DataWind launches Ubislate 7+ and 7C tablets in India

DataWind, a leading provider of wireless web access products and services, today launched the much awaited Ubislate series of tablets. Providing smartphone communication, internet access, tablet computing and multimedia entertainment, the devices also pack a powerful combination of content and applications. Intended to help bridge the digital divide, DataWind’s new products break the affordability barriers of computers and bandwidth constraints of wireless networks to deliver internet access to anybody that can afford a simple mobile phone. The UbiSlate tablets are the only devices in the market to offer DataWind’s UbiSurfer browser, based on 18 international patents, that can deliver internet access on traditional GPRS networks which cover the far reaches of the globe. In India the devices will offer unlimited web-browsing using DataWind’s web delivery platform for under Rs.100 per month on traditional mobile networks. The UbiSlate 7+ and UbiSlate 7C models were introduced at respective MRPs of 2,999 and 3,999. If you’ve pre-booked your Ubislate then your tablet is on its way to you. For the rest of us who weren’t pro-active, we’ll have to wait till the end of May to get our hands on a retail piece.

The cheapest tablet yet!

Differentiated by a resistive screen on the UbiSlate 7+ to the four-point multi-touch capacitive screen on the UbiSlate 7C, both models come with embedded GPRS modems in addition to Wi-Fi connectivity allowing ubiquitous internet access. The 7” screen tablets support the Android 2.3 operating system that delivers a rich touch-screen graphical user interface which significantly reduces the learning curve for new computer users in joining the world-wide web. The tablets are powered by an 800Mh Cortex-A8 processor which allows smooth usability of a broad range of applications. The embedded HD video co-processor delivers high quality video content making it a perfect multimedia device. DataWind CEO, Suneet Singh Tuli said, “Over the last year, I’ve been travelling the globe, talking at the World Bank, with heads of state, at numerous universities and at global conferences, evangelizing the power of the internet to transform people’s lives. We’ve now created a product that removes the barriers and levels the playing field.”

A view from the side

DataWind also unveiled its ecosystem of partners for providing content, applications and access, making it the industry’s largest collaborative effort to deliver consumers a complete turnkey offering in a single unit. DataWind announced relationships with Aircel for voice and data services, VMC Systems Ltd, Yahoo! India, The Indian Express Group, Reverie Language Technologies Pvt. Ltd, Get Jar, InMobi, Mango Learning solutions, RKS Learning Private Ltd, Intelligia, Pixatel, Poketalk, MyJobs and Blueworld.

Here are some of the highlights of the Ubislate 7+ and 7C

• Android 2.3
• 800MHz Cortex-A8
• 7-inch display with a resolution of 800 x 480 (7+ has resistive screen while 7C has capacitive)
• 2GB internal storage for 7+ and 4GB for 7C
• 256MB RAM
• Wi-Fi a/b/g, , Standard USB 2.0