iTablet Second Quarter Launch Predicted
Sources in Taiwan indicate that shipments for touchscreen panels and orders for cases point to a second quarter availability of the much touted Apple tablet.
“Production of the cases will begin in February, so everything points to a second-quarter launch right now,” one of the sources told Reuters. “It doesn’t take that long for the company to assemble the PC together, but a second-quarter shipment date is what we’re looking at now.”
Although Apple is keeping all official information about the tablet close to its vest, most industry analysts anticipate Apple’s announcement of a 10- to 11-inch tablet computer in late January.
It is believed that Apple will elevate the tablet pc to the same level of consumer success as did the iPod and iPhone for their respective categories.
Although Apple is expected to initially dominate the tablet pc market, some companies have already released competing products. As reported by Reuters, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Dell and Lenovo were among the global technology names that launched thin, touchscreen, multimedia devices this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
The tablet pc category is designed to appeal to consumers by offering a single product that conveniently bridges the gap between smartphones and laptops.
