Apple’s Tablet Ready for Christmas?

Rumors about a new Apple tablet computer are nothing new, but the venerable Financial Times has kicked the blogosphere into a spin with a story sharing details of the much-discussed device and suggesting it’ll be ready by September (free registration required).

The FT’s sources say that the device will have a screen measuring 10 inches diagonally and will come with Wi-Fi but no cellular transceiver. Weirdly, the story also suggests that the effort is aimed at reviving sales of full-length albums. To be honest, I suspect it has more to do with tapping into the growing demand for netbook-sized computers.

What’s more, despite Steve Jobs’s previous claims that “people don’t read anymore,” an Apple tablet could be a killer for the Kindle. With the iTunes App Store already established, a full-color, fully functional tablet computer would surely be much more attractive as a portable reading device. According to Nicholson Baker’s lengthy review in the latest edition of the New Yorker, Amazon has some way to go before the Kindle is a real replacement for paper and ink.