Android Tablet

Seems as though DigitalReview Network has some strong connections as they've been given a new TEGA Tablet PC for review, ahead of its official release! They have done several reviews of Tegatech devices in the past, i.e. MediSlate, a Ruvo device and even Clean Screen. On this occassion there was even an attempted bribe (box of chocolates) but even so DRN claim the review would have been quite favourable without them! :-)

Review:

Move over iPad! Sitting on our test bench is Australia's latest Tablet PC, a beautiful 10 incher from the House of Tegatech.


You may know Tegatech as the key distributor and seller of UMPCs and ruggedised tablet PCs to list a few of their niche products. And you may know them from previous reviews we've done, like the MediSlate and the Ruvo Avox.



This time Tegatech has used their expertise to develop their own device. It is a 10.2" Tablet PC with built-in 3G modem and they are calling it TEGA.


They worked with the Chinese manufacturer K.R.T. to develop an Australianised Tablet PC by adapting firmware and the touchscreen to suit our climate.

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Thought I’d share with you some geek fun (read: hack) I had today! When looking inside the guts of some Getac rugged Tablets today I thought it might be interesting to post some photos. Given these are expensive machines and not something many of you will have at home, I thought it might be fun giving you a sneak look inside.


These two photos showcase the insides of the TabletKiosk G840XT (like the Getac E100). The top photo shows two very nicely placed mini-PCI express slots, i.e. the one on the left houses the Wi-Fi chip and the one on the right houses 3G.

The second photo shows the same motherboard but when the factory does NOT ship 3G they decide not to supply the second mini-PCI express slot which is allocated to the 3G card, and replaces it with the PCMCIA slot. OUCH!
What I decided was to rip out the Wi-Fi, install the 3G, flash the BIOS (to wake the mini-PCI express slot) and then take a power drill and drill the case (much to the dislike of the manufacturer I’m sure) and attach an external antenna to the unit!. Turns out after all is said and done we’re getting 3x the signal strength the factory gets from 3G and a unit which connects every time. Would I recommend this? Not unless you’re a trained professional and have money to burn! If you tick both boxes…go crazy! 

I often like posting lateral ways of using Ultra-Mobile PC. We all think of MP3, Video, blogs, vlogs, New York Times (now thanks to iPad) and more. There are however many good business cases for using these to complete tasks, and even some artistic ones too!


On this occasion Australian Lighting Designer Flynn Talbot (twitter) was 1 of 10 designers selected from around the world to showcase his installation “Horizon” at London Design Week. Horizon is an Interactive Light Installation that allows viewers to engage by selecting colours of their choice and watching them translated in a funky and exciting manner on a large screen. The best news for me was that while in London Flynn took a Viliv S5 to control the interactive installation via a purpose built user-interface.

What I like about Flynn is that with his passion for Art he is also combining his passion for technology. This is obvious in his design but can also be witness in his work. At his latest exhibition at Northbridge Piazza in Perth he is allowing anyone interested to be the artistic designer by login into flynntalbot.com/horizon enter your name and 4 colour choices and have it displayed for everyone to see at the Piazza! The website will tell you where you are in the queue (I’m 11th right now!) Each show is a 1min loop and displayed to all onlookers.

There is no live stream but I guess if you’re not in Perth (and many of us aren’t) then you will need to live with a warm fuzzy feeling in your heart knowing you contributed! There is no Viliv for you to use either but I heard you can call this site up on your phone and interact that way! I like what Flynn’s doing and the fact that it showcases exciting potential uses for Mobile PC devices outside of the norm.