TV manufacturers Vizio to enter smartphone and tablet market

US manufacturers Vizio, best known for their production of affordable cutting edge television technology, look set to enter the smartphone and tablet marketplace with new products to be launched this week ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Vizio describe themselves as ‘America's number one LCD HDTV company’ and having built up their reputation stateside selling high definition televisions at affordable prices, their move into the smartphone and tablet space could be exciting for consumers.

With the likes of Apple and Samsung being joined in the race for mobile and tablet supremacy by RIM, HP and numerous other manufacturers in Q1 of 2011, the reports about Vizio joining the game are no major surprise.

Articles by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal stated that Android-based smartphones and tablets would be announced this week by Vizio, following a US TV commercial teaser at the beginning of the New Year in which a Vizio official gave a glimpse of a potential new tablet device.

Rumoured to be launching under the unconfirmed names of the Vizio VIA Phone and Vizio VIA Tablet, the products are expected to have a number of common features: Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, a MicroSD card slot, HD video playback, front-facing camera for video chats and A 1 GHz processor. The phone is believed to have a 4-inch capacitive touch screen whilst the tablet looks likely to boast an 8-inch screen and stereo sound.

The devices could feature in a complete range of complimentary products which would also include HD televisions and Blu-ray players.