Motorola to Stop Xoom Production by June?

Rumors have it in the media suggesting that Motorola might entirely stop its Xoom Tablet PC production by June 2011 and look to bring out a new Xoom with a different size. Motorola Xoom, the first Android 3.0 Honeycomb based tablet, could not make any significant impact in the tablet PC market after being launched in February.

The release of Apple iPad 2 did not help Motorola in this cause either. Now, a number of other Android-based tablet including Samsung Galaxy Tab and LG Optimus Pad are about to hit the market. Naturally, Xoom is facing a tough challenge in its survival. So, the rumors of Xoom’s production being stopped by June got enough water to be assumed to be true.

However, the company has now cleared all the doubts, ensuring to continue Xoom production beyond June.

Motorola Xoom was thought to be a potential iPad killer before its release considering the array of features it possesses, but the popular handset maker failed to gain enough space in the tablet market which is gradually being crowded with more and more company are jumping into the increasingly popular tablet PC market.

Though Motorola has now denied that media reports regarding the continuation of Xoom production beyond June, the company might have already started planning another Xoom version with a different size.

There is a good possibility Motorola could come up with the next version of Xoom with 4G support in 2011 or early 2012.

Motorola Xoom Wi-Fi Only in Canada: Now Available for Online Pre-Order at $599

People in Canada can now make online pre-orders for the Wi-Fi only version of Motorola Xoom which was released in the US in February. The Android 3.0 Honeycomb based tablet is also expected to be available in retail stores in Canada very soon, though the company is yet to announce any specific date.

Before the release, Xoom was touted as a potential killer of Apple iPad, but the device could not make any considerable impact on iPad 2 which was released on March 11 and iPad 2 has experienced excellent success in America. So, Motorola is now looking to exploit other market with the Wi-Fi only version of the device.

You can order for Motorola Xoom Wi-Fi only version by visiting the online retail shops like Best Buy Canada and Future Shop. If you order now, you will get your device by 8 April at your desired location in Canada.

Motorola Xoom comes up with very good features including a10.1-inch high definition widescreen capacitive multi-touch display with 1280×800 resolution. It sports a 5mp rear-facing camera for capturing 720p HD video, and a 2mp camera at the front for video calling. The device supports 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR. There is 32GB flash memory and you will find SD card slot and micro USB port. Users will now also get Adobe Flash 10.2 support.

Related article:

tablets-planet

Motorola Looking to Exploit European Market with Wi-Fi Only Xoom Version

It is clear that Motorola failed to make any significant impact in the US market with its Xoom tablet PC. Despite being touted as the first real challenge for Apple iPad, the maximum Xoom could do was to provoke thoughts among the people who spent time to compare Xoom with iPad 2 and ultimately jumped for iPad 2. Well, I am not saying that Xoom was not sold at all. What I want to say is that Xoom’s potential to affect iPad 2 sales has not been flourished.

Now, it seems Motorola is going to turn its attention towards Europe where Apple is not as dominant as it is in the US. So, it is expected that Xoom would find it a lot easier to make a significant impact in the European market. Moreover, Motorola is going to launch a Wi-Fi only Xoom version in Europe with an attractive t price tag of $599. So, all the hiccups that the pricing of the device was creating so far would now most probably go away.

More importantly, Motorola Xoom has just been boost up by Flash 10.2 release. Adobe has come up with the Flash 10.2 beta version for Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system, the same OS Xoom is running on, so Xoom users from now on can enjoy Flash-required content on the device.

Well, still it would not be that easy for Xoom to grab a significant share of the European market because a number of highly-enriched tablets from some world renowned companies like RIM, HP and Acer are going to hit the market very soon.

Flash 10.2 Released: Can Motorola Zoom in the Tablet Market Now?

When Motorola released Xoom in February, Apple was yet to come up with its iPad 2 which finally hit the market on 11 March and instantly turned out to be a huge success with Apple selling 500,000 to 100,000 units of iPad 2 in the first week following the release.

Initially, Xoom was thought to be a potential threat for iPad, but after the raving success of iPad 2 it is clear that Xoom could not have any impact on Apple and its dominance in the tablet PC market.

Apple iPad 2 and Xoom are almost similar as far as hardware features are concerned. To some extent, iPad 2 could have some advantages over Xoom, if you consider its smart cover and highly rich app store featuring various applications for variety of tasks.

Well, there were two areas where Xoom had upper hand and these are Adobe Flash support and SD card slot. Apple does not support flash and so iPad 2 users can not enjoy flash-supported video and animation. Moreover, the company also does not allow its iPad 2 users to enhance the storage of the device as there is no memory card slot available with iPad 2.

Fortunately, Xoom supports Flash and features a SD card slot, but then unfortunately, none of the two have been active so far. Now, Adobe has just released the beta version of Flash 10.2 with a view to facilitating Android users to enjoy high quality video.

For example, Xoom users can now download Flash 10.2 from Android Marketplace and install on their devices featuring Android 2.2, 2.3 and 3.0.

So, it seems that Motorola can now start to exploit the tablet PC market with the recent Flash 10.2 updates. Flash support is very important today because there are many websites that require Flash support to show their video and animation built on Flash.

Overall, Android-based tablets can now make the competition tougher with the likes of iPad 2.

Is Apple invincible?

Don Reisinger’s “Apple iPad 2, Motorola Xoom Face-Off: 10 Lessons Competitors Should Learn” comes up with some points which I do not agree with.

He said that Android 3.0 is not ready. Well, when Android first came up at the smartphone market no body thought that it would become so popular. On March 7, 2011, comScore report revealed that Android has the biggest smartphone market share in the U.S. in the last three months ending in January 2011. The tablet PC market is very much new. In the next few years, Android’s position will also change in the tablet PC market like the smartphone market.

He also said that it is impossible to compete with Apple. Google Android, already took over Apple iOS in the smartphone market then why it would not be able to do so in the next few years.

I conclude this writing by discussing one more point. Reisinger said that apps is an important thing for tablet PCs and Apple has plenty of it but in his earlier post titled, “Motorola Xoom vs. Apple iPad 2: 10 Reasons to Pick Xoom” he said do not believe the “apps hype.” Before you write something, make sure, you become clear about what you want to write.

Related article:

eWeek

Motorola Xoom to be released by Sprint?

Yes, there is a possibility that Sprint will not only release a Motorola Xoom but it will be under Sprint brand even. That comes to some of us shock because until now, Xoom was exclusively sold by Verizon.

Before we get too much carried away with this matter, I should remind you that right now, it is some kind of a rumor. The picture of the product containing the name of Sprint was posted in a forum.

There is even another rumor about this Sprint Xoom- the device may carry WiMax from first. If it happens then it may attract a particular segment of customers. According to Cnet, Motorola may launch this product through T-Mobile or AT&T in future.

Motorola has failed to put up any kind of strong competition against iPad or iPad 2. So, the company should try to expand the availability of Xoom in as many carriers as possible. 

Motorola Xoom Wi-Fi Only Tablet: Better Late than Never

It is official the Motorola has come up with Wi-Fi only Xoom with just $600. This should attract some consumers because the tablet runs on Android 3.0 aka Honeycomb. In fact, Xoom is a good and powerful device with 32 GB memory and a good processor.

It would have been better if Motorola had announced the Wi-Fi only version on the day it launched the 3G Xoom for $600. According to Matthey Shaer of Christian Science Monitor, this delay may have caused some damage to the prospect of Xoom tablet. Matthew Shaer gave reference of an analyst who gave his opinion to The Wall Street Journal.

To be honest with you, I do not agree with this kind of assertion because I think that Motorola Xoom has good potential to improve its sales figure. The tablet is solid and it runs on Honeycomb. It is perhaps too early to reach any such conclusions that Android OS will not become better than iOS in the next one or two years. Secondly, Motorola has a long history with wireless devices. All the reviews that I have come across about Xoom have been more or less positive. So, we feel that it is better late than never for Motorola to launch a Wi-Fi only version of Xoom tablet PC.

Related article:

Christian Science Monitor

Motorola Xoom vs. iPad vs. iPad2: Site load speed test

CNET conducted simple site load speed test and 3D game display test on Apple iPad, iPad 2 and Xoom.

The results shown here is not consistent. It may vary from place and to place and there can be various interferences. These tests were taken in a closed network where the router was placed five feet away from the devices. CNET chose three sites for the test- CNET.com, CBSNews.com and Giant Bomb.com. The site loading test for each tablet has been conducted more than once and before starting each test, the browser cache had been cleared.

Here is the first video clip showing the site loading and 3D display test between Apple iPad and Motorola Xoom:

Here is the video of the site loading test between Motorola Xoom and iPad 2:

The result shows that despite having a larger and more powerful display than the iPad and iPad 2, Xoom does not get any major advantage. On the other hand, Xoom has a very good site-loading speed compared to the iPad and iPad 2. So, which one you are going to buy? Motorola Xoom or Apple iPad 2.

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CNET.com

Motorola Xoom Wi-Fi for $600: Coming on March 27

Now it is final, Motorola Xoom Wi-Fi only tablet PC will become available for $600 from March 27, 2011. The device will become available in Amazon, Best Buy, Costco, RadioShack, Sam's Club, Staples and Walmart.

The Wi-Fi only tablet PC will come with 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor, 1GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, 5 megapixel camera with autofocus, and a 10.1-inch display with 1280 x 800 resolution.

Motorola Xoom will be the first tablet PC running Androind 3.0 Honeycomb. The tablet was first unveiled at CES 2011 and it won CNET Best tablet of CES 2011 and Best Gadget of CES 2011 award. Initially, Motorola launched the 3G enabled Xoom tablet PC on February 24, 2011.

At the time of launch Motorola Xoom said that it would support Adoble Flash and memory expansion via micro-SD but then it was revealed that an upgrade is required to activate those features. The update will become available on March 18, 2011.

Motorola Xoom will get its next major update in mid-2011 and then it will support Verizon 4G LTE.

Related article:

Engadget

Cnet Test: Xoom is a bit faster than iPad 2 in Site loading Test

If you browse Internet a lot in your tablet device than site loading speed is a very big matter. It can help you save a lot of time. Think of a person like me who spends his entire day online. I browse many websites and webpages a day.

According to a test carried out by Eric Franklin of Cnet, Motorola Xoom is significantly faster than the original iPad when it comes to site loading. However, Apple has done a good job with its iPad 2 and the difference is not that significant.

The test was carried on just 3 websites: CNET.com, CBSNews.com, and GiantBomb.com. It took 5,6 and 5 seconds for Motorola Xoom to load these 3 sites respectively. For iPad 2, it was 6,10 and 5 seconds while for the original iPad (or the first version) the time was 12,16 and 6 seconds.

The conclusion from Cnet is that iPad 2 has almost caught on Xoom but the iPad 2 may ‘choke’ to some extent while loading heavy sites like CBS News. 

Android Honeycomb OS: Not so Sweet for Motorola Xoom

Android 3.0 (codenamed Honeycomb) operating system was considered to be one of the attractive features of Motorola Xoom before the release of the tablet PC. Now, after its release, the Honeycomb OS turned sour for the Xoom users who are now coming up with lots of complains about this only tablet-centric OS from Google.

According to Trip Chowdry, an analyst from Global Equities Research, has revealed that Xoom is suffering a lot because of Honeycomb’s buggy nature and not-user-friendly interface. Users experienced crashes of application and could not be entirely happy with the inconsistent battery life. Sometimes, Xoom runs just 2 hours, sometimes 6 hours.

The problem is that Android 3.0 OS is not yet a finished product. In fact, the OS Xoom has featured is nothing but a beta version of what Google is trying to come up with. Naturally, there remain a number of problems in Honeycomb OS and Google needs to work on those areas.

Motorola Xoom was thought to be a potential killer of Apple iPad and its already-dominant position in the tablet PC market, which was recently boost up by the release of iPad 2. However, the problems associated with Honeycomb OS has significantly reduced the sales of Xoom which is now struggling to catch up users’ expectation of high standard set up by Apple iPad.

WiFi only XOOM at $600 coming on 27 March 2011 at Staples

When I looked at the price, I felt somewhat discouraged. I felt that $600 was a bit too much for an Android run WiFi only tablet (Motorola Xoom). This kind of price tag will not attract that many consumers.

The only good part of Motorola Xoom is that it runs on Android 3.0 (Honeycomb). Just the other hand, I wrote this entry: Samsung Galaxy Tab WiFi Only version priced $399

That Galaxy Tab runs on Android 2.2 version. Still, I think that $600 is too much. Still, if you are interested for this Xoom then visit here for more information.

We think that it is time Google really sits with companies like Samsung and Motorola to discuss a good strategy to fight against Apple in the tablet market. Android has overtaken iOS in the smartphone market. Why the same thing wont happen in tablet market?