TabletKiosk, a maker of slate-style tablet PCs and UMPCs, has announced itsnew Sahara Slate line of touch-screen enabled tablet systems, offering slim profiles, big displays, and substantial connectivity and storage all in slim, lightweight slabs.
The Sahara Slate line includes three models, the i412T, i440T, and i440D. Each feature a 12.1-inch XGA touch screen with a 179° viewing angle, integrated 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, a trusted platform module and a fingerprint reader, plus a bevy of connectivity options including two USB 2.0 ports, a IEEE 1394a connector, SATA, gigabit Ethernet, an integrated 56Kbps v.90 model, a PCMCIA slot, and a cradle connector. Storage options range from 60 GB to 80 GB (built-to-order systems can carry 160 GB hard drives), and the systems support up to 4 GB of RAM—all crammed into a tablet measuring 0.98 inches deep and weighing 3.3 pounds (with the battery installed).
On the low end, the i412T runs a 1 Ghz Celeron, while the i440T and i440D tout a Core Duo L2500 processor—but the key feature of these systems is the 12.1-inch passive resistive touch screen, designed to respond to menu input via pens or fingers, like you might find in point-of-sale or kiosk-based systems. But taking things up a notch, the screen on the i440D converts from resistive touch screen to an active pressure-sensitive digitizer with the touch of a button.
All three tablets will be available this March with Windows XP Professional, Windows Vista Business, or Linux pre-installed; suggested prices for base configurations are $1,795 for the i412T, $2,195 for the i440T, and $22,95 for the i440D.
