Google to launch new tablet to take on Kindle Fire

Google is set to produce a new tablet, that has been co-branded with the Asustek Computer company in Taiwan.

It will be aimed at consumers of the Kindle Fire, produced by Amazon.

The announcement, by an executive of Asustek, comes as it is rumoured that the Kindle Fire 2 will be presented at the end of July for sale in the US.

Kindle Fire, which allows users to acccess books, music and videos from the Amazon Appstore, is currently not sold internationally. An announcement last week suggested that the tablet would be on its way to the UK in the near future.

It is expected that Google and Asustek’s tablet will be priced at a similar level to the Kindle Fire’s $199 rate, and according to the executive of the Taiwanese company, it is a direct competitor for Amazon.

“It’s targeting Amazon. The Kindle is based on Google’s platform but with its own service, so Google has to launch its own service, too.”

Google does not have a service of similar capability to the Amazon Appstore, but it does have Google Play, its own application store.

With the Kindle Fire using the Google-powered Android operating system, it is believed that the internet giant will introduce new Android features on its planned tablet.

Details were not provided on the likely price, specification or launch dates of the planned product. Google also declined to comment on any rumours.

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