Get ready for the coming onslaught of rivals to Apple's tablet--it's going to get crazy.

Why are iPads selling as fast as Apple’s Chinese subcontractors can crank them out? In part, it’s because the iPad has a suddenly-hot product category pretty much to itself. Before scuttlebutt that Apple was working on a tablet started to heat up, no major PC manufacturer seemed to think that consumers wanted a general-purpose, touchscreen-only computing device. Now almost all the big names–and lots of little ones–are furiously playing catch up.

End result: Starting later this year, the iPad will be confronted by an army of other touchscreen machines, from potentially worthy opponents to shameless wannabees. Call ’em iPadversaries, and read on for my first stab at accounting for (most of) them.



I cheerfully admit that I’ve defined the term “iPadversary” loosely. Some of these gizmos are very much meant to compete head-to-head with Apple’s tablet, including a bevy of Windows 7 “slate PCs.” Others won’t do so at all–such as the OLPC XO 3.0 and “$35 Indian tablet”–but I found them intriguing for one reason or another. And a few (such as RIM’s BlackPad) are unconfirmed rumors which may or may not pan out.

There are also a few tablets that are already for sale here, all of which have one thing in common: Most of the reviews of them range from so-so to profoundly negative.

I considered only devices with touchscreens–and only screens that are at least 5″. I didn’t include any product which definitely has a physical keyboard, although some of the upcoming Windows slates which we know almost nothing about will reportedly have them. (If so, they’ll be Tablet PC offspring more than iPad counterparts.)

I’ve attempted to gather some basic facts on each device, and to indicate when the information I mention is speculation or rumor rather than confirmed fact. I’d be amazed, however, if all of these products reach the market in exactly the form detailed here.

Shall we get started?

Archos 5

Availability: Now

OS: Android 1.6

Screen size: 4.8″

Price: $299 (16GB version)

What else: Paris-based Archos has been making tablets since we were supposed to call them portable media centers, and the three Archos products in this list all shipped well before the iPad did. This one, with its 5″ display and Android OS, feels like a Gallic cousin of the Dell Streak.

More info: Ubergizmo gave it a semi-positive review.

Archos 7

Availability: Now

OS: Android 1.5

Screen size: 7″

Price: $199

What else: This Archos Android tablet has a bigger screen than the 5 but costs a hundred bucks less. It runs an even older version of Android.

More info: Engadget really didn’t care for it.

Archos 9

Availability: Now

OS: Windows 7 Starter Edition

Screen size: 8.9″

Price: $549.99

What else: As usual, Archos already has a device out in a product category that larger companies are still talking about–Windows 7 slates. It has a resistive screen (rather than the iPad’s capacitive one) with no multi-touch gestures.

More info: UMPC Portal’s review says it’s not anywhere near as good as it looks.

Asus EeePad EP101TC

Availability: Early 2011

OS: Android

Screen size: 10″

Price: $399 to $499?

What else: EeePads are running late–at one point Asus was supposed to have one ready for July 2010 availability. The EP101TC may still be a work in progress: It was originally going to run Windows Embedded Compact, but is now an Android machine.

More info: Engadget has a brief write-up.

Asus EeePC EP121

Availability: Early 2011

OS: Windows 7

Screen size: 12″

Price: $399 to $499?

What else: According to Engadget, Asus has demoed the EP121 with “a super sleek keyboard docking station, which will be used to turn the tablet into an ultraportable laptop of sorts.”

More info: Here’s Engadget.

Augen Gentouch78

Availability: Now, at Kmart

OS: Android 2.1

Screen size: 7″

Price: $150

What else: Did I mention it costs $150? Also, it seems to have an unauthorized version of the Android Marketplace.

More info: The Android Blog tried one and wasn’t exactly knocked out.

Best Buy Rocketfish Tablet

Availability: Unknown

OS: Android 2.2?

Screen size: nine inches or thereabouts?

Price: Unknown

What else: We’ll know more as Best Buy’s CTO tweets it, apparently–this product from Best Buy’s house brand hasn’t been announced, but he keeps teasing his followers with tidbits.

More info: Lilliputing writes about the gizmo here.

Cisco Cius

Availability: First quarter of 2011

OS: Android

Screen size: 7″

Price: Unknown

What else: As you’d expect from Cisco, it has a business focus, does video conferencing, and turns into a VoIP phone when you stick it in its dock. For my money, this might be the iPadversary with the most promise.

More info: Here’s Cisco’s Cius announcement.

Dell Streak

Availability: Now (as of August 12th)

OS: Android 1.6 at first; 2.2 later this year

Screen size: 5″

Price: $249.99 with a two-year AT&T contract; $549.99 a la carte

What else: You could make the case that the Streak is an iPhone alternative, not an iPad rival–with its 5″ screen, it’s (barely) pocketable, and it has built-in 3G voice capability. But Dell is pitching it as a data device you can make phone calls on, not a phone you can do data on.

More info: I find it kind of intriguing.

Dell Windows Slate

Availability: This year

OS: Windows 7

Screen size: Unknown

Price: Unknown

What else: This is one of numerous Windows 7 slates promised for 2010 in a July Steve Ballmer speech. Ballmer said that some of these devices would have keyboards and/or pens, and some would be aimed at consumers while others would target big businesses–but he didn’t say anything about specific products and their features.

EnTourage eDGe

Availability: Now

OS: Android 1.6

Screen size: It’s got two of ’em: a 10.1″ LCD touchscreen and a 9.7″ E-Ink touchscreen. It also has a stylus.

Price: $539

What else: The eDGe is a “dualbook”–an e-reader on its left side and a touch tablet on its right side. It’s got its own app store and e-book store.

More info: Engadget didn’t find it terribly satisfying.

ExoPC Slate

Availability: Early September

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium with proprietary layer

Screen size: 11.6″

Price: $599

What else: Engaget tried one and thought the display was crummy but was favorably impressed by what it called the “Connect Four” interface.

More info: The ExoPC site is here (it’s not clear how up-to-date it is)

Fujitsu Windows Slate

Availability: This year

OS: Windows 7

Screen size: Unknown

Price: Unknown

What else: Another product from the long list promised by Steve Ballmer last month. Unlike many of the companies planning to jump into the slate PC game, Fujitsu is an old hand at making keyboardless Windows computers.

Fusion Garage JooJoo

Availability: now

OS: Linux

Screen size: 12.1″

Price: $499

What else: It began its odd life as a computer TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington wished he could buy, the CrunchPad. Then it became the subject of a bizarre corporate dispute. When it finally shipped as the JooJoo it got devastating reviews. Rumor a while back was that sales were in the dozens; Fusion Garage is insistent that sales are…increasing. Unlike other devices here, the JooJoo is basically a browser in a box–it doesn’t have apps, let alone an app store.

More info: Here’s the JooJoo site.

HP Windows Slate

Availability: Fall 2010

OS: Windows 7

Screen size: 8.9″

Price: At one point, it was allegedly going to start at $549

What else: The star of Steve Ballmer’s CES 2010 keynote went into mysterious limbo and will now supposedly ship later this year as a product for large companies.

More info: Here’s a video demo, made back when HP was not only willing to talk about this product but was lavishing it with hype.

HP “PalmPad”

Availability: Rumor has it that it’ll ship in the first quarter of 2011

OS: WebOS

Screen size: Unknown

Price: Unknown

What else: HP hasn’t said much other than that it intends to build a tablet device using its newly-acquired Palm WebOS. “PalmPad” is the rumored name; additional gossip has it that it will use a Wacom-style digital pen to permit note-taking.

More info: PCWorld’s Tony Bradley tried his hand at comparing HP’s Windows and WebOS devices.

Read more: