Lenovo limbers up for Android and Windows tablets

PC manufacturer Lenovo plans to release two Android-based tablet devices and one Windows-powered tablet before the end of 2011.

The company will be launching one 10-inch Android tablet aimed at consumers and another aimed at business users, Lenovo chief operating officer Rory Read said in a report by The Wall Street Journal.

The consumer tablet will be called the IdeaPad, while the business-focused device will ship under the ThinkPad brand. In January, Lenovo showed off the LePad/IdeaPad hybrid which combined a 10-inch Android tablet with an IdeaPad U1 Hybrid base to become a full Windows 7 laptop.

The business focused ThinkPad tablet will ship with a stylus for capturing signatures, Read said.

Both devices will ship with Android 3.0, also known as Honeycomb, and both will be priced for the mainstream market with price tags of between $450 and $900 depending on the configuration. Both are also expected to ship this summer.

"We've really been working to tailor the experience of our tablets", Read told the WSJ. "Some of the early-generation Android devices were a little ahead of their time, and what we're doing here is making sure [our tablets] are strong. We only have one opportunity to make that first good impression."

Read also said that there had been "interest" in Windows tablets and that Lenovo would follow the Android launch with a Windows-based device later in the year. He also indicated an interest in launching 7-inch tablets further down the line.

In January, Lenovo created a new business division called the Mobile Internet and Digital Home Business Group to focus on developing the company's internet-focused mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones.