Wirelession W1060 $220 MID Gets Reviewed: Mediocre Web Browsing

The CrunchPad may have met a premature demise, but that doesn't mean your web-tablet needs should go unsated.  The Witstech A81 MID might not have the CrunchPad's 12-inch touchscreen or Atom processor – it has a 7-inch 800 x 480 touchscreen and uses the same 600MHz ARM Cortex A8 processor as you'd find in the iPhone 3GS and Palm Pre – but it also comes in at $220 and is actually available to buy (albeit in sample form).  Over at Carrypad they've been reviewing the device in its rebadged Wirelession W1060 form.

Full specifications include WiFi b/g, a microSD card slot, optional GPS ($20) and Bluetooth, the latter of which wasn't actually working on the review unit.  OS is Windows CE 6.0, though there's a promise of Android by the end of 2009; they're also working on adding screen rotation, currently missing.

Unfortunately, while media playback is reasonably strong and battery life clocks in at between 5 and 8 hours (bottom end for video or web browsing, top end for audio playback or ebook reading), the W1060 commits the cardinal MID sin of not offering a particularly satisfying internet browsing experience.  Despite the Cortex A8 processor the MID is described as "sluggish", which could be down to poorly optimized software.  Frankly, with Android promised (but not yet delivered) and rumors of a capacitive touchscreen version coming in a few months time, it might be better waiting a little longer to slake that slate thirst.