WeTab maker’s managing director resigns in astroturfing scandal

Engadget reports (based on a translated Yahoo news article) that the managing director of Neofonie—manufacturer of the WeTab (nee WePad)—resigned his position after being caught posting reviews to Amazon under an assumed name.

WeTab doesn’t seem to have been getting very many breaks lately. The device began shipping last month, but without multitouch, Flash hardware acceleration, the promised Android virtual machine, or the expected app store. (Gadget Venue has an unboxing video.)

This sort of scandal is exactly what Neofonie doesn’t need right now, as it will amost certainly overshadow the tablet’s already rocky launch. Already on the expensive side for what you get, it looks doubtful that the WeTab is going to be anybody’s iPad killer at this time.