Google will jump into the tablet market this year with its own 7-inch device, according to a DisplaySearch analyst.
The tablet market has experienced rapid growth over the past couple of years thanks to devices such as the iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Kindle Fire and it looks as though Google wants in on that cake, with its Ice Cream Sandwich operating system providing it with a good starting point.
Speaking to Cnet, analyst Richard Shim suggested that a self-branded, 7-inch (1280x800) Google tablet running Ice Cream Sandwich would start production in April.
Shim went to say that he predicts initial production will be between 1.5 million and 2 million units, but was unable to say if Google would market the tablet as a premium device or a low-end Kindle Fire rival.
It's thought the Google tablet may look to directly compete with Amazon's Kindle Fire 7-inch tablet which has seen strong sales since its launch last year, mainly due to its low price.
Google has recently inherited three tablets after its purchase of Motorola Mobility saw it take control of the Xoom, Xoom 2 and Xyboard tabs and Google chairman Eric Schmidt did hint in December that the company was preparing "a tablet of the highest quality".
Could the tablet Schmidt muses about be this rumoured 7-inch device, or is he referring to a tablet made by a third party manufacture (Motorola perhaps?) which Google will back, a la the Samsung Galaxy Nexus.
We were expecting to see a host of new tablets announced at MWC 2012, but it now looks like that will not be the case.
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