Google will soon unveil a tablet, Nexus 7 developed in partnership with Asustek Computer to compete with the Amazon Kindle Fire, said Wednesday a leader of the Taiwanese manufacturer.
Fire the shelf Kindle, launched last September and sold $ 199, features a version of the Android operating system from Google and allows access to the Amazon service, which offers books, music and videos.
“(Google) is Amazon. Kindle is based on the Google platform but with its own service, so Google is to launch its own service too,” said the official, who wished to remain anonymous, the project has not been made public.
He would not specify the price of future tablet, Nexus 7, its specificities and the time of its release.
Google has its Google kiosk applications Play but no service like that offered by Amazon.
Citing two sources familiar with the matter, Bloomberg announced that Google planned to launch a tablet this week at its developers conference, with the Apple iPad in its sights. One of these sources indicated that the tablet has a seven-inch screen would present new features of Android.
Rumors of a Google launch a tablet at this conference have been circulating for weeks on specialized blogs. Google declined to comment.
The Apple iPad in the first quarter represented 68% of the market shelves, according to research firm IDC, and Amazon just over 4%, behind Samsung Electronics and Lenovo.
Microsoft last week unveiled its first line of touch tablets, marketed under the name space, which represents a strategic change in size for the software giant is struggling to repeat the success of its franchise Windows.
