The Apple tablet is well into the construction process, and no mere pipe dream, it appears: you can now even buy parts for the mystery iTablet online. Does this SIM tray mean the Apple slate will be a network subsidised, 3G toting affair?
Head on over to the ChinaOntrade.com, and you’ll find the SIM card slot supposedly to be used on the Apple tablet for sale. It’s made by Foxconn, the tech giant rumoured to have secured a contract with Cupertino to start pumping out the Apple tablet, and available now.
The listing also mentions it could be the “iPhone 4 Generation” as well, but a bit of scrutiny under the magnifying glass makes us doubt this: for one thing, a new iPhone won’t likely appear until well until next year, and if the 3GS leaks are anything to go by, we won’t be seeing parts popping up online until the Spring.
The SIM tray is also bigger than previous models of iPhone slots, suggesting it’s destined for a bigger, more robust Apple tablet. And if it is, that means that the Apple tablet could be sold with a monthly mobile broadband contract, like netbooks are now, so you’d be able to download all that rumoured newspaper and publishing content over the air wherever you are.
What network that might be with is now up in the air, now that the iPhone is no longer an exclusive – it could of course simply be hot swappable, but it doesn’t seem like Apple to miss out on lucrative monthly subscriptions. We’ll keep a keen eye out for any more details on the Apple tablet for you.
