RIM reportedly prepping two new PlayBook tablets for 2012

Research In Motion is reportedly working on two new BlackBerry PlayBook tablets that are currently scheduled for release in 2012. BlackBerry watcher N4BB claims that while RIM had initially scrapped plans to produce a larger PlayBook tablet, the vendor now plans to release both a 10-inch and a new 7-inch tablet this year. RIM's new 7-inch model will feature embedded 3G connectivity when it launches in April according to the report, and the 10-inch BlackBerry tablet will reportedly include support for 4G LTE networks when it launches in December. The site also reiterates that RIM currently only has one BlackBerry 10 smartphone slated for 2012, which BGR exclusively reported earlier this month, and it states that at least two more low-end BlackBerry Curve models will launch this year as well.

RedPad tablet for the Red Army

China, the world's most populous country, will soon be getting their very own Android-powered tablet known as the RedPad. How apt, considering the main color of China's flag is one that can set off a bull on a fiery run. When you dig deeper into the system specifications, it might make you think twice – as the RedPad itself costs around $1,580 after conversion, although if you happen to buy in bulk, it will retail for just $1,124. Sporting 16GB of storage space, the RedPad would be nearly twice as expensive as that of the Apple iPad, or you can roughly purchase a couple of mid-range Android tablets with that kind of money. Will patriotism trump common sense when it comes to the tablet's purchase in China? At least it will be accompanied by a fancy leather case which has been embossed in gold alongside the product's name, in addition to a bunch of pre-installed apps which could actually help China's numerous officials get around their working day easier (while playing Angry Birds to stave away boredom, I guess). Other hardware specifications include a 9.7″ touchscreen display at 1024 x 768 resolution, a Tegra 2 processor, 1GB RAM, and 16GB of internal memory, all running on Android 3.2 Honeycomb.

Transformer Prime 3G nothing more than a rumor says ASUS

While the Transformer Prime has been getting pretty good reviews all around, it has one noticeable disadvantage when compared to other premium tablets on the market today: it is a WiFi-only device. While this may not be a problem to most people, there is quite a large number of people who need 3G on their tablets as well. But for those of you who have been hoping and waiting for ASUS to announce a 3G version of the tablet, you're out of luck.

According to a report from Focus Taiwan, ASUS has cleared up the rumors about a 3G version of the tablet arriving. The company announced that it had no such plan to launch a 3G version of the Transformer Prime, at least not according to its current roadmap. The company could always change its mind in the future, but for now you're better off looking for a 3rd party 3G solution (WiFi tethering on your smartphone or a MiFi hotspot) as opposed to waiting for the 3G Transformer Prime to arrive. Anybody disappointed by this news?

Ainovo Novo7 Paladin Tablet

While new tablet PC's seem to be flooding the market, the competition is still wide open with the Apple iPad tablet as the device to beat. New tablets are now trying to do it by offering better features, upgraded software and better pricing. One of the most attractive models ever to come out having all three elements in mind is the Ainovo Novo7 Paladin Tablet. The Ainovo Novo7 Paladin may not exactly ring any bells when it is first mentioned. After all, it does not have the attraction that more popular brands have. But what it does have may actually be attractive to those who might have the fortune of ever hearing about this new tablet. The Ainovo Novo7 Paladin is a tablet that runs on the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS. It comes with a 1GHz Ingenic JZ4770 Chip that uses MIPS with its low power and high integration features. It also comes with a GC860 GPU core with 3D rendering capabilities. It also comes with a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen display, WiFi connectivity and supports 1080P Full HD as well as compatibility with several video and audio formats. But what may be an attractive feature of this tablet may not just be with the features that it offers. The Ainovo Novo7 Paladin is expected to cost around US$89. This tablet is currently available in China but may be seeing its way into the US market any time soon.

Report: “Wintel” Tablets to be More Expensive than iPad

Microsoft will be unveiling its Intel-powered tablets by the latter half of the year and by the looks of it, the company will not put itself down to overcome the popularity of the iPad (and the upcoming iPad 3). In a report from DigiTimes, neither Intel nor Microsoft are willing to cut prices of its tablets to help both manufacturers. Intel provides the Clover Trail-based Atom chips, while Microsoft arms the tablets with Windows 8 OS. The report adds that these Acer-made devices are expected to cost at least $599, a full Benjamin higher than the most basic iPad 2 model, and could go up to $899 for the most premium model. Sources to the site also comment that since these “Wintel” tablets are not expected to be introduced before the unveiling of Windows 8 roughly in the second half of the year, this gives a window of opportunity for both Apple and Android tablet manufacturers to dish out their own devices beforehand. Apart from the iPad 3, other tablets expected to arrive in 2012 include a set of quad-core, Android 4.0 tablets from Asus, Lenovo, and possibly Samsung.

Dell Streak 7 receives Ice Cream Sandwich ROM

Dell might have stopped selling the Streak 7 in the US, but that does not mean there is no more life in this particular tablet. No sir, a community of unofficial developers have come together to conjure a beta build of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, where they borrowed several elements from the Cyanogenmod team. There is a giant disclaimer over here just in case you think that your Streak 7 deserves a resuscitation in case anything goes awry, making sure that this is not for the faint hearted, but for seasoned veterans instead. We do know that this beta build will see Wi-Fi connectivity working on your Streak 7 after installation, including most of the Google apps, audio playback, touchscreen display, rotation sensors, the ability to capture a screenshot, not to mention the capacitive buttons working just fine, alongside USB mount capability an external storage. There are still lag issues involved, and the camera fails to launch, not to mention being unable to take advantage of the built-in Bluetooth connection. And yes, GPS will not function as well, in addition to 3G/4G/GSM radio, so Wi-Fi's all you got at the moment.

Asus Transformer Android 4.0 ICS update 'in the process of being approved by Google'

Asus may have two new Android tablets - the Transformer Prime and the Transformer Prime TF700T with its 1920 x 1200 display - but there are still many users who own the older Transformer model. Last week, we told you that the old Transformer would be updated to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich "by early February." Now Asus North America has unveiled on Facebook that the update is "in the process of being approved by Google," and "once that is done we will be able to push it out to you guys." So, with a bit of luck, we may see ICS on the original Transformer before the end of January. As for the Transformer Prime, Ice Cream Sandwich updates for it have already begun, while the Transformer Prime TF700T will run ICS from day one.

Archos G9 tablet gets update, bug fixes

There is nothing quite like a new operating system and software update for your device to weed out all of those niggling bugs which plagued the overall user experience. Archos has introduced the latest version 3.2.79 update for its Android 3.2 Honeycomb-powered tablets, including the Archos G9, that will solve a wide variety of bugs and glitches, including the "Keep Screen On" option that has been added to the browser options, in addition to other under-the-hood items such as fixes to hard drive power suspension issues. Archos has a full list of tweaks that you might want to check out if you happen to be toting the Archos G9 tablet around, but here are several which are the more notable ones. Your video playback experience would be improved where the MPEG2 format is concerned, while you will no longer experience the Archos widget getting stuck on the sandglass, with the File Manager giving the go-ahead for one to copy a file from Network. As for the display, the backlight now turns on at wakeup from suspend, and for folks who do experience a user interface freeze during animations should find this to be a thing of the past. You will be able to retrieve the update here, where it also applies to the smaller 80 and the full 10″ 101 versions of the tablet.

IdeaTab S2 10-inch Tablet, an Ice Cream Sandwich from Lenovo!

Lenovo said that its IdeaTab S2 10 tablet is available immediately in China. But in America and united Kingdom, it will come at later date. The S2 is thinner than its predecessor at just 1x3 -inch, and it weighs only 1.1lbs or less than 0.5kg, that's so light! Powered by the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8960 dual core CPU, the IdeaTab S2 runs the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich which make it perfect to stay on the edge. Are you in the mood to wait for the IdeaPad S2? If you're in hurry, you don't have to. You can find other Android 4.0 tablets at Amazon.com

Nook Tablet bootloader bypassed, Android 4.0 takes its first steps onto the platform

No points for calling this one, but it looks like Android 4.0 is well on its way to the Nook Tablet — in a decidedly unofficial manner, of course. Just a few days after the tablet's bootloader was bypassed, developer Brandon Bennet (aka Nemith) has now apparently managed to get an early version of the Android 4.0-based CyanogenMod 9 up and running on the device, although you'll still have to wait a bit longer for something that's actually useable. What's more, some other developers have also managed to get the tablet to boot from a microSD card, and there's been some progress with Ubuntu on the tablet as well. Hit the links below for all the details and the latest from the xda-developers forum.