Now Best Buy is getting into the tablet space with it’s own Insignia Flex tablet, reported to be based on Android and run a dual-core 1GHx processor with a 9.7-inc screen and 10-hour battery life. Best Buy plans to sell this tablet for $239 – $259, says Reuters. This puts the massive consumer electronics chain in direct competition with Google, Apple and Amazon, which should seriously shake things up.

The Best Buy in-house brand, Insignia, is associated with lower-cost electronics for budget-conscious consumers who shop at the retail giant, and has been applied to high-definition TV sets and LED lightbulbs, as well as Blu-ray players in the past. The new Insignia Flex will compte directly with the other tablets on offer in Best Buy stores, like Google’s Nexus 7, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, and–of course–Apple’s current iPad as well as the as-yet-official iPad mini.

Reuters reports that the tablet has been shared on the Best Buy Facebook page, but that pricing details have not. The report cites source familiar with the matter, who anonymously says that the Insignia Flex will be available in stores on November 11, will include a camera for video conferencing, and will weigh in the neighborhood of 1.45 pounds.

The $239-$259 pricing range, if ultimately true, will place the new tablet in a market where a similar sized iPad can run from $499 and up, depending on configuration, and smaller form-factor tablets from Amazon and Google cost around $199. This is competitive pricing from Best Buy.

Best Buy still plans to sell competing devices, if of course those competing companies continue to let it. Though, as the world’s largest consumer electronics chain, Best Buy will probably not lose the ability to sell rival devices anytime soon.

• SourceReuters
• ImageWired