Toshiba is set to add another choice to the small slate market. The company will soon sell the Excite 7.7 tablet running on the latest version of Google Android. I received an early review unit and have spent a little time with the device, which is very similar to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 I bought earlier this year. The slates share the same 7.7-inch AMOLED screen technology with 1,280 x 800 resolution, have 16 GB of internal storage and have dual cameras. The biggest difference is in the process: Toshiba chose the peppy Tegra 3 from Nvidia to power its small slate.
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I’ll follow up with a full review, but here’s first look and some initial impressions of the device. I definitely like Android 4.0 on a tablet much better than the prior version — which is what my Galaxy Tab still runs on. The slate is light and thin, making it very portable. The Wi-Fi-only connection is my preference as there’s no monthly contract.
But on the potential downside are a proprietary charging cable and the relatively high price of $ 499. As I mention in the video look, at that price Toshiba’s small slate is competing with larger devices that offer a greater range of functionality and potential. The Asus Transformer Prime — also with a Tegra 3 chip — is one that comes to mind, as does Apple’s iPad.
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