Adam tablet
Encyclopedia
The Adam Tablet is a tablet computer
designed by Bangalore
-based firm Notion Ink
. The worldwide launch occurred on December 18, 2010 via a video released by Notion Ink detailing their Eden Interface. On December 9 a limited number of devices were released for pre-order globally, followed by a larger pre-order starting January 9, 2011 and an open subscription pre-order from 11 January 2011. The Adam runs a customized version of Android 2.2, with an update to 3.0 in the future. The Adam is set to be the first Android device marketed to contain Pixel Qi's
low-power, dual-mode display. The device is one of several tablet form-factor devices to include a dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2
processor that can support 1080p
video output mirroring.
The Adam was shown at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show
(CES) in Las Vegas where it received favorable initial reviews.
Tegra 250 processor
with a 1 GHz Dual Core Cortex A9
. Running Android 2.2 Froyo, the Adam incorporates a Notion Ink created overlay interface, called Eden, which is forward compatible; it incorporates modules from the successor to Froyo, 2.3 Gingerbread. Rohan Shravan, CEO of Notion Ink, has stated that his company is currently working on porting Android 3.0 Honeycomb to the product.
The Notion Ink
Adam has two choices of screen, a transflective liquid crystal display made by Pixel Qi
or a backlit liquid crystal display
(LCD). Both screen choices are 10.1 in (256.5 mm) diagonal with a resolution of 1024x600. The device will measure 19.1 x and will weigh 730 g (1.6 lb).
A 185° swivel-camera can face a user during video chatting at -5°, can face a live lecture or meeting while the unit is on a table at 90°, or can snap photographs at 180°.
The Adam can be plugged into a high-definition television
(HDTV) through a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI
) port.
The Adam's USB ports are enabled in host mode which allows the connection of USB flash drives and hard drives. This feature also can be used to connect a keyboard and a mouse to the Adam.
The Adam was supposed to come bundled with Adobe Flash
but the first shipped devices did not have it pre-installed. However, Adam owners were able to sideload a Tegra 2-optimized version of Adobe Flash with no problems. It is expected to support Adobe AIR when it launches. The Tegra 250's supports flash acceleration.
The first units shipped were subject to an OTA (Over the Air) updating error in which the update file failed to completely download to the device (i.e. a product of the distribution system, not one of the content of the update), which resulted in the device becoming inoperable. As a result of communication between Notion Ink support and numerous community forum commenters, a fixed update was provided by Notion Ink to rectify the problem, in the form of an 80MB download. Many customers also questioned the gap between the quality of the screen and Notion Ink's advertised 'pure-matte glass': in a number of video reviews, the screen was shown to have a glossy effect which was to be corrected with a customer-applied matte screen protector, the quality of which has been scrutinized by reviews such as Goodereader.
The Adam also shipped without a number of promised or fully functioning applications - included in those missing were the company's own Genesis market and the comic-book reader, Longbox. , it is unclear if these applications will make it to consumers.
In late January 2011, leaked photographs supposedly taken during US Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) inspections created a fresh round of criticism, with commentators remarking on the inferiority of the build to established brands, with respect in particular to hand soldered wires and components. In the official Notion Ink blog, CEO Rohan Shravan defended the Adam's build quality as a product of a start-up company and stating that the wires are solid and belong to the antenna, while conceding that 'it isn't a beautiful assembly'.
System on chip:
Memory and storage:
Power and battery:
Display:
Camera
Communication
Audio
Input/output ports:
Sensors
and Ubuntu
but no working build of either has been created for the Adam. The Android Market
will be implemented in late May upon release of Android 3.0 Honeycomb. Until then, Notion Ink will rely on their own marketplace, named Genesis, for programmers. They announced $1 million in prize funds for developers, as per their older website, but plans were canceled due to budget issues.
In May 2011, Notion Ink Announced that the Adam will be shipping with Android 2.2 Froyo, Eden 1.5, an Amazon Kindle App, and the Dolphin Browser HD. Android 3 Honeycomb support is expected to arrive before the end of June.
Tablet computer
A tablet computer, or simply tablet, is a complete mobile computer, larger than a mobile phone or personal digital assistant, integrated into a flat touch screen and primarily operated by touching the screen...
designed by Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
-based firm Notion Ink
Notion Ink
Notion Ink is an Indian company that designs tablets PCs and other computing products. The company announced its prototype Adam tablet on December 18, 2009.- History :...
. The worldwide launch occurred on December 18, 2010 via a video released by Notion Ink detailing their Eden Interface. On December 9 a limited number of devices were released for pre-order globally, followed by a larger pre-order starting January 9, 2011 and an open subscription pre-order from 11 January 2011. The Adam runs a customized version of Android 2.2, with an update to 3.0 in the future. The Adam is set to be the first Android device marketed to contain Pixel Qi's
Pixel Qi
Pixel Qi Corporation is an American company involved in the research of low-power computer display technology, based in San Bruno, California. It was founded by Mary Lou Jepsen, who was previously the chief technical officer of the One Laptop per Child project.The company designs liquid crystal...
low-power, dual-mode display. The device is one of several tablet form-factor devices to include a dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2
Tegra
Tegra developed by Nvidia is a system-on-a-chip series for mobile devices such as smartphones, personal digital assistants, and mobile Internet devices. The Tegra integrates the ARM architecture processor central processing unit , graphics processing unit , northbridge, southbridge, and memory...
processor that can support 1080p
1080p
1080p is the shorthand identification for a set of HDTV high-definition video modes that are characterized by 1080 horizontal lines of resolution and progressive scan, meaning the image is not interlaced as is the case with the 1080i display standard....
video output mirroring.
The Adam was shown at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
(CES) in Las Vegas where it received favorable initial reviews.
Features
The Adam includes an NvidiaNVIDIA
Nvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles...
Tegra 250 processor
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
with a 1 GHz Dual Core Cortex A9
ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore
The ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore is a 32-bit multicore processor providing up to 4 cache-coherent Cortex-A9 cores, each implementing the ARM v7 instruction set architecture.-Features:Key features of the Cortex-A9 core are:...
. Running Android 2.2 Froyo, the Adam incorporates a Notion Ink created overlay interface, called Eden, which is forward compatible; it incorporates modules from the successor to Froyo, 2.3 Gingerbread. Rohan Shravan, CEO of Notion Ink, has stated that his company is currently working on porting Android 3.0 Honeycomb to the product.
The Notion Ink
Notion Ink
Notion Ink is an Indian company that designs tablets PCs and other computing products. The company announced its prototype Adam tablet on December 18, 2009.- History :...
Adam has two choices of screen, a transflective liquid crystal display made by Pixel Qi
Pixel Qi
Pixel Qi Corporation is an American company involved in the research of low-power computer display technology, based in San Bruno, California. It was founded by Mary Lou Jepsen, who was previously the chief technical officer of the One Laptop per Child project.The company designs liquid crystal...
or a backlit liquid crystal display
Liquid crystal display
A liquid crystal display is a flat panel display, electronic visual display, or video display that uses the light modulating properties of liquid crystals . LCs do not emit light directly....
(LCD). Both screen choices are 10.1 in (256.5 mm) diagonal with a resolution of 1024x600. The device will measure 19.1 x and will weigh 730 g (1.6 lb).
A 185° swivel-camera can face a user during video chatting at -5°, can face a live lecture or meeting while the unit is on a table at 90°, or can snap photographs at 180°.
The Adam can be plugged into a high-definition television
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
(HDTV) through a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI
HDMI
HDMI is a compact audio/video interface for transmitting uncompressed digital data. It is a digital alternative to consumer analog standards, such as radio frequency coaxial cable, composite video, S-Video, SCART, component video, D-Terminal, or VGA...
) port.
The Adam's USB ports are enabled in host mode which allows the connection of USB flash drives and hard drives. This feature also can be used to connect a keyboard and a mouse to the Adam.
The Adam was supposed to come bundled with Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
but the first shipped devices did not have it pre-installed. However, Adam owners were able to sideload a Tegra 2-optimized version of Adobe Flash with no problems. It is expected to support Adobe AIR when it launches. The Tegra 250's supports flash acceleration.
Controversy
The Notion Ink Adam has been beset by a number of controversies and delays since its preorder launch in December 2010. These include shipping problems, confusion over the specifications of the machine, reportedly poor customer support and questionable build quality.The first units shipped were subject to an OTA (Over the Air) updating error in which the update file failed to completely download to the device (i.e. a product of the distribution system, not one of the content of the update), which resulted in the device becoming inoperable. As a result of communication between Notion Ink support and numerous community forum commenters, a fixed update was provided by Notion Ink to rectify the problem, in the form of an 80MB download. Many customers also questioned the gap between the quality of the screen and Notion Ink's advertised 'pure-matte glass': in a number of video reviews, the screen was shown to have a glossy effect which was to be corrected with a customer-applied matte screen protector, the quality of which has been scrutinized by reviews such as Goodereader.
The Adam also shipped without a number of promised or fully functioning applications - included in those missing were the company's own Genesis market and the comic-book reader, Longbox. , it is unclear if these applications will make it to consumers.
In late January 2011, leaked photographs supposedly taken during US Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) inspections created a fresh round of criticism, with commentators remarking on the inferiority of the build to established brands, with respect in particular to hand soldered wires and components. In the official Notion Ink blog, CEO Rohan Shravan defended the Adam's build quality as a product of a start-up company and stating that the wires are solid and belong to the antenna, while conceding that 'it isn't a beautiful assembly'.
Hardware
Size and weight- Thickness: 14 mm (0.551181102362205 in)
- Width: 191 mm (7.5 in)
- Length: 269 mm (10.6 in)
- Weight: 1.6 lb (725.7 g)
System on chip:
- NvidiaNVIDIANvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles...
Tegra 250TegraTegra developed by Nvidia is a system-on-a-chip series for mobile devices such as smartphones, personal digital assistants, and mobile Internet devices. The Tegra integrates the ARM architecture processor central processing unit , graphics processing unit , northbridge, southbridge, and memory... - 1 GHzHertzThe hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications....
Dual Core Cortex A-9ARM Cortex-A9 MPCoreThe ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore is a 32-bit multicore processor providing up to 4 cache-coherent Cortex-A9 cores, each implementing the ARM v7 instruction set architecture.-Features:Key features of the Cortex-A9 core are:... - NvidiaNVIDIANvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles...
GeforceGeForceGeForce is a brand of graphics processing units designed by Nvidia. , there have been eleven iterations of the design. The first GeForce products were discrete GPUs designed for use on add-on graphics boards, intended for the high-margin PC gaming market...
ULPUltra Low PowerAn ultra low power, or ULP device, is an electronic gadget that has milli- or micro-watt power consumption.Some examples of ultra-low power devices:* Pacemakers* Hearing aids-See also:* low-power electronics* Ultra-Low Power Bluetooth*...
GPU
Memory and storage:
- 1 GBGigabyteThe gigabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage. The prefix giga means 109 in the International System of Units , therefore 1 gigabyte is...
DDR2DDR2 SDRAMDDR2 SDRAM is a double data rate synchronous dynamic random-access memory interface. It supersedes the original DDR SDRAM specification and has itself been superseded by DDR3 SDRAM... - 1 GB SLC
- 8 GB flashFlash memoryFlash memory is a non-volatile computer storage chip that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It was developed from EEPROM and must be erased in fairly large blocks before these can be rewritten with new data...
, more variants may be coming at some time
Power and battery:
- Universal Charger
- 3 cellElectrochemical cellAn electrochemical cell is a device capable of either deriving electrical energy from chemical reactions, or facilitating chemical reactions through the introduction of electrical energy. A common example of an electrochemical cell is a standard 1.5-volt "battery"...
24.6Whr removable batteryRechargeable batteryA rechargeable battery or storage battery is a group of one or more electrochemical cells. They are known as secondary cells because their electrochemical reactions are electrically reversible. Rechargeable batteries come in many different shapes and sizes, ranging anything from a button cell to...
Display:
- 10.1 in (256.5 mm) WSVGA (1024 × 600)
- Optional Pixel QiPixel QiPixel Qi Corporation is an American company involved in the research of low-power computer display technology, based in San Bruno, California. It was founded by Mary Lou Jepsen, who was previously the chief technical officer of the One Laptop per Child project.The company designs liquid crystal...
display:
-
-
- Transmissive
- Transflective
- Reflective
- Multi-touchMulti-touchIn computing, multi-touch refers to a touch sensing surface's ability to recognize the presence of two or more points of contact with the surface...
- Screen protector with matte finishGloss (material appearance)Gloss is an optical property, which is based on the interaction of light with physical characteristics of a surface. It is actually the ability of a surface to reflect light into the specular direction. The factors that affect gloss are the refractive index of the material, the angle of incident...
- Anti glare coating
- Scratch resistantAnti-scratch coatingAn anti-scratch or scratch-resistant coating is a film or coating that can be applied to optical surfaces, such as the faces of a lens or photographic film. The coating does not interfere with how the lenses function and does not affect vision, but creates a permanent bond with the lens that...
- Finger print resistant
- Multi-touch
-
Camera
- 185° Swivel CameraSwivel lensA swivel lens is a lens that freely rotates while attached to a camera body. They are used on some compact digital and video cameras . These lenses make it easy for a photographer to aim a camera without moving around too much. Swivel lenses come in different sizes and shapes...
(3.2 MP) (720p720p720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan...
)
Communication
- WLANWireless LANA wireless local area network links two or more devices using some wireless distribution method , and usually providing a connection through an access point to the wider internet. This gives users the mobility to move around within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network...
- 802.11IEEE 802.11IEEE 802.11 is a set of standards for implementing wireless local area network computer communication in the 2.4, 3.6 and 5 GHz frequency bands. They are created and maintained by the IEEE LAN/MAN Standards Committee . The base version of the standard IEEE 802.11-2007 has had subsequent...
b/g/n - Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
- WWAN - 3G3G3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 specifications by the International Telecommunication Union...
HSPAHigh Speed Packet AccessHigh Speed Packet Access is an amalgamation of two mobile telephony protocols, High Speed Downlink Packet Access and High Speed Uplink Packet Access , that extends and improves the performance of existing WCDMA protocols...
(850UMTS frequency bandsThe UMTS frequency bands are radio frequencies used by third generation wireless Universal Mobile Telecommunications System networks.They were allocated by delegates to the World Administrative Radio Conference held in Málaga-Torremolinos, Spain between February 3, 1992 and March 3, 1992...
MHz and 1900UMTS frequency bandsThe UMTS frequency bands are radio frequencies used by third generation wireless Universal Mobile Telecommunications System networks.They were allocated by delegates to the World Administrative Radio Conference held in Málaga-Torremolinos, Spain between February 3, 1992 and March 3, 1992...
MHz) or (900UMTS frequency bandsThe UMTS frequency bands are radio frequencies used by third generation wireless Universal Mobile Telecommunications System networks.They were allocated by delegates to the World Administrative Radio Conference held in Málaga-Torremolinos, Spain between February 3, 1992 and March 3, 1992...
MHz and 2100UMTS frequency bandsThe UMTS frequency bands are radio frequencies used by third generation wireless Universal Mobile Telecommunications System networks.They were allocated by delegates to the World Administrative Radio Conference held in Málaga-Torremolinos, Spain between February 3, 1992 and March 3, 1992...
MHz) - FM radioFM broadcastingFM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
Audio
- StereoSTEREOSTEREO is a solar observation mission. Two nearly identical spacecraft were launched into orbits that cause them to respectively pull farther ahead of and fall gradually behind the Earth...
loudspeakers - 3.5-mm headphone/microphone jackTRS connectorA TRS connector is a common family of connector typically used for analog signals including audio. It is cylindrical in shape, typically with three contacts, although sometimes with two or four . It is also called an audio jack, phone jack, phone plug, and jack plug...
- Built-in microphoneMicrophoneA microphone is an acoustic-to-electric transducer or sensor that converts sound into an electrical signal. In 1877, Emile Berliner invented the first microphone used as a telephone voice transmitter...
Input/output ports:
- USB 2.0 Host x 2,
- Mini USB
- HDMIHDMIHDMI is a compact audio/video interface for transmitting uncompressed digital data. It is a digital alternative to consumer analog standards, such as radio frequency coaxial cable, composite video, S-Video, SCART, component video, D-Terminal, or VGA...
- microSD slot
- Subscriber Identity ModuleSubscriber Identity ModuleA subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module is an integrated circuit that securely stores the International Mobile Subscriber Identity and the related key used to identify and authenticate subscriber on mobile telephony devices .A SIM is held on a removable SIM card, which...
(SIM) card slot; 3g model only - DCDirect currentDirect current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
connector
Sensors
- 3-axis accelerometerAccelerometerAn accelerometer is a device that measures proper acceleration, also called the four-acceleration. This is not necessarily the same as the coordinate acceleration , but is rather the type of acceleration associated with the phenomenon of weight experienced by a test mass that resides in the frame...
- Ambient light sensor
- GPS
- Digital compassDigital compassA digital compass may be either a magnetometer or a fibre optic gyrocompass ....
Software
The new unit will come with a customized version of Android 2.2 Froyo operating system known as Eden which includes many features of 2.3 Gingerbread. It was originally planned to be able to support Google Chrome OSGoogle Chrome OS
Google Chrome OS is a Linux-based operating system designed by Google to work exclusively with web applications. Google announced the operating system on July 7, 2009 and made it an open source project, called Chromium OS, that November....
and Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
but no working build of either has been created for the Adam. The Android Market
Android Market
Android Market is an online software store developed by Google for Android OS devices. Its gateway is an application program called "Market", preinstalled on most Android devices, allows users to browse and download mobile apps published by third-party developers...
will be implemented in late May upon release of Android 3.0 Honeycomb. Until then, Notion Ink will rely on their own marketplace, named Genesis, for programmers. They announced $1 million in prize funds for developers, as per their older website, but plans were canceled due to budget issues.
- EmailEmailElectronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
client (Mail’d) - Office suite (QuickOfficeQuickOfficeQuickoffice is a productivity suite for mobile devices which allows users to view, create and edit text files, presentations and spreadsheets. It consist of Quickword , Quicksheet and QuickPoint . The programs are compatible with Microsoft Office.Quickoffice is commonly used in smartphones and PDAs...
) - File browser (Sniffer)
- Calendar
- WebKitWebKitWebKit is a layout engine designed to allow web browsers to render web pages. WebKit powers Google Chrome and Apple Safari and by October 2011 held over 33% of the browser market share between them. It is also used as the basis for the experimental browser included with the Amazon Kindle ebook...
browser - Weather
- Music
- Navigation and maps
- E-Reader
- Paint (Canvas)
- Longbox Comic E-Reader
- Photo editor
- Calculator
- Video
- Camera
- Contacts
- Settings
- Sound recorder
- Clock
- Search
- Speech recognition
- Gallery
In May 2011, Notion Ink Announced that the Adam will be shipping with Android 2.2 Froyo, Eden 1.5, an Amazon Kindle App, and the Dolphin Browser HD. Android 3 Honeycomb support is expected to arrive before the end of June.
External links
- Notion Ink, Blog by Rohan Shravan, company founder
- Notion Ink Community
- Adam Tablet News