LAS VEGAS—At last year's Consumer Electronics Show here, Toshiba piqued attendees' curiosity by showing off a prototype tablet with a rubberized back and removable battery. That reference device evolved into the Toshiba Thrive, a 10.1-inch Android 3.1 Honeycomb tablet. Launched in the summer of 2011 at more than half an inch thick and 1.6 pounds, the Thrive was targeted at enterprise users, offering ports for USB 2.0, High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) cables and an SD card. Toshiba launched a 7-inch model in the fall that wasn't much different from the original model. At CES 2012, eWEEK took a tour with Duc Dang, senior manager of product development for Toshiba, to view four tablets encased in plastic cubes. What you'll immediately see in these prototypes is that Toshiba has shed the clunky, easy-grip frame and extra weight that turned off fans of thin, lightweight tablets such as the Apple iPad 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab lineup. Now, all are fitted with lightweight magnesium alloy casings. Toshiba did have some models of its forthcoming 10.1-inch Toshiba Excite X10 machine, which we handled briefly. Pardon the scantiness of specifics about the rest of the slates; Toshiba simply isn't ready to reveal them. Our bet is that by the time most of these tablets come to market later this year, they will be running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.
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Toshiba 13
Toshiba envisions this Android slate will be great for gaming and film watching, as well as video collaboration sessions for enterprise workers. It has USB 2.0, micro USB, micro HDMI ports and a full-sized SD slot for connectivity. Going forward, Dang said Toshiba plans to experiment with new tablet form factors in much the same way it does with its laptops.
Toshiba Excite X10
The first of the prototypes coming to the market is the Excite X10, which is only 0.3 inches thin—amazing. It also has the ports offered in the previous Thrive models, including micro USB, micro HDMI and SD slot. The rubbery Easy Grip surface of the original Toshiba Thrive has vanished from this new prototype, though.
Excite X10 Close-Up
Here's a close-up of the skinny slate, which Dang said has a Gorilla Glass screen resolution of 1,280×800.
Going Hands On With the X10
We got to go hands-on briefly with this Android 3.2 Honeycomb flavored tablet, which is powered by a 1.2GHz Texas Instruments OMAP 4430 processor.
Back Panel View
The Excite X10 is encased in magnesium alloy to complement the sturdy Gorilla Glass.
Toshiba 7.7-inch Tablet
Check out this 7.7-inch tablet, whose differentiator Dang told eWEEK is the crisp, bright active-matrix organic LED (AMOLED) screen. Dang said it's "ideal for mobility," and boasts the same ports as the other devices.
Second Look
Here’s a close-up of the 7.7-inch slate with a screen that resembles Samsung's great AMOLED displays. We realize the photo doesn't do the screen justice, challenged as our camera was by the bright lights reflecting off the glass casing.
Toshiba Gaming Tablet
Dang also showed us this 5.1-inch tablet with a wide, 21:9 aspect ratio. The idea is that this will be a little gaming tablet, targeted for Asia.
As Low as It Goes
It's no "phablet," though; it lacks phone capabilities. That's OK, as this is as low as Toshiba plans to go with tablet sizes.
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LAS VEGAS—At last year's Consumer Electronics Show here, Toshiba piqued attendees' curiosity by showing off a prototype tablet with a rubberized back and removable battery. That reference device evolved into the Toshiba Thrive, a 10.1-inch Android 3.1 Honeycomb tablet. Launched in the summer of 2011 at more than half an inch thick and 1.6 pounds, the Thrive was targeted at enterprise users, offering ports for USB 2.0, High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) cables and an SD card. Toshiba launched a 7-inch model in the fall that wasn't much different from the original model. At CES 2012, eWEEK took a tour with Duc Dang, senior manager of product development for Toshiba, to view four tablets encased in plastic cubes. What you'll immediately see in these prototypes is that Toshiba has shed the clunky, easy-grip frame and extra weight that turned off fans of thin, lightweight tablets such as the Apple iPad 2 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab lineup. Now, all are fitted with lightweight magnesium alloy casings. Toshiba did have some models of its forthcoming 10.1-inch Toshiba Excite X10 machine, which we handled briefly. Pardon the scantiness of specifics about the rest of the slates; Toshiba simply isn't ready to reveal them. Our bet is that by the time most of these tablets come to market later this year, they will be running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.