Tablet News Bits: AMD Looking at Tablet Processors, RIM Giving Away More PlayBooks

Too much tablet news, not enough time to cover it all. But before we get into the tablets news this week you might have missed, be sure to check out our Google Android Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0 review and our close look at the budget Android tablet market.

AMD to Launch Processors for Tablets Later This Year
Rory Read, CEO of AMD, announced that the company will ship its first chips designed to provide the processing and graphics power for tablet computers. In an interview, Read states that the company is now focused on where the current market is heading, including tablets.

Source: VentureBeat

ARM CEO Says Windows 8 May Have Advantage Over Android On Tablets
Warren East, CEO of ARM, says that customers may purchase more Windows-powered tablets in the future compared to Android tablets for a few reason. East claims that thanks to the accessibility and familiarity of Windows, Microsoft has an awareness advantage with consumers. Despite this, East said to give Android more time to be very successful in the tablet market.

Source: CNET

RIM Gives Out Free BlackBerry PlayBook for App Developers
The BlackBerry PlayBook tablet is being given out for free to Android app developers who register and submit an app to BlackBerry App World by February 13. This news comes just as RIM announced a new sale on the device for $199, $249, and $299, for the 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB models respectively.

Sony Axed Three Tablets to Before Tablet S
According to Sony’s soon-to-be CEO, Kaz Hirai, Sony was originally working on four different tablets from different business units to compete with the Apple iPad. However, Hirai stated that they halted development on three of the tablets to focus on their current Android tablet, the Sony Tablet S.

Source: Electronista

U.S. Cellular To Release Its First 4G Tablet
Next month, U.S. Cellular will launch its own 4G network along with its first 4G LTE-powered tablet. The company will release the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 shortly after the launching of the network.

Apple Loses Patent Bid to Ban Samsung Galaxy Tab in Munich Court
Apple failed to get a ban on sales of the Samsung Galaxy 10.1N (a variant of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 designed after Apple won an injuction on the original Galaxy Tab 10.1 in 2011) in a Munich Court earlier this week. This comes after the iPad creators were denied an appeal to ban the sales of the Samsung Galaxy Tabs in the Netherlands.

Source: Bloomberg

Google Docs Updated for Android for Tablet
Google has released an updated version of the Google Docs for Android app that features a few changes for tablet users. The update released earlier this week provides users offline viewing as well as better tablet support for editing and viewing documents.

Source: GottaBeMobile

"Dead Steve Jobs" Sells Android Tablet in Taiwan
In Taiwan, actor Ah Ken portrays Steve Jobs in order to sell the Android tablet Action Pad in a commercial. The actor plays a dead version of the former CEO of Apple and performs the same gestures and likeness of Jobs.

Source: Kotaku