I doubt Apple is coming out with a tablet for one reason: Apple not only creates products, but experiences. They consider both the style and function of a product, along with the way the user interacts with it. The iPhone can be gripped with one hand, and navigated with the other, and when entering text, the user can grip it with two while still comfortably typing with his/her thumbs. With a tablet, I see no comfortable way a user can interact with the device, let alone hold it comfortably for viewing. Tablets are too big for thumb typing, and seeing as how Apple usually stays away from moving pieces ruling out any swing out arm, typing with two hands will be a pain as the tablet itself will most likely be flat.
I don't see where the tablet fits in between my laptop and my iPhone - two products that have been developed pretty well to accommodate the way we interact with them. If Apple has indeed decided to release a tablet, I'd be very very interested to see how they dealt with all the ergonomic and inputting issues that come with a tablet - issues they always seem to take into consideration quite heavily.
The iPhone excels at anywhere/anytime. But for a session of any appreciable length or complexity, the screen is a limitation.
Laptops are great for sessions of length and complexity, but the ergonomics require a traditional desk and the overhead required isn't justified for many tasks.
A tablet would land between them. Essentially, every place you're still using a legal pad (for meeting/conference notes), dead tree reference (for reading/reference consumption in a comfy chair) or fixed-function device (portable video player) because phones and laptops just aren't the right tool for the job.
If you don't find yourself doing any of that, maybe a tablet just doesn't make sense for you. But that's no different than conventional laptops not really working for me. (Clearly, there are plenty of people for whom they do work)
As for the ergonomics of a tablet - it's not going to be much larger than a kindle. You'd be able to comfortably one-hand it, like a book, legal pad or kindle.
I don't really know what to think anymore about that kind of rumors because, on one hand, I feel like they don't really know what they're talking about and are mostly writing what people want to read; on the other, some persistent rumors ended up being real (or at least not far off) in recent years: iPhone, Google's own browser, Google's own OS, the "Google phone" to cite a few.
So, I'm tired of reading the "Apple Tablet" rumors but I can't help but thinking that it might just be coming.
Three days before the announcement of the iPhone, amid persistent rumors I posted on Digg that I "seriously doubted" that Apple was making a phone. Someone responded to my comment saying that Apple would not have been smart to let the rumor get out of control as it did as it could cause their stock to drop when they don't deliver. Since Apple (obviously) did deliver, I'm cautiously optimistic that the same reasoning can be applied to these persistent iTablet rumors.
To the people saying they don't see the value or market in an Apple tablet, Apple may simply be hoping for a greater acceptance rate among Windows users.
The iPhone has been a great product for breaking down barriers between Windows users and Apple hardware. If the tablet can integrate both OSX and iPhone UI aspects then this will hopefully break down most usability and interface barriers, meaning people are less reluctant to buy a Mac.
Much as I think an Apple Tablet would be cool, I'm struggling to think of many uses cases for it, beyond it 'being cool' (and I mean cool in the tech sense of the word, not in the slave to fashion sense)
I'm not sure that amazon has much to worry about from this. I don't think a tablet will end up competing directly with other ereaders.
I'm thinking about getting an some kind of ereader this summer. While color might be nice, and I'm sure a touch screen would be nice, I don't think I would get one to use as an ereader. I'm sure it is going to be a lot more expensive than popular ereaders. I don't think I would pay 600 for a device to read books, and I don't really want a tablet pc. I have concerns about battery life. E-ink does not require a charge when the screen is not changing, and so I've heard the battery life on e-ink devices is amazing. I do not think the battery life on this would be very good.
Agreed, a tablet and an e-reader have so little in common today that they are in different spaces.
Tablets and laptops are probably closer.
- price
- battery life
- applications running on it
- networking options
- audience
Such a tablet would have to be very cheap and have an e-ink screen in order to have any chance to compete with an reader and I don't think either of those will be the case.
Wondering what Techcrunch will do now if that confirmation is true. Do you think there will still be a market if the early adopters might buy an Apple tablet?
I don't know how many TechCrunch lovers there are, but it is common knowledge that Apple fans are willing to spend more on a first gen product (just look at what happened with the iPhone). My guess is that if Apple delivers, TechCrunch will not see as many sales as it would have.
My guess is that if Apple delivers, the CrunchPad winds up with a better chance at success.
Just as with the iPhone, Apple's going to be selling the concept as heavily as the product itself. If the CrunchPad materializes, it stands to pick up quite a bit of business that is convinced by Apple's larger argument, but put off by the price or some Apple-ish limitation/restriction.
(could be as simple as: Apple's tablet not supporting Flash either.)
I don't see the market for this but more power to them if they release one and it's a success. I don't underestimate Apple's ability to "create a need".
If Apple were ever to release a tablet they would probably do so when it makes strategic sense. The iPhone is still a work in progress. Copy and paste was just added and the app store is still being refined.
When iPhone sales start to curb like iPod sales did after 5/6 years then you will see a new "pardigm shifting" gadget. The iPhone has been out for what, 2 years now?
I don't see where the tablet fits in between my laptop and my iPhone - two products that have been developed pretty well to accommodate the way we interact with them. If Apple has indeed decided to release a tablet, I'd be very very interested to see how they dealt with all the ergonomic and inputting issues that come with a tablet - issues they always seem to take into consideration quite heavily.