BlackBerry Playbook pricing to start at $399?

A blog by the name of Mobility Insider is claiming to have the inside scoop on the pricing schema for the unreleased BlackBerry Playbook tablet. The site does not cite any sources — anonymous or otherwise — but claims to have first hand knowledge about RIM’s tablet. The report indicates that the Playbook will be available with three different storage capacities. An 8GB model will retail for $399, a 16GB for $499, and a 32GB for $599. The site goes on to note that all models will be Wi-Fi only and will acquire cellular data connectivity through a tethered BlackBerry smartphone. RIM’s highly-anticipated, dual-core tablet is set to launch sometime early next year.

ViewSonic ViewPad 7 hits Amazon for $120

In a peculiar turn of events, Amazon has made ViewSonic’s upcoming ViewPad 7 tablet available for pre-order. Amazon — an online retailer known for retail prices so low that countless brick and mortar retailers have been forced out of business — is charging $120 over MSRP for the upcoming Android tablet. A 7-inch touchscreen display, cellular data connectivity with support for voice calling, a 3-megapixel rear camera, a 0.3-megapixel front camera for video chat, 512MB of RAM, microSDHC support (up to 32GB) and up to 10 hours of battery life all sound great, but definitely not great enough to warrant $120 above retail. The ViewSonic ViewPad 7 is set to launch some time before the end of the year.

Hybrid Dell Inspiron Duo Tablet : A Netbook and A Tablet Device

Dell Inspiron Duo Tablet made its debut on stage at Intel's IDF 2010. At first look, you might think that this is just a tablet device, but you'll be surprised to know it is also a netbook. Flipping the screen from within the frame will display the keyboard and turns this device into a netbook. This hybrid computer runs on dual-core atom n550 processor with a 10″ screen and Windows 7 Premium edition. Do they set a new standard for a netbook design?

It seems that this flipping screen design's been here since 1999
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vadem_Clio)