

What happened to the iPad killers of 2010? - ukdm
http://www.extremetech.com/computing/101577-what-happened-to-the-ipad-killers-of-2010

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ajross
I continue to believe this isn't the right way of looking at the problem.
There isn't a "tablet" market yet. The iPad sells to iPhone users only. It's
an attractive upgrade/enhancement, and a fun device. But it hasn't creates a
new market yet, in the sense that no one decides to buy a "tablet" and then
researches alternatives. Instead, people fall in love with the iPad
specifically and buy that.

So manufacturers chasing "tablet" sales are fooling themselves. Maybe tablets
will come of age, or maybe they're a fad. But right now the only way to
displace the iPad is to displace the iPhone first.

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r00fus
> The iPad sells to iPhone users only.

Though I agree with your assessment, I've seen the exact opposite. Most heavy
iPad users that I know well likely do _not_ have an iPhone. In fact, the iPad
does really well with kids and seniors.

Case in point: my parents and parents-in-law all have iPads, none have an
iPhone. They were previously relying on work laptops or home desktops, with
varying degrees of frustration/friction. They are all now happily using Mail,
Skype/Facetime and various game/lifestyle apps. Only one uses a computer
regularly.

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ajross
But _you_ have an iPhone, right? And you no doubt plugged the device to your
family? And they bought it in large part on that recommendation?

Assuming that's true, I don't see how this does anything but support my point.
Your parents didn't make a decision to buy a "tablet", and I'm willing to bet
they never so much as touched a Honeycomb or WebOS or Windows model. Right?

~~~
r00fus
> But you have an iPhone, right? And you no doubt plugged the device to your
> family? And they bought it in large part on that recommendation?

I do have an iPhone.

My parent-in-laws made the decision on their own to get the iPad (I don't
interact with them often). I did gift one to my Mom after she saw the iPad2
and mentioned she'd like one.

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alexwolfe
The Kindle Fire is going to compete nicely with the iPad at $199. However
being an iPad Killer, is just wishful thinking. Being an iPad Competitor is
probably more realistic.

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floatboth
Kindle Fire isn't a direct competitor. It's a device for consuming content
from Amazon. Targeted mostly at existing Amazon customers.

~~~
alexwolfe
Many Amazon Customer are Apple Customers as well. The Kindle Fire is
definitely a direct competitor not only in hardware but also in digital goods
(books, movies, and music).

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gavinlynch
I have a pretty solid theory: Anything with "{X} Killer" attributions is going
to fail.

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amandalim89
I think the failure of ipad killers can be attributed to them "having NO
humanities and liberal arts in their DNA." as Jobs once said about Microsoft
and Google. "They just didn't get it. Even when they saw the it they couldn't
even copy it well." I think for that reason no ipad-wannabe-killers (present
or future) will come close to displacing the ipad unless they manage to trump
it in design/UX/UI. Currently, their only strategy seems to be waging a price
war in hopes of covering their cost price(at the very least) and gaining some
market share (at best).

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gamble
I was actually impressed with the basic functionality of the Playbook, but
it's ridiculous that it shipped months ago and still doesn't have email or
calendar support without a tethered Blackberry. It's also hard to believe that
they're pinning their hopes for a vibrant app market on emulating Android,
instead of encouraging native apps. Can anyone at RIM not see what a disaster
that's going to be?

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jinushaun
I don't know why the iCrowd continues to be so smug about the iPad and write
these articles. It just reeks of hubris. It's just a matter of time before
what happened to the iPhone happens to the iPad. The same thing happened with
Windows and Mac OS. Or McDonalds and nice burger places. Cheap plentiful shit
will eventually overtake high quality products.

~~~
ricw
I'm unsure about this. So far it hasn't. And there has been plenty of
"plentiful shit" at a cheap price point.

The difference to the phone market is that the tablet market is (largely) un-
subsidised and not coupled to a contract. It'll be interesting to see how the
Amazon Fire will fare. It is subsidised, unlike the iPad, and probably very
polished, has a successful ecosystem and will likely be a very good gadget.
Only the future will tell..

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cryptoz
on the Xoom:

> the ridiculous $800 it eventually debuted at in February 2010

I am so sick of this. The Xoom cost $600 at launch for the WiFi model - every
single time anyone quotes Xoom vs. iPad prices, they find the most expensive
Xoom and compare it to the cheapest iPad. The Xoom was significantly cheaper
than the iPad if you picked an expensive iPad and a cheap Xoom to compare.

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mikeash
According to Wikipedia, the WiFi-only Xoom wasn't available at launch, and
only showed up a month later. Presumably that's why.

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brador
If I remember correctly I was scheduled to purchase one until they crippled
the flash (randomly delayed I think it was) and the memory card issue
(delayed?). Together with the lack of long-term corporate support it would
have no doubt had made it a cancelled purchase for me.

Shame really, it looked nice at the time.

