Originally Posted by =X=
Call me a cynic but I'm not holding my breath on a $250 T3 7" device releasing this summer. It's just too good of a price/product My gut feel is it's a stall tacit to keep people from buying existing 7" form factors. Then when the day comes it will be priced higher, stripped down, or delayed even longer.
Delays and changes from early product announcements aren't exactly uncommon, and don't require a nefarious motive. I too have expressed skepticism about how they get that price point with that hardware without the subsidy system the booksellers have at their disposal. If the Google rumor is true, that's at least one path to a low price point.
One non-nefarious motive for an early device announcement that you know you'd have to do heavy, heavy volume to profit from is to see how people respond to it and the particular features. Might they be checking to see just how important the lack of a front-facing camera is based on how many people/press outlets complain about it?
It could be a very different product come summer, true enough, but I have a good feeling about it and I won't let you bring me down with your relentless realism.