Tablets from Sony, HP, Google up for release

Seems like Apple is not the only one zoning in on the tablet market, rivals Sony, HP and Google are prepping up their own iPad-like gadgets that would effectively kill Apple's candy.

On Thursday Sony CFO Nobuyuki Oneda stated that the company is very serious about the tablet market. "We are confident we have the skills to create a product, time-wise we are a little behind the iPad but it's a space we would like to be an active player in." he said. Sony already have their own renditions of eBook readers, but a tablet would certainly be a welcome change from the electronic giant.

Meanwhile HP (the guys who make expensive printer ink), are busy developing their own version of the tablet - called the HP Slate. Not much is known about the Slate's specifications, but the video below provides a few minute details of the gadget. According to Phil McKinney, HP's chief technical officer, "2010 is the year of the Slate because of a perfect storm of innovation. It's around the fact that there's now this convergence of low cost, low power processors, Win 7.0 with an operating system that is touch aware, the ability to create these kinds of platforms with new kinds of touch technology that hit that price point."

HP's aim is to take eBook readers to the next level. Their strategy with the 'tablet PC' backfired miserably two years ago, but the Slate sounds like a good idea indeed, given the sudden surge of netbook sales in 2009 alone. Search giant Google is not too far behind either, yesterday we showed you pictures of the Google Tablet which not only looks better than the iPad but also promises to have USB and a camera.

According to analysts tablet shipments will skyrocket over the next few years. As per the study conducted by 'ABI Research', 4 million tablets will ship this year, but the numbers will jump to 57 million units annually by 2015. "A tablet will not replace a laptop, netbook or mobile phone, but will remain an additional premium or luxury product for wealthy industrialized markets for at least several years," said senior ABI Research analyst Jeff Orr.