Technology Review | iPad 2 vs Xoom

This was my desk today – does it look like technology overload?! Nah – I am in tech-heaven!

I’ve been trying out the iPad for a couple of months (front right), now I’m trying out the Motorola Xoom tablet (front left) – pronounced zoom.  I’m going to post my review below, but for an Android platform lover, the Xoom is the way to go and I’m so excited for this new tablet! It will allow me the business options to create, edit and view documents, spreadsheets and powerpoints, as well as provide the ease of utilizing social media to send messages from wherever I’m traveling.

Motorola Xoom

• Moto's partnership with Google (and use of the 3.0 version of its mobile operating system, Honeycomb)
• 32 GB
• Free 4G upgrade when it becomes available in the fall
• 1GHz, NVIDIA Tegra 2-based slate boasts a sizable 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 32GB of internal storage, a 10.1-inch, 1280 x 800 capacitive display, 3G connectivity
• Meant to be used in landscape mode more than portrait – better for video and screen viewing
• Front and rear facing cameras (rear facing has a larger zoom)
• HD video capability
• Wireless options – cheaper with a Verizon contract
• With what Google has done on the software side -- the Xoom could represent the next stage of tablet evolution

Apple iPad

• Options of 16, 32 and 64 GB – you pay for the memory. Overall, the iPad 2 is more affordable, but to get to 32 or 64 GB, it is more expensive
• 9.7-inch, 1024 x 768 screen – easier to read both in portrait and horizontal views
• Thinner designed and slightly lighter
• 1 GHz dual core chip, 512MB of RAM, A4 CPU
• Front & rear camera for pictures, video
• A little longer battery life than the Xoom
• Only 3G capabilities
• No Flash player available – many movies and pictures cannot be viewed because it is not supported by the Apple platform

 

Overall

Basically with the Xoom, you have the capability to control what you want to do, and the iPad pretty much controls what you can do.

There are so many more options, especially the business features with the Xoom. I discovered how you can create and share documents, which will be beneficial. There is a similar program with the iPad, but since Mac has their own system, it won’t work as well with our PC computers and data.

There is not much sharing between the devices, except for a few apps, so it’s not like we have to have the Android phone with the Xoom or the iPhone with the iPad. But it would be easier if they were the same platform for familiarity and ease of use.

The biggest difference is that the Xoom is more computer like, whereas the iPad is more oversized-phone like.

Anyone have one or the other tablet that they like?