Motorola Xoom in India

Boy oh boy! This is one tablet that I am dying to try my hands on, especially after the entire buzz it created at the Consumer Electronics Show, Las Vegas. From the title of the post you might have already guessed that I am talking about Motorola Xoom. On its website, the online retailer Infibeam has mentioned that it is releasing the tablet on May 10, 2011 at a pre-order price of Rs. 35000.

As the market continues to get inundated with all new range of tablets, the launch of any new tablet has now become a routine affair. But there is something special about Motorola Xoom that makes its release worth a wait. Touted as the most worthy competitor to Apple IPad (and IPad2), Xoom happens to be Google’s inaugural Honeycomb tablet- and the device that the Honeycomb team actually used to test the software. In that manner, Xoom imbibes in itself the true essence of Android Honeycomb platform, the platform that is specifically designed for tablets.

The specifications look equally impressive. Powered by a dual-core 1GHz Nvidia Tegra SoC processor and 1GB DDR2 RAM, the 10.1-inch (display) tablet clear beats the first generation IPads in certain respects. The device also houses a 2 megapixel front facing camera, a 5 megapixel camera at back panel with 720p HD video record feature, Wi-Fi, gyroscope, accelerometer, barometer and an e-Compass. The battery is powerful enough to support 10 hours of video (and up to 75 hours of music) and the company has also promised a software update that will enable Flash support for the device, something that misses from the entire IPad series.

The Big question: should you buy it?

Motorola Xoom, no doubt is an exciting device. Having said that, there are some points that you should keep in mind before actually buying it.

1) The IPad2 factor: Remember, Motorola Xoom was conceptualized before Apple IPad2 was announced. Xoom, as I mentioned earlier, beats the first generation IPad in certain aspects but not the new IPad2, the one with modified looks, refurbished features and a more powerful processor. However, the availability of IPad2 in India is still not clear and there has been no official word on it so far. So if you don’t want to wait too long, Xoom is the way to go.

2) The price factor: Xoom is available at a price of Rs. 35000. We are expecting 2011 to be the year of tablets and that could mean a flurry of lower-priced alternative, but equally good tablets in the market. So the question is whether you are willing to wait for an unknown amount of time so as to save few hundred bucks. Anyhow, it’s more of a personal judgment.

3) The Android Honeycomb factor: Motorola Xoom was launched in the US markets on 24 Feb 2011 with a very high expectation. But the expectations were not fully met and the sales were weak despite the initial buzz amongst the users. And quite contrary to the expectations, some analysts announced Android 3.0 Honeycomb to be the weakest link. According to them, Honeycomb is “extremely complicated and confusing” and not suitable for mass adoption. The reviews might seem to be little extreme but it is enough to create some doubt in the mind of a potential buyer.

Anyway, I think that it is always better to get the feel of the device first before actually buying it and since the device will now be available in India, you might get a chance to explore it.