Viking Direct cuts Apple tablet pricing

Viking Direct is currently selling the Apple iPad at a heavily discounted price, with a 16GB Apple iPad with Wi-Fi coming in at just ?357.81 - a bit of a bargain when you consider the Apple Store is selling them for ?429.

Spotted by the good folk at ITProPortal, the iPad offer extends right across Viking Direct's range of iPads which also means you can pick up the all singing, all dancing 64GB 3G iPad for ?582.99 - a ?116 saving on Apple's price of ?699.

ITProPortal also suggests that the offer is slightly puzzling as Viking Direct's parent company in the US has not applied any discount to the Apple product, as is the case with other major online retailers. So it's possible it's a mistake.

However, at these prices it might well be worth a go. And if you do stump for the iPad deal, be sure to let us know how you got on in the comments box below.

UPDATE: prices are in fact exclusive of VAT, so discount is not as staggering as first thought. Title has been amended and apologies for the mistake.

Thanks to Pi for pointing it out.

Tags: Tablets Apple Apple iPad Viking Direct Online Daily Tech Deal

Apple iPad discounted by online retailer originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 12:16:00 +0000

Tablet only magazine available now

Richard Branson's attempt at capitalising on the massive popularity of the iPad, and its potential to re-invent the magazine genre, kicks off with the launch of the Virgin produced Project into the App Store.

Available for free, the app provides links to download the magazine for ?1.79. It's currently showing up two different issues, one labelled US and one Canadian - both featuring The Dude himself, Jeff Bridges, on the front cover.

The magazine looks as if it is taking its inspiration from the likes of Empire, GQ and with a bit of Wired thrown in for good measure, as it will focus on culture, tech, business and overall general coolness, as explained by Project's Chris Bell, in a blog post introducing the title:

"Project, alongside other launches, is both a bold new chapter in media, and a blind pitch into a potentially humiliating void. Whether it changes the fortunes of the written word remains to be seen; built into any new launch these days is the largely optimistic hope that people still exist who like reading stuff, and don’t mouth the words as they’re doing so".

Bell also had some words of praise for Apple and News Corp's iPad title Daily, that is set for a launch in the near future:

"As Project went on sale, reports emerged that Rupert Murdoch will soon launch an iPad-only newspaper called The Daily, after it came to him in a dream or something", he said.

"Which, like all Murdoch products, shall doubtless enrich humankind with its impartial political analysis and rolling coverage of shit exploding. Also: hi-def nudity, fingers crossed. But the point stands: the irascible Aussie despot doesn’t throw his corked hat into the cyber ring until he’s sure of a market. Apart from the Times paywall, maybe. And MySpace. But, well, you know".

Ouch.

Project is in the App Store now, take a look and let us know what you think. We'll be bringing you our opinion on the title in our App of The Day feature soon, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

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Tags: iPad apps Magazines Project Richard Branson Virgin Tablets iPad Apps

Branson's iPad Project hits the App Store originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 10:06:00 +0000

Pixel-sized shape-memory plastic cells used for futuristic plan

Microsoft has filed a patent for the touchscreen of tomorrow, where you can actually touch what is being displayed. Well, sort of.

The tactile touchscreen patent works by tricking you into thinking you are touching what you can see, rather than just touching the flat display area.

Using a similar, but more advanced, technique than the voltage frequency varying tech currently in development from the likes of Nokia and Disney Research, Microsoft's method involves, "using a layer of shape-memory plastic placed above a large touchscreen to distort the surface of the screen when different wavelengths of ultraviolet light strike the pixels from beneath".

The patent is supposedly more applicable for larger display areas, such as Microsoft's Surface, than for smartphones or tablets.

When Pocket-lint spoke to Claude Zellweger, creative director of industrial design agency One & Co, earlier this year, he told us that "the holy grail of industrial design is creating something that is both hard and soft" before explaining how Electrorheological fluid technology could lead to a touchscreen display with an electrical charge that could make virtual keys seem more abrasive to touch.

And this seems to be the path that the Microsoft patent points towards.

Patrick Baudisch, display interaction expert from the University of Potsdam in Germany said: "Creating well-defined bumps on a touch surface is in many ways the holy grail of text entry on touch devices because it would enable touch typing at much faster speeds than on touchscreens today"

Apart from typing, we're also very excited by the prospect of touching digital media. Particularly if we get our hands on the Playboy Archive Hard Drive that we reported on earlier.

Microsoft doesn't comment on its patents, so it's all eyes on the Redmond lab in the hope for further updates.

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Tags: Microsoft Touchscreen Tablets

Microsoft files patent for next-generation tactile touchscreen originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 15:30:00 +0000

Just for Japan at present though

Sharp has announced that the Galapagos ebook-based tablet will go on sale in Japan on 10 December.

The tablet will be available in two sizes and run via Android (version unconfirmed, although we've heard conflicting reports mentioning 2.1 or 2.2), although it sits more in line with traditional ebook readers.

First up is a mobile 5.5-inch LCD device, that has a 1024 x 600 resolution and has a track-ball for turning pages. It comes in two colours: silver or red.?

The bigger, 10.8-inch, HD (1366 x 800) LCD screen version supports a two-page, magazine spread format and is available only in black.?

Both devices are XMDF compatible and have 802.11b/g Wi-Fi on board. They feature “Automatic Scheduled Delivery Service” for periodical publications - meaning you can get your favourite newspapers or magazines auto-downloaded if you pay the relevant fees.?

They come with a web browser and social networking apps pre-installed and "PC data", which means that docs and maps can be converted to XMDF format and viewed on the device.

The 5.5-incher is priced up at 39,800 yen (about ?303) and the 10.8-inch one will cost 54,800 yen (?417). As mentioned, both are set to hit Japanese stores on 10 December, and we've still heard nothing official regarding a UK launch.

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Tags: eBook readers Sharp Galapagos Tablets Sharp

Sharp Galapagos ebook tablets priced and dated originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 12:48:00 +0000

Extra savings if you're already with the network

Everything Everywhere, the umbrella under which both Orange and T-Mobile now fall in the UK, recently announced that it is to offer discounted iPads if you sign up for data contracts with either of its networks.

And now, the prices have gone live - and we now know that you'll be able to pick up an iPad from as little as ?199.

That price is for the 16GB (3G and Wi-Fi) version, with the 32GB one coming in at ?249, and the 64GB one costing ?349.

To get these prices, you'll need to sign up for a 24-month contract that costs ?25 a month for Orange customers, or ?27 if you're new to the network.

For this monthly outlay, you'll get 1GB of anytime 3G data, 1GB in the quiet time of midnight until 4am, and 3GB of BT Openzone Wi-Fi action.

Pocket-lint has had the abacus out and has worked out that even though you'd be saving money initially (?330 - ?350 depending on the model you go for), after a year you'd have met the full iPad cost and you'd still have a year to go of your contract.

But, if you're the type that needs 3G on their iPad for when you're out and about, you'd have to have some sort of data plan anyway (currently Orange's iPad plans run from ?2 daily ones, to ?25-a-month ones that give you 10GB of data), so it all depends on just how much usage you need.

Other networks offer varying plans too, so if you are considering going down the contract road, be sure to do your sums before hand so you're sure you'd be getting the right deal.

You'll probably need a calculator, Pocket-lint had trouble with the abacus we used as it only had 10 beads. Although it is Fisher Price and plays some lovely animal sounds. The cow's moo being our favourite.

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Tags: T-Mobile Everything Everywhere Tablets iPad Apple Apple iPad Orange

Orange confirms subsidised iPad prices originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 09:29:00 +0000