Launchpad: Qwertyholics Rejoice

Rs 24,990,value for money: ***

At last,BlackBerry has launched the mid-range BB10 phone,the Q5. It has the best of BB10 – smooth user interface,all your notifications in one place – at a reasonable price. The Q5 has a 3.1-inch touchscreen,physical keypad,and weighs just 120 grams. Although the build is plasticky,the Q5’s good combination of touchscreen and keypad makes for a good user experience. The Q5 has just 8 GB internal memory and a 5 MP camera. Just 4 GB storage is available to users though. The phone supports up to 64 GB of expandable storage,via a microSD card. This phone solves a minor issue with the Q10. To exit apps,BB10 users have to swipe up. Since the BlackBerry logo is between the keyboard and the screen on the Q5,this gesture is easier to execute when compared to Q10,which has almost no gap between the keyboard and the screen.

Tablet with Keyboard

HP SlateBook x2

Rs 39,990,value for money: ***

Hewlett-Packard India launched six touchscreen devices. These include all-in-one computers,laptops and tablets with keyboards. SlateBook x2 and Split x2 are both devices with detachable screens. SlateBook x2 runs Android Jelly Bean (4.2.2) on a 10.1-inch touchscreen with up to 64 GB of storage. It costs Rs 39,990. Split X2 is a 13-inch tablet that doubles up as a laptop. It costs Rs 64,990. The HP Envy Rove20 all-in-one PC has a 20-inch diagonal IPS display (1600×900 pixels) and 10-point touch. It is priced at Rs 69,990. HP Pavilion 11 TouchSmart notebook has an 11.6-inch touchscreen and a quad-core processor. It is priced at Rs 31,990. The HP Envy TouchSmart 14 Ultrabook claims to last nine hours on a single charge. It costs Rs 64,990. The HP Slate21 all-in-one allows people to magnify is a 21.5-inch touchscreen Android device. It is priced at Rs 24,990.