In the latest salvo in the tablet price wars, Acer is planning to launch a $99 tablet early next year, sources have told The Wall Street Journal.

The 7-inch device, to be dubbed the Iconia B1, will run the 4.1 Jelly Bean version of the Android operating system, and feature a 1,024-by-600 display and a 1.2-GHz dual-core processor, the Journal said.

However, Acer, based in Taiwan, reportedly is focusing on Chinese consumers rather than Americans, so it is unknown when -- or even if -- the device might be offered to in the United States, even though it has been submitted to the Federal Communications Commission for approval, Venture Beat reported.

Competition in the 7-inch tablet arena is fierce, with prices ranging from Amazon's Kindle Fire at $160 up to the segment-leading iPad Mini at anywhere from $400 to $700.

"In the past few months, we've made project road map changes in response to big changes in the tablet market," a source cited as a person with direct knowledge of the project told the Journal.