Android, Ubuntu, 4G and call capacity: Will Aakash 4 win the tablet market?

Aakash 4 is going to get a major tech makeover, but will this be enough to wow users who have been less than impressed with previous iterations of the device? Unlike its predecessors, the next model of the Aakash tablet will run not only on the latest version of the Android operating system (Jelly Bean) but will also offer them the choice of using the latest version of Linux-based operating system, Ubuntu. [caption id=“attachment_921691” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The Aakash 2: File photo by AFP[/caption] In its product specifications, the government has said that the new tablet would need to run on the latest Android operating system. However, the device also offer users the alternative of picking the latest version of the Ubuntu operating system, which would be available on a microSD card loaded in the tablet. In terms of battery life as well the government’s specifications are very specific and has said that the tablet needs to be able to play three hours of online video at maximum brightness or four hours offline video. It has also specified that the tablet should be able to charge from 10 to 80 percent of its capacity within two hours. According to  Tech2 Aakash 4 will have 1GB of DDR3 SDRAM along with 4GB internal storage and up to 32GB microSD support. It will have a 7-inch LCD display with 800 x 480 resolution. Why is that significant? Because as The Mobile Indian points out that not many tablets in the sub-Rs 5,000 price range have specifications that match the Aakash. The tablet should also have"Driver for Phone Functionality with external dongle” and support “Data functionality with external 2G or 3G or 4G dongle”. It will also have Wi-Fi and have Bluetooth capabilities. The first version of the tablet was launched on October 5, 2011. The tablet PC then launched had basic feature and costed government around Rs 2,276. Government later upgraded the tablet with some advance features at the same price. The latest version will have multiple new features but the the final price of the tablet has not been disclosed. The new version of the tablet will have bluetooth in-built which was missing in the previous versions.