According to Taipei-based DigiTimes, Google is planning to cut the $199 price tag of its Nexus 7 tablet further.
The search engine giant and the tablet's manufacturer Asus are reportedly looking to manufacturer Nexus 7 units that will retail for $150, ultimately going as low as $99, according to sources at display component maker O-Film Tech.
The site added that the lower-priced Nexus 7 tablets should be released by the second quarter of next year. O-Film is said to have commenced the shipping of components for the lower-priced Nexus 7 in December, with the company's touch-screen glass-film-film (GFF) technology leading to lower production costs, as well as making the device itself thinner.
The cost-reduction measures may lead to a $99 Nexus 7 eventually, but, initially at least, a price range of $129 to $149 for the tablet will be offered, apparently. Shipment estimates for the cheaper tablet, meanwhile, ranges from 500,000 to 600,000 during the first quarter of shipments.
While Asus, who is rumored to be working on its own Android-powered tablet, initially rejected the notion of a cheaper Nexus 7, speculation has continued for months.