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Home / News / Lenovo phablet Tangos with Google’s 3D camera project

Lenovo phablet Tangos with Google’s 3D camera project

First Project Tango device you'll actually be able to buy looks set to be a phablet

Google’s experimental Project Tango camera tech will soon be arriving in a phone you’ll actually be able to buy, with Lenovo promising to get it to customers later this year.

After a year spent in the lab, Lenovo showed off the first images of the work-in-progress phablet at CES this week. It’s got a redesigned set of sensors and cameras that let Tango work in portrait mode instead of landscape, like the prototype versions. 

The camera system has gone through some big changes to make that happen, with the RGB sensor, depth-sensing camera and fish-eye lens set out in a vertical stack, rather than spread across the phone.

Other details about the device are still sketchy, with Lenovo confirming the screen would be no bigger than 6.5in, and that power would come from a Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU.

If you’re wondering what all the fuss about a few camera sensors is, Tango could mean big news for VR and gaming because it’s able to map the 3D space around you in real time. Using a combination of cameras and sensors, it could even let you scan and measure a room in seconds, so you don’t need to break out the tape measure to check if your new TV will fit on the AV cabinet.

A Google-built Tango tablet has been available since last year, and only yesterday Intel opened up pre-orders for its own Tango device, but only for developers living in the US. Lenovo’s phablet could be the first time the tech makes it to the mainstream.

It’s on track to launch in the summer around the world, with prices expected to start around US$500.

Profile image of Tom Morgan-Freelander Tom Morgan-Freelander Deputy Editor

About

A tech addict from about the age of three (seriously, he's got the VHS tapes to prove it), Tom's been writing about gadgets, games and everything in between for the past decade, with a slight diversion into the world of automotive in between. As Deputy Editor, Tom keeps the website ticking along, jam-packed with the hottest gadget news and reviews.  When he's not on the road attending launch events, you can usually find him scouring the web for the latest news, to feed Stuff readers' insatiable appetite for tech.

Areas of expertise

Smartphones/tablets/computing, cameras, home cinema, automotive, virtual reality, gaming