A new rumour has shed more light on the oft-rumoured Google-branded tablet. Recent rumours have pointed to Google working with ASUS on a 7-inch tablet inspired by the MeMo tablets unveiled at CES 2012. Citing “a senior employee at a supply chain company,” Android and Me is now reporting that “It’s a done deal” and outlines what we can expect.
ASUS has apparently cancelled its MeMo 370T tablet to focus on the Google one instead. Rather than a price between US$249 and US$299, Google is also looking to make it more affordable, possibly in the US$149 to US$199 range. The move would allow it to sell its tablet at a price below Amazon’s Kindle Fire tablet. As a result, the quad-core Tegra 3 will be replaced by a cheaper processor. The plan remains to use a 7-inch display and the latest version of Android 4.0.
An announcement could come as early as CTIA Wireless which will take place May 8th to 10th.
While the news of a US$149 Google tablet is welcome, the possibility that it means the demise of the ASUS MeMo 370T is unfortunate. I’m sure that many would gladly plunk down the extra US$100 to get a quad-core processor (and possibly a few other improved specs). Let’s hope that the two devices can co-exist.
Read more: Android and Me