The Digital Times is reporting that the Google Nexus tablet will be powered by Google’s new Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system and feature a 7-inch panel, similar to the Kindle’s.

In December 2011, Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that his company planned to bring a Google Nexus tablet to market some time within the next six months. The Google Nexus tablet would be priced at $199, well below the cost of an Apple iPad and other tablets that use the Android operating system.

But does “bring a Google Nexus tablet to market” mean that Google intends to manufacture an electronic tablet device, or merely to help in the marketing of another company’s device that uses Google’s Android technology?

A spokesperson with Google’s manufacturing facility in Taiwan, tells reporters they have not heard about any plans to launch a new tablet product.

Google has already contributed to the marketing campaigns of two Android-operated devices. In February 2011, the company introduced the Android Honeycomb operating system powering the Motorola Xoom tablet at a special event in its Mountain View headquarters. In May 2011, Google touted the Samsun Galaxy Tab, which also deploys an Android operating system.

There have been fears that if Google did go ahead with the launch of a new Android-based tablet model, it would undercut sales of the Motorola Xoom and Samsun Galaxy Tab, both disappointingly low to date. However, the Motorola Xoom and the Samsun Galaxy Tab are priced in the $500 range.

If Google is planning to launch the Google Nexus, they will most likely make an announcement at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show that begins on January 10.

Rumors have been swirling around the features of the new Google Nexus Tablet. The table computer is going to run the Android operating system, which means it is going to have the newly updated Ice Cream Sandwich operating system installed, allowing you to run the most up to date programming and application features. On top of this, it is believed the Google Nexus Tablet is going to have a seven inch screen, with a price comparison point to directly compete against the Amazon Fire.

Being able to compete against the Amazon Fire is essential for the survival of the Google Nexus Tablet and other table computers similar to it. The iPad has dominated the market with sales, despite being one of the most expensive options available. The Amazon Fire is not able to compete step for step with the Apple product, but the price point of $199 is what makes it so popular. This is basically a third of what consumers pay for the more expensive Apple product, allowing it to fly off the shelves of retail stores. In order to gain popularity with the electronics crowd that does not want to spend an arm and a leg for a device that, most likely, is not going to replace their current laptop, the Google Tablet needs to be priced near this cost. On top of this all, there are rumors of a smaller, less expensive iPad 3 coming out this year, so if the Google Nexus Tablet is not priced correctly, it might be all to late for the Google table brand.

There are also rumors circulating that the Nexus Tablet from Google is designed with a rare and exclusive 7-inch display screen, but with a surprisingly low price point that is unmatched by several competing brands or models of tablets currently being sold on the market. According to reports from various analysts and professionals in the field, Google has designed and is planning to release a 7-inch wide Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich tablet that comes in an impressive $200 market price.

According to reports, the Nexus tablet will also be coming in a more Kindle-type interface rather than an iPad one, which is quite contradicting to everybody’s expectations. This has entailed in a rather smaller display screen than iPad’s 10-inch style. The display panels are also rumored to be coming from Samsung and with a high resolution of 1024×600 incorporated into the OLED display. Designed to go after the Kindle Fire, Google Nexus will also be incorporating similar features including Google Books, Google Music and YouTube rather than the expected Amazon content and features.

In terms of user interface, the tablet will be adhering to the present standards for Android 4.0 phones and will be introducing the default theme – Holo. The Android 4.0, also termed as the Ice Cream Sandwich, is also expected to integrate a more powerful processing unit for even the toughest applications. With a Kindle-type system, the product is also expected to have no less than $199 for its price point or else it won’t be an efficient competition for the Kindle Fire.