It looks like Samsung isn’t the only one adding the ability to make voice calls to tablets. Asus has now officially unveiled the FonePad, a 7-inch tablet with built-in phone capabilities.

While most Android devices run on an ARM processor, the FonePad is doing things differently: the tablet will be powered by an Intel Atom Z2420 running at 1.2GHz with1GB of RAM and a PowerVR SGX540 GPU. The battery is rated at 4,270 mAh, offering 9 hours of runtime. Other specs include a 1280 x 800 display, microSD, HSPA+, 16GB storage, and a 1.2MP front camera.

The US dollar price for the unit is confirmed at $249. though there are rumors it actually won’t ship here. The European price is £179 / €219.

As more people are carrying 7-inch and 8-inch tablets in their handbags, purses and backpacks – it isn’t surprising to hear that more of these devices are starting to get the ability to make calls. Would you ever use a tablet as a phone, even if it was just as a secondary device for pairing with a bluetooth headset? Let us know what you think.

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When tablets first started to show up in the mainstream, they were pretty expensive to say the least. During the “early days” of Android tablets you were lucky to find anything of reasonable speed and quality under $350.

Fast-forwarding to today? While $150 or less isn’t going to get you an “iPad killer”, there are now tablets in that range that can run most of the basic entertainment, productivity and gaming apps. Most of these can also do things like watch Netflix, Hulu and handle your browsing needs.

One of these low-cost tablets is the latest 7-inch Coby MID7065, which ships with Google Play and all of the Google software preloaded. Generally a tablet that actually includes full access to the 750,000+ apps found on Google Play tends to be a bit pricer– but J&R and Adorama are both offering the MID7065 for an impressively low $139.

What kind of specs does this Coby tablet feature? A 1.2GHz Amlogic AM8726-MX dual core processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of Storage, microSD, front VGA cam, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, mini-HDMI and a 1024 x 600 pixel display. As for the OS, it is Android 4.0 ICS.

The dual-core Amlogic processor isn’t going to blow you away, but overall these are pretty good specs. The only downside seems to be the display, which reportedly has rather poor viewing angles (colors wash out when you move the tablet), but for $139, it’s hard to complain.

Although Coby tablets probably aren’t the brand of choice for those who plan on regularly using their tablets, but they could be perfect if you want a secondary tablet or aren’t too big into the idea of using your tablet daily but still want one around for those occasional uses.

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While Lenovo has unfortunately refused to bring their smart phones over to the US market, they are more than willing to work with carriers when it comes to tablets.

Lenovo has now announced that AT&T will carry the Lenovo IdeaTab A2107. The 7-inch tablet will cost just $200 without contract, or $100 for a two-year agreement. Most will agree, paying $100 more for no contract is the wiser option though.

So what kind of specs does the tablet possess? It is a dual-core Cortex A9 tablet with Android ICS and a 1,024×600 resolution for its 7-inch display. There is also Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, FM radio and obviously AT&T-compatible mobile broadband.

While not a terrible tablet, I’d much rather receive news that the Lenovo K900 was making its way to the states.

What do you think, interested or not? For more information, check out the press release below.

Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 Added to AT&T Tablet Lineup

Lenovo’s Ultra Portable Tablet Ideal for Consumer and Business Customers
Dallas, Texas,

January 11, 2013

AT&T* today announced the availability of the Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 at www.att.com for $199.99, without a two-year commitment. Designed for both consumer and business customers, the IdeaTab A2107 is a low-cost, ultra portable tablet powered by Android™ 4.0. It includes a 7-inch display, front- and rear-facing webcams and has access to thousands of apps through Google Play™. For a limited time, customers will receive $100 off the Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 purchased online at www.att.com with a two-year data plan agreement.

With the IdeaTab A2107, customers can stay connected to the AT&T mobile internet from almost anywhere and enjoy a complete mobile office environment that’s compact enough to fit in a jacket pocket or laptop bag. It’s easy to customize by creating folders, grouping similar apps and creating personalizing homepages. And the 7″ display features adjustable text and more information than users would normally see on a mobile phone. It also features an internal magnesium roll cage for enhanced durability, a soft matte back cover for a better grip and a bright screen for easy viewing, even when outdoors.

The Lenovo A2107 tablet also serves as a great portal for staying informed of the latest news, stock quotes and emails. You can store more documents, jobsite images, videos, and illustrations such as CAD drawings with the additional SD card slot. With support for GPS and enabled with AT&T’s mobile internet, the A2107 can serve as a well-informed guide to provide effortless turn-by-turn navigation.

“The Lenovo IdeaTab is a great option for those in the market for a compact, multifunctional tablet at an affordable price,” said Chris Penrose, senior vice president of emerging devices, AT&T. “Connecting it to the AT&T network keeps customers connected while on the go to what matters most.”

Customers can add the Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 to a new or existing AT&T Mobile Share plan for $10 per month or choose one of AT&T’s DataConnect plans. Offering between 1 GB and 20 GB of data, Mobile Share plans allow for up to 10 devices.

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Are you interested in getting the cheapest tablet money can buy, and  you can’t convince yourself to spend the $329 on an iPad Mini or the $199 on a Nexus 7? You can go even cheaper with something like this Pandigital Android Tablet, which happens to be on sale for $66.95.

The Pandigital 72-70FW Tablet Computer originally listed for $299.99, but now that has been slashed all the way down by a whopping 78%. Of course, you can’t expect to get something quite as good as what is offered by the top-tier brands, but this is way cheaper and could be almost as useful.

It’s a 7-inch 600×800 pixel display on here, along with 1GB of internal memory, SD card slot for up to 32GB of additional storage, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, some version of Google Android and an ARM processor. It won’t floor you, nor am I sure it even has access to the official Google Play Store, but this is about as cheap as it gets.

Find the Pandigital 7-inch Android tablet on Amazon.com for $67, including free super saver shipping.

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Looking for an alternative to the Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire around the same price? The Acer Iconia Tab A110 will arrive on October 30th for just $230.

With a price tag that is $30 higher, do you more for your buck with the Tab A110? Somewhat. They are actually rather similar, though the Iconia has micro-SD and a micro-HDMI port added to the mix. Both have Tegra 3 power and Jelly Bean under the hood.

$30 more gets you the potential for more storage and a micro-SD port, sold right? Hold on, there is a disadvantage with the A110 as well. The Nexus 7 has a pixel density of 216 PPI versus the less-impressive 170 PPI in the new Acer 7-incher. This might not matter to everyone, but it could be a deal breaker for those that want the best video experience possible.

The Acer A110 seems like a solid enough offering, but its lower resolution screen is a bit disappointing. With Apple supposedly preparing to release its own 7-inch device by the end of this month, some of you might want to just wait and see how Apple’s pricing and specs compare.

What do you think? Interested or will you go with the Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD or even the upcoming Apple iPad Mini?

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Are you in the market for a new Android tablet and want to find the best deal possible? The 7-inch version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 just happens to be on sale for $50 off, bringing the price down to a mere $199.00.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 comes with a 7-inch multitouch display (1024 x 600) and is powered by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box. You get 8GB of internal storage, but unlike the Google Nexus 7 (which sells for the same price), the Galaxy Tab 2 has a microSD expansion slot for up to 32GB of additional storage.

Also, while the Nexus 7 only has a front-facing camera, the Galaxy Tab 2 has a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera too. Rounding out the specs are the 1GHz dual core processor and 1GB of RAM. Samsung is also throwing in a free one-year subscription to Dropbox with 50GB of cloud storage. Yes, the Google Nexus 7 is hugely popular and for good reason, but the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 offers several advantages too. It’s no slouch for sure.

Pick up the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 8GB Wi-Fi Android ICS Tablet on Amazon.com for $199. That includes free super saver shipping.

Update: The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1-Inch, Wi-Fi) has just gone on sale for $350, $50 off as well.

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Even so, you still get Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich under the hood, the same wonderfully gorgeous display technology that you’ve come to expect from Samsung in this 7-inch screen, a faster dual core processor. Unlike the Nexus 7 that’s stuck with whatever internal storage it has, though, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 has a microSD slot to add up to 32GB of extra data storage. You also get a free one-year subscription to Dropbox for an added 50GB in the cloud.

The big bonus here, though, has to be the keyboard dock. Giving you a similar functionallity as the more expensive Asus Transformer Pad series, you can then use the Galaxy Tab 2 almost like a laptop, typing up emails and tweets in a much more expedient manner. And yes, you have full access to the Google Play Store for over 450,000 apps, plus music, books, and videos. The Smart Remote app with built-in IR blaster transforms the Galaxy Tab 2 into a pretty sweet universal remote too.

This package is being called the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7-inch Student Edition, but I don’t see any reason why this isn’t just as happy being in the hands of non-students. In addition to the keyboard dock and tablet, you also get a USB adapter bundled in there. AT $250 including free shipping, this is a great way to go back to school.

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However, it does come with a caveat. While the pre-orders are being accepted at online retailer J&R, there is no indication as to when the Android 3.2 Honeycomb tablet will actually start shipping out to customers. That said, they have priced the 16GB and 32GB models at $399.99 and $499.99, respectively, which is in line with their 10-inch cousins. Is that really the right move?

In case you missed the initial announcements, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus comes equipped with a 7.0-inch 1024×600 WSVGA touchscreen display, dual core 1.2GHz processor, 3MP rear camera, 2MP front camera, microSD slot, and a pre-installed Netflix app for video watching on the go. It is a WiFi-only device.

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As you might recall, the regular Samsung Galaxy Tab runs on Android 2.2 out of the box, which effectively stretches the smartphone OS onto a bigger screen. Android 3.0 and 3.1 are better suited for 10-inch screens, so Android 3.2 sounds like a good fit for the 7-inch Huawei MediaPad tablet.  Aside from screen size and OS, the MediaPad also comes with a 1.2GHz Qualcomm dual-core processor, 217ppi IPS touchscreen, dual cameras, 8GB internal storage, Bluetooth, 1080p video playback, HSPA+ 3G connectivity, WiFi, and HDMI-out. The current launch is in Singapore, but Huawei is pushing for a Q3 launch in the US.

It seems that 7-inch tablets like this (and the HTC Flyer, among others) still have legs?

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