The touchscreen iPad look-alike marks a new milestone by Chinese manufacturers: cloning a product before it had even been announced, mused Shanghaiist.com, a Shanghai city blog, and Shanzhai.com, a tech blog dedicated to Chinese copies.<\/p>\n
But Shenzhen Great Loong Brother Industrial Co. — makers of the Chinese device, which resembles an over-sized iPhone — said Apple appeared to be the copycats.<\/p>\n
“We don’t understand. Why did they make the same thing as us?” Huang Xiaofang, an executive at the company, told AFP.<\/p>\n
The iPad-like “P88” was launched in August and was on show last year at the Internationale Funkausstellung consumer electronics fair in Berlin, she said.<\/p>\n
“We launched it earlier,” she said.<\/p>\n
Although thicker and heavier than the iPad, the P88’s specifications boasts a slightly larger screen, faster processor, larger memory and, unlike the iPad, has USB ports, according to the manufacturer.<\/p>\n
But its battery life is only 1.5 hours compared to the iPad’s 10 hours.<\/p>\n
Apple’s first iPads will ship worldwide at an entry-level price of 499 dollars in two months.<\/p>\n
But for gadget fanatics who cannot wait, Huang said the P88 is available now on Great Loong Brother’s web site.<\/p>\n