Gadgets & Gizmos

Lately, Apple released their fancy new product, called iPad 2. This tablet has a few new features and upgrades, but how does it collate against the newly Motorola Xoom in all the ways that count? Well, in this case we’ll show you Motorola Xoom vs Apple iPad 2 comparison. We’ve stack up the two units in a few ways, comparing them in sexiness, screen equality,  processing power, camera quality, software availability, accessories, and price. If you confused which is the best to buy, don’t worry we’ll help you compare xoom and ipad and you’ll make the best choice for your new tablet. Here we go!

Aesthetics

We’ll see the aesthetic first to know the xoom and iPad 2 benchmark. It’s a little bit hard to start out with looks, because even you hate Apple, you have to confess that the company definitely has hardware design pat. Few product seem as good as Apple’s minimalist designs. The iPad 2 gets the great features of the iPad and soft them over. With a flatter and beveled back, alternate white color scheme, rounded front border, and a thickness of only 8.8mm (thinner than the iPhone 4), we can’t help but amazed looking at Apple’s new tablet.
Still, though we give the edge to Apple, the Xoom is not hard on the eyes. The unit is fairly thin at 12.7mm, which almost the exact thickness of the original iPad. Besides, the lack of a big home button on the Xoom means the unit can more easily be used in any orientation imaginable. No matter how you hold a Xoom, it will reorient itself and its in-screen home screen buttons will pop into the lower left of the screen. Apple has won this round, but many will like the blacker, more industrial look and feel of the Xoom. Great job, Motorola.

Horsepower

The iPad 2 features a 1GHz dual-core A5 processor, and the Xoom has a 1GHz dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 processor. For all intents and purposes, both units match the current trend of 1GHz dual-core processors. They both pack some power. However, both units have some benefits. The iPad’s advantage is its separate PowerVR SGX543MP2 graphics processor (GPU), which appears to run circles around the Xoom’s dual CPU/GPU Tegra 2. Performance tests show significantly greater graphics performance on the iPad 2. In some tests, the iPad 2 nearly doubled or tripled the Xoom’s graphics performance.
Still, the Xoom’s 1GB of Random Access Memory (on-the-fly memory) is double that of Apple’s tablet. In many conditions, this RAM may not be noticeable, but for things like video editing and multi tasking the added RAM will come in handy.
When it comes to actual storage, Apple sells iPad 2 units with 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB of storage included. Xoom owners will have to accept 32GB of storage out of the box. There is a MicroSD card slot on the device, which could support memory cards up to 32GB, but Motorola has not enabled the slot yet. An upcoming software update should allow SD card use on the Xoom. Xoom is as good as iPad 2.

Screen

Apple made a lot of progression in the iPad 2, but the screen was left entirely untouched. The iPad 2 features the same LED backlit 9.7-inch screen with a resolution of 1024 x 768. Unlike most modern laptops and TVs, Apple continues to stick with a 4:3 aspect ratio, meaning its screen is a lot more squared (like a sheet of office paper) than the Motorola Xoom. This isn’t so bad, but it is Apple uniqueness.
The Xoom has a ratio very close to 16:9, the standard for widescreens today (the Xoom is WXGA, techies). Because of its slightly larger size of 10.1 inches, the Xoom also boosts a higher pixel count at 1280 x 800 pixels. In terms of total brightness, the iPad 2 probably edges out Xoom by a small margin, but Xoom’s aspect ratio is better for watching HD-widescreen content. What can we say? Yep, we like wide screens and here the Xoom wins out.

Cameras

Both the iPad 2 and Xoom have powerful front-facing webcams and great rear cameras. However, Apple did not list the specifics of its cameras on its website, which likely means that they don’t comparable as well as other features. From what we can extrapolate, Xoom has a better front and rear camera than iPads. The iPad 2 appears to have a VGA-quality (640 x 480) front-facing camera, while the Xoom has a more competitive 2-megapixel cam. The only statistic Apple has released about the rear camera is that it can record 720p video, meaning it might be as little as a 1.3MP camera. This seems anemically weak and we’re hoping it’s better, but with a solid 5-megapixel rear camera, autofocus, and a dual-LED flash (the iPad 2 has no flash), we have to hand this category to the Xoom.
To be honest, we’re not sure exactly that a rear camera really worth for some people and how much users will need thus on their tablets. It seems that a front-facing webcam is more useful. Judge the importance by and for yourself, but either way, Motorola wins.

Extras

 While we surprised by Smart Covers, the Xoom offers a lot of hidden features and accessories that make it a more intriguing buy. For starters, the Xoom has a direct HDMI out (iPad will cost you $39 for an add on), a cool speaker dock that props up your screen, a standard dock that can turn your tablet into a picture frame, and a decent custom-fit case that protects and helps prop up the device. Both tablets have wireless keyboards as well. Moving internally, the Xoom has more sensors inside it than you can count. The iPad 2 may have an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, and gyroscope, but the Xoom also has a proximity sensor, digital compass, and barometer inside it. Darn cool, right?

When it comes to connection speed, the Xoom and iPad 2 are both 3G right now, but Motorola will offer a (supposedly free) LTE 4G update if you mail in your unit. Flash support is also on the way (hopefully soon), which won’t ever be available on the iPad 2. However, the Xoom is stuck on Verizon’s network for the time being, so if  you roll with another network, the iPad may be a better bet. There are Wi-Fi only versions of both devices. So, Motorola wins.

Price

 

The iPad starts out at $499 for a bare-bones 16GB Wi-Fi only unit, while the cheapest Xoom (also Wi-Fi only) costs $599, though you do get 32GB of storage for that price. Currently only the Verizon 3G model is on shelves, which costs a hefty $799. The most expensive 3G iPad (64GB storage) runs for $829. The 32GB 3G iPad 2 costs $729, or about $70 less than the 3G Xoom. So? Which is cheaper?OverallThere are a thousand ways we could reorganize this battle and give the trophy to Apple. The fact is that both of these tablets are extremely competitive and offer some unique benefits. Both claim a 10 hour battery life as well. However, despite the beautiful design of the iPad 2 and software and price advantage it currently has, we think Motorola’s Xoom is a healthy competitor and worthy of a look. If you’re an iPhone lover, chances are the iPad 2 will win your heart, but if you’re not, give them both a try. You may be surprised at some of the differences between the two units. The last, we just wanna share our point of view in comparing Xoom and iPad 2. But, the decision still on your hand.