Android Tablet Update

The Samsung Galaxy S III goes on sale in Europe next week, but when is the device coming to the US? David Beren of TmoNews just posted T-Mobile’s device roadmap for the next couple months and his sources say the device could launch as soon as June 20th.

Release dates are always subject to change, but it’s a good sign that the device could be scheduled to hit our shores less than a month after the international version. Last year with the Galaxy S II, some US carriers did not launch the device until six months later.

We are still waiting to learn which US carriers will carry the Galaxy S III, but rumors and speculation suggest it will be coming to the AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, and possibly a couple regional carriers as well.

Additional rumored T-Mobile release dates include:

• Samsung Galaxy S III 16GB Metallic Blue – June 20th
• Samsung Galaxy S III 32GB Metallic Blue – June 20th
• T-Mobile myTouch (Huawei Phoenix) – July 11th
• T-Mobile myTouch (Huawei Buddy) – July 11th
• Samsung Galaxy S III 16GB Ceramic White – July 11th
• Samsung Galaxy Note – July 11th

I’m sure some readers will be glad to see the Galaxy Note is arriving on T-Mobile in July. This could be a signal that AT&T’s exclusive launch period is over, and we might see the unique device on additional carriers like Sprint or Verizon.

TmoNews is normally pretty accurate with their leaked device release dates, so hopefully we will be hearing some kind of official announcement soon. The T-Mobile Galaxy S III would be a perfect match with one of their pre-paid plans, don’t you think?

According to recent reports out of Android Next and Tablet Community, the Galaxy Note 10.1 is about to get some pretty significant spec bumps before its released later this year. Android Next reports that the Note 10.1 may have ditched the expected dual-core Exynos processor for the quad-core Exynos with Mali 604 GPU found in the Galaxy S III.

If true, the bump to a quad-core Exynos quickly makes the Note 10.1 one of the best tablets available on the market when its released later this year. The quad-core Exynos processor delivers exceptional performance, and should keep the Note 10.1 blazingly fast in both generic and heavy use situations. It has previously been reported that Samsung delayed the Note 10.1 to include the quad-core Exynos chip, but Samsung has denied those claims. We obviously hope Samsung is putting the quad-core Exynos chip into the Note 10.1.

When Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Note 10.1 at Mobile World Congress in February, many were taken aback by the fact that the tablet didn’t include a slot for the signature S-Pen found in the Note series. Tablet Community reports that Samsung has gone back to the drawing board to include an S-Pen slot, and has managed to actually make the tablet thinner at the same time. In order to fit the newly-granted slot, Samsung had to slim down the S-Pen a bit. To account for those who want a thicker pen, Samsung will be selling a casing for the S-Pen that adds some heft to the accessory.

Again, these are just rumors at this point, though ones we hope will become reality once the tablet hits retail outlets. We’ll hopefully learn more about the final design of the Note 10.1 soon, as we draw ever nearer to an expected launch date.

Know Your Mobile (and, apparently, several other sites) has gotten their hands on an alleged image of the upcoming Galaxy S III superphone, which has shed its mystery casing for a brief close up. It looks a bit smaller than we’ve been expecting from the next flagship Galaxy S device, though it could just be the form factor, which looks similar to that in the leaked manual from yesterday. The edges of the device are a bit rounder than the Galaxy S II, or at least the Sprint variant sitting on my desk.

At best, if this actually is the Galaxy S III, I’m not quite sold on the final form factor. At worst (and, perhaps more likely), this is a Photoshop job and looks almost nothing like the final version.  The device will formally be unveiled in just under a week, so we should know all the real details soon. What do you guys think of the current leaked image? Do you like the look, or are you hoping for more?

(Click the image for a larger view).

UPDATE - Looks like the tipster for this story got around, as several sites claimed it came from their sources. Possibly just someone looking for attention, and perhaps a shop job. As with all of these rumors, we’ll just wait and see what the final Galaxy S III looks like. Only 6 more days.

Worried that Verizon might pass over the Samsung Galaxy S III? Jonathan Geller of BGR claims he has exclusively learned the details about Verizon’s flagship smartphone launches for the remainder of 2012. Read on for the full details.

Samsung Galaxy S III

First up is the Galaxy S III. There was some speculation that Verizon might turn the next Galaxy into a Droid phone or even pass on it (like they skipped the Galaxy S II), but BGR says that Big Red will carry the phone. No release date was provided, but Geller thinks it will arrive sometime this summer.

Motorola RAZR HD

Next we have the Motorola RAZR HD. This is the device we had been calling the Droid Fighter. We still don’t know the final product name, but this device will feature a look similar to the new RAZR. Upgrades include a 4.6 inch 720p HD display, 13 megapixel camera, and dual-core 1.5 GHz Snapdragon S4 processor. It will still pack a massive 3,300 mAh battery, and it should feature even longer battery life than the RAZR MAXX thanks to the Snapragon S4 chip with integrated LTE modem.

HTC’s take on Galaxy Note

Finally we hear that HTC could be working on their answer to Samsung’s Galaxy Note. This device is rumored to feature a 5 inch 1080p display, quad-core Snapdragon S4 processor with Adreno 320 GPU (maybe the APQ8064 or dual-core MSM8960 Pro), and use HTC’s Scribe pen that we saw in the Flyer tablet.

Welcome to another new weekly column where we round up all the Android-related rumors and discuss the validity of each one. Everyone seems to love our original rumor reports, but we thought it would be fun to examine the rumors from around the web and share our thoughts on the possibility of them coming true. Read on for this week’s latest Android rumors.

Is this the rumored Nexus tablet?

Rumor: Evan Blass of PocketNow received a leaked picture of an unknown Android device, which he suggest could be the rumored “Nexus tablet.”

Our thoughts: We have been reporting on the rumored Nexus tablet for the last couple months, and now the Wall St. Journal is sharing new details of how Google plans to sell it.

Our first rumor report suggested that the device would be similar to the ASUS MeMo 370T, but then other sources said that device had been abandoned in favor of a cheaper design. The MeMo 370T was supposed to retail for $249, but NVIDIA has already said that Tegra 3 tablets will approach $199 soon, and we said that the final price could drop to $149.

The Wall St. Journal said Google was considering subsidizing the cost of the device to better compete with Amazon and their $199 Kindle Fire, so the final price could hit that magical $149 (or lower) price point where you see these devices sold at 7-Eleven stores.

Looking at the device pictured above, we can see it appears to be your average 7-inch tablet. There are ports for micro USB, micro HDMI, SD card, and headphone jack. At the bottom of the device on the left side there appears to be a SIM card slot, but most people expect this device to be WiFi only.

The docking and charging port is on the side of the device, along with two holes that would suggest a keyboard dock. ASUS is best know for their Transformer devices that feature optional keyboards, so it’s possible that Google wanted to integrate that feature.

Since price is the main selling point with this device, we don’t expect the design to be that exciting. This leaked photo still features the Android Market so it’s likely a couple months old, but we think there is a chance it could still be real.

Update: Evan Blass tells us we can knock down our probability percentage to near zero, as he believes the device pictured is an existing Toshiba 7.7 inch tablet.

Probability: 0%

The Galaxy S III will launch later than expected, in Q3

The wait is on.

Rumor: Digitimes reports, “Sources in the supply chain said Samsung is likely to launch a 4.6 inch Galaxy S3 that has an increased pixel size of 319pp in the second or third quarter of 2012, and will use the Super AMOLED HD Plus panel.”

Our thoughts: Samsung has previously said, “The successor to the Galaxy S2 smartphone will be unveiled at a separate Samsung-hosted event in the first half of the year, closer to commercial availability of the product.” Most people are expecting some kind of announcement in May or June, that is closer to availability, but there could still be a month or two lag before it hits retail stores, given the usual carrier delays.

Previous rumors have already suggested the display size would be somewhere between 4.6-4.8 inches and use a new HD Super AMOLED Plus display, and that still looks likely.

Samsung is focused on beating Apple’s next iPhone, so we don’t see them trying to push up the launch for no good reason. It sounds more likely that they would favor waiting until they had the best possible combination of hardware and software to create a totally new experience.

Don’t be surprised if the Galaxy S III launches in the second half of 2012.

Probability: 65%

Galaxy Nexus comes to Sprint on April 22nd

Rumor: Dante D’Orazio of The Verge reports that the Galaxy Nexus will come to Sprint on April 15th.

Our thoughts: Rumors from a couple of weeks ago suggested a release date of April 15th, but it’s no surprise to hear that a phone launch got pushed back by a week. Kellen of AndroidLife also reported that Sprint had begun training their employees on the Galaxy Nexus this week, so it’s looking more likely that the official launch date could be announced at any time.

Probability: 85%

Tegra 4 to feature a 64 core GPU

Rumor: Theo Valich of VR-Zone reports that NVIDIA’s Tegra 4 could feature 4-5x Cortex-A15 CPU cores, and 32-64 Kepler CUDA cores.

Our thoughts: The last time we saw the official Tegra roadmap, NVIDIA told us Kal-El (Tegra 3) would be followed by Wayne, Logan, and Stark. No official announcements have been made surrounding Wayne, but NVIDIA has already hinted they would use Cortex-A15 when they announced their custom CPU core called Project Denver.

A more recent leaked roadmap also reveals a new mobile processor called Grey, that would feature a similar design to Wayne, with the addition of NVIDIA’s Icera modem.

We still expect to see Wayne arrive in 2012 and feature multiple Cortex-A15 CPU cores, but the GPU design has been a mystery. NVIDIA also hinted that their new Kepler architecture, found in desktop computer graphics cards, would make its way down to smartphones.

NVIDIA likes to surprise their competitors and rumors of a 64 GPU cores go back to last year, so it’s highly likely we will see something much more advanced than the 12-core GPU found in Tegra 3.

Probability: 65%

Sprint will announce the HTC EVO One tomorrow

Rumor: Multiple sites report Sprint and HTC will announce the EVO One tomorrow.

Our thoughts: The leaks keep increasing as we approach Sprint’s press event scheduled for April 4th in New York. The HTC One X was first rumored to come to Sprint, followed by news of an early June release, and last week we heard the device would hit stores with the name EVO One.

Sprint is announcing a new HTC smartphone tomorrow, and we feel pretty comfortable with saying it will keep the EVO brand alive.

Probability: 95%

Got any juicy rumors?

Find any hot Android-related rumors that we failed to cover? Just contact Taylor or leave a comment below and we will evaluate them next week.

“We took out $150 in build materials, things like expensive memory,” he said. “At $199, you can just about buy a tablet at a 7-Eleven.”

The above quote comes from Jen-Hsun Huang, NVIDIA CEO, in an interview with Quentin Hardy of the New York Times. We don’t know what product they were talking about, but the discussion surrounded a quad-core Tegra 3 powered tablet selling for $199 this summer.

Key NVIDIA partner ASUS already announced  $249 MeMo 370T tablet with Tegra 3 at CES, but we have heard nothing about the device since then.

For awhile, the popular rumor was that Google had struck a deal with ASUS to lower the retail price of this 7-inch Tegra 3 tablet by $50 and turn it into a “Nexus tablet.” Based on everything we know, including the recent comments from Jen-Hsun, that sounded like a viable plan.

But then we were told the rumored $199 Tegra 3 product was canned in favor of a $149 Non-Tegra 3 version.

At this point everything surrounding a “Nexus tablet” is still rumor and speculation, but NVIDIA’s CEO seems pretty confident that their partners can deliver an amazing Tegra 3 product at the magical $199 price point.

Considering the recent Nexus debacle, maybe this $199 Tegra 3 tablet would be better off on its own with ASUS providing the software updates.

Welcome to another new weekly column where we round up all the Android-related rumors and discuss the validity of each one. Everyone seems to love our original rumor reports, but we thought it would be fun to examine the rumors from around the web and share our thoughts on the possibility of them coming true. Read on for this week’s latest Android rumors.

Google Drive finally coming this April

Leaked Google Drive logo.

Rumor: Om Malik of GigaOm reports that Google Drive will launch sometime during the first week of April.

Our thoughts: Rumors of Google’s cloud storage service go all the way back to 2006, but we know the service is currently in testing because the first screen shots were leaked in February. Om has been in the business for a long time and we trust his sources, but it’s always hard to pin down an exact release date for Google products. We think a Google Drive launch is pending, so an April release sounds likely.

Probability: 80%

Jelly Bean to launch in Q3

Rumor: Taiwan newspaper Digitimes reports “Google may release its new platform, Android 5.0 (Jelly Bean), in the third quarter of 2012.“

Our thoughts: Based out of Taipei, Digitimes often has access to information from supply chain sources that are based in Taiwan. We are fairly confident that the next version of Android is codenamed Jelly Bean (as first reported way back in 2010), but we don’t know what version number Google will assign to it or when it will launch.

The popular belief is that Google will unveil the first details about Jelly Bean during their Google IO conference on June 27-29th. Google always talks about the future of Android during this show, so that’s pretty much a given.

Right now we believe there are two options. First, Google could announce that Jelly Bean is a minor update, call it Android 4.1 or 4.5, and immediately release it for their Nexus line of phones and tablets. Second, we could learn that Jelly Bean will be a major update, be called Android 5.0, and be released in Q4 on the next flagship device.

Google has a pattern of releasing one major update to Android every year, so we still expect Android 5.0 sometime in Q4, but there is no way to know if that is Jelly Bean, or the next version codenamed Key Lime Pie.

Probability: 50%

“Nexus tablet” to be given away at Google IO

Rumor: We speculate that Google will give away the ASUS “Nexus tablet” to every attendee of Google IO.

Our thoughts: Every year Google gives away a free Android device to all the attendees at their Google IO developer conference. Three years ago it was the Google Ion (HTC Magic), two years ago it was the HTC EVO 4G, and last year it was the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Samsung Chromebook.

This year we believe they will give away the rumored 7-inch “Nexus tablet.” Android chief Andy Rubin recently said, “2012 is going to be the year that we double down and make sure we’re winning in that [tablet] space… we’re going to do a better job at making people understand what ecosystem they’re buying into.”

Combined with the new Google Play Store, this Google tablet fits into the “double down” tablet strategy and it will further evolve the tablet ecosystem with a focus on more optimized apps.

Another possible giveaway device could be the rumored Android Hub (or maybe it’s called Play Hub now?). Google just filed a new trademark application for Showy, which is described as “Downloadable software which allows users to use their computer, tablet device, or mobile phone as a remote control to operate video display devices and televisions; and downloadable software which allows users to remotely control the content on internet-connected digital signage.”

It sure sounds like the 7-inch tablet and home entertainment system will be tightly integrated, so maybe both will be given away.

Probability: 75%

Samsung Galaxy S III to be launched this weekend

Rumor: Multiple sites report that Samsung could unveil the Samsung Galaxy S III on March 30th after Eurodroid spotted a Samsung teaser in the window of retailer Phones 4U.

Our thoughts: Another week, another rumored unveiling for the Galaxy S III. Last time it was a Samsung event in Africa that turned into a TV announcement and now this.

Stuart Miles of Pocket-Lint already debunked this rumor. It turns out Phones 4U is opening up a Samsung store-within-a-store on March 30th.

Probability: 0%

T-Mobile to raise prices next week

Rumor: David Beren of TmoNews reports that T-Mobile will raise prices on Classic Unlimited 5GB and 10GB data features beginning April 4th

Our thoughts: We only call this a rumor because it’s not officially confirmed by T-Mobile, but we believe this to be true. As David points out, this is an “obvious move to drive customers into the hands of waiting Value Plan opportunities.” T-Mobile’s Value Plans save their subscribers money because the cost of the subsidized phone is not part of the monthly service fee. Customers have to pay the full price of the phone up front, or over the course of 20 months, but they save money over the life of the contract.

Probability: 99%

Got any juicy rumors?

Find any hot Android-related rumors that we failed to cover? Just contact Taylor or leave a comment below and we will evaluate them next week.

Let’s be honest. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 11.6 is nothing more than a rumor at this point. Jonathan Geller of BGR first reported on the device back in December and then I saw a prototype device in January, but we have no hard evidence to suggest that this product will ever come to market.

However, I think we all agree that Samsung will issue a response to the new iPad within the coming months, so we will continue to speculate about the announcement and dig for new details. Today I came across this rather interesting picture of an unreleased tablet, hidden on Samsung’s own site.

What is this tablet?

It looks similar to the Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1) that we saw at Mobile World Congress, but the speaker grills and coloring are different. It could just be some random mockup, but it was found on a product page for Exynos 5250. Yep, that’s the same 2 GHz Exynos 5250 that we all expect to power this mysterious Galaxy Tab 11.6.

So I ask again, what is this Samsung tablet?

Welcome to another new weekly column where we round up all the Android-related rumors and discuss the validity of each one. Everyone seems to love our original rumor reports, but we thought it would be fun to examine the rumors from around the web and share our thoughts on the possibility of them coming true. Read on for this week’s latest Android rumors.

Galaxy Nexus coming to Sprint on April 15th

Rumor: Robert Herron of S4Gru reports that Sprint has set April 15th as the target launch date for their Samsung Galaxy Nexus. The device will arrive before Sprint’s LTE network goes live, so it will have LTE disabled when it ships.

Our thoughts: Earlier this month I speculated the Sprint Galaxy Nexus could launch around April 16th, based on details from a contest. I don’t know Robert Herron and I’ve never read anything else he wrote, so I’m not sure of his track record. We think it sounds reasonable, but we all know how feeble target launch dates have become.

Probability: 80%

Galaxy Nexus coming to more US carriers

Rumor: Jerry Hildenbrand of Android Central reports the Galaxy Nexus is coming to regional carrier I Wireless on March 21st. Other unsourced rumors have suggested the Galaxy Nexus will be sold unlocked to US customers.

Our thoughts: I have met Jerry Hildenbrand and I think he’s a respectable guy, so I believe him when he says he has proof of the Galaxy Nexus coming to I Wireless. We have thought that Verizon had some kind of limited exclusive on the Galaxy Nexus launch in the US, so this I Wireless phone could signal the end of that deal. I wouldn’t be surprised if Google started selling the unlocked GSM version of Galaxy Nexus on their site soon.

Probability: 99%

Android 4.0.5 to arrive in April

Rumor: Verizon insider @black_man_x tweets that Android 4.0.5 is in testing and coming to the Verizon Galaxy Nexus in early April.

Our thoughts: Last month, Mobile Syrup reported that Android 4.0.5 was coming to the Galaxy Nexus in March, but that has yet to happen. I don’t know the “Mobile Panda”, but many other bloggers seem to trust the guy. He has close ties to Verizon, so I’ll take his word that Android 4.0.5 is currently being tested. However, we are talking about Verizon pushing out a software update on time, and that could change at any moment.

Google has been taking a lot of heat for slow Nexus updates, so hopefully they are making sure this gets done on time. Check out the report on the leaked build of Android 4.0.4 for a list of possible fixes coming with the next update.

Probability: 70%

HTC One V coming to Virgin Mobile US for under $200

Rumor: Evan Blass of PocketNow reports the HTC One V is coming to Virgin Mobile US later this year.

Our thoughts: If you don’t know by now, Evan Blass is the ultimate HTC insider. He even has his own tag on our site. I’ve recently become friends with the guy and I trust everything he reports. Virgin Mobile is one of the leading pre-paid brands and the HTC One V was made to be sold around $200, so I believe this report to be true.

Probability: 100%

HTC One X coming to Sprint on June 10th

Rumor: Andrew J. Shepherd of S4Gru reports that Sprint will launch their version of the HTC One X on June 10th, two years after the original HTC EVO 4G went on sale.

Our thoughts: Again, we don’t know these S4Gru guys, but they seem to have a good inside source to be making such bold claims. We already reported on rumors that the One X was coming to Sprint, and we still believe them to be true. The only question remains the final product name (something with EVO) and the exact launch date. Sprint and HTC are holding a press event on April 4th, so we should learn more details soon. June 10th is still a couple months away and product launches change all the time, so I wouldn’t circle that date on my calendar just yet.

Probability: 60%

Sony chooses Tegra 3 for future tablets

Rumor: Laura Benedetti of Notebook Italia reports that Sony could be working on a direct successor to the Sony Tablet S that is powered by the quad-core Tegra 3 processor.

Our thoughts: There was a leaked NenaMark benchmark score (now removed) that showed a mysterious Sony device with the model number V150. The device featured a 1.4 GHz Tegra 3 processor, display with resolution 1280 x 752, and Android 4.0.3. Sony has released several tablets with Tegra 2 (Sony Tablet S and Tablet P), so it’s logical they could be working on another device. However, there are not enough details present to really make a call on this device. It could be the next PlayStation certified phone for all we know.

Probability: 50%

All the Samsung Galaxy S III rumors

None of these are the final Samsung Galaxy S III design.

Quad-core processor: The Korea Times reports the Galaxy S III will feature a quad-core processor.

Our thoughts: This rumor goes way back and is nothing new. The way we see it, Samsung has two choices for the Galaxy S III. They either go with the Exynos 4412 (quad-core Cortex-A9) or the Exynos 5250 (dual-core Cortex-A15). Previously I wrote that if I were Samsung, I’d push back the product launch and go with the much faster Exynos 5250. Most people thought the new iPad would be quad-core CPU and they were wrong, and I think this CPU choice could also surprise people.

Probability: 50%

Integrated LTE: The Korea Times and other blogs report the Galaxy S III will feature a processor with an integrated LTE modem.

Our thoughts: Samsung does not integrate modems with their system-on-a-chip (SoC) like Qualcomm does. We have no doubt the Galaxy S III will be LTE-capable and use a Samsung LTE modem (just like the Verizon Galaxy Nexus), but it will not be integrated into the SoC. Maybe the Exynos 6 series will have integrated LTE, but you will not find it on Exynos 4 chips or Exynos 5250.

Probability: 2%

March 22nd announcement: South African site phonerpt is reporting that Samsung will unveil the Galaxy S III this week.

Our thoughts: Really?

Probability: 0%

Samsung Unpacked on May 22nd: A leaked image from an anonymous source suggested that Samsung is holding an Unpacked event on May 22nd to announce the Galaxy S III.

Our thoughts: Out of all the leaked dates surrounding the Galaxy S III, this one sounds the most believable. It comes from an anonymous source, so it’s hard to put a lot of weight behind it, but it was so random that a small part of me wonders if it could be true.

Some people said the Olympic torch relay starts on May 22nd, and Samsung is a major sponsor of the summer Olympic games in London. However, the relay actually starts on May 19th. At least this rumor makes more sense that most, but it’s still a stretch.

Probability: 30%

June release: Numerous blogs are speculating the Galaxy S III will launch in June.

Our thoughts: Previous reports said the Galaxy S III would launch in April, then May, and now the latest guess is June. Samsung previously said the successor to the Galaxy S II would be unveiled at “separate Samsung-hosted event in the first half of the year, closer to commercial availability of the product.” We have no idea when it is coming, but I would go with the later dates. If the above May 22nd rumor is true, then I would start to believe a June release.

Probability: 30%

Wireless charging from 1-2 meters away: Korean site DDaily reports the Galaxy S III will feature wireless charging that works with a dock from 1-2 meters away.

Our thoughts: Several current phones already feature wireless charging, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see it inside the Galaxy S III. I find it really hard to believe it would work from 1-2 meters (3-6ft!) away though. The current inductive charging standard Qi only works when the charging receptacle is almost touching the device.

Qualcomm was working on a propriety technology called WiPower that increased the distance between the transmitter and receiver coils by a couple of inches, but the charge had to be transferred though another material like plastic or wood. They previewed this technology at CES 2011, but it never came to market. I heard reports from the Qi group that there were concerns of electro-magnetic radiation when the transmitter and receiver coils are not close together.

I’d be surprised if Samsung solved this radiation problem when Qualcomm couldn’t, and I still don’t know how I feel about a device charging 3-6 feet away from the charging station. It would be awesome if they discovered a safe way to do this, but I don’t see it happening this soon.

Probability: 10%

Got any juicy rumors?

Find any hot rumors that we failed to cover? Just contact Taylor or leave a comment and we will evaluate them next week.

Earlier this month we revealed that Google had chosen ASUS to produce their upcoming “Nexus tablet.” This report was later echoed by Digitimes, who said the 7-inch tablet could arrive as early as May. This has been the hottest Android rumor of the month so we have continued to ask around and dig up more details. We just received some new information, so read on for the full report.

The Rumor

The ASUS MeMo 370T that was revealed at CES has been scrapped after Google contracted with ASUS to produce their “Nexus tablet.” Earlier reports said the device would retail for $249-199, but we are now told the target price is $149-199. The quad-core Tegra 3 version that was previously leaked is no more. Other than the 7-inch display, no additional information has been provided on the specs.

The Source

This latest rumor comes from a senior employee at a supply chain company based in the United States. They wish to remain anonymous.

One Android Insider’s take on the rumor

“It’s a done deal,” said the supply chain source. We have already heard countless rumors that Google was working on “a tablet of the highest quality,” and this latest report give us further confidence it’s going to happen.

What’s most surprising about the latest rumor is to hear that the target price has been lowered to $149 and that the quad-core Tegra 3 processor is out. I’m going to assume these two bits are related.

It sounds like Google wanted to undercut the Kindle Fire, so they lowered the bill of materials by going with a processor that was cheaper than Tegra 3. We heard similar stories last year that Amazon had originally chosen Tegra 2 to power the Kindle Fire, but they went with Texas Instruments’ OMAP4 at the last moment because they got a better volume deal.

ASUS has a strong relationship with Qualcomm, so we might see a Snapdragon processor end up inside this “Nexus tablet.”

We also found it noteworthy that our source called this device the “Nexus tablet.” The final product name has not been revealed, and we were curious if the Nexus branding was going to be used. I originally thought that this device might be called Google Play, but it turned out that was the name for Google’s new online content store. I’ll still go out on a limb and predict this tablet might be called Nexus Play.

Many of our readers were excited about the ASUS MeMo 370T tablet as it stood, and I’m sure most will be upset to hear that it could be canned. Hopefully our source is wrong about that information. It could be that the MeMo 370T was slated to become the “Nexus tablet”, but Google wanted something cheaper so ASUS scrapped it and configured a lower spec’d device.

I know a lot of people would buy a quad-core tablet at $249, so I hope ASUS still gives customers that option. However, ASUS did not show off the device at Mobile World Congress and they have been quiet about it, so who knows what’s going on with it.

Wrapping up, we still expect this device to be announced at the CTIA Wireless show which takes place in New Orleans from May 8-10. Sources say it will ship with the latest version of Ice Cream Sandwich, but if this is truly a Nexus device it might become the flagship platform for the next version of Android, codenamed Jelly Bean. More information on Jelly Bean is expected to be revealed at Google IO on June 27-29th.

Let us know what you think about this latest report in the comments below. Does the lower target price increase your chances of buying one? Will the lack of a quad-core Tegra 3 processor turn you away? Would you rather buy the $249 ASUS MeMo 370T as it was originally announced?