Cupertino-based Apple has reportedly pushed back the launch of its tablet PC, which was originally slated for a March release, and now will come only in the second half of the next year. The delay seems to have been caused by a change in the components of the tablet, and also by the decision to release a model that sports a 9.7-inch OLED panel from LG Display.

A recent post on DigiTimes says that the details on the delay of Apple's tablet PC come from sources from component makers, which also stated that the manufacturing partners for the two devices would be Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry), Quanta Computer, and Pegatron Technology. The two models should come to the market with a 10.6-inch TFT LCD panel and with a 9.7-inch OLED panel, respectively.

Considering the fact that 9.7-inch OLED panels are priced at the moment at US$500 a piece, and that the panel costs usually rise to around 30 percent of the device's entire cost, the 9.7-inch OLED tablet PC from Apple is expected to come to the market with a cost per unit of around US$1,500-$1,700, when compared to the components prices available today. On the other hand, the prices of OLED panels are dropping and should reach an acceptable cost level for notebooks by 2011, the news site notes.

For what it's worth, in case the report pans out, it is possible that Apple delayed the OLED tablet PC on purpose so as to get it on the shelves for a smaller price tag. The cost of the tablet PC might be of around US$1,200-$1,500 in the second half of the next year, while the retail price tag might rise to up to US$2,000. In case Apple plans on delivering the device through carriers, one should expect for more appealing prices. As for the 10.6-inch LCD panel-based Apple tablet PC, it might be priced at around US$800-$1,000 when launched.

Although there are three partners for the Apple tablet PCs, there are no details on how the production will be distributed among them. “LG Display currently is making OLED panels using its 4.5G production line and LG Display's five-year US$500 million panel purchasing contract with Apple includes supply of OLED panels, the sources pointed out,” the DigiTimes article also states.