Samsung Plans to Launch Tablet Computer Later This Year, Newspaper Reports

Samsung (News - Alert) Electronics Co. plans to launch a tablet computer in the third quarter, according to a report Tuesday in The Wall Street Journal.

Samsung is one of several companies that are planning to launch a tablet computer during 2010 - inspired by the wild success of the Apple iPad which sold about 2 million units in about two months.

By releasing it in the third quarter, Samsung hopes to generate growth later this year amid weaker earnings from mobile phones due to the weak euro, according to The Wall Street Journal.

J.Kin Shin, president of Samsung's mobile unit, told The Wall Street Journal that the company is planning to launch a tablet computer called 'Galaxy Tab.' It is expected to run on Google (News - Alert) Inc.'s Android operating system, The Journal reported.

A U.S. spokesperson for the company declined to comment on details today, saying while Samsung is aiming to bring a device to market in the second half of the year; it has not yet confirmed the markets for launch or detailed product specifications.

In recent news, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., a top-ranking telecom equipment maker in China, is about to release its first model of a tablet personal computer based on the Android (News - Alert) operating system.

In addition, Asustek has also unveiled a tablet PC, in an effort to compete with the iPad computer. The tablet PC, known as the Eee Pad, will start selling in the first quarter of 2011, and it will feature a touch screen and use Intel Corporation's core processor, according to The Wall Street Journal. The Eee Pad, operating on Windows 7, marks one more manufacturer using a Microsoft software product, as Microsoft continues to compete with Apple for market share.

Last month, Verizon Wireless confirmed that it has a tablet in the works. Hewlett-Packard (News - Alert), the world's biggest PC maker, may have the best shot at catching up with Apple's early iPad lead, market observers say. Fusion Garage and Dell (News - Alert) are also coming up with tablets, according to a press report.