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HTC just can’t make up its mind about tablets. The smart phone maker has revealed it’s watching the tablet market closely, but has yet to decide if it’s to challenge the iPad or the Google Nexus 7. So what does that say about the tablet game?
With Windows 8 about to shake up the world of tablets and the Nexus 7 taking names at bargain prices, HTC is “watching that market very, very closely” and would launch a tablet if it could “make a splash,” HTC boss Jeff Gordon told Fierce Wireless.
With the tablet market heading in two directions — larger, pricier tablets like the iPad or smaller, cheaper slates like the Nexus 7 — HTC is still “not set on one strategy over another,” he added. Better not hang around, HTC: smart phone manufacturers could be left behind by non-phone tech companies coming into the tablet space, like Google and Microsoft.
The company is also reported to be working on a 5-inch rival to the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, whether it’s the rumoured DLX or an oversized version of the One X.
Apple’s iPad is the best-selling tablet by a country mile, having basically invented the consumer tablet market three years ago. It’s by no means the most powerful or best value slate going, yet no other tablet has managed to mount a serious challenge where it counts: at the tills.
HTC has previously sold three tablets in the US: the Flyer, the Jetstream and the Evo View 4G. Gordon describes the company’s previous crack at the tablet market as “a great learning experience for us,” which is business-speak for ‘made no bloody money’.
High Tech Computers isn’t the only company to have had a learning experience when it comes to tablets. HP did some serious learning with the HP TouchPad, and RIM were learning all the way to the tip with the Blackberry PlayBook.
Is HTC right to stay away from tablets? Is the iPad unbeatable? How will Windows 8, the Note 2 and the Nexus 7 change the world of tablets? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.
