iPad 3 Release: iPad 3 vs Toshiba Excite X10 in a Future Tablet Shootout

iPad 3 and Toshiba's newly announced Excite X10 won't go on sale for a couple more months, but if you're waiting to see what new Android tabs can do, the X10 is a good starting point. The X10 was announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Jan. 8, so it's not ready for production yet, but we know it's about 7.5 mm thick making it thinner than any tablet out there. Unlike its Thrive predecessor, the X10 is not all plastic, and it weighs only 544 grams even with its brushed alloy back. It's got a Gorilla Glass covering, 1.2GHz processor, full gigabyte of RAM and 1280x800p resolution.

iPad 3 is rumored to feature all new optics in the cameras, 4G, a better battery and possibly a QXGA 2048x1536p display. We'd be surprised if it didn't also come with Siri, the voice recognition software and maybe even 3D gestures. Ipad 3 will change the tablet landscape for its Android competitors, but it could also impact other iPads. iPad and iPad 2 could be lower priced, and there is also a rumor the iPad 4 could be here by October.

One thing iPad 3 most likely will not have is a mini-HDMI port or microSD card reader. The X10 has both, but also a micro-USB port and support for DNLA technology. DNLA tech allows the X10 to stream content to a DNLA compatible HDTV, for example, similar to the AirPlay feature on iPad 2 (but without the Apple TV accessory). Furthermore, the X10 will feature a more or less pure Android operating system. That means no factory overlay software on top of Android. For now, though, Toshiba is not saying if X10 will debut with the Honeycomb or Ice Cream Sandwich variant of the system. Both devices have no pricing available yet, but $500 is a good guess. Tell us in the comments if you're looking to upgrade your tablet or if you're a first-timer.