Computex 2010 in Taipei is just kicking off and ASUS has officially announced their first foray into the tablet market with their Eee Pad line. Maintaining the popular Eee naming scheme from their netbook line-up, ASUS will initially offer two models.
The EP121 will feature a 12 inch screen, Core 2 Duo CULV processor, Windows 7 and a claimed 10 hours of battery life. Details on the second model aren’t as clear, but ASUS does say that the EP101TC will feature a 10 inch screen and Windows Embedded Compact 7. The larger of the two will also sport a “hybrid keyboard/docking station” for traditional, notebook style input. While not explicitly mentioned, it is assumed that both models will utilize capacitive touchscreens.
Windows is an interesting choice for ASUS, especially with so much buzz surrounding mobile operating systems in the tablet space. In the wake of the iPad, many pundits have agreed that the best approach for tablets is to build up from a mobile OS rather than trying to scale down a desktop OS. Maybe ASUS can make a good case for the latter.
Engadget has a video showing both versions of the Eee Pad, but they are non-functional and semi-functional prototypes at this stage. The EP121 is simply a hardware mock-up with a view of how the slick-looking docking station will work, and the EP101TC is running a version of Windows CE that is pretty rough. The release window is stated to be sometime in 2011, so these are still a ways off.