Apple may soon be launching a 12 inch tablet. Reports indicate that the company could add the bigger device to its tablet line, which now includes the iPad, with 10 inches, and the iPad mini, in the 8 inch category.

According to a report by Apple insider, Apple will be getting the 12-inch tablet made by the Taiwan based manufacturer - Quanta. The company has manufactured many Apple products including notebooks, iPods and MacBook Air models.

The report indicates that Quanta could be looking to diversify its portfolio, in anticipation of a fall in sleek and light laptops demand. According to the report, analysts expect a wider range of iPads, to hedge the risk against a possible slide in Apple's laptop sales.

Apple is not the only company to be looking at a 12 inch tablet. Long time rival Samsung is also exploring the possibility of a 12.2-inch tablet, the company recently unveiled the Galaxy Note 10.2 tablet at a Samsung un-boxing event.

Analysts speculate that the tablet market could eventually take over the sales of laptops, owing to its portability and sleeker design compared to laptops. Others however argue that there are some things that a tablet will not be able to do and laptops will remain.

The entry of 12 inch tablets could see a larger number of people switching to tablets, according to analysts. It is still unclear, if the device would be appealing enough to business executives to shift from laptops to tablets.

Tablets are showing more and more uses in various industries and are gaining in popularity. Airplane manufacturer Boeing reportedly released apps for the iPads recently, focusing on airplane maintenance.

The popularity of the tablets has, so far, not put a severe dent in the laptop sales. Will the advent of the 12 inch tablets make a big difference for laptop sales? Industry giants like Sony and Microsoft are preparing for such an eventuality by offering hybrid devices that act as both laptops and tablets with an attachable keyboard.

Apple is expected to release two new tablets by mid October 2013. The iPad 5 and the iPad mini 2 are expected to be unveiled at a press event. Click here to see the leaked images of the upcoming iPad mini 2.