NEC LAVIE Tab T11N and T11 bring Android 16 tablets to Japan today

NEC's LAVIE Tab T11N and T11 are scheduled to go on sale in Japan today, August 27, adding two new Android tablets to an increasingly competitive productivity market. The T11N is particularly interesting because Android 16's developing desktop-style capabilities allow relatively modest tablet hardware to behave more like a conventional computer when paired with larger displays or multitasking accessories.

Android tablets have improved dramatically since Google renewed its attention to large screens, yet hardware differentiation remains difficult because Samsung, Lenovo, Xiaomi and others already cover most price bands. NEC's advantage in Japan comes from an established PC brand and local distribution rather than global scale. The new tablets therefore provide another test of whether Android's improved desktop and multitasking features can make entry-level hardware useful for education and light productivity.

As Android becomes more adaptable to windowed applications, inexpensive tablets may increasingly compete not just with other tablets but also with Chromebooks and low-cost laptops.