We've been waiting for HTC's tablet for a while a now, and finally is out in the open as it was on show at this weeks Mobile World Congress.
The Taiwanese company have produced something quite different to the competition, so it’s a 7-inch form factor running Gingerbread and Honeycomb soon after. It also comes with a stylus pen allowing users to draw on the Flyer.
The HTC Flyer's stylus is an interesting inclusion, and possesses some groundbreaking uses. The HTC Flyer can tell the difference between the tip of the stylus and the tip of your finger, and while on-screen menus still react to your prods and pokes, the stylus is used exclusively to "draw digital ink onto the tablet".
It's pressure-sensitive too, so the harder you press, the greater the flow of that digital ink. There are two buttons on the HTC Flyer tablet too, one which erases ink when pressed down, and another to highlight text using the stylus.
Add in a clever software API and app developers are going to have some really clever tools for developers. "We think there's huge potential for a great eco system" explained Drew Bamford, HTC's director of user experience.
Key hardware features include a 1.5GHz processor, display with a 1,024 x 600 resolution and HSPA+ and WiFi connectivity. A rear 5MP camera with auto focus and front-facing 1.3MP camera will be included. Like the forthcoming HTC Desire S, the Flyer will also come with a unibody design.
HTC is touting a standby time of between 820 to 1,470 hours and users should expect in the region of four hours of video playback. The device will weigh 415g making it slightly heavier than the 7-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab.
The Flyer will also see the debut of HTC’s new video download service, dubbed HTC Watch. This will allow users to download HD movies on demand directly to the device.
The tablet will start shipping during the second quarter, prices are yet to be confirmed but the tablet is a high-end device and this will be reflected in the price, the firm added. As if tablets weren’t premium priced expensive keyboardless notebooks already.