Samsung prepping Atom-powered slate PC for H2 2010?

Samsung is planning to launch its own slate tablet device in the second half of 2010 according Philip Newton, director of Samsung Australia’s IT division. In a dig towards the Apple iPad, Newton says that this tablet will have enough processing power to be a “primary device” for most people along with desktop docking.

“The problems I see with the iPad are its processing power and (lack of) connectivity to a certain extent” said Newton. “I do feel that that slate-type platform has legs but I think the legs need to be far more powerful, for example an Atom-based product which has far greater flexibility, not to mention inputs and outputs. This has more potential than an iPad.”

He goes on to say that “there is the ability for a slate-based product to become a primary device in terms of its processing power and IO. That’s where I think we could get critical mass in having a product which could become your primary device – one you could take to university and do a PowerPoint presentation on it, for example, or a device that could be taken home or to the office and docked.”

His comments suggest that the slate is likely to run on an Intel Atom processor rather than the ARM chipset favoured by many other upcoming slates. The new Intel Moorestown platform could also be an option. This new device would be targeted for the mass market, unlike its failed Q1 UMPC that launched back in 2006.

“The Q1 was a very niche product for a vertical market, it wasn’t a consumer product. It was limited (in functionality), the price was relatively high, and it wasn’t an attractive device for consumers,” says Emmanuelle Silanesu, marketing manager for Samsung Australia’s IT division.

Via APCMag.