Asus Tablet PC: Good Bye Windows, Hello Google Android

The online portable PC news site Netbooknews on Tuesday reported that Asus will use Google Android as the operating system in its upcoming tablet PC, which is expected to ship by year-end.

The Asus move comes despite unveiling a Windows-based version at the Computex exhibition in June.

The Wall Street Journal at that time said the Asus tablet PC will be based on the Intel Core 2 Duo processor and run on Windows 7. It was also expected to have a 10-inch to 12-inch screen and support Adobe Flash. Target retail price was $399 to $449.

Asus also plans to launch an app store for its tablet PC.

Asus' decision to dump Windows 7 for the Google Android operating system makes the company, currently one of the largest portable PC vendor in the world, the latest to adopt Android, joining such vendors as Lenovo and Dell.

The other upcoming major competitor to the Apple iPad, Hewlett-Packard, will most likely based its tablet PC on the Palm WebOS, which it got with its 2010 acquisition of Palm. HP has since trademarked the name "PalmPad," further fueling speculation it will use the WebOS instead of Windows for its upcoming device.