Fusion Garage announced a 10.1-inch tablet and four-inch smartphone, both running an “Grid OS” operating system that's based on Android — and said to run its apps — but adds predictive features and a grid-like UI. Available for purchase now, the Grid-10 tablet features an Nvidia Tegra 2 processor and 1366 x 768-pixel screen resolution, while the Grid-4 smartphone due later this year offers a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.

The Grid-10 follows Fusion Garage's Linux-based, 12.1-inch JooJoo tablet (pictured). After long delays — caused in part by a lawsuit by TechCrunch, which claimed the Singapore-based company walked off with their jointly developed CrunchPad design — the JooJoo shipped in March 2010. However, design issues, slow performance, and technical problems quickly doomed the product.

Two months ago, Fusion Garage launched a mock marketing campaign about a mystery tablet coming from a fictional company called TabCo. The strategy was chosen in part, conceded Fusion Garage CEO Chandrasekar "Chandra" Rathakrishnan in a webcast announcement (see YouTube video farther below), due to the track record of the JooJoo. Yet, now that TabCo is revealed as Fusion Garage, what's the point?

Grid-10 with Grid OS

Still, the VCs have given Fusion Garage a second chance, and with the devices' competitive tech specs, reasonable pricing, and interesting new Grid OS UI, one can perhaps see why. The Grid-10 is due to ship Sept. 15, but available now for pre-sale at $449 or $599 (with 3G), while the Grid-4 smartphone is due in the fourth quarter for $399 unlocked, says the company.

Grid OS email and contacts apps on Grid-10
(Click on either to enlarge)

Both devices run an Android-based OS called the Grid operating system. Unlike Mozilla's still embryonic, Android-based Boot to Gecko (BTG) OS, Grid OS promises full Android app compatibility. If this is as seamless as promised, Fusion Garage won't face quite the same challenges as the brave pioneers at Else, Ltd. Else demonstrated its innovative First Else smartphone and LiMo (Linux Mobile) based operating before cancelling the project.

According to a statement by Rathakrishnan, Grid OS "is not a re-skinned version of Android," despite the Android compatibility. It is more "akin to what Apple did" when it built Mac OS on top of UNIX BSD, he adds.

The gesture based Grid UI lets Grid-10 users pan around "an almost endless grid that is like a large table space," says Fusion Garage. Users can place apps and other icons within categorized clusters on the home screen, says the company.

Wheel UI in Grid OS

There's also a wheel icon — somewhat reminiscent of the First Else UI — with spokes that offer various functions (see image above). Users can sign on to their devices not with a swipe, but a gesture signature, says the company. In addition, Grid OS enables both devices with a "Seamless State" capability that lets users stream content on one device, and then pick up that same content from a pause state exactly where they left off, says Fusion Garage.

Grid OS is also hyped for its "predictive intelligence" features based on the Semantic Web, the contextual World Wide Web extension set that has been championed by WWW inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee. The predictive software anticipates "user needs for actions and information" with features like intelligent notifications. The latter offer time-based suggestions, such as "restaurant recommendations near a user's GPS-determined lunch location," says the company.

Grid OS calendar and "Heartbeat" apps
(Click on either to enlarge)

An Intelligent calendar feature, meanwhile, links upcoming events to contextual information, such as driving routes based on the latest traffic information. It can also pop up restaurant reviews and other information based on detecting the restaurant name in the calendar, says Fusion Garage.

Grid OS is also said to supply a "Buzz Recommendations Engine", which in turn powers a Smart Searching feature. The technologies use word association to provide automatic search recommendations over categories such as products, people, music, and restaurant names. In addition, "associated consumer sentiment on any given search" is supplied based on Twitter scans for previous tweets on the subject, says the company.

A Heartbeat feature shows appointments, applications, messaging, downloads, notifications, and contextual information at a glance, says Fusion Garage. Heartbeat can be used to more easily multitask between screens of open applications, says the company. The Grid-10 tablet, at least, is also said to feature "motion picture-class animations."

An associated Media Suite application runs on the user's PC or Mac, giving the Grid-10 the unique talent among non-Apple tablets of downloading and playing iTunes content, claims Fusion Garage. Media Suite scans all media on the computer and then transfers it to the Grid-10 using Wi-Fi or a USB accessory "exactly as it was originally organized by the user," says the company. Only DRM-protected content cannot be transferred.

Pre-installed applications do not appear to include any Google apps. There is, however, an email client, a video player, a music player, and a photo viewer along with other basic utilities. A "Gridshop" app store that specializes in Grid OS apps is due this fall, says Fusion Garage. Users will also have access to other third-party Android application stores, such as Amazon's app store.

Grid-10 tablet

For the most part, the specs of the Grid-10 closely match that of any Honeycomb tablet, from the Xoom to the Galaxy Tab 10.1. Dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 clocked to 1.2GHz? Check. A 16GB supply of internal flash and 512MB RAM? Check and check again.

Yet, the 10.1-inch display ups the ante with 1366 x 768 pixels with 16:9 aspect ratio instead of the Honeycomb-standard 1280 x 800 resolution. The usual gyroscope, accelerometer, and ambient light sensor are also said to be available.

Two views of the Grid-10 tablet
(Click to enlarge)

The Grid-10 Wi-Fi model features 802.11n along with aGPS and Bluetooth 2.1, while the 3G model adds a HSDPA/GSM radio for $100 more, says Fusion Garage. Both models provide a front-facing 1.3-megapixel webcam, but unlike most Honeycomb tablets, there's no back-facing five-megapixel model.

A microSD slot and micro-SIM slot are provided, and a docking port is said to combine charging, HDMI, and USB connections. Audio is said to be supported with a microphone, speakers, and a 3.5mm stereo jack.

The 10.8 x 6.83 x 0.547-inch (274.2 x 173.5 x 13.9mm) dimensions are fairly standard, but the 24.4-ounce (690 gram) weight is on the heavy side. A 5,800mAh battery is also said to be available.

Grid-4

Due in the fourth quarter, the Grid-4 smartphone runs a smartphone-optimized version of the same Android-compatible Grid OS on a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon processor. The phone ships with 512MB RAM, 16GB flash storage, and a microSD slot, says Fusion Garage.

Multiple views of the Grid-4 smartphone

If Fusion Garage splurged on the Grid-10's display, it settled for less than state-of-the-art for the Grid-4's touchscreen. The four-inch display uses 800 x 480 resolution instead of the higher-res qHD resolution found on the latest high-end Android phones. Sensors are said to include a gyroscope, accelerometer, ambient light, magnetometer, and proximity sensors.

The Grid-4 supplies 802.11n, aGPS, and Bluetooth 2.1, and a 3G HSDPA radio, says the company. Both a five-megapixel back-facing camera with LED flash, and a 0.3-megapixel front-facing camera are said to be available.

Additional features include micro-USB and micro-SIM slots, plus a microphone, speaker, and a 3.5mm stereo jack, says Fusion Garage. Equipped with a 1300mAh battery, the phone measures 4.8 x 2.5 x 0.378 inches (122.4 x 63.9 x 9.6mm) and weighs 4.83 ounces (137 grams), says the company.

Grid-10 announcement webcast on YouTube
Source: Fusion Garage
(Click to play)

Stated Fusion Garage CEO Chandra Rathakrishnan, "The TabCo campaign set very high expectations. It would be madness for me to have undertaken the TabCo campaign if the Grid-10 couldn't live up to the billing. We are here today to begin the process of justifying the expectations we have set."

Availability

The Grid-10 tablet is on sale now on Amazon.com, as well as at Fusion Garage's website, with extensive details available at both sites. The Grid-10 WiFi model is priced at $499, and the 3G +WiFi model retails at $599, both with 16GB of storage. The Grid-10 will begin shipping around Sept. 15.

The Grid-4 smartphone will go on sale beginning in Q4, and is priced at $399 unlocked, says the company. More information may be found at the Grid-4 site.

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