HTC looking to launch another tablet

HTC plans to give the tablet market another shot.

After unveiling its Flyer and Jetstream devices this year, the company is looking to release another tablet next year, according to Reuters.

“Tablet is a market we would like to try and test, to see whether we can make ourselves stand out and prevent a me-too product,” CEO Peter Chou said.

Though Reuters said that HTC has released only a single tablet model, the company has actually released two. TheHTC Flyer

, also known as the HTC Evo View 4G, hit the market in May, while the Jetstreamdebuted in September.

But like many Android tablets, both models have been seen as overpriced, not just compared with the iPad

, but in light of Amazon’s upcoming $199 Kindle Fire. The price of the Flyer was recently slashed at Best Buy to $299 from $499. And the Jetstream is currently priced at a whopping $849.

Whatever tablet HTC may be contemplating next year needs to be much more price-sensitive to make any kind of dent in a market dominated by the iPad and about to be buffeted by cheaper Android alternatives.

Beyond a new tablet, the company is looking to invest just as much in emerging markets as it does in regions like the U.S. and Europe. But Chou wants to keep HTC’s image as a “premium brand” intact, according to Reuters, with no intention to flood less developed markets with cheap phones.

HTC is also whetting the appetites of Android users with plans to offer Ice Cream Sandwichon a variety of handsets starting early next year.

The company recently enjoyed a rock-solid third quarter with strong growth in phone shipments. For the three months ended September, HTC shipped a total of 13.2 million handsets worldwide, up 93 percent from a year ago. It’s the world’s fourth-largest smartphone vendor behind Samsung, Apple, and Nokia,according to IDC

.

But the fourth quarter may present a challenge. Facing tough competition against Samsung and Apple, HTC warned that its sales for the end of the year will likely dip below those of the previous quarter and fail to meet the expectations of analysts.

Panasonic entry with Toughpad in the tablets market

Panasonic, best known for ruggedly reliable laptop PCs, thinks the Android tablets on the market today are wimpy devices for consumers. By contrast, the company’s new pair of Toughpad tablets are professional-grade slates for business and government users seeking everything from hardware-level security to an enterprise-oriented app store.

The Toughpad A1, which will reach the market in the spring of 2012 starting at $1,299, is a 10.1-inch Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) tablet with a 1.2-GHz Marvell dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of storage (MicroSD optional up to 32GB), and 10 hours of battery life. It’s on the hefty side at 2.13 pounds plus the stylus pen, but its sturdy construction brings a 4-foot MIL-STD-810G drop rating, resistance to dust and water ingress, and operating temperatures from 14 to 122 degrees…