Tablet PC Reviews: A Guide To 9 iPad Alternatives (PHOTOS)

The official Apple iPad release is just a few weeks away, and pre-orders for the Apple tablet have already kicked off.

But before you plunk down $500 (minimum) on what Apple claims is a 'revolutionary' and 'magical' device, why not take a look at the competition?

Here are 9 alternatives to the iPad--and what they offer. Do you think these could these be iPad killers? Let us know in the comments below.

Want to learn more about the Apple iPad? The Huffington Post has a guide to '13 Things You Need To Know About The iPad,' as well as rundown of the '9 Worst Things About The iPad.' Also check out pictures and video of the iPad.

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HP Slate

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Unofficially called 'HP Slate,' HP's tablet PC will be released later this year and could cost between $500 and $600, though no official price has been announced. It will run on Windows 7 and will support Flash. It is also equipped with a camera and USB ports. Get a hands-on look at HuffPost Tech.

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Unofficially called 'HP Slate,' HP's tablet PC will be released later this year and could cost between $500 and $600, though no official price has been announced. It will run on Windows 7 and will support Flash. It is also equipped with a camera and USB ports. Get a hands-on look at HuffPost Tech.

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iPad Please I'll Take It!

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Comments

[Greg Paulhus]

04:43 PM on 05/15/2010

Courier isn't real, it never was, that was only a demo concept video. The project has been cancelled by Microsoft.

[NeoStar9]

10:37 AM on 05/14/2010

I really look forward to the day where I can get a tablet PC/laptop that is fully functional to the point I can play PC games and just my finger or a stylus as a mouse.

[ThinkerT]

04:17 PM on 04/06/2010

Where is the Lenovo U1 Hybrid? That's the one I'm waiting for - two computers in one (netbook and tablet), where the tablet is the screen for the netbook but detaches on demand, allowing you to use it as a tablet for casual use and a netbook for more focused use. You can even hook up the netbook part separately to a monitor to use on it's own when the tablet part is elsewhere.

Haven't heard much about it lately, was supposed to release in June. I'm dyin' here! :)

[Aerows]

06:12 PM on 04/06/2010

The U1 is certainly sweet looking. It's not what I would want, but I can see that for people that want a versatile netbook/tablet, it's pretty perfect.

Anything with Tegra 2 is going to own the rest, though. The only issue with Tegra 2 is lack of x86 capability, but because of the other capabilities it has, namely extremely powerful graphics capability and low power consumption, it won't matter. Again, not necessarily what I might want, but if you are interested in a tablet or a smart book, wait for Tegra 2.

[waitforme]

04:30 PM on 04/03/2010

Someone:
What is Flash and Flash-supported?
What is Multi-touch?

(Wll check back.)

[Aerows]

06:13 PM on 04/06/2010

Flash is the application that allows you to view youtube, Hulu, play certain internet based games, and view web content. Flash and Flash-supported are the same thing.

Multi-touch is the screen's touch capabilities. You directly interact with the screen itself as oppose to needing an external mouse or keyboard.

[Palito]

10:55 AM on 04/03/2010

reminds me of the attack of the iPod killers for years, with many many more hardware features than any regular ipod and could never dethrone it. the apple support and itunes store were the edge.

same thing with these tablets. they can put all the hardware features they want, but unless the interface is intuitive and it is well supported and it has a thriving market of applications, they will flop. Android platform is promising but is suffering from fragmentation and terrible support from google and vendors.

in any case, many of these "killers" are not available on the market right now so it's all moot, and the ones that are available are a mess. like the Archos tablet (another flop) , which is painful to use because it runs windows 7 which is not meant to be used in a device like this.

[ramblingjohnny]

03:51 AM on 04/03/2010

Nice use of conky on the Adam!

[Ronak Shah]

04:22 PM on 04/02/2010

Chk this out guys.....
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/biz/india-business/Enter-Adam-the-iPad-killer-made-in-India/articleshow/5570642.cms

[gcswift2]

09:18 PM on 04/01/2010

What about the...

Courier from Microsoft

http://gizmodo.com/5365299/courier-first-details-of-microsofts-secret-tablet
http://gizmodo.com/5369493/leaked-courier-video-shows-how-well-actually-use-it

I'll wait for it

[joelaf]

10:28 AM on 04/02/2010

The proposed Astri MyId is like a 7/8 scale Courier. The projected price is $150. I hope they build it.

[I AM AN EXIT]

01:32 PM on 05/14/2010

courier project was scrapped. just recently. http://thenextweb.com/microsoft/2010/05/03/spirit-microsoft-courier-lives/

sorry to break the bad news. I hate the sandbox format of the ipad. Apple makes great hardware (i have dropped my ipod so many times it pops open and the guts hang out...but it never has died. Iv had it for years), but their software is so limiting just so they can make an extra buck on everything. The ipad will have the best touch screen technology though, and is currently the best eReader. That is what i want it for...word processing on the go, email, and ebook...netflix too.

I just don't see any of the other tablets stacking up, as much as I like windows 7, it isn't functional on a tablet.

[PopeRatzo]

01:45 PM on 04/01/2010

I'll wait until Sansa comes out with an iPad clone at half the price, plus SD slots and USB.

Their portable media players are the best for price/performance, and cost a fraction of iPod's price.

[Krystin McGee]

12:36 PM on 04/01/2010

I want the Adam. The specs on that device are beautiful, flash, higher battery life, multitasking. Android, and Ebook client. Is this what love feels like? Lol jk, but I do want to be on a list to try it out. Who do I send flowers to?

[mastabingus]

10:28 AM on 04/01/2010

YALL Forgot the WePad!!!

http://wepad.mobi/en

[JohnSawyer]

04:09 AM on 04/01/2010

I don't know if any of these will be "iPad killers", as much as iPad competition. "Killer" works only with that antiquated mindset in which there has to be a single "winner" in absolutely everything.

[jgeurian21]

10:36 AM on 04/01/2010

Great point. Really the iPad is for one set of users and the Courier is for another. To claim that the other meets the needs to one group is absurd. Heck I LOVE my iPod touch, yet I own MS products. Just different strokes for different folks.

[JoeBlough]

10:41 AM on 04/01/2010

It still comes down tp buying an iPad or an iPad wantabee

[FreedomFreedomFreedom]

10:09 AM on 03/29/2010

Here's a longer video about the Microsoft Courier http://bit.ly/1gpD0Z

[FreedomFreedomFreedom]

10:05 AM on 03/29/2010

For a truly revolutionary device wait for the Microsoft Courier. Check it out before you start bashing. This looks like a device you can actually do some work on, as well as entertain. I use a Macbook Pro and would NEVER buy another PC. But this is something else: http://bit.ly/kl8gg

[JohnSawyer]

04:45 PM on 03/30/2010

The Courier looks interesting, but as I commented further below, I don't see much that it does, that the iPad couldn't do. The iPad will probably eventually get a built-in camera, and you can do pen input on the iPad, though it requires a special capacitive stylus. The iPad has a single, larger screen too, which I find to be better than two small screens. If one wants a split screen approach as shown in the Courier video, it could be done on the iPad, in software. The Courier's hinge being usable as a "pocket" to hold items temporarily, can be done on any tablet by using either side of the display as a "pocket". Also, as far as being able to entertain yourself on the Courier, the demo videos didn't show the user watching films, etc., which will be better on the iPad with its larger, single display.

In reading the comments appended to the Courier demo videos, I find it interesting that so many people praise it in ways that imply no other tablet can do those things, or do them as well. I suspect the same people praising the Courier in this way, are the same people condemning the iPad, even though nearly everything they like about the Courier, can be done on the iPad.

Anyway, competition like this is good.

[jgeurian21]

10:33 AM on 04/01/2010

The Courier runs a full version of Win 7. There are a ton of features that you are leaving out like true multitasking, flash support, connecting to home networks, USB support for connected devices and a slew of other differences.

[ForObamaInDallas]

01:59 PM on 04/01/2010

I'm holding out for the Courier myself.

[iamvalid]

10:01 AM on 03/23/2010

Come on. Like the man says. Don't pizz on my leg and then tell me it's raining.

No multitasking? My god man, it is 2010 and the ipad does not support multitasking. I think Windows 3.0 supported multitasking or at the very least, task sharing. This is a great technological breakthrough?

Apple and jobs would make excellent wingnuts. Less is more, up is down, bigger is smaller, iphone does not equal ipad, and on an on. Reality can at time be a perilous journey.

As much as I dislike HP for all the crapware they install on their offerings, I think they will be whipping up some Apple sauce soon.

[GoogleMaster]

08:35 PM on 03/23/2010

Surely it will have some sort of multi-tasking. Pseudo at least. The iPhone can multi-task. Only, it can only do that with it's handful of native apps. I guess at that price point and that size, Apple couldn't throw in fancy pageant walk'n gizmo's like true mult-tasking. Either way, what's going to make the iPad popular is the apps.

When the iPhone came out with zero apps, it was just a phone that did stuff. The apps will rock the iPad. Imagine a full size piano and recording studio on the pad.
Touchscreen games like on the iPhone will rock. Doctors will probably love it. Instead of carrying a clipboard around, they can carry something similar in size that's connected to the web and their databases. Not only that, it will make the perfect rectangular frisbee, complete with motion tracking.
The sky's the limit on the apps.

Developers are already working on them, the SDK's been out for quite a while. What was too small for the iPhone to do, the iPad will handle the job.

[FreedomFreedomFreedom]

10:26 AM on 03/29/2010

There is no such thing as "pseudo" multi-tasking. There is no multitasking. Period. The only multi-tasking on the iphone is when you are using the phone you can access some of the other apps. There is no phone on the iPad. You cannot multitask. Multitasking means you can have two or more apps running at the same time. You can't do that with the iPad.

[benjismith]

06:48 PM on 04/01/2010

"Imagine a full size piano and recording studio on the pad. "

Full size piano?

You're aware that the iPad only has a ten inch screen?