As the tablet arms race heats up, the MasterPad finally makes its appearance on local shores. The company calls it "the world's most advanced tablet PC." Here's a rundown of the Windows 7 tablet.

Display

The MasterPad features quite a large display, measuring in at 11.6", it's larger than that of the iPad and Samsung's Galaxy Tab. The multi-touch display has a native resolution of 1366 x 786 pixels, which is comparable to that of most new notebooks.

Under the hood

This tablet is quite the powerful beast as far as tablets are concerned. The device is equipped with a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N450 CPU, the same processor that is found on many of today's leading netbooks, as well as 2 GB of RAM. The Windows 7 OS though can be resource intensive. Also onboard is a 32 GB solid state drive (SSD).

Ports and connectivity

Featuring two USB ports, an HDMI port and SD card reader, the Masterpad is quite generous when it comes to connections. It also includes wireless connectivity in the form of wireless LAN, 3G and Bluetooth support – a solid range of features.

Extras

A built-in webcam (photo and video) as well as a mic is also present on the device, perfect for some Skyping on the go.

Operating system

The MasterPad runs a full version of Windows 7 Home edition (64-bit) and comes with the tablet-friendly Bossa Nova 2 graphical user interface. Bossa Nova 2 offers a touch friendly web browser and features such as a dedicated Facebook option and touch-based music browsing managed to impress, while apps for popular websites are also supported.

Microsoft friendly

While Windows 7 on a tablet can have its challenges, users don't have to get used to another OS, while programs such as Outlook, Excel and Word functioned correctly.

Available from Planet Electronics on www.masterpad.co.za or 012-348-0650 from R7299 (incl VAT). The MasterPad will only be available from March 2011.