Is Google really preparing a 10-inch tablet?

With its new 7-inch Google Nexus shipping next month, the company reportedly plans to launch a 10-inch version, claims DigiTimes.

Is Google eyeing a 10-inch version of its new Nexus tablet?

Citing the usual "industry sources," Taiwan-based DigiTimes says the search giant is planning a 10-inch Android tablet with display panels to be supplied by Wintek and AU Optronics. Wintek is the manufacturer behind the touch-screen panels for the Nexus 7 and has already picked up orders for around 500,000 panels from Google for the 7-inch tablet, according to the company's chairman.

No details were revealed as far as launch date, features, or possible pricing.

And of course, DigiTimes has a decidedly hit-and-miss record at forecasting products. So this report should be taken with the usual grain of salt.

Comments made by Patrick Brady, director of Android partner engineering for Google, seem to discount the possibility of a 10-inch tablet. In an interview with CNET's Maggie Reardon, Brady said Google specifically chose the 7-inch size for its portability.

"We thought a lot about how we'd design the software and hardware to fit a number of use cases," Brady said. "For instance, I think 10-inch tablets are too big for gaming and reading books. We wanted it to be portable. And we wanted it to be great for reading books and magazines as well as playing games and watching movies."

Of course, should the Nexus 7 take off in the marketplace, Google may decide that a 10-inch version could appeal to consumers as well. But for now, we'll have to see if the 7-inch model makes as big a splash in the Android tablet arena as some are predicting.

from cnet