Almost 100 new tablet computers were launched at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas last week, but one in particular caught the eye of UK app developer, Mubaloo – the Motorola Xoom, the first to sport the Android 3.0 (otherwise known as ‘Honeycomb’) operating system.

As the name implies, the new OS allows a honeycomb-like user interface, with multiple views for video, browsers and ‘apps’ etc. Mubaloo managing director, Matt Hatch, believes this is great news for companies wanting to use the tablet as a true mobile business tool, especially when its two built-in cameras are taken into consideration.

“Imagine walking through the Natural History Museum using the tablet as a guide,” says Hatch. “You could point the tablet at the dinosaur skeleton and see the animal come to life. Multiple views provide opportunities for a myriad of further information. Or imagine walking through the Colisseum in Rome, tablet in hand, and seeing images of gladiators fighting in their original setting”

Hatch believes that the Xoom overcomes the shortcomings of previous tablets, when compared to smartphones. And while he feels it’s likely that the iPad2 will leapfrog the current generation of Android machines when it launches later this year, Hatch is enthusiastic about the rebirth of the tablet market.

“With 4G LTE bandwidths around the corner the opportunities are even greater for mobile devices to take the place of laptops as the ultimate tool for business on the move,” he says.