Report: Apple to offer a tablet device

Apple is working to release a tablet-sized device for the holiday shopping season, according to a Financial Times report. The device is reportedly going to be launched in conjunction with a push by Apple and major record labels to boost digital sales of albums.

The report said the touch-sensitive device may have a 10-inch screen and connect to the Internet using WiFi. The report also said that the device probably would not have voice capabilities, and appears to be positioned more as an entertainment device.

The report is notable in light of a separate item from TheStreet.com last week. That publication, citing an unnamed source, said that Verizon would subsidize an Apple tablet, but that in such a deal Verizon "won't be as tightly integrated" as Apple's deal with AT&T Mobility for the iPhone.

In April, a BusinessWeek report indicated that Verizon and Apple were considering a partnership to bring two "iPhone-like" devices to Verizon. One of those devices was a media pad that would let users consume music, photos and videos and would use a WiFi connection. That description seems to fit with the device described in the FT report.

For more:
- see this FT article [1]
- see this TheStreet.com article [2]

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Analysts: Verizon-Apple deal could double iPhone sales [3]
Rumored Apple-Verizon partnership [4] could produce two gadgets?
Report: Apple talking to Verizon about iPhone [5]
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