You know.. I’m not entirely sure how I ended up missing this product announcement at CES 2009 .. but oh well.  A company called GiiNii International showed off their upcoming Android OS-based tablet internet appliance called the Movit Mini.  This particular gadget has apparently been the talk of the town (err.. talk of the Internet at least) over the last several weeks.. primarily because 1) it uses Android and 2) it’s fairly inexpensive.

OK.. so wait a second.. what the heck is the Movit Mini anyhow? Good question. It’s basically a small tablet that provides a window onto the Internet. Yes.. it’s that fabled Internet Appliance (though GiiNii would rather you call it a “Wi-Fi enabled portable communications and social networking device”). With the Movit, you can surf the web, chat with friends using Skype, check your email, watch videos, listen to music, play games, and I’m sure a whole lot more eventually simply because it leverages the Android platform – the same OS that powers the popular T-Mobile G1 handset.

Now on the hardware side of the equation, the Movit Mini has a decent set of specs. You get a 4.3 inch resistive (bummer) touch-screen display with a resolution of 480 x 272, Wi-Fi connectivity, 256MB of storage space, built-in microphone and speakers, stereo headset jack, mini USB 2.0 port, a webcam, and a microSD slot. Sorry – no mobile broadband support in this baby. It’s designed for wireless hotspots.

Now I know what you’re probably thinking. We’ve seen this kind of device before haven’t we? Wasn’t it called the Nokia Internet Tablet? Why.. YES you’re correct. In fact the latest one is the N810 and it evens sports a QWERTY keyboard. 

So what’s the big deal you ask? To us it boils down to price. Gizmodo reports that the Movit Mini will be released at a price of $149. That’s significantly cheaper than the N810 which lists above $400 though it can be found for around $300+.

Oh yes.. it also has the Android OS.. which of course is open source which translates to the possibility that you’ll have access to lots of open source software down the road.

But wait.. I’m getting ahead of myself now.

So why should you care about the Movit Mini? Realistically you shouldn’t. It’s not a must have gadget.

HOWEVER .. if you want a simple device in your living room that lets you check email, surf the web, maybe make some VoIP phone calls here and there .. AND you don’t want to turn on your PC or ntoebook, then the Movit Mini might definitely be interesting to check out.

Personally, a lot of this depends upon the battery life of the device too. If I have to recharge it every 2 hours, then it’ll be useless to me.. but if it lasts 4-5 hours.. maybe a whole day, then we’re talking!

Oh yeah.. GiiNii also has a larger version coming out called the Movit Maxx which sports a 7 inch display. No word on price. The Movit Mini will supposedly come out in the middle of 2009 and the Movit Maxx will be available by late summer.

Technorati Tags: GiiNii International, Movit Mini, Movit Maxx, Android OS, Tablet Internal Appliance