Google Nexus Tablet Said To Be ‘A Done Deal ’

 

Google chairman Eric Schmidt started a firestorm when he was quoted saying the company planned to “market a tablet of the highest quality.” Since then, speculation surrounding a Google-branded slate has nearly spiraled out of control. Display Search analyst Richard Shim recently fueled the fire, suggesting that a Nexus-branded tablet will enter production in April for an initial run of between 1.5 million and 2 million units. Further reports also suggested that the Mountain View-based company had reached out to ASUS to design the Google-branded slate based on its Eee Pad MeMo tablet. Now, a new rumor suggests that ASUS has scrapped its $249 MeMo to focus solely on the “Nexus tablet.” 


The New Google Nexus tablet is rumored to cost a mere $149.99. Would you buy a Google Nexus tablet for $149.99? Hit us up in the comment and let us know what you think.  

Rumor: Google Nexus Tablet To Be Made By Asus

Recently there’s been rumblings that Google will release a 7-inch “Nexus tablet” in the first half of 2012, but many have doubted that Google would actually enter the hardware business. Several people have rightfully pointed out that Google traditionally partners with an OEM on these “Google Experience Devices”, just like they did with Motorola on the Xoom tablet. Read on for the latest rumor surrounding who might produce Google’s 7-inch tablet.

The Rumor

Google has partnered with ASUS to release a 7-inch tablet that will become a pure Google Experience Device. The tablet will retail for $199, include a quad-core Tegra 3 processor, and ship with stock Android 4.x Ice Cream Sandwich.

The Sources

This rumor comes from two different industry sources that I spoke with in person at Mobile World Congress. They have provided reliable information in the past and I find them to be trustworthy. As with most of these rumor reports, the sources wish to remain anonymous.

One Android Insider’s take on the rumor

Consumers want cheap tablets and the $199 Kindle Fire has proven this. Amazon shipped an estimated 5 million units in Q4 of last year and it quickly became the best selling Android tablet.

The Kindle Fire is a great product, but it lacks all of Google’s mobile services including the Android Market. Some would think that Google would be happy with Amazon’s success, but our sources say that Google sees Amazon as a threat in the tablet market. Amazon replaced Google’s ecosystem with their own, so Amazon earns all the long-tail profits from content and services, while Google gets nothing.

There have already been multiple reports that Google would release a $199 tablet that features a 7-inch 1280×800 resolution display, enters production in April, and ships around June. The main details that have been absent include the OEM partner and the processor type.

ASUS previously announced their $249 MeMo 370T tablet at CES, which included a quad-core Tegra 3 processor. The tablet won several best of show awards and our sources say that Google was so impressed with the device that they approached ASUS to see if they could reduce the bill of materials and reach that magical $199 price point. Barnes & Noble reduced the price of their Nook Tablet from $250 to $199, so why can’t others?

Details about the ASUS MeMo 370T have been scarce, but we believe that product will be very similar to the Google Experience Device that gets released. It sounds likely that ASUS and Google might have reduced the internal storage to bring down the retail price to $199. Potential users would rely on the upcoming Google Drive to store their content online.

Android chief Andy Rubin recently told Nilay Patel of The Verge that he wants to win the tablet race and Google was planning to do something about it. Rubin said, “2012 is going to be the year that we double down and make sure we’re winning in that space… we’re going to do a better job at making people understand what ecosystem they’re buying into.”

Selling a full featured Android tablet with all of Google’s mobile services and a quad-core Tegra 3 processor for only $199 would certainly turn some heads. As crazy as it sounds, a possible 10-inch version might also be in the works with a target price point of $299.

We are still unsure of the final product name, but Google Play is a possible candidate. A slew of recent domain names have been registered by MarkMonitor, which Google regularly uses to buy up URLs.

Our sources were not able to confirm the target release date, but we speculate that it could be rolled out to Google IO attendees on June 27th.

ASUS has a strong relationship with Google and I’ve been extremely impressed with the Transformer Prime, so I think this 7-inch Google Experience Device could sell very well. If Amazon shipped 5 million units of their $199 tablet in one quarter, then I predict that Google could move over 10 million units in the second-half of 2012.

If all this information turns out to be true, how many of you would spend $199 on a 7-inch tablet with a pure Google experience?

Eric Schmidt reveals that Google may be working on Nexus Tablet

Speaking to Italian newspaper, Google Chairman and former CEO Eric Schmidt revealed that Google is hard at work on “a tablet of the highest quality,” and that it may be bringing this device to market as early as June 2012. Mr. Schmidt made it clear that the gloves are off in the tablet fight against the iPad, and Google’s tablet offering would be targeted to take the tablet reigns from Apple’s market-dominating tablet.

It’s unclear whether Google will be manufacturing the device in-house, or whether they’ll partner with an OEM to manufacture the device similar to what they do with the Nexus line of smartphones. We’re learning towards the latter, with Motorola being the most likely partner due to the pending Google-Motorola merger. We hope this isn’t the case, though, as Motorola hasn’t exactly been making the most sleek and sophisticated Android tablets out there (looking at you, Xyboard). Personally, I’d like to see Google partner with either ASUS or Samsung whose Transformer Prime and Galaxy Tab devices have been personal favorites of mine.

We must point out that the Italian translation is a rough one, so take the translation for what it’s worth. Still, Google is ready to push tablets running Ice Cream Sandwich, and they think ICS can finally dethrone the iPad atop the tablet charts.

Regardless, we’re happy to see Google fully embrace tablets, as the idea of a Nexus tablet has been exciting us here at Android and Me since the initial idea was introduced over a year ago. We’ll bring you more information on a Nexus tablet as we learn more.

Google Nexus tablet in next 6 months teases Eric Schmidt

Google will begin promoting what could be the first official Nexus tablet within the next six months, according to chairman Eric Schmidt, the latest stage in the “brutal competition” between it and Apple. “In the next six months we plan to market a tablet of the highest quality” Schmidt told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sea, while also confirming that Google plans to leverage its voice recognition technology to better challenge Apple’s Siri.

Schmidt was at pains to praise Apple co-founder Steve Jobs for his work in transitioning the tablet from vertical and enterprise markets to a consumer-centric product. “Steve Jobs was the Michelangelo of our time” he told the newspaper, “[he] realized the revolutionary potential of the tablet and has created an amazing product like the iPad.” However, “our companies compete” he continued, “it is capitalism.”

Exact details of the upcoming tablet were not revealed, and it’s unclear whether the slate will be specifically branded with Google’s Nexus nomenclature or be another manufacturer’s model that the search giant will champion. A similar strategy was put in place earlier in the year, when Google worked with Motorola to launch the XOOM, the first Honeycomb tablet on the market.

Now, of course, Google is partway through the process of acquiring Motorola Mobility, and could well use its closer ties with the company to develop a true Google Nexus tablet. Whatever the manufacturer, the slate will likely use Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Android; the tablet UI for ICS was discovered accessible in the Galaxy Nexus late last week.

Google has used the Nexus range – so far limited to phones – to help push its interpretation of how the smartphone should evolve. The first model, the HTC-made Nexus One, led the market in processor speed, while its successor, the Samsung-made Nexus S, introduced features like NFC. Most recently, the Galaxy Nexus arrived, the debut device for ICS.

Android tablets have generally struggled to compete with Apple’s iPad, and even the HP TouchPad managed to squeeze ahead of Android-based models in 2011 sales thanks to its cut-price discounting. Common criticisms include the somewhat jerky performance of Android 3.x Honeycomb, as well as a shortage of slate-scale apps to suit the larger displays.