It looks like Google has been working hard to deliver its first 7-inch tablet. Although there have been some speculations that the slate has been delayed due to the fact that it wasn’t competitive enough, new information has emerged that confirms Google is ready to announce the tablet in June.
However, the information needs to be taken with a grain of salt, as we don’t have any official confirmation yet. According to
DigiTimes, citing “sources from the upstream supply chain,” Google’s 7-inch tablet will start shipping in June.
Initially slated for a May release, the tablet was delayed for July, “sources close to the project” claimed
last month.
Given the fact that the tablet’s price was set at about $250 USD, Google thought it to be too high to be competitive enough with other slates that are already available on the market. The search giant aimed for a $150 - $200 USD retail price, which will probably eliminate the current competition.
That is why Google has decided to send the tablet back to the drawing table and make some adjustments that would bring its market price to around $200 USD.
Well, it appears that Asus, the company Google partnered with in this endeavor, made the necessary changes and tweaks faster than expected. DigiTimes reports that Google’s 7-inch tablet will start shipping in June, but it will go on sale on the market only in July.
Google expects to ship around 600,000 units in June, and around 2.5 million units by the end of year. Rumors has it that Samsung, Asus and Acer will also bring their own branded 7-inch tablets on the market in the second half of the year, though we’re still waiting for more details on this.
So far, there are no confirmed details on Google’s 7-inch tablet specs, but it might be equipped with a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor and Wi-Fi support. According to the latest hearsay, the slate will not be integrated with 3G connectivity.
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