Taiwan's Acer to unveil tablet computer

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TAIPEI: Taiwan's Acer Inc., the world's second biggest PC vendor, said Wednesday it will unveil its first tablet computer next month amid strong demand for the gadget.

Acer Chief Executive Gianfranco Lanci told Dow Jones Newswires that the tablet device will be unveiled in New York and sold for between 299 and 699 US dollars.

Acer is the latest PC maker to join the tablet PC trend following the success of Apple's iPad.

Sales of tablet computers worldwide are expected to soar from nearly 20 million units this year to 55 million next year and over 208 million in 2014, according to market research firm Gartner.

Apple began selling its iPad in April and a number of other companies have announced plans to begin producing the multi-media devices, which can be used to surf the Web, read electronic books, watch video and more.

Another leading Taiwanese computer maker, Asustek, unveiled its brand of tablet device in May with prices starting at 199 US dollars.