Taiwanese handset maker HTC has entered the “tablet” war in India with the launch of its “Flyer” in the country priced at Rs 39,890.

A tablet PC, though smaller in size, has PC-like functionalities.

“We saw an opportunity to create a tablet experience that is different, more personal and productive and are extremely excited to introduce the HTC Flyer in the Indian market,” the HTC India Country Manager, Mr Faisal Siddiqui, said in a statement.

Flyer’s competitors in India include the Apple iPad, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, Blackberry Playbook and the soon-to-be launched Motorola Xoom and Huawei’s MediaPad.

The seven-inch touch screen tablet has a 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. It has 1GB of RAM and an in-built memory of 16GB and a 5-megapixel camera.

The device also has features like HTC Sense, HTC Scribe and HTC Watch, which provide a better visual, touch and movie-viewing experience to users.

Blackberry had launched its Playbook last week priced at Rs 27,990 (16 GB), Rs 32,990 (32 GB) and Rs 37,990 (64 GB). The Apple iPad (priced at about Rs 29,500) and Samung Galaxy Tab (about Rs 26,000) are already available here.

Since the launch of Apple’s iPad, the tablet market is witnessing huge competition, with new contenders launching their devices. Apple’s rival in the computing space, Dell had launched the “Streak” in India last year, while homegrown telecom handset makers like Spice and Olive have also launched similar devices at much lower price points.

According to analysts, sales in the tablet PC segment in India are expected to touch one million units over the next 12 months. 3G (high-speed internet services) roll out has also helped in expanding the opportunity, they said.

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