Motorola Xoom vs Ipad 2

Motorola Xoom vs Ipad 2 Review

MOTOROLA XOOM Android Tablet (10.1-Inch, 32GB, Wi-Fi)

 

Technical Details

• Linux 1 GHz Motorola ARM dual-core CORTEX A9 OMAP 4
• 1 GB DRAM
• 1.6 pounds
• 802_11_BGN
• It also consists of 802.11b/g/n, 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, 2-megapixel front-facing web cam.
• It has 1 GB of DDR2 RAM.
• It has 10.1-inch multi-touch HD display, 25 ounces.
• The Android 3.0 platform and 1 GHz dual-core processor.

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 0.5 x 6.6 inches ; 1.6 pounds 

Product Description

Redefining the tablet by providing more ways to have fun, connect with friends and stay productive on the go, the Motorola XOOM boasts a dual core processor with each core running at 1 GHz, 10.1-inch widescreen HD display, and ultra-fast Wireless-N Wi-Fi networking. Winner of the Best of Show award at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the XOOM also offers support for Adobe Flash Player--enabling you to view the web without compromise.

Dual-core processing, Android 3.0 Honeycomb platform, and 10.1-inch HD multi-touch display (see larger image). Front-facing camera for video chats, and rear 5-megapixel camera for HD 720p video capture (see larger image).

It runs Google's Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system, which offers a multi-touch, holographic user interface that improves on Android favorites such as widgets, multi-tasking, browsing, notifications and customization. It also offers the latest Google Mobile innovations, including Google Maps 5.0 with 3D interaction, access to over 3 million Google eBooks and Google Talk with video and voice chat.

The Motorola XOOM features a front-facing 2-megapixel camera for video chats over Wi-Fi via Google Talk, as well as a rear-facing 5-megapixel camera (with LED flash for stills) that captures video in 720p HD. The 10.1-inch display delivers console-like gaming performance on its 1280 x 800-pixel display, and it features a built-in gyroscope, barometer, e-compass, accelerometer, and adaptive lighting for new types of applications.

Other features include a 32 GB internal memory, memory expansion via optional microSD cards (with future software upgrade), 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi networking, Bluetooth for hands-free devices and stereo music streaming, access to personal and corporate e-mail, HD 1080p video playback, HDMI output for connecting to a compatible HDTV or monitor, and a 3250 mAh battery for up to 10 hours of Wi-Fi internet browsing.

Android 3.0 Honeycomb
Specifically optimized for devices with larger screen sizes such as tablets, the Android 3.0 platform (dubbed Honeycomb) introduces a brand new, truly virtual and "holographic" UI design.  With five customizable home screens, you can easily access your favorite live widgets or application shortcuts. Each screen features a familiar launcher to access to all installed applications, as well as a Search box for universal search of apps, contacts, media files, web content, and more.
Multitasking in Android 3.0 is easier than ever, and you can use the Recent Apps list in the System Bar to see the tasks underway and quickly jump from one application context to another. You'll even see a snapshot of the last screen viewed in that app as a visual reminder. The Android onscreen keyboard has also been redesigned to make entering text fast and accurate on larger screen sizes.

Other features in Android 3.0 Honeycomb include:

• Scrollable and stacked widgets let you scroll or flick through content within the widget itself, on the home page, without opening the application.
• Unobtrusive notification system displays icons for different notifications (messages, downloads, system updates, etc.) in the lower right corner. Just touch the digital time display to open the entire notification panel.
• Redesigned YouTube application with a cool 3D gallery.
• Android Market for Android 3.0 is your one-stop-shop for eBooks, games, and applications.

Power Accessories beyond the Charger

The Motorola XOOM has a wide range of optional accessories to expand its power and capabilities. The "smart docks" are no longer just a place to charge your device; they make Motorola XOOM a portable play and work station that fits your lifestyle. The Standard Dock can be used for watching video content or listening to music through external speakers as the device charges. The Speaker HD Dock allows you to send HD content directly to your TV or blast your tunes without attaching external speakers.

Connectivity

• Ultra-fast Wireless-N Wi-Fi networking (802.11b/g/n) for accessing home and corporate networks as well as hotspots while on the go.
• Bluetooth connectivity (version 2.1) includes profiles for communication headset, hands-free car kits, and the A2DP audio streaming Bluetooth profiles.
• Onboard GPS for navigation and location services.
• Integrated Google Maps with turn-by-turn navigation, street, satellite, and three-dimensional landscape views.

Now Upgradable to Android 3.2

• Support for the new Android Market Movie rentals service with thousands of titles available for immediate viewing on the Motorola XOOM's high-resolution display or on a larger screen via HDMI.
• Full support for the new release of Adobe Flash Player 10.2 delivering significant performance enhancements when viewing rich Flash content on the web.
• Resizable widgets to enable further customization of home screens.
• Support for USB-connected peripherals and accessories such as keyboards, mice, game controllers and digital cameras.
• Expanded Bluetooth features to support Bluetooth headsets in Google Talk^TM video chats and Bluetooth mouse support in addition to additional shortcut keys with the Bluetooth keyboard
• Picture Transfer Protocol Feature support to enable easier transfer of photo files to your PC without the need for drivers.

All the Power of XOOM

• First access to Honeycomb upgrades.
• Productivity-pumping 1GHz dual-core processor
• Movie rentals and downloads from Android Market^TM

Communications & Internet

• Video chat on Google Talk with any other Google Talk-enabled device (smartphone, tablet, or PC).
• Access to personal and corporate e-mail (including support for Exchange and push Gmail).
• Desktop-like web browser (HTML5-based Android Webkit) with tabbed browsing and Chrome bookmark sync.

Design and Hardware

• 1 GHz dual-core processor enables web browsing at unprecedented speed and accelerated multi-tasking.
• Integrated NVIDIA graphics delivers smooth, full frame-rate 1080p HD video playback
• 1 GB of DDR2 RAM
• 10.1-inch multi-touch HD display (1280 x 800 pixels; 150p per inch) with 720p video capture and pinch-to-zoom navigation.
• Onscreen keyboard

Memory

• 32 GB internal memory
• Memory expansion via microSD card slot with support for optional cards up to 32 GB (functionality requires future software upgrade).

More Features

• HDMI audio/video port enables you to output pictures, slides and videos in HD quality (1080p) via HDMI cable (sold separately).
• Micro USB port (not for charging)
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• Data encryption ensures the privacy and security of data on your tablet.

Camera

• 5-megapixel rear-facing camera for optimized resolution when capturing photos on the go. Includes dual-LED flash, auto-focus, and digital zoom.
• 2-megapixel front-facing web cam for video chats. Includes indicator light when used.
• HD 720p video capture capabilities
• Instantly upload video to sharing sites or view and edit on the fly.

Multimedia

• Music player compatible with MP3 and AAC/AAC+/eAAC+
• Video player compatible with MPEG4 and H.264/H.263 

Apple iPad 2 Tablet (16GB, Wifi,)

Technical Details

Size Name: 16GB | Item Shape: Wifi | Color Name: White

• Apple's newest generation of iPads.
• 9.7-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen Multi-Touch display with IPS technology.
• 1 GHz dual-core Apple A5 custom-designed processor.
• Forward facing and rear facing cameras.
• Apple's iOS 4 and access to Apple's app store.

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 9.5 x 0.3 inches ; 1.3 pounds 

Product Description

Size Name: 16GB | Item Shape: Wifi | Color Name: White

Apple iPad X10LL/A Tablet (16GB, Wifi, White) NEWEST MODEL

Customer Reviews

For anyone out there who is considering whether or not to make the leap and purchase the iPad 2, this review is for you. If you're still debating between the iPad 1 and the iPad 2 check out my review of the first generation iPad right here on Amazon to see a discussion of its strengths and weaknesses with a number of people commenting (both positively and negatively) over the past 11 months.

Let me begin by saying this upfront, I don't work for Apple, I don't own Apple Stock, and whether you buy an iPad, Xoom, a laptop or a pad of paper and pencil I don't get anything for writing this. I'm not an Apple "fanboy" although I can give credit where credit is due and lately Apple has deserved a lot of credit for some of their products.

Physical Characteristics
The iPad 2 is absurdly thin. More importantly than it's thinness is its tapered edge which feels more natural in your hand. One of the biggest complaints about the original iPad was it really wasn't tremendously comfortable to hold for long periods at a time. For a tablet device designed to be held, that's a pretty big deal. Apple really has done an amazing job of cramming everything into an even smaller space than before and the difference is really noticeable when you're holding the device. In addition to the tapered edge, Apple managed to reduce the overall weight of the iPad 2. That might not seem like a huge deal to most, especially when you consider the weight difference isn't tremendous when you're already under 2 pounds, but I spend a good part of my day holding the iPad in my hands and the weight difference is surprising by the end of the day. The first generation isn't heavy by any means, but the iPad 2 outshines it.

New and "Improved"
Apple doubled the RAM in the iPad 2 from 256MB to 512MB. What does that mean? For most casual users, probably not a whole lot. There is a performance bump that everyone will see the effects of in things like loading times for webpages that are open in the background, but 256MB was sufficient for most daily use and games. If you're planning to use your device for some of the more graphically intense games the iPad 2 does offer a better method of graphics processing that'll help deliver faster images with fewer jerky movements. If you're just playing Angry birds and reading e-mail you're not going to know the difference.

The screen is the same for all real purposes. It is technically a "new" part in that it isn't identical to the old, it's a bit thinner and more efficient, but it's the same resolution. The Glass is thinner though, and this amounts to a fair bit of the weight loss from one generation to the next. In playing with the device it seems surprising but despite feeling lighter it actually feels more sturdy in your hands. I still wouldn't suggest dropping it, but if it were to fall the iPad 2 certainly feels like it might stand a better chance to survive. Try not to drop it though.

The addition of 2 cameras was expected. Some were a bit surprised to see the first generation released without the cameras. Whether it was for a price point consideration, or a means to get people to upgrade, Apple held off until iPad 2. The cameras do a reasonable job, but they're not going to replace a dedicated digital camera, or really even the camera on your phone for most still images. The cameras do a substantially better job with video, and FaceTime is probably one of the best reasons to get the iPad 2 over the original iPad. For those who might not be familiar, FaceTime is Apple's face to face conferencing system, kind of like Skype, or if you'd rather, kind of like the Jetson's TV/Phone. With the push of a button you can be having a face to face chat with a loved one just about anywhere in the world (provided they're on a wireless network at the time). FaceTime doesn't work over 3G natively (it can be used over a wifi connection created by a 3G device however) so you're not going to be able to use it in your car anytime soon. This is probably a good thing though. It is incredibly easy to use and if you know other people with an iPad 2, iPhone 4, or Mac it's a lot of fun.

Smart Covers aren't really "smart" but they're really very useful. Not only do they provide a stylistic enhancement of the device, but they serve a practical and functional purpose of doubling as a screen protector and stand in 2 configurations. You can find them in a variety of colors and from third market suppliers, and it's a safe bet that more will be out soon to capitalize on the magnetic sensors in the iPad 2. It's unfortunate that this same feature can't somehow be retrofitted to the iPad 1, I wouldn't have thought a case would be a compelling reason to consider a product over it's competitor, but these covers are really so useful it's hard to understand why they've not been there since the beginning.

Multitasking Support
One of the biggest knocks against the iPad when first released was the lack of native multi-tasking support. Jailbreakers added the feature quickly and Apple soon realized it would be a requirement for any future device's success and released an OS update that included the feature. The iPad 2 capitalizes on that progress and takes it a step further with the increased RAM enabling more open applications to be suspended at once, and the time to open or close an application has improved as well. That said, even the first generation managed to open and close apps faster than most people would be used to on their computers, so while this is an improvement it's more akin to showing off.

Apps
One thing that Apple has clearly the advantage in for the moment is app availability. The App store has close to 70,000 iPad specific Apps, all of which will work on the iPad 2. The new cameras will undoubtedly see this list expand rapidly, as will the inclusion of a gyroscope for gaming and motion based uses. There are also a substantial number of professional applications ranging from document creation to photo editing and vector drawing. Chances are if you can dream it, there's an App for that (and if not you might want to get started on one to fill in the gap). The Android market is making a strong showing, and ultimately it'll likely be a strong competitor, for now it still has a ways to go, but any potential buyer should consider the strength of the application market before buying a tablet.

Pros:
Weight. Seriously. The minimal weight of this thing is by far the most impressive feature about it in my opinion. It seems to defy physics and logic that so much could be in such a small space working that hard for that long.

Battery Life. From full to dead my iPad 2 went just over 11 hours with the movie Robin Hood showing twice during that time, the screen at half brightness, wifi turned on, an Angry Birds marathon and a good portion of a book in ibook. That's better than a work day and that's constantly on.

Books. This is definitely a Pro, but reading itself could go either way. The great benefit to the iPad is having access to Google Books, ibook, Nook, and Kindle. This allows for some comparison shopping and price competition (although for the most part they're all usually about the same). Reading in the evenings in bed is great as the back light means you don't have to worry about keeping others awake, but the glass screen causes some glare trouble when trying to read outside or near a sunny window. If you're an avid outdoor reader the Kindle might still be your best bet.

Cons:
Still no dedicated USB support. While there is a camera add-on that allows for certain USB devices to be used there is no option for mass storage. Some of the Android Tablets allow for this and if you find yourself wanting to use your tablet as a standalone storage device this might be something to consider. The device can read from certain flash drives though, but is largely limited to photo and video files. Jailbreaks offer solutions to this, but those come with their own issues as well.

Still no dedicated SD card slot. This is troublesome on two fronts. First, if you want to import pictures from your camera you have to have an adapter which is just one more thing to carry around. Second, the lack of expansion means you're limited to what you purchase in terms of storage. I purchased a 32GB iPad last time and never filled it up completely, so for me capacity wasn't an issue. If you want to be able to have your entire movie collection with you though... you may want to consider whether the iPad 2 can meet your space requirements.

HDMI output. Really this is a Pro and a Con. The iPad does allow for HD output over HDMI but again it requires an adapter. All of these adapters are additional purchases for features that some tablets offer built in. This can be a pain, but then again if you're not likely to ever use HDMI Output then you're not paying for something you won't use.

No Flash Support. This is becoming less and less of an issue as the internet and web developers are moving away from Flash for many websites, but there are a lot still out there relying on Adobe's Flash to run properly (including a lot of web based games). Before you pick a tablet consider what kind of websites you frequent and try and determine if they are Flash driven or not. If they are you may really want to consider something from the Android offerings as it is expected that they'll have at least some Flash support.

 source: Amazon.com