It has only been a few weeks since “Neofonie” a German contender in the tablet computer market, has entered the stage to take on Apple’s iPad. During a recent press conference, the company has revealed more details on the product.  Much like the iPad, the Wepad it’s going to be available in different flavors: with or without SIM card and in various memory sizes. A Wlan-version with 16 GB of on-board storage that can be expanded to 48 GB via SD-card will set you back some 449 Euros while the larger 3G model, sporting full HD-playback support, 32 GB of storage and a GPS-chip, will cost you 569 Euros.

Cost-effective by design

The WePad’s interior is made up of standard components, such as Intel’s Atom N450 at 1,66 Gigahertz. The touch-sensitive 11,6 inch display with a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels is slightly bigger than the iPad’s 9,6 inches with a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels.

On a very positive note: the device sports a build-in 1,3-megapixel-webcam, 2 USB-slots and a card-reader – non of which can be found on the iPad! Slightly heavier than the iPad, the WePad will run for 6 hrs on one battery charge – not too impressive, compared to the iPad’s 10 hrs (even 11 hrs, if you believe the word on the street).

Operating the touchscreen is supposed to be a breeze and no different to what we have come to love on the iPod/ iPad. The display supports Multitouch, scaling, scrolling, flipping through pages etc.

Strong partners

Neofonie has teamed up with industry leaders Intel and Adobe. This strategy ensures a smooth playback of Flash-based content and the support of Adobe Air.