Cisco revealed its tablet ambitions back in June when it announced the “Cius.” It is very likely that Cisco's tablet has not made it to any most-anticipated-tablets list in the intervening period. This is due to the fact that the 7-inch Android-running Cius is an enterprise product. As for those of you interested in such an offering, the price – or at least the price range – of the Cisco has been revealed.

According to a FAQ document sent to potential software partners and leaked by CrunchGear, the Cius will be priced below $1,000. Comparisons with the iPad are an inevitability for any upcoming tablet regardless of its intended purpose. Cisco appears to understand the perils of such a comparison, and therefore draws a clear line between the two.

The FAQ document explains why Cisco Cius is twice the price of an Apple iPad: “Cisco Cius is not a consumer device so it’s not an equivalent comparison. Cisco Cius is the first-of-its- kind mobile collaboration device. With Cius, casual and highly mobile employees benefit from a communications, collaboration and computing solution.” It then goes onto list the various “additional benefits additional benefits over an iPad.”

“Pricing is still be finalized at this time. With typical discounts applied, expectation would be that the Cius tablet would be available at under $1000 ($USD street price). Note that discounts may vary by Cisco reseller and thus, prices noted should be considered a guideline,” reads the FAQ document.

“Limited availability of Cisco Cius is expected to be CY Q4 2010 with general availability in calendar year Q1 2011.”

Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) has been around for nearly an year. All along, the company has maintained that it has no plans of extending the free antivirus software to small businesses, as it is solely intended for consumers and home-based businesses.

However, the company is no longer averse to offering MSE to small businesses, even at the expense of its enterprise security solutions. In an abrupt policy change, MS has announced that it will begin offering “its Microsoft Security Essentials available to small businesses on up to 10 PCs for FREE, beginning in early October!”

“By providing Microsoft Security Essentials to small businesses free of charge, Microsoft extends its commitment to help these companies save money and grow their business by offering no-cost protection from viruses, spyware and other malicious threats,” the company said in a blog post.

Hewlett-Packard, which recently trumped Dell in a fierce bidding war for data storage company 3PAR, is now said to have cybersecurity firm ArcSight in its sights. According to a Wall Street Journal report, citing anonymous sources, a deal could be announced as early as Monday. The report suggests that the deal could be worth around $1.5 billion, but that is just speculation. The Journal had earlier identified HP, Oracle and IBM as potential suitors for the the Cupertino-based enterprise security management company that boasts more than 1,000 customers around the world.