14 DAY TRIAL // Following a WSJ report citing people briefed by Apple saying the Mac maker "plans to unveil a new multimedia tablet device later this month," Bloomberg claims to have learned from another person familiar with the matter that March is the time for Apple’s tablet to go on sale. This corroborates what was said by the WSJ’s sources, who also pointed out the device would only begin to ship in March.
The report in question begins by revealing that, "Apple Inc. seeking to win a larger share of the market for handheld computers, is planning to unveil a tablet computer this month, according to a person familiar with the matter." It adds, "The mobile device is scheduled to go on sale in March, said the person, who declined to be identified because details of the product are private."
There is now little doubt Apple will not use the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts venue to unveil its much-hyped device, although the tablet may not be what everyone is expecting. Speaking of which, people good at predicting are saying, "We expect the key differentiator of the device to be its software." Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray & Co. in Minneapolis, added in his note to clients last week that, "Apple's tablet would compete well in the netbook category, even though it would not be a netbook."
The analyst’s estimates include 1.4 million tablets sold in 2010, but only if the product goes on sale in March, Munster says, and has a price tag of around $600. According to the tech analyst, that would increase the company's sales by about two percent.
As usual, Apple would not comment on tablet rumors. "We are not going to comment on rumors and speculation," Steve Dowling, an Apple spokesman, shares.