Toshiba Libretto W105 dual-screen tablet hits the US

With all producers focusing on getting slates out these days, Toshiba tried a different approach and got a tablet netbook like, the Toshiba Libretto W100. However, unlike your every day mini laptop, this one comes with two 7 inch touch displays. The picture below should speak for themselves in terms of design.

Toshiba Libretto W105 dual-screen tablet netbook

Now, this is an interesting concept and a couple of months ago when i first saw it, I doubted we were ever to see it in stores. Thoshiba proved me wrong though, and after having the W100 available in Asia, they now brought it to the States as well. However, with a price tag above 1000 bucks, i doubt it will find many buyers. Still, this is a good netbook.

In terms of looks, this one brings an aluminum finish, but a pretty chubby body, although it only weighs 1.8 pounds. Is solid built and materials used for the casing and interior are all impressive.

The two 7 inch displays are the main attraction. Both 7 inch capacitive multitouch screens, with 1024 x 600 px resolution and glossy finish. Device comes with an accelerometer and one of the screens can easily be used as a haptic input device (keyboard or trackpad).

In fact, you do get quite a couple of types of keyboards and while typing on a display is no way as good as using a proper physical keyboard, you will get used to it nonetheless.

You don't get a physical keyboard, but 6 different virtual ones

The videos below from Wow Pow show a review of the interface, which is by the way based on Windows 7.

In terms of hardware, you get an Intel ULV U5400 processor, 2 GB of memory and 62 GB SSD storage. Connectivity is top notch, including Wi-Fi N and Bluetooth 2.1 and you do get all kind of useful ports and feature, like USB slots, card-reader, webcam, etc. Standard battery is a 4 Cell one. There is also a 8 Cell battery, but the hardware inside is pretty hungry and you do get two displays, so you should not expect more than 4 hours of life on a single charge.

Bulky, but light and portable

Like I said, this Toshiba is now available in the States and sells as Libretto W105 on Amazon. Available for preorder for now, but should ship soon. However, at $1099, i doubt there will be too many interested customers.

All in all, I won’t say the Libretto is something I for one would buy. It is an interesting idea, brings good hardware and is is very solid built. But still, in terms of usability and ergonomics, it’s far from even a 10 inch netbook. And for 1000 bucks, i can definitely get better, although not with two touch displays, but I don’t need them anyway.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Tags: Toshiba, Toshiba netbooks, touch tablet, touchscreen

Last updated: October 3, 2011 | Published: August 17th, 2010 | Add the first comment!