14 DAY TRIAL // According to recent reports, Round Rock, Texas-based Dell and the world's leading chip maker Intel are currently collaborating on a project to announce the introduction of a new tablet/e-book reader device that is to give Amazon's Kindle a run for its money. With features like touchscreen display, said device is slated for launch early next year. One of the tablet's biggest features is that it will be made available as a subscription-based e-reader, enabling users to view newspapers, magazines and other media.
The fellows over at Wired.com have received word from a “well-connected industry executive” that two of the industry's biggest players, Intel and Dell, are currently collaborating on the development of a new touchscreen tablet that is due out later this year. There are few details available at this time, but it looks like Dell's upcoming tablet will measure about 5-inches, making it slightly larger than Apple's iPhone, although smaller than one of its potential competitors, the Amazon Kindle. Intel's part in the venture is obviously related to the hardware specifications of said device, which could be powered by a low-power Atom processor.
Interestingly enough, it looks like Dell has also come up with a way to better compete with the Amazon Kindle, providing users with the choice of getting said tablet for free, granted that they sign one or several subscriptions to digital newspapers or magazines. What this basically means is that the device could be free to those users who will sign up for enough subscriptions.
There aren't many details to go on for the time being, but it looks like the tablet market is starting to grow, with ongoing rumors of Apple also planning its own tablet device. The Cupertino, California-based company could see itself competing with the likes of Dell, Sony and many others for a place in the increasingly popular market segment.