Once more into the breach. Google has become the newest company to claim its intent to steal away the hearts of potential tablet users. Although not officially announced yet, The New York Times is reporting that Google CEO Eric Schmidt has confirmed that his company is well underway in developing an Android powered tablet. No release date has yet been suggested, but with Nokia recently confirming their entry in the tablet market, and HP’s Slate confirmed for Fall, a 2010 release seems likely.
Details are still scarce on the Google tablet, but the report suggests that the tablet would essentially be an e-reader that acts like a computer. Australian website Smarthouse reports that the company HTC- fresh off the release of the Nexus One smartphone it developed with Google- is working on the tablet they are calling the iSlate. Reports confirm that HTC has developed several touch screen tablets, including one based on the Google Chrome web browser. Both devices are seen as direct competition for the iPhone and the iPad.
The details are still under wraps, but a Google tablet would have several advantages over its competitors, including a large Android app store, the ability to incorporate cloud computing and the power that is Google eBooks library.
With up to 600,000 iPads sold, and some projections putting the year end figures in the millions, Apple is doing their best to build up as substantial a lead as possible. With the competition continuing to grow and more and more tablet announcements on the way, one thing is certain. The tablet wars have officially begun.
