14 DAY TRIAL // Telus is preparing to release the Wi-Fi only version of the Motorola XOOM on April 19th, as rumors suggest. It may seem weird for a carrier who wants to sell voice and data plans to retail a device that doesn't support either of these.
Furthermore, Telus is expected to retail the tablet for the same price that Best Buy and Future Shop have been selling the XOOM for about a week now - $599.99.
The carrier's move may be explained if it subsequently decides to pick the 3G version of the tablet as well. With a price tag that will make it a much better choice than the Wi-Fi only model, Telus could sell more Motorola XOOM 3G units than other major retailers.
Motorola XOOM is one of the first tablets available on the market to run Google’s Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system.
The XOOM boasts a 10.1-inch widescreen HD display with 1280 x 800 pixels resolution to support HD videos and movies.
It features a 2-megapixel front facing camera, as well as a 5-megapixel main camera on the back, which is also capable of capturing HD movies (720p@30fps).
The tablet does not require any type of activation on Telus' network, but it offers enough connectivity features such as Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP and EDR support, as well as microUSB 2.0 and built-in GPS.
With powerful dual-core 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 AP20H processor, the tablet improves the users experience on Android widgets, multi-tasking, browsing, gaming, as well as customization.
The device also features the latest Google Mobile services such as Google Maps 5.0 with 3D interaction, as well as support for Adobe Flash Player.
Ironically, Telus Wi-Fi only Motorola XOOM will become available the same day as RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook, which is expected to be retailed for prices ranging from $499.99 to $699.99, depending on the storage capacity.
