philosophizer custodian: Google tablet to take on Kindle Fire not iPad?

Friday, January 6, 2012

Google tablet to take on Kindle Fire not iPad?

Google's mysterious future tablet may be a low-cost 7-inch affair intended to take on the Amazon Kindle Fire, rather than a high-end device in the iPad's ilk.

That's if you believe the often-inaccurate but occasionally spot-on Digitimes and its supply chain sources which claim that Google's own-brand tablet will launch in March or April rocking a 7-inch display, Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) and a very attractive price tag somewhere under the $199 mark.

That would put the slate at around ?128 if Google manages to bring it to the UK, which Amazon has thus far failed to do. So add on some tax and a few extra quid just because we're British and we're probably looking at somewhere between ?150 and ?199.

Tablet times

No one, but no one, was surprised when Eric Schmidt revealed that Google will release a tablet in the next six months, but like fools we all assumed the internet giant would be chasing Apple's iPad-shaped tail.

After all, the Google Nexus brand has always targeted the top end of the smartphone world; but it looks as though the company's tablet strategy might be quite different.

Google may partner with a third party to manufacture the tablets and we'd say Samsung's a front-runner given its successful Galaxy Tab range and the fact that Google favours the Korean company for its Nexus smartphones.

OLED-display also reckons Samsung's a shoo-in, positing that the company will provide Google with a 7-inch panel at WSVGA resolution (600 x 1024 pixels).

A tablet is definitely on the way from Google, and given its focus on Google Music, Google Books and film streaming on YouTube, a Kindle Fire style strategy isn't out of the realms of possibility.

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