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Apple is expected to leverage its multitouch patents and offer a 7- to 10-inch tablet device in the first half of 2010, according to analysts from research firm Piper Jaffrey. Pricing is expected to fill the gap between the Apple iPod Touch and the MacBook, at between $500 and $700. The analysts’ report dismissed any notion of an Apple netbook.

While there is no potential for an Apple netbook, the company does appear to be working on a 7- to 10-inch touch-screen tablet device for the first half of 2010, according to a new report.

In a May 21 research note from firm Piper Jaffray, analysts write that Apple has said it’s not interested in a netbook, which would not distinguish it enough from the competition and would eat away at MacBook sales. Instead, they expect Apple to leverage its multi-touch patents and deliver a touch-screen tablet device.

“We expect Apple to fill the gap between the iPod Touch and the MacBook with a new tablet device (not a netbook) priced at about $500-$700,” Gene Munster, the lead analyst, wrote in the report.

“We are anticipating a new category of Apple products with an operating system more robust than the iPhone’s but optimized for multitouch, unlike Mac OS X. The device’s OS could bear a close resemblance to Apple’s mobile OS and run App Store apps, or it could be a modified version of Mac OS X.”

The report emphasizes that Apple believes that software is the key to success in the mobile device category, as evidenced by the App Store being at the heart of its mobile operating system.