JooJoo - Magic Tablet Browser or Major Technical Bust?

Fusion Garage, a no-name computer programming company recently involved in a legal dispute with TechCrunch over a device called the CrunchPad, is releasing a "magic" browser tablet, the JooJoo. Designers at Fusion Garage were involved in the original software behind the CrunchPad, which was tabled earlier this week due to the legal dispute, so the JooJoo creators are hoping this newly titled version will rise out of the CrunchPad ashes like a phoenix of technology.

So what's it do? Why all the fuss? JooJoo's creators at Fusion Garage claim their tablet browser, sans keyboard, mouse or other extraneous hardware, will "deliver magic." as Chandra Rathakrishnan, CEO of Fusion Garage, claims. The slim 12-inch tablet, a full touch screen, becomes a browser with no applications necessary. There are no external buttons on the JooJoo tablet except the power switch. Simply turn the two-pound device on and it boots immediately into a browser to connect to existing Wi-Fi in nine seconds flat.

A four gig memory and five hours of battery life complete the JooJoo table browser's specs.

Once you get past the shiny tablet and the fun of a touch screen, the JooJoo lacks in some major areas. Unlike the booming smart phone business, which will turn out to be this product's biggest rival, the JooJoo cannot operate without an existing Wi-Fi connection. You're paying for an expensive luxury, portable internet, without the portable part. And even with Wi-Fi, the JooJoo can't handle a 3G connection.

Basically, Fusion Garage has created a very expensive touch screen with no room to grow the device in the future. If you purchase the JooJoo you can easily move a touch screen from Starbucks to your ultra-mod office, but need to find something out while waiting in line without the Wi-Fi? You'll be boosting up that Smart Phone for the 3G connection.

Pre-orders begin December 11 on thejoojoo.com, but be prepared for the whopping $499 price tag.

Savvy customers will probably send the JooJoo tablet the way of its almost-predecessor CrunchPad in favor of much cheaper options, like the comparable iPhone which doesn't need Wi-Fi to work and has a million and one apps to entertain beyond the browser. Never mind the fact that few customers are willing to drop $500 on a no-name, no history brand, this product does less than half what products that cost less than half its price do.