Apple Tablet Rumors Now Include Price and Release Date

Just when you think the rumors surrounding the Apple Tablet have already reached critical mass, someone throws a new rumor on the pile and it all blows up again. This time the rumors have gotten even more specific about when the touchscreen tablet will come out and how much it will cost.

The rumor comes from AppleInsider, who claims to have actually put together the story behind the Apple tablet’s development over the past 4 years. According to AppleInsider, Steve Jobs has given the go-ahead to launch the tablet computer in early 2010.

The device is supposed to fit somewhere between an iPhone and a laptop (despite Apple’s protestations that netbooks aren’t viable), and the pricing will reflect that. The tablet is "expected to retail for somewhere between the cost of a high-end iPhone and Apple's most affordable Mac notebook." If we take an unsubsidized iPhone and the cheapest MacBook, that means a price range of $600 to $1000, which fits nicely with a previous rumor.

The rumors surrounding specs also mesh well with what we’ve heard before: 10-inch touchscreen, data connection via 3G, custom ARM processor from P.A. Semi.

This obviously doesn’t make the rumors any more true, just more plausible and possibly even more tantalizing.

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