Samsung Confirms Galaxy TabletSamsung Confirms Galaxy Tablet

Samsung has confirmed that it will release a tablet computer in the second half of the year.

The consumer electronics maker revealed its plans in response to inquiries from information over the release on Thursday of a picture of the "Galaxy Tab." Samsung employees in South Africa posted the picture on Twitter. The image was taken down later in the day, but continued to circulate on the Web. On Friday, Samsung acknowledged a tablet was coming, but declined to provide details. "While Samsung is aiming to bring a device to market in the second half of this year, we have not yet confirmed the markets for launch or detailed product specifications," the company said in a statement e-mailed to information. The day before, Samsung in South Africa said the Galaxy Tab would be released in that country, but did not list other regions. The only details made available were that the device would have a seven-inch touchscreen and run Google's Android operating system. On Thursday, a Samsung spokeswoman said there were no plans to launch a tablet in the United States. However, the latest statement appeared to make a U.S. launch a possibility. If Samsung entered the U.S. market, it would face stiff competition from Apple, which has sold more than 2 million iPads since releasing the tablet-style computer in April. In addition, other companies are lining up to fight for market share. MSI, Hewlett-Packard and Dell plan to release tablets this year, and Asus is expected to release a device early next year. Samsung in March used the Galaxy brand in introducing its latest Android smartphone. The Galaxy S has a four-inch touchscreen, 1 GHz processor and a 5 megapixel camera.