Nexus HTC

Don’t expect every new Nexus device to come from Motorola, said Google after they completed theacquisition. Fair enough, say sources in Taiwan — who believe the first Nexus tablet will be built byAsus, have a 7-inch screen, sell for about $200, and it could arrive as soon as May.

HTC was also in the running, but apparently Google wanted to take the design lead on the project and HTC was unwilling to hand over that control. HTC, of course, built the first Nexus device ever, so it’s not a surprise to hear they were interested in partnering up with Google again. Acer was also on the shortlist.

Ultimately, however, Asus won out. It may have a lot to do with the Transformer Prime tablet, which was first on the market with a quad core processor. It may also have something to do with the upcoming MeMo, which is supposed to pack Ice Cream Sandwich and a quad-core chip for just $249. That’s right around the price point Google is aiming for — no surprise, since it would allow them to challenge Amazon and the Kindle Fire head-on.

DigiTimes sources are saying the tablet could arrive as soon as May. That would line up nicely with Google I/O 2012, which takes place on April 24 and 25. Google will no doubt be giving away hardware at the event once again, and it might as well be their own tablet.

Of course, Asus and Google haven’t been willing to confirm anything at this point. So this mysterious Google/Asus tablet could end up simply being the Asus MeMo when it arrives. It wouldn’t be a Nexus device, but at least it’d be a dirt-cheap quad-core tablet with ICS.