Cisco Unveils Cius tablet

Bangalore: Cisco made its entry into the tablet computer space by launching Cius. The Tablet runs on the Google Android operating system. The 7- inch HD business collaboration was unveiled by CEO John Chambers at a conference in Las Vegas. Cius is designed for business users. The device is a virtual desktop and telecommunication machine, sporting a front facing 720p HD camera and a second, 5-megapixel rear-facing camera. It is smaller than iPad, and weighs only 1.15 pounds. Cius runs on a modified version of the Google Android operation system, which is becoming more and more popular for use in tablet devices. It can be availed with a 3G capability, along with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Micro-USB support. The company claims that the device will go for eight hours "under normal usage." As a bonus, the battery is detachable. The key to this tablet is the suite of Cisco software products that it will run. The list includes Cisco Quad, Show and Share, WebEx, Presence and Cisco TelePresence; it also supports Unified Communications Manager. It looks like these apps will run as modified Android applications. Cisco's device does sound like it has a lot of business features that the iPad does not, especially its deep integration with Cisco telecommunication products. The inclusion of two cameras for teleconferencing alone could make it a popular buy with enterprise companies. Cisco Cius will hit the global market on July 31, 2011.The estimated price of the new device is below $750. The pricing may vary by country.