Viewsonic could become the first manufacturer to ship a Windows 8 tablet, according to a report from Taiwanese based news outlet Digitimes.

The publication was quoting the Product Marketing Director of Viewsonic Asia Pacific, who claimed that the company will launch a Windows 8 tablet for the Taiwanese market in Q2 2012.

The tablet, a 10-inch model, will presumably appear before the end of June, before Microsoft officially launches the followup to Windows 7.

It is expected that the tablet will run on Windows 8 Consumer Preview with customers then having to buy the full OEM version when it launches.

This means the tablet is likely to be cheaper than most at launch, and will will be powered by an Intel or AMD-based system on chip.

Viewsonic also plans to release up to three new tablets in Q2 with support for Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

In the short term, Viewsonic is expected to launch a 3G version of its ViewPad 10e which, the company hopes, will help it maintain its number three rank in Taiwan.

One can expect Viewsonic to launch one or more ARM-based tablets (and other devices) by the end of the year, after Microsoft formally releases Windows 8 for ARM.