slates

Yes, I'm a huge Mortal Kombat fan. This should be evident to anyone after watching the video above. However, I can't take credit for the whole tournament idea. That was the brainchild of my producer, Jamie Yee (she's actually a hidden Easter egg in the video, if you watch closely). Jamie's a huge sports nut (or at least, an San Francisco Giants nut) and apparently thinks only in terms of brackets and tournaments.

Anyway, last week was a fairly busy week for the CNET tablet reviews team. Donald Bell and I received three new tablets in the span of only a few days.

With all that glamorous reviewing we were doing, I didn't really have the bandwidth to conduct any official speed tests, until now.

As I alluded to before, we split the tests into two rounds. The first round, featuring the Acer Iconia Tab A500, T-Mobile G-Slate, and the Asus Eee Pad Transformer, would determine which tablet would take on the Xoom and iPad 2 in the final round.

So yeah, it's a two-round tournament. We thought about extending it, but decided that doing so would involve too much repetition in the video.

Check out the results below (or above if you prefer your results in talkies form).… Read more

Amazon.com has updated its Kindle Android app with features designed to tap into the Honeycomb interface currently found on the Motorola Xoom and T-Mobile's LG G-Slate.

Available now at Amazon's Appstore for Android, Kindle for Android 3.0 is geared for all Android devices but takes special advantage of the larger displays and other attributes offered by Honeycomb-powered tablets.

The updated version offers a virtual bookshelf that stretches across the screen to let people visually browse and view titles at the Kindle store. The new interface also provides quicker access to customer reviews, recommendations, and other items … Read more

The BlackBerry PlayBook finally arrives at CNET for review and Dialed In picks it apart to see what makes it tick. Sure, we're grumpy about a few things (like AT&T fudging on the BlackBerry Bridge app), but we did like the new tablet's browser. We also go 3D with the LG Slate, Nicole talks of her love for the LG G2x, and Sprint's CEO introduces a new eco-friendly phone while also complaining about AT&T. Bonnie was off on assignment so we didn't spend our usual 20 minutes piping her in from New … Read more

T-Mobile's new LG G-Slate tablet, the first enabled with 3D, went on sale at Amazon today for $799.

The Amazon price covers the new 4G tablet off-contract, so buyers aren't locked into any long-term data plan. In contrast, T-Mobile is selling the G-Slate for $549 after a $100 rebate, but that price includes a two-year contract. Either way, the data plan will tack on an additional monthly charge of $29 for 200 MB, $49 for 5 GB, or $84 for 10 GB.

Following in the footsteps of the Motorola Xoom, the G-Slate becomes the second Android tablet to … Read more

I love the Honeycomb OS. It's not perfect by any stretch, but it's such an improvement over using Android 2.2 on tablets, that I'm willing to accept it and all its imperfections. I'm sure at some point I'll grow dissatisfied with it and begin blaming it for every inadequacy in my life.

You have to understand, before Honeycomb, testing tablets using the Android 2.2 OS increased chances of apoplexy by 89 percent. Really.

OK, that's not actually true, but on many tablets, it was a very frustrating experience.

The T-Mobile G-Slate by … Read more

Tablets may be starting to steal people away from their laptops, desktops, and even televisions, according to a survey released this week by Google's AdMob service.

The survey--administered by Google's mobile-centric advertising network, traffic-tracking service, and trend-spotting business--was conducted last month and had 1,430 respondents. It doesn't specify any particular brand of tablet device.

Among the survey's results, 77 percent of respondents said their PC use dropped after they got a tablet, and 43 percent said they spend more time with their slates than with desktops or laptops. As for television, one in three … Read more

ORLANDO, Fla.--Well, T-Mobile certainly isn't holding back. Along with news of the T-Mobile G2X, pricing for the T-Mobile Sidekick 4G, and the Nokia Astound, the carrier finally revealed pricing for the T-Mobile G-Slate by LG. The Honeycomb tablet will cost $529.99 with a two-year contract and after a $100 mail-in rebate.

It's a lot of dough and commitment, but the G-Slate also comes with a couple of features not found on other tablets, including 4G support on T-Mobile's HSPA+ network and the ability to record and play back 3D video, with the use of glasses … Read more

BARCELONA, Spain--The T-Mobile G-Slate by LG isn't a new announcement. The 4G Honeycomb tablet was actually first introduced at CES 2011, but it only made a brief appearance during T-Mobile's press conference before it was quickly whisked away by LG executives.

However, our appetite for the G-Slate was satiated at Mobile World Congress 2011 where T-Mobile and LG provided us with some hands-on time with the tablet. Now, I haven't seen all the tablets out there, but I've certainly checked out a number of devices, including the iPad, the HP TouchPad, and Samsung's Galaxy Tab … Read more

Last month, we briefly covered the T-Mobile/LG G-Slate at CES. While information was trickling in then, it seems the flood gates of information will soon be opened for all to willingly dive into.

On Wednesday, T-Mobile and LG released new information on its G-Slate tablet. As previously revealed, the G-Slate will run on Google's "optimized for tablets" operating system, Honeycomb, aka Android 3.0. As exciting as Honeycomb is, it won't be exclusive to the G-Slate and the device will need more than a new user interface to get us excited.

Here's a list … Read more