New Microsoft Tablet?

There has been a fair amount of news making the rounds today about a possible tablet coming from the Redmond giant.  

Some are saying the tablet will be an iPad rival.  

The company has scheduled a secretive event for Monday at 3:30 p.m. June 18 in Los Angeles, where it will make a "major" announcement whose nature has not been disclosed. Even the venue has not yet been announced.

But an individual with knowledge of the company said that Microsoft would introduce a Microsoft-manufactured tablet at the event, marking a foray into a new hardware category that would put the company in direct competition with giant rival Apple.

Rumors have surfaced that Microsoft's new tablet will run on Windows RT, a version of Windows 8 that uses an ARM microprocessor.

Others are saying this may be more of a Kindle Fire type device.  

Microsoft brass have continued to hint over the past year-plus that the company expects to see some kind of a Metro-centric reader to come to market.

They have never actually said such a device will run Windows 8 or even Windows on ARM/Windows RT. That has led me and others to speculate whether a Microsoft tablet — if such a device ever DID come to market — might be a Windows Embedded or, more likely, a Windows Phone OS device.

If such a “reader” were more akin to the Kindle Fire than to an iPad, a Los Angeles launch might make sense. Think this through. A Kindle Fire is an entertainment/consumption device. It is great for movie watching and music listening (hello, LA!) It also lets you read books (hello, Barnes & Noble). And remember: The settlement/contract between B&N and Microsoft mentioned Windows Phone. A lot. (In between all the redactions in that document.)

Personally, I am leaning towards them releasing a reader type of device.  This seems like it would fit nicely with the new Metro UI.  How about you?