HTC Android tablet priced up for Blighty's shoppers Smartphone maker HTC's entry into the media tablet arena, the Flyer, will arrive in the UK imminently, according to Carphone Warehouse. The retailer has beguin taking advance orders for the fondleslab - though its website also says the Flyer has flown in and is in stock. No surprise this - HTC UK is launching the tablet …
It's one thing if the device forces you to use a tablet, or has a crappy resistive screen. It's quite another if it lets you CHOOSE to use a stylus or not. I really don't understand the stylus hate at all. It should be blazingly obvious that a tablet capable of taking notes through a virtual keyboard and a stylus is more useful in a range of settings over one which just offers the keyboard.
Perhaps the HTC Flyer has a crappy resistive screen which I wouldn't be too gone on. But if they managed to offer capacitive for every day use and stylus for times where pen is useful then it could be an interesting combination. Price is still too high though.
The screen sounds very clever: capacitive for the hands but a dedicated layer for detecting the more precise stylus.
Unfortunately, from what I've read, you can't rest your hand on the screen while using the stylus :(
Drop the price a couple of hundred quid and I'll consider it.
Have they mentioned Honeycomb support for the future?
They have to be joking........
Who on earth would buy for that price.
You could buy the Motorola Xoom 3G and a £15 stylus for a fiver less.
I can see these flying straight back to HTC as unsold stock.
In fact you could buy an HTC desire and a galaxy tab for not much more.......
Got to be an epic fail...............
The Xoom is a capacitive multi touch screen. That makes it great when you're stroking the screen and bloody awful when you're trying to write. That multitouch means just resting your hand on the screen would confuse the device since it can't tell the difference between a pen stroke and your hand.
You'd have to avoid touching the screen (and write like a 4 year old) or wear special gloves to avoid this, or hold out hope that someone will produce an adequate software solution.
I have no idea if the HTC is resistive or not. The screen shots suggest their stylus has a button on it which may mean they have some kind of software mode that is enabled when it is pressed to ignore certain kinds of inputs.
I love HTC's smartphones and would love to get my hands on the Flyer.
But at 600 quid all it's going to do is Fly straight out of the window. Android 2.3 is suitable for phones but just wasn't intended for tablets.
The Asus Transformer is probably going to be my next "I want one of those" purchases.
Shame on you HTC.
Overpriced, inappropriate OS, late to market, the etch-a-sketch Stylus is not that cool. and lets not forget
IT'S TOO DAMNED EXPENSIVE.
Fail, fail , fail
Sorry HTC; I love your mobiles (my Desire has been an ambassador for your brand, and for Android, for months) and this looks like some seriously useful kit but c'mon. Are you serious?
Just out of interest, how does this compare with its rest-of-world price? Is this the usual take-the-dollar-price-and-stick-on-a-pound-sign shenanigans?
"They have to be joking, I could get a netbook with USB 3.0 ports SD slot and integrated cup holder for that price"
Interesting how it's all turned around. Could it be the avalanche of sales and the growing understanding tablets offer more what the average user wants of computers moment by moment than desktop's or laptops/netbooks offer?
Could it be the snipping has stopped because fondleslab deniers are beginning to look a wee bit foolish before the massive evidence a certain fruity company got it so hugely right?
I give it 10 months before, like last time, the Fandroids forget who innovated this particular corner and start pretending anyone who thinks Google were following the lead must be just plain ignorant (anticipating frantic "OMG! OMG! Apple never invented that!" replies, there is a difference between invention and innovation, innovation being about the combination of creative implementation and execution) The spectacle of Google scrabbling to keep up is currently still too undeniable for that line to be taken.
iOS was originally a fondleslab project which was adapted to mobile phones, which is one of the reasons cross device uniformity and planning have been so strong.
Pretty sure the stylus on this is an active digitiser type. This is totally different to a resistive stylus found on PDAs and a million miles away from the £2 type you can buy for capacitive screens.
I'm guessing that in pen mode the touch screen is disabled so that you can rest your hand on the screen whilst drawing.
The Register 
Biting the hand that feeds IT
Copyright. All rights reserved © 1998–2024
