Five Tablets That Failed in 2011

Those who keep their eyes glued to the technological bulletin might remember how the previous year was entitled as the “Year of the Tablet” before it could even embark on. Though the year saw a multitude of launches from BlackBerry to Motorola, some tablets were found dry as dust for appreciation by users. Following are the 5 tablets that missed the boat in intriguing users and ended up as a bitter pill for their makers.

1. BlackBerry PlayBook

Despite having a high resolution display and a powerful operating system, BlackBerry PlayBook was side-tracked and left in the lurch by users owing to its cumbersome size. At the same time, a majority of users were disappointed with the BlackBerry App Store which does not feature extensive applications. The device does not lend support to multi-tasking which makes it even more difficult to handle the email. To add to it, PlayBook requires a mobile phone in bridge mode to enable instant messaging, tasks, contacts and email. Also as Blackberry PlayBook only has Wi-Fi, connecting to mobile networks just gets infeasible.

2. Motorola Xoom

Although Motorola’s Xoom gathered a lot of attention from almost every sphere and even laid claims for being Apple iPad’s competitor, the tablet disappointed equally well. Many reported stability issues with Xoom’s Android 3.0 Honeycomb whilst third party apps failed to function on the large display resolution. Thumbs down were even contributed to the solution’s heavier framework and higher price point.

3. Acer Iconia Tab

As appearances may be deceptive, Acer Iconia Tab had an opposite picture too. While the A500 tablet proffers absolutely no problem with the touchscreen, the massive display arches the shoulder for a lot of inconvenience. The screen freezes on downloading content and continues to pop up when the tablet is not under an operative mode. Many critics even believe that Iconia Tab fares low on specifications when compared with other tablets available on the market. Pretty much like Motorola Xoom, Iconia Tab from Acer falls weighty on the user’s lap.

4. Dell Streak

This definitely leaves us puzzled as Dell has been known for devising feature-loaded, almost flawless PC solutions. The widely buzzed Dell Streak was left in the cold as well for a number of unfortunate reasons. The tablet’s display fails to impress and comes with lower screen resolution. Some may even find the device’s touch responsiveness not so sensitive. At the same time, Streak does not incorporate a host of useful functions such as USB connectors, copy & paste option, camera button and HDMI output. A poor battery life topples as another major drawback.

5. HTC Flyer

Revered for maintaining the optimum functionality standard across almost all its devices, HTC also could not pull off well in catching brownie points for their Flyer. Though the elegantly carved model feels proud for Android Gingerbread operating system, some of the functional buttons do not work smoothly. Since there is a 1.5GHz processor under the hood, it is advisable not to expect breakthrough performance from the beautiful looking Flyer.

With this wrap-up, we really do not know what 2012 would be unfolding for us as far as the tablet segment is concerned. However, the awaited upgrades in operating system of the above stated models might tickle pink some users. Let’s just see if these makers learn something from their mistakes or continue to err in 2012 as well.