Google is expected to release its first tablet in the first half of the current year. There has been a lot of buzz going around regarding the launch of the new tablet by Google. Google fans are really excited about this new release as it is expected to offer something exceptional in the tablet market. However, according to latest reports Google’s new tablet will be aimed at competing with Amazon’s Kindle Fire instead of the tablet market leader Apple’s iPad.
The market dynamics suggest that this is a very smart move from Google because Amazon’s Kindle Fire is a new entrant in the market and still on its way to capturing the market share.
Android Powered Smartphones & Tablets
Recently Google has ventured well beyond just being the world’s largest search engine. Sure Google has introduced a new social network to compete with Facebook and Twitter, but the most noteworthy launch has been that of the Android operating system.
Google’s introduction of the operating system Android is an important milestone, as it has been the sole competing OS against Apple’s iOS.
In contrast to iOS, Android has been used by many hardware companies as an OS for their smartphones and tablets. In fact, it is the only most popular OS being used by all smartphone and tablet companies other than Apple and Nokia.
For more detailed comparison you can go through the smartphone and tablet listing on Broadband Expert website.
According to recent figures, Google has stated that more than 700,000 Android devices are activated around the world everyday. That is a whole lot more than Apple’s estimate of 190,000 iOS device activations per day. Actually, that is even a lot more than the number of babies born every day in the world!
iPad Rules the Tablet Market
Fueled by loyal followers, imaginative iPad app development and a user friendly platform, Apple has been ruling the tablet market since it was launched in 2010 worldwide. Since then many companies have released Android based tablets in the market, but to no vain. Just one look at the Broadband Expert’s website and you can see the variety of tablets that mobile carriers are providing with their packages. None has been able to do so much as to shake the tablet sector. Kindle Fire is the first tablet that has come even close to giving competition to iPad and makes a dent in its market share.
Google’s First Tablet
There hasn’t been any information released by Google regarding the launch date of its first tablet. There have also been no official statements regarding the slate PC’s specifications, price range or size.
The only recent official statement was given by Eric Schmidt, Chief Executive of Google, to an Italian newspaper in December last year regarding the upcoming release of the tablet. He only stated that Google was planning to release its first tablet in the first six months of 2012 and it will be of the highest quality.
According to the Taiwan-based newspaper DigiTimes in its latest report based on a supply chain source, Google’s first tablet could actually be releasing in the market this spring. The report also stated that the tablets size will be 7inches, which puts it directly in competition with Amazon’s Kindle Fire that is roughly the same size at 7.5 inches.
Even though there have been very little details regarding the specification of the upcoming tablet, one thing is for sure; the development process for the new device is well in motion. DigiTimes suggests that Google will be taking the same strategic approach it had taken with the development of its Nexus smartphones.
This Nexus-style tablet by Google is estimated to be released around March or April this year. The price estimates are that it will be standing just below $200 in the US market, making it a direct competitor of the Kindle Fire, as compared to the iPad.
Conclusion
Perhaps the reason for this is that Google sees Kindle Fire as a smaller competition in the tablet market and aims to eliminate that before it moves on to challenge Apple. Google surely wouldn’t want to have to deal with two strong competitors. After all, Kindle Fire has only been recently released and has only just started to gain popularity. From a strategic point of view it would be smarter and easier to wipe it out before it gains much popularity.