AppleInsider reports that Acer, the second largest computer manufacturer in the world, is planning to release three different tablets in a bid to take on Apple’s iPad: a 7-inch and 10.1-inch Android tablet, and a 10.1-inch tablet running on Microsoft Windows. According to AppleInsider, the two Android tablets will go on sale in April 2011. The larger of the two Androids is 13.3mm thick and made of aluminium, and has a built-in HDMI port with 1080p functionality. It has both Wi-Fi and 3G capabilities, with multi-touch input and an internal gyroscope.
The smaller, 7-inch Android tablet has a 1280 x 800 display, with a 16 x 10 aspect ratio, a forward-facing HD camera, an HDMI port and both 3G and Wi-Fi, plus a dual-core processor and the ability to run Flash (they always mention that one!).
The 10.1-inch Windows 7-powered tablet is due to launch in February 2011, sooner than the two Androids, and comes complete with a full-size keyboard dock. It has an AMD processor and two 1.3 megapixel cameras – one on the front and one on the back – and, as with the other two tablets, both Wi-Fi and 3G.
AppleInsider notes that before the iPad launched, Acer had said it would not be bringing out a tablet, believing that Apple had too much of an advantage and a head-start on its competitors with iTunes and the App Store, but clearly something has made Acer believe that Apple no longer has such an advantage. I would think that the only way the Acer tablets could make any sort of dent in the iPad's sales is if they are very, very competitively priced, but Acer has yet to release any details or even hints about pricing.
Source: AppleInsider | Acer unveils Windows, Android tablets to compete with Apple's iPad