ShanzhaiPad joins tablet PC party

Original names are not a Shanzhai forte, nevertheless I'm sticking with ShanzhaiPad as the official name for this one. Besides ShanzhaiPad has a slightly better ring to it than simply 'Ultra Thin & Light 10.2" Touch Screen Tablet PC', which is what I believe it has been christened in China. Still, it does tell us a lot about the device. It's really thin, has a touch screen 10.2 inches big, and is called a tablet PC.

To divulge further; the ShanzhaiPad use an 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 and a 945GSE chipset as the brains behind the operation. Interestingly the 512MB of system memory works in tandem with DVMT or 'Dynamic Video Memory Technology' a technology developed by Intel that allows distribute the memory between OS and graphics array. It's supposed to improve graphics performance, but if you believe that then you should take a closer look at the chipset and smell the roses.

The 945GSE is as old as the hills and is in no way a stellar graphics beasty. In fact the whole platform here is fairly low-end, the kind that you see in most netbooks. The trade-off of course is that the Atom platform uses less power which helps with thin devices and battery life.


Software-wise it appears to be running Windows Tablet Edition, which is perhaps not so surprising seeing as there are relativity few alternatives when looking for touch screen functionality. Windows 7 might help solve that. Then again, if you listen to Microsoft, what won't it solve? Weighing in at just over a kilo, the ShanzhaiPad includes headphone and microphone jacks, 3 USB holes, a VGA port, Ethernet port, and a card reader. Again, this all sounds very much like a netbook, no?

Here's Apple's imaginary tablet device. Looks pretty much like a really big, thin iPhone.

Western Opportunity Analysis:

So according to Michael Arrington the tablet form factor is the next big thing and the CrunchPad is the definitive tablet design. 'Welcome to couch computing' is a slogan they've used. HHmmm...I think I get it. I understand the concept that tablets are ergonomically sound, and that improved weight and thinness from new forms of touch screen manufacturing opens new doors. Still I'm not totally convinced. The tablet has been touted as the next big thing since forever and the public just haven't bitten yet.

The ShanzhaiPad might not look quite as glamorous as Arrington's sleek concept art, but it is another way to repackage the cheap hardware have been powering netbooks for the last year or so. Arrington talked initially about a 200$ product and this now seems to be a considerable over reach. I'm thinking it might be 0 with a ball and chain subscription, more like 350US or 400 without. The Shanzhaipad apparently costs the equivalenty of less than 250 dollars or 1700RMB, and why not? After all, it's basically a netbook sans keyboard.

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