The Live Indian Entertainment Blog

Although the conference most are waiting for is next week (WWDC), along with its expected fourth-gen iPhone and iPhone OS 4 intros, Computex 2010 is this week, and here come the iPad rivals. Both Asus and MSI have introduced tablet PCs that run Windows 7 and seemingly give the iPad some solid competition.

Asus introduced two Asus Eee Pad versions. The first is the EP121 Eee Pad, which has a 12" screen, Intel Core 2 Duo CULV CPU, Windows 7 Home Premium, and a claimed 10-hours of continuous use for battery life. When it comes to market, the device will have an optional “innovative hybrid keyboard/docking station," whatever that means.

Running Windows 7, the device will likely address some of the missing features of the iPad, such as printing and easily interfacing with USB devices.

Meanwhile, the Asus EP101TC Eee Pad will have a 10" screen and run Windows Embedded Compact 7, which unfortunately is just an updated version of Windows CE. There's not much more known about the EP101TC.

The two Eee Pads will be priced competitively, in terms of its obvious huge rival, the iPad, ranging in price from $399 to $499. However, they are not expected to release until Q1 2011.

Asus also showed off the Eee Tablet. It’s not a tablet PC, as the name might confuse some into thinking it is, bur more of a notetaker and e-book reader. The Eee Tablet is expected to be available in September in the $199 to $299 range.

MSI, meanwhile, introduced its MSI WindPad 100. That device is a 10" tablet with an Intel Atom Z530 CPU, running Windows 7 Home Premium. MSI has also implemented a Wind Touch UI layer. Also showing was the WindPad 110 tablet, which was running Android on NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 processor.

MSI plans to bring the WindPad 100 to market for $499 later this year. However, the Atom CPU seems to hamstring the device, as reports indicate it's pretty sluggish. There's time to polish it, but its unclear how much better the performance can be on that Atom CPU.

It's unclear when, or even if, the WindPad 110 will see the light of day, but if the company brings it out it will likely sell for around $399.

Are any of these iPad killers? Nah, but they are rivals, and as Android has shown in the smartphone market, competition is healthy and will push everyone to develop better devices.