14 DAY TRIAL // As we faintly expected when the company first introduced its idea, Razer might have decided to pull a Wikipad instead of creating the Fiona as it was originally thought up.
Filings at the Federal Communications Commission can be wonderful sources of information about unannounced products.
True, the Fiona tablet has, in fact, been formally announced, but only as a concept that has yet to crystallize.
About two weeks ago, Razer asked its customers, on Facebook, if they were interested in a gamepad-tablet hybrid.
The idea was obviously similar to the product that WikiPad made, the tablet that ships with a docking station with joystick-like controllers on both sides.
There was a major difference though: the Fiona wasn't made of two pieces, but had a unibody construction with two handles, for lack of a better term.
The FCC filing implies that Razer ditched the handles between then and now. The drawing definitely lacks them.
There is mention of an accessory though – a razer-branded controller described as an optional attachment –, hence our assumption that WikiPad's idea is being followed.
Speaking of which, the controller will have its own battery, of 2800mAh, while the slate itself will run on a 5600mAh battery.
We have no knowledge of when or for what price Razer means to start selling this device, but if the FCC already got the chance to study it, it should be more or less ready. Shipments might start during the holidays, but they could also be left for January, during or after CES 2013 (Consumer Electronics Show).
Whenever it happens, customers will have to decide if they want to spend whatever Razer asks for the Fiona and its gaming laptop-level hardware. They could, after all, just buy a gaming laptop outright, plus a gamepad, potentially saving some money in the process.