Could a 10-inch Nexus tablet dethrone Apple's iPad?

Apple will reportedly wade into the 7-inch tablet market later this month with the release of an "iPad Mini" — a direct challenge to Google's line of Nexus tablets. But Google is hardly content to sit idly by and let its competitor get the upper hand. According to "supply chain indications" reported by CNET, Google is working with Samsung to co-brand a 10.1-inch Nexus tablet intended to compete with the full-sized iPad. "It's going to be a high-end device," Richard Shim, an analyst at NPD DisplaySearch with insider sources, tells CNET. It'll have a higher pixel density than the latest iPad's Retina display (299 pixels per inch vs. the iPad's 264), and would mark the first time Google will be working with Samsung on something other than a smartphone. (The Google Nexus 7 tablet is made by Asus.) The iPad has dominated the high-end tablet market since it was released in 2010. But could a Google-Samsung partnership dethrone Apple?

Apple's reign is ending: Apple's dominance in the tablet world slipped this year from 81 percent to 51 percent, says Larry Magid at Forbes. And while Apple will probably get a slight bump from the so-called iPad Mini, "I'm convinced that it will continue to lose marketshare to Android devices, just as it has in the smartphone market." Samsung is already "the single biggest threat to Apple in the smartphone market," and a close partnership with Google could prove to be "a powerful combination."

"More evidence that Apple will cease to dominate tablet market"

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This slab would at least be a worthy competitor: At $200, Google's current Nexus 7 is "the best 7-inch tablet yet, and the first Android tablet worth owning," says Dylan Tweney at VentureBeat. And you can bet that with a crisp, high-resolution display that outshines the iPad's Retina display, a 10-inch high-end version would present some "serious competition to Apple's market-dominating iPad."

"Google to Apple: We'll totally have more pixels than you"

I'll believe it when I see it: "Every year, some company spends a lot of money creating an Android tablet that some tech reporter foolishly brands as an 'iPad killer,'" says Brad Reed at BGR. And every year, the iPad proves to be "pretty bulletproof." Of course, if any two companies have a shot of ending the iPad's dominance, it's Samsung and Google. Their respective Galaxy S III and Nexus 7 devices are the two "hottest sellers among non-Apple products this year," and both companies have "considerable marketing budgets" they can put behind a co-branded 10.1-inch tablet. That said, let's not get ahead of ourselves.

"Google, Samsung reportedly teaming up on a 10-inch 'super' tablet to take on the iPad"