We saw some leaked retail shots of the kid-friendly XOOM Family Edition just last week, and it won’t be long before you and yours can get your hands on it.According to a press release today, Motorola and Best Buy are partnering to bring the customized XOOM to market starting this Sunday, October 16th. The Family Edition will cost $379, a significant savings on the current $499 WiFi model.
Of course, there are a few sacrifices for the discount. The Family Edition has only 16GB of storage, half that of the original XOOM, and it’s running the slightly outdated Honeycomb 3.1. There isn’t a version with a cellular connection and there probably won’t be. Other than that, it’s the XOOM you know and at least some of you love: the same 1GHz Tegra processor, 1GB of memory, and 10-inch form factor, making the Family Edition a pretty good deal – though the press release mentions that the $379 price is a limited time offer.
So what makes the Family Edition so special? Pretty much exactly what you’d expect – Motorola is including a decent bit of software designed for tiny fingers. The company says it’s included “over $40 worth of applications,” including Kid Zone by Zoodles and a selection of apps from the Motorola MotoPack, as well as the ever-popular QuickOffice HD. An important part of the puzzle is a special lmode that locks the home button, allowing parents to pass the XOOM to their kids without worrying about them accessing the Internet or email.
So, what do you think, Honeycomb users? Is the included software or discounted price enough to drive a few more XOOM purchases before the upgraded versions arrive?
[via Android Police]
