Major games retailer GameStop has increased the number of its stores offering specialized Android tablets, and is now selling the devices at nearly a third of its stores in the U.S.
The company has made mobile and tablet sales a key part of its growth strategy in the last year. It intends to
generate $150-$160 million from the segment by the end of the year, and a total of $550-$600 million by 2014.
GameStop
began selling customized Android tablets with a test run at some 200 locations last October. It's now seling them at more than 1,600 locations out of the retail chain's 4,434 shops in the country.
The tablet line includes three models from Acer, ASUS, and Toshiba, which are priced from $299 to $449, and come in 7-inch and 10.1-inch displays. GameStop also sells pre-owned iPads for as cheap as $299.
Each of the Android tablets come pre-loaded with content aimed at gamers, including free games like
Sonic CD and
Riptide, the Kongregate Arcade gaming app, and a free issue of Game Informer Digital.
