Chinese computer-maker Lenovo Group Ltd. on Wednesday unveiled three tablet devices it will sell globally, expanding its tablet push beyond China and intensifying competition in a device category led by Apple Inc.'s iPad.
The tablets will run on either Microsoft Corp.'s Windows 7 software or Google Inc.'s Android operating system, and their starting prices will be similar to the iPad. The Lenovo IdeaPad Tablet K1 for consumers will be available in the U.S. next month and world-wide in the third quarter and will run on the latest "Honeycomb" version of Google's Android operating system.
Lenovo has joined companies such as Samsung Electronics Co. and BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. in offering tablets to diversify their product lines and seek new revenue sources. Lenovo in March started selling a tablet in China that usesthe Android operating system and is pushing to sell more mobile devices, including smartphones.
Wednesday's announcement came after Apple on Tuesday said its fiscal-third-quarter earnings more than doubled to $7.31 billion from $3.25 billion a year earlier, partly thanks to strong iPad sales, which nearly tripled to 9.3 million from 3.3 million.
Lenovo's ThinkPad tablet for business users also uses Google's Android operating system and will be available next month in the U.S. and world-wide in the third quarter. The new Lenovo tablets—all of which have 10.1-inch touchscreens—are the IdeaPad Tablet K1 for consumers, the ThinkPad Tablet for business users and the IdeaPad Tablet P1 for home and office use.
The IdeaPad Tablet P1 uses Windows 7 software and is likely to be introduced during the fourth quarter. The other two tablets use the latest "Honeycomb" version of Android and are expected to be available in the U.S. next month and world-wide in the third quarter.