Major publisher preps for Apple tablet as delay, OLED rumors surface

According to MediaMemo, a digital version of Wired magazine will be ready by the middle of 2010 for Apple's tablet. The publisher reportedly does not even have confirmation that the long-rumored tablet even exists.

"Condé Nast CEO Chuck Townsend says his company is working closely with Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and that it has also been communicating its plans to Apple," the report said. "But Townsend made a point of saying that Apple executives themselves refuse to acknowledge that they’re actually planning a tablet: 'They’re not talking to anybody openly,' he says."

The publisher has plans to eventually create digital versions of all 18 of its titles through a new publishing form being created by Adobe called AIR. Though the software works on both Mac and PC, it is not currently compatible with the iPhone.

Despite this, the report said that the publisher intends to create magazines much like one that was released Wednesday for the iPhone: a digital copy of the latest issue of GQ magazine, available for $2.99 on the App Store.

In other Apple tablet news, DigiTimes, a Taiwanese trade publication with a hit-and-miss track record on Apple rumors, has reported that the device has been delayed until the second half of 2010. For its part, AppleInsider has been told by reliable sources that the tablet will arrive in the first quarter of 2010, a position maintained since the summer.

The new report claims that Apple plans to postpone the launch because it has decided to switch components, and will launch a second, more expensive model that will sport a 9.7-inch OLED display from LG. In addition, it said that another, 10.6-inch LCD model would be available.

Earlier this year, it was revealed that Apple and LG reached a $500 million deal for the supply of flat panel displays through the year 2013. DigiTimes alleges that the agreement includes the supply of OLED displays.

The report suggests that an OLED-based tablet would cost Apple between $1,500 and $1,700 to build based on current prices, though the cost of supplies is dropping rapidly. It forecasts an OLED model costing about $2,000 at retail, with the LCD option priced between $800 and $1,000.

In August, rumors of two models and an OLED screen first surfaced, though prices were never suggested to be as high as $2,000.