CES 2011: NEC’s dual screen Android tablet unveiled

As the Consumer Electronics Show has begun, it brings us many launches by companies that are debuts in some cases. Take for example NEC, the company, although has a range of tablets selling in Japan, will for the first time launch a tablet in the US. Reports of its expected appearance in the CES were published here before, and now that it actually has been unveiled we bring to you a little insight of what the device is actually like.

Well the dual screen Android tablet from the Japanese maker, named the NEC Cloud Communicator LT-W, is averagely equipped, being packed in with an ARM Cortex-A8 CPU and 384MB of memory along with 1GB of storage. Two 7-inch TFT resistive touchscreen displays are placed alongside one another in what is like a textbook-kind design. Other standard features include 802.11b/g/ WiFi, Bluetooth, a 3MP camera, full-sized SDHC card slot, GPS, and USB. The device has a company-claimed battery life of 5 hours, which is just about enough for tablet standards, and is powered by a slightly outdated Android 2.1 OS.

The NEC Cloud Communicator LT-W opens up to a maximum 180 degrees angle and hence once you open it you are using both screens. There is no option of using it in a solo screen mode to save on power or for your convenience. One other limitation that can be seen and has been pointed out by Liliputing is the inconvenience in holding the tablet, as holding with both hands renders it unusable because you can’t use the touch navigation, while holding it in between both screens makes it a tad uncomfortable to use.

The Cloud Communicator LT-W seems to be an interesting innovation by NEC, but then it scores really low on usability. The success of this tablet would actually find a place amongst buyers wanting to flaunt it, more than those who want to actually use it.

Source(s)