WSJ: Apple Tablet to be released in two finishes in March, cost $1000

Take the dusty and venerable name of the Wall Street Journal out of this otherwise pedestrian piece, and what you’re left with is a stock purple-print-and-pulp regurgitation of all of the current Internet rumors about the forthcoming Apple tablets, along with a few speculations and just a dash of WTF.

According to the Wall Street Journal, “”Apple plans to unveil a new multimedia tablet device later this month, but doesn’t plan on shipping the product until March. While the shipping time hasn’t been finalized and could change, people briefed on the matter said the new tablet device will come with a 10- to 11-inch touch screen.”

The only new detail there is the March ship date, but it makes sense: Apple will want to give app store developers time to make their apps tablet-ready, but won’t want the Tablet launch to step on the toes of June’s iPhone and iPod Touch refresh.

The Wall Street Journal then goes on to say that Apple is working on two different “material finishes” for the device, which could mean any number of things, but probably just means “plastic or aluminum.”

Finally, the WSJ quotes analysts who believe “the Apple tablet will be priced at about $1,000, possibly including a subscription to a nationwide Wi-Fi wireless service.” That analysis sounds… stupid: why would Apple go with a WiFi network like Boingo when they could just include a 3G SIM slot, and open the door to carrier subsidies?

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It’s the $1000 price that’s the real hot spot of the piece. Is that too much? There’s no way to tell without actually seeing what Apple has up their sleeves, but my gut says that while that’s a hell of a price bump from an iPhone or iPod Touch, especially when you can buy yourself a MacBook for the same price, Apple knows damn well what people will pay.

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