Asus Ditches Microsoft, Goes With Android

Android tablets are all the rage right now. Earlier, we told you about Lenovo's plan to launch an Android Tablet dubbed LePad later this year. It appears Asus is also eying Google's mobile OS for its first tablet device.

The upcoming Asus Eee Pad will be an extension of the company's already popular Eee netbook line. However, the Eee Pad will look and feel more like the iPad than a traditional computer. The Eee Pad has been in the works for a little while and Asus had reportedly been using a slimmed-down version of Windows as the operating system. Now, Netbooknews is reporting that Asus has scrapped Microsoft's OS in favor of Android.

By switching to Android, Asus will avoid any licensing fees since Google doesn't charge for using Android. The tablet will supposedly feature 3G connectivity with a wireless data subscription as well as Android 3.0 known as Gingerbread. Android 3.0 is expected next year. Asus is expected to wait for the 3.0 dust to settle and launch the Eee Pad in the first quarter of next year.

Asus Eee Pad - Computex 2010, second from the left and running Win 7.  Not for long...