Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Google tablets expected to challenge iPad

Android-based tablets will make up 39 percent of the market in 2015, Gartner predicts.

Apple’s iPad will maintain tablet supremacy for the next four years, but higher education soon could see an influx of tablets that operate with Google’s operating system (OS) during the same period, according to an April 11 report from IT research company Gartner.

After changing the tablet market the way the Apple iPhone “reinvented” the smart-phone market, the iPad and its iOS—Apple’s operating system—account for almost 70 percent of media tablets, while Android-based tablets account for 20 percent of the market, according to Gartner.

Google’s Android OS, however, will see steady growth over the next four years. By 2015, Google will own 39 percent of the tablet market, compared to the iPad’s 47 percent, Gartner predicts.…Read More

Hands-on review: Motorola Xoom tablet

Just think: a mere 12 months ago, many of us were still debating whether a consumer-friendly tablet like the iPad would make any sense. Today, the iPad is a certifiable hit, a new iPad is on the way, slates from the likes of HP, LG, Samsung, and RIM are in the pipeline, and come Thursday, a formidable new player in the budding tablet market—the Android-powered Motorola Xoom—will land in stores, Yahoo! News reports. Suddenly, it’s raining tablets, a welcome development for gadget lovers. The Xoom won’t be the first Android tablet to take on the iPad, but it does bear the distinction of being the first tablet running on “Honeycomb,” Google’s new, made-for-tablets version of the Android OS. And while the previous Android tablets like the Samsung Galaxy Tab and the Dell Streak 7 arrived with smaller, seven-inch displays, the Xoom’s roomy 10.1-inch screen invites direct comparison to the similar-sized iPad…

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Kineo: Like an iPad, but made for students

The Kineo features a 7-inch touch-screen display and a battery that reportedly lasts up to 12 hours per charge.

As more school leaders look at using iPads and other tablet computers as learning tools, the Florida-based company Brainchild has developed an iPad-like device that is designed specifically for elementary and middle school students.

Built on Google’s Android operating system for mobile devices, the Kineo—which is Greek for “to excite”—acts as an eBook reader with internet access and Flash capability. Its replaceable battery reportedly lasts for up to 12 hours on single charge, and at $299 it costs far less than Apple’s iPad.

Perhaps best of all for educators, the Kineo enables school leaders to specify the applications that students can use on the device by “locking down” apps they don’t want students to use.…Read More

T-Mobile to sell tablet with 3-D cameras, glasses

Aiming to ride two crazes at once, T-Mobile USA will sell a tablet computer that can shoot 3-D videos, the Associated Press reports. The cell phone company said Wednesday that the “G-Slate” tablet from LG Electronics Inc. will be out this spring, but it didn’t say exactly when, or how much it would cost. The tablet will have an 8.9-inch screen and two cameras on the back, which together can capture 3-D, high-definition video. The tablet will come with red-blue 3-D glasses for 3-D viewing while shooting…

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PCs sales in 2010: Tale of the tablet

The story of the personal computer industry in the second half of 2010 could well be called “The Tale of the Tablet,” the Associated Press. New data from market research firms Gartner Inc. and IDC released Wednesday offered more evidence that Apple Inc.’s iPad, which has essentially created the tablet market, is having a serious effect on PC sales. Shipments of new PCs in the fourth quarter rose but not as strongly as either Gartner or IDC expected. Both blamed weak consumer demand, particularly in the U.S., and the iPad’s influence, as it forced consumers to think twice about what type of device they’d like to buy…

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Will $99 Moby tablet swim or sink?

 

Marvell also announced a pilot program in partnership with DCPS.
Marvell announced a pilot program for its Moby tablet in partnership with Washington, D.C., Public Schools.

 

In a development that it claims will be a game-changer in education, technology company Marvell has announced the prototype of a $99 tablet computer that students can use to surf the web, interact with electronic textbooks and other digital media, and collaborate with each other around the globe.…Read More