Will HTC Introduce an Ubuntu Tablet Today?

Today is the day that HTC will be introducing the much rumored and talked about HTC One smartphone, and now there is new speculations that HTC may introduce a tablet based on Canonical’s Ubuntu OS for tablets at the same event. According to a photograph published by HTC in advanced of the unveiling event, the company is hinting that it will be introducing 12 new devices today, and one of the devices is cloaked in a large cloth that hints that it’s a tablet from the outline of the device under the draped cloth.

It’s still unclear what the announcement will be about at this time. The event is slated to kick off at 10 AM Eastern Standard Time in New York City.

According to a hypothesis on Phone Arena, the speculated tablet is rumored to run on Canonical’s tablet-optimized edition of the Ubuntu OS. The reason being is the timing would be a fit as HTC’s event will be starting just as Canonical will be finishing its Ubuntu for tablet announcement.

And even if HTC announces a tablet, it’s still unclear if HTC will be introducing such a product for the North American market. After having introduced the 7-inch HTC Flyer, which was also available as the HTC EVO View 4G on Sprint with WiMax, and the 10.1-inch HTC Jetstream on AT&T, HTC had previously announced that it would be withdrawing from the competitive U.S. tablet market. It’s unclear if HTC will be reversing its position here or if it will be introducing a tablet for other markets.

Still, an announcement in New York City on American soil suggests that HTC is very serious still about the U.S. market and is focused on delivering products quickly to this market. In the past, HTC would launch phones first overseas and there may be a short delay before products hit U.S. shelves for retail.