Who are the best iPad competitors and why?

The iPad 2 needs to introduction, it’s the tablet that proves a success only a month after the official retail debut. While iPad competitors fail to show up, it continues to grow the success of Apple’s tablets by being faster, slimmer and better in any way than the 1st gen iPad. Demand is so huge that Apple has to order millions and millions of components in advance to meet consumer’s requests for the iPad 2. Other competitors are literally put into the situation of not having enough components to build their own tablets (the case with Blackberry PlayBook).

In the light of this situation is no wonder that high prices, buggy software and unavailability have made the best iPad competitors just a dream for many consumers not happy with the iTunes and iOS ecosystems, including me. But as we walk further into 2011 we can almost see the light of day, as iPad competitors are starting to appear from place to place, and even if they’re not on market yet, we start having a clear picture of iPad 2′s competitors for this year.

In this sort post I’ll try and show the few white knights that dare to think people will consider them instead of the iPad 2, a product that’s starting to cannibalize other Apple products like the iPod (if you are to believe reports). So let’s see who thinks it’s got what it takes to be the best iPad competitor in 2011.

Asus EEE Pad Transformer

This is one of the most interesting concepts as tablets go, being introduced and acclaimed starting with January. It’s not here yet, but in a few weeks time situation will change, as it was already rumored to hit stores for $399, a good 100 bucks cheaper than the iPad 2, which is one big factor in the success of Apple’s tablet. So, what does the EEE Pad Transformer have and the others don’t? If you look at the EEE Pad Transformer (detailed review here) it’s clear that you have a tablet best than the 1st gen iPad: dual core CPU, slim metallic body construction, high resolution screen, good battery life, Flash support, plus a customizable Android 3.0.

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer

So if the EEE Pad Transformer can go head to head with the  iPad 1 then what makes me say it’s the best iPad 2 competitor? The fact you can order it with keyboard that acts like a docking station with included battery, making autonomy figures reach 16 hours of independence from your power plug. That’s better than what the iPad 2 can reach (approximately 10 hours) and it also solves the biggest problem with slate tablets: virtual text input is a mess and you won’t want to ‘type’ long emails using the on-screen keyboard. That’s a fact and you can’t change that no matter what. Apparently ASUS figured out a way to solve this. That’s why the ASUS EEE Pad Transformer tops the best iPad competitors list in 2011.

Here’s a hands on preview, without the keyboard:

HP TouchPad

If you think the iPad 2 has only the Android tablets to worry about don’t be, as HP is looking to take on the iPad 2 with its own tablet, the TouchPad,  and the new operating system, WebOS. HP bought WebOS from Palm (together with all the company’s products) and is now trying to cash in what many believe to be the best mobile operating system, that was crippled by the lack of apps and support. Now that WebOS has HP supporting it we might see some change, and the first announced tablet, the HP TouchPad really did impress the press with a lot of new features and very powerful hardware, on par with what we’ve seen from other tablets this year.

The same situation with the EEE Pad Transformer, which was best suited as an iPad 1 competitor, happens here too, as the TouchPad has the same appearance as the first Apple tablet plus weight and thickness are similar, but we should stop here, as all other specs couldn’t be more different (read a detailed presentation here). The HP TouchPad uses a dual core Qualcomm CPU @1.2 GHz, has 1 GB RAM, 16/32 GB storage which can be extended with microSDHC cards.

HP TouchPad, an iPad 2 rival thanks to Web OS 3.0

What puts the HP TouchPad in front of the iPad 2 is the amazing WebOS interface that deals with multitasking in a natural way and integrates perfectly in the cloud with other WebOS devices like the Palm3 smartphone. In future it will even integrate with HP laptops powered by WebOS. Add to the list the fact it can be charged wirelessly using the TouchStone docking base and you have a ‘magical’ product, as Steve Jobs would put it. This is the tablet to watch as the best iPad competitors list stops with it.

HP TouchPad hands on at the official launch:

It’s not much of a list, I know that, but this is not my fault, and has more to do with iPad competitors inability to make a worthy product from A-Z. Add to this the software problems (early operating system versions) and the lack of apps for WebOS and Android 3.0 Honeycomb and you know why no one has managed to beat Apple and its amazing iPad 2, the best tablet of 2011.