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"The biggest downside to Windows 7 on tablets is that Microsoft has failed to offer a specialised tablet user-interface. This is a huge oversight as Microsoft was first to push tablets over a decade ago but has completely failed to make an impact on the new generation tablet market pioneered by Apple and Google."

"Tablets have quickly emerged as a distinct third digital screen in consumers lives that fill the gap between desktops and smartphones. But there are still many open questions about exactly how consumers are using them. We explored tablet search trends earlier this year, but wanted to dig deeper and answer key questions such as: What are the contrasts between tablet use, laptop use, and smartphone use and how are consumers engaging across these devices? What are the most common activities (playing games, searching, reading, etc.) that tablets are used for? What ads are most relevant and useful based on how people are using the devices? "

We're at the dawn of the tablet era now. Earlier this month, Apple sold 3 million of its new iPad during the opening weekend, with some analysts expecting over 60 million of the tablets to be sold worldwide. What's more, e-book readers are selling even more briskly than tablets. People are using those e-readers, too. On Amazon.com, books for its Kindle outsell its paper books. What's more, the explosion of e-books is putting pressure on publishers between demands for price cuts on one hand, and competition from independent authors like Amanda Hocking, who earned over $2 million selling e-books on her own before signing with a major publisher. It's no surprise, then, that publishers are turning to the app as a possible product for books moving forward.  This has led to another movement towards enhanced books, particularly as apps for iPhone, Android, and other tablets. Are tablet apps the book of the future?

Many doubters think the tablet is nothing more than a gimmick to help boost sales. I was one of those doubters for quite some time. But after using tablets enough, I have come around to seeing just how incredibly helpful that technology is. Here are some reasons why I believe tablets will replace the laptop as the mobile device of choice.

Wondering how the Andriod tablets will go against the ipad ... these are worth a look. "10 best Android tablets in the world In Depth: Which Android tablet is best for you?"

"iPad sales are giving up some ground to Android-powered tablets. According to market research[i], Apple's market share of the tablet market was down 14% in the 3Q of 2012, with 55% of tablets shipped during that quarter sporting an Apple on them somewhere, and 44% of them a little green robot. But big picture, let's not kid ourselves-Apple owns the tablet market any way you can spin it-and perhaps as a consequence, Apple owns the classroom, too."

Post discussing the report offers a high-level step-by-step guide to deploying Android tablets (or really any tablet like an iPad is also applicable to an extent) that would be helpful to anyone considering a deployment.

"Datawind, a relatively small Canadian company based in Montreal, has won an Indian government contract to produce a 7 inch touchscreen tablet named Aakash that costs $52 to manufacture and will sell, with Indian government subsidy, for $35 for universities, colleges and high schools in India. The tablet runs on Google's Android software."

Apple fans have been clamoring for a Mac tablet for years, and year after year the Cupertino, Calif.-based company has disappointed them. Now a new report from Taiwan says the company plans to a release a $800 tablet in October.

Cheap Android tablets, namely from Amazon, could boost Android tablet sales numbers past the current dominating force known as the iPad, according to research firm IDC.

This week, Microsoft rolled out its new tablet, simply called Surface, which gives you another way to enjoy our courses, movies, ebooks, audio books and the rest. In many ways, Surface resembles the iPad in its look and feel. And when it came to unveiling the tablet, Microsoft's execs couldn't think outside the box created by Steve Jobs. A video made by ReadWriteWeb makes that rather painfully yet amusingly clear….

"Here are some pointers I've collected about using tablets in school education settings."

"The report is based on global research, including the 'iPad Scotland Evaluation Study' that Sciennes Primary School took part in, and seeks to explore 1) if we know enough to demonstrate if, how and when iPads support learning 2) the key ideas from the literature on the effective use of iPads and other post-PC tablet devices and 3) the implications of tablet technologies for school leaders, network managers, teachers, learners and their parents."

"In a sixth-grade classroom in Greensboro, N.C., a dozen middle-school social-studies teachers were getting their second of three days of training on tablets that had been presented to them as a transformative educational tool. Every student and teacher in 18 of Guilford County's 24 middle schools would receive one, 15,450 in all, to be used for class work, homework, educational games - just about everything, eventually." This article from the New York TImes looks at the Amplify Tablet

"Tobii's eye-tracking technology can make using a PC slightly more "natural," reading your eye movements to, say, scroll without needing to move a mouse. But for the disabled, it can be revelatory, allowing people with disabilities to use virtually all the abilities of a computer without ever touching it. The Tobii EyeMobile brings complete eye control to Windows tablets. It's an oblong-shaped sensor called the PCEye Go that attaches underneath the tablet via a bracket. Once it's in place and the eye-tracking software is installed, all the user needs to do is calibrate the sensor (which takes about a minute) and it's eyeball-ready."

"The PC is dying, long live the PC! These headlines have been thrown around for years, as sales of laptops and desktops have continually dwindled downward. The tablet has long been pinned as the murderer of the traditional computers and it certainly looked like it was going to be the one to do away with them (perhaps in a few years), with the focus of many companies such as Apple and Microsoft shifting towards a tablet-first world."

"We trust much of our lives to our mobile devices, whether smartphones or tablets or a traditional notebook computers. But what do you do if one of these devices is lost or stolen?"

"The LearnPad is an interactive tablet computer designed specifically for use in schools. It's small enough to be portable yet large enough to be used as a standalone device with dedicated eLearning content, or it can connect to your school's network to access traditional online and Flash-based educational websites and online content."

A new tablet for schools has been unveiled by Rupert Murdoch's education group Amplify, reigniting the debate about how children will learn in future.

Amazing liquid looking keyboards for tablets