After launching the confusing 5-inch Slate last month, which was too big for a phone but too small for a tablet, Dell is now reportedly set to debut an Android tablet that will actually have a screen big enough to give the iPad a run for its money.
The Wall Street Journal today said it has taken a secret hands-on tour of a prototype of the device.
It couldn’t reveal too many details, though, saying just that it has a 7 inch screen. That would put it in the same market as Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, a 7-inch tablet based on the company’s Galaxy S line of smartphones that looks promising but may reportedly have a killer price tag that’s higher than the iPad.
Android isn’t the only platform getting tablet attention. HP is working on a device that uses Palm’s WebOS smartphone operating system. Research in Motion is trying to get Blackberry back in the headlines by creating its own iPad rival, the BlackPad.
Additionally, Dell is also apparently working on a separate tablet with an 11-inch screen that will run on Windows 7. Even Best Buy is entering the tablet market as it is developing its own in-house product.
Notably absent from the discussion, though, is the company at the head of the highest-selling mobile brand behind the iPhone: Motorola. If it were to release a Droid Pad it could be the ultimate iPad competitor. It almost seems inevitable but we’ve heard nothing about such a product.
Regardless, the tablet market is fierce and likely to grow into a similar competition as the e-reader race. Most of these devices are planning on coming out at the end of this year or early 2011.
