The HP Slate

Ok, so the launch of Apple's iPad has caused quite a commotion. I played with one for the first time today, and that alone was just about enough to make me want to buy one. It has lots of cool features, looks beautiful, and has a 10 hour battery life. But what about those of us that want a bit more?

For those of you that haven't seen it yet, I am proud to introduce to you....

The HP Slate.

So, what's the big deal? It looks just like an iPad, right? Big screen, no keyboard, black edging... What's the point?

Although it may look the same, it is not even close. While Apple's iPad runs the iPhone OS, this baby's running Windows 7. Now, love or hate Microsoft, you have to admit, that's kind of impressive.

Imagine the possibilities. This isn't a modified-to-fit-in-the-palm-of-your-hand Windows 7. This is legit Windows 7. It'll do anything your computer does. iTunes? Check. Flash? Got it. That's an awful lot of possibilities for such a small device.

But how does all of this stack up against the iPad? As you can see, the screen is a bit more elongated than that of the iPad. Port wise, while the iPad only has the headphone jack and 32-bit connector port (the classic iPod port), the Slate can handle both USB and SD Card inputs, as well as headphones (audio out) and an HDMI out port (so you can watch all of your movies on your TV without having to buy the $30 cable, like you have to with Apple). While the iPad runs 16 GB of hard drive space at the minimum, and also offers 32 and 64 GB versions, the Slate comes with at least 32Gb, while you can upgrade to 64Gb. Price wise, a base line Slate will run around $550, while a baseline iPad is $500.

You are probably asking yourself a few things. One of which is probably "What is the downside to the Slate?" Well, the answer the that is its battery. While the iPad boasts 10 hours of battery life (which seems unlikely), the Slate only has up to 5. That'll still get you through a school day, but not much farther than that.

Your other question, as is mine, is probably when you can get your hands on one. And honestly, I do not know. But I'll let you know when I find out!