Cisco, apparently wondering why consumers should have all the tablet fun, announced on Tuesday a “mobile collaboration business tablet.” The new device, called Cius (pronounced “see-us”), is based on Google’s open-source Android operating system and provides virtual desktop integration with Cisco’s collaboration and communications applications.
The tablet weighs in at 1.15 lbs, and supports HD video streaming, multiparty conferencing, e-mail, messaging, browsing and applications for creating, editing and sharing content in a local network or through the cloud. An optional HD audio station has a speakerphone, HD DisplayPort and USB ports, and, for audio conferences, there are dual noise-canceling microphones. Connectivity includes 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-FI and 3G, with 4G available later.
Health Care, Retailers, Students
There’s also a 720p front-mounted HD camera and a five-megapixel camera on back, a seven-inch-high super VGA touchscreen, and a detachable eight-hour battery. As with an increasing number of mobile devices, an accelerometer allows the display to orient in either a portrait or landscape mode as the user turns the device.
Tony Bates, Cisco senior vice president and general manager of enterprise, commercial and small business, noted the wide range of uses and users Cisco has in mind for its new product line. He said the Cius “can transform how health-care professional advance patient care, how retailers deliver service experiences to consumers, or how universities deliver world-class education to their students.”
While the tablet is being directed at businesses, the student market is growing and Cisco’s emphasis on communication and collaboration could appeal to that market as well.
“Best of all,” Bates said, the Cius allows IT departments a way to “dramatically lower the cost per user of provisioning those new experiences.”
Third-Party Apps
The Cius will support a wide range of Cisco collaboration applications, including the social-collaboration business platform Quad, the Show and Share “social video system,” WebEx… Details
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