Acer Unveils Android OS Tablet Phone with 4.8-inch Display

Acer just took the wraps off a device that is going to skirt the dividing line between a tablet and a smartphone.

This as-yet unnamed model is going to sport a 4.8-inch touchscreen with an unusual 1024 x 480-pixel resolution (21:9 aspect ratio). That will make it just a bit larger that the Dell Streak, which has a 5-inch, WVGA (800 x 480) display.

The device will have a shape its designer calls "stretched out, thin", and it will be 2.5 inches wide (64 mm). Text will  be entered with an on-screen keyboard. 

It will run Google's mobile operating system, but whether this is Android OS 2.2 or the upcoming OS 2.3 or OS 3.0 versions has not yet been revealed. It will include a custom user interface developed by Acer.

Acer is willing to say this tablet phone is going to be based on a 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, but the company has not yet revealed all the specifications of this model, which won't be on the market for several more months.

Still, a great deal of information is available, such as the 2-megapixel front-facing camera for video conferencing and the 8-megapixel rear-facing camera. This will include an LED flash and support for recording high-definition video at 720p.

Its wireless capabilities are going to include 3G (HSDPA at 14.4 Mbps), Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, and DLNA. And an HDMI video-out port will be included for good measure.

Pricing & Availability
Acer's tablet phone is scheduled to be released in April of next year. What countries it will be available in, and what carriers will be offering it, is not yet known.

There is no word yet on pricing.