A number of Japanese companies, for example NTT, have announced or hinted at tablet PCs in the past months, but NEC is the first to actually name, spec and date its first model. Dubbed LifeTouch [JP], the NEC tablet will feature a 7-inch TFT LCD screen (800×480 resolution), weigh 400 grams, and run on Android 2.1.
NEC says users will be able to operate the LifeTouch either with their fingers or a stylus. Other features include:
- ARM Cortex A8 CPU
- Mobile DDR 256MB
- Wi-Fi IEEE802.11b/11g
- Bluetooth Ver.2.1 + EDR
- 3MP camera
- GPS
- accelerometer
- internal mono mic
- internal stereo speakers
- SD/SDHC slot, two USB 2.0 ports
- 8 hours of battery life
The company is planning to market the tablet to businesses as well, providing access to NEC servers to run cloud computing applications smoothly (the tablet is also named “Cloud Communicator”).
The LifeTouch is scheduled to hit Japanese stores in October. No word on pricing or international availability yet. The iPad went on sale late last month in Japan and so far appears to be doing well.