This past week, we brought you Microsoft’s official announcement of Windows 8.1 with Bing. The operating system, which requires Bing to be the default search engine within Internet Explorer, is aimed at manufacturers looking to market low-cost computers to customers.
Toshiba today announced the first devices to run Windows 8.1 with Bing, and they come from the company’s Encore 2 family of tablets. The Encore 2 tablets will be available in both 8-inch and 10-inch versions, and will share all other performance and hardware specifications (with the exception of a micro HDMI port on the 10-inch model). That means that both tablets are powered by a quad-core Intel Atom Z3735F processor and have a screen resolution of 1280x800.
Other shared specs include 32GB of storage, a 5MP rear camera, a 1.2MP front-facing camera, Dolby Digital Plus audio, microSD slot (with support for up to 128GB of storage), 802.11n, and Bluetooth 4.0. Both tablets will also come with a free one-year subscription to Office 365 Personal.
The 10-inch Encore 2 weighs in at 1.2 pounds and will be priced from $269, while the 8-inch Encore 2 weighs less than a pound and is priced at a more reasonable $199. Both tablets will be available to purchase in early July.
