according to Gartner analyst Leslie Fiering. Currently, tablets make up only 2 percent of the total PC landscape.
Executives with Motion Computing are hoping to build on that momentum with a mix of features and add-on peripherals such as speech-to-text transcription software; an infrared port for synchronizing with PDAs (personal digital assistant) and smartphones; and a connector for external displays and digital projectors.
The computer runs on Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 over an Intel Pentium M processor at speeds of 1.2 GHz with a 915GMS express chipset. The LS800 also comes with 512MB of advanced computer memory and a 60GB 1.8-inch hard drive.