Falling right in behind Microsoft as the next pretender to attempt to grab the championship belt from Apple’s iPad, Google is expected to announce a new, low-cost Android tablet in the near future. The new, inexpensive tablet has been developed in a partnership by Google and Asustek Computer.
Google’s production of its own tablet is seen as an attempt by the company to take control of its Android platform and cut down on fragmentation. The report noted that many Android devices still run older versions of Google’s mobile operating system, and are held back by third-party hardware makers.
The report, first published by the Wall Street Journal, says that Google has “accelerated plans” to launch a competitor to Apple’s personal assistant, Siri. Siri is currently only found on the iPhone 4S, but will also come to the latest generation of the iPad with the release of iOS 6 in the fall. (Interesting, everyone says Siri sucks, but they all want to do a “me too” version of it…)
Rumors that Google and Asus were partnering on a tablet first appeared back in March, and at that time, it was said the device would carry a price tag of between $199 and $249.
Last year, Asus released its Transformer Prime tablet, a “bastard child” hybrid of a touchscreen tablet and traditional laptop. It gained some initial buzz, but quickly faded, failing to compete with Apple’s iPad.
The report comes as rumors are still flying about suggesting that Apple will release a 7.85-inch display “iPad mini” in the fall, and the unveiling yesterday by Microsoft of it’s instantly fragmented tablet, branded as “Surface.”
