Motorola Xoom review

Product Motorola Xoom
Website www.motorola.com
Specifications Nvidia 1GHz Tegra 2 dual core Processor, Android 3.0, 10.1-inch 1280x800 screen, 32GB storage, 802.11b/g/n, 5MP rear camera
Price £479 for WiFi only, £579 for SIM Free 3G

THE SENSE OF EXCITEMENT created by the Motorola Xoom has been palpable among technology journalists ever since its announcement. It is the first tablet available in the UK with Android 3.0 Honeycomb and as such, the first tablet that can hope to rival Apple's Ipad.

Motorola unsurprisingly thinks its device is better than the Ipad 2, citing a higher resolution screen - 200,000 extra pixels, if you're counting - Flash support and a customisable home screen as evidence. We think it's pushing it with the last one, but the flexibility and customisable nature of Android certainly suits the more technical user, whereas the Ipad works well for people who don't know or care what operating system they're using.

The first thing we noticed about the Xoom is that Motorola seems to have done everything possible to subtly dissuade you from holding it in portrait mode. Like the Ipad, it's really too large to be comfortable when held with one hand. Indeed, the Xoom is heavier, at 730g, than both the new Ipad 2 (601g) and the original (680g). In portrait mode, the whole thing feels unwieldy and somehow wrong. This is something that Apple has avoided, as the Ipad feels good however you hold it.

The on-screen keyboard is also tricky to use, even with two hands. This is because it takes up the whole width of the display and unless you've got super-long thumbs you won't easily be able to reach the letters in the middle of the screen without taking one hand off the device. When it's on a desk, or your knee, this isn't such a problem as you can type as you would with a normal keyboard. Even so, typing accuracy is never brilliant even with auto-correct, so people who type a lot might consider a Bluetooth keyboard.

In landscape mode holding the Xoom with both hands, it is quite comfortable. The weight is still a problem, and extended use will grow tiresome, but we've found that to be the case with the Ipad too. It's no accident that all of Apple's promotional photos of the Ipad show people using it sitting down, with the device resting on their knees.