The Evidence for the Mac Tablet

[MacRumors]

In early 2003, the pre-expo hype of MacWorld San Francisco brought to surface many rumors of an Apple-branded Tablet.

Scattered rumors of Apple PDAs and Tablets have littered the rumor scene before, but have always fallen short.

The last official word we heard was from Steve Jobs (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2002/09/20020911210852.shtml) in September 2002, when he was questioned directly about Tablet PC's. His response seemed to dismiss the likelyhood of such an Apple device: "We're not sure the tablet PC will be successful. It's turned into a notebook that you can write on. Do you want to handwrite all your e-mail? We have all the technology ourselves to do that - we just don't know whether it will be successful."

Matthew Rotenberg (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2002/11/20021119085448.shtml), however, rekindled this topic when he posted a speculative article in November 2002, feeling that Apple would likely pursue a tablet-based computer. This speculation was apparently based on more than just his own personal thoughts -- since on January 5th, 2003, he wrote an eWeek article (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/01/20030105192925.shtml) which suggested that the Apple Tablet may make its appearance at MacWorld San Francisco:



My sources sketch the following picture: A device that superficially resembles a large iPod with an 8-inch diagonal screen, lacks a keyboard, packs USB and FireWire ports, and runs Mac OS X along with a variety of multimedia goodies.

While this did not come to pass, ThinkSecret (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/01/20030103154848.shtml) also claimed it a possibility in their roundup (though Rothenberg and ThinkSecret historically appear to have similar sources).

Even CNet (http://news.com.com/2100-1040-979204.html?tag=fd_lede1_hed) posted an item reporting that Apple was planning on introducing something portable aimed towards home entertainment... ranging from tablet to portable video pod.

A final tidbit of interest is a rumor that had come to us in late December -- well before the above articles... that Apple would be releasing a 17" Powerbook at MacWorld Expo, as well as an Apple Tablet Mac. At that time, the 17" Powerbook was dismissed as fanciful speculation... but turned out to be true, now drawing interest in the possibility that an Apple Tablet was in the works...

While it appears that only 21% of readers (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=127) feel that the Apple Tablet rumors were based on truth, we feel that this consistent information from a number of typically reliable sources points towards the existence of an Apple Tablet project.

[MrBillGates]

My question is with the 12 inch powerbook available, why would anyone need an Apple tablet?

----------------------------------------------------

Bill Gates

[Chisholm]

just me, but i worry about the solidness/durability of a touch screen. does Apple want to also sell little screen protecting plastic layers to cover the tablet's screen, like the film things you can protect your Palm x.x with? hate to be shallow, but an ugly screen for an Apple product? finger prints and pen marks? hhmmmm, me retreats to a corner to contemplate....


still here!
cheers!
hey! kool aid!

[PyroTurtle]

bring on the tablet....just give it a nice carying case like the iPod, and look like the iPod and i'll get one, or make it cooler looking....i'd love to replace my powerbook as i do have a tower and just use my powerbook for notes and stuff now...i have cargo pockets, i'm a big guy, at 8" diag it might just fit....
but it has to be widescreen! imagine a little DVD drive that plug into the firewire port...that could be fun! i'll regress to my corner and dream....already dreaming possibilities....

[macphoria]

I agree with Steve's initial statement about whether tablet device would be successful. "Do you want to handwrite all your e-mail?" totally makes sense.

It is so much faster to type than to write, although being able to handwrite has some advantages, such as adding human touch, scribbling or drawing, being able to write in random locations for thought organization, etc. Still, I think efficiency is the most important issue when it comes to communication and typing is the best way to go. Even PDA devices that support handwriting recognition sell separate portable keyboards, and that's saying something about consumers' tendencies.

However, because tablet functionality is not entirely without merit, I think it would be interesting if Apple introduced a LAPTOP with screen that can be used as a tablet. Perhaps something similar to one of PC laptop that can twist its display around and be used as a tablet.

Or (it just occurred to me)

Maybe a tablet with touch screen keyboard as part of the display? But it would probably require large screen to accomodate the touch screen keyboard. I don't know. But whatever tablet device it might be, I strongly believe keyboard needs to be integrated.

[funkywhat2]

Originally posted by PyroTurtle
bring on the tablet....just give it a nice carying case like the iPod, and look like the iPod and i'll get one, or make it cooler looking....i'd love to replace my powerbook as i do have a tower and just use my powerbook for notes and stuff now...i have cargo pockets, i'm a big guy, at 8" diag it might just fit....
but it has to be widescreen! imagine a little DVD drive that plug into the firewire port...that could be fun! i'll regress to my corner and dream....already dreaming possibilities....

I hear ya'! Now it also needs to cost less than $1500, with at least an 867MHz G4, and 256 MB of DDR. Now that would be really nice!

edit: However, some things would not be as nice. Low res. screens, graphics cards may be lack luster, and the GUI effects (animations and suchs, assuming that Apple used OS X, and not an adapted version) would be lesser. No dock magnifcation, if a dock at all, right?

[pyrotoaster]

We need to broaden our horizons a bit, here.

This tablet-device will most likely have a completely different form factor than that of Table-PCs and PDAs.

Think something along the lines of iPod meets MessagePad 2000/2100.
Bigger than a PDA, with a real hard drive, but smaller than a tablet-PC. Some people refer to the Newton as the first PDA, others call it the first tablet. In actuality, it was a bit of both (although the MP100s were very PDA-ish compared to the MP2x00s and the eMate).
One of the coolest features of the later Newton devices was the ability to switch the screen from vertical to horizontal. In today's era of widescreen everything, that would be a pretty cool feature.

I also doubt that this device would run Mac OS X.
Apple would have to compromise the OS too much to make functional on a small device like this. Instead, I think we should expect an OS X-lite, perhaps with a name all its own, like the Newton OS, which many people, myself included, still think was a great system.

Also, Think Secret talked about new G3s, that have yet to materialize in anything. How much do we really know about these chips? I'm just speculating here, but what they aren't for new iBooks, but instead for a fully loaded portable device?

All I really know, is that whatever this thing is, it's the biggest thing keeping my cash away from a new iBook. The sooner the better, Apple! ;)

[howard]

it would have to cost a lot less than 1500...and its a tablet? why a large processor? all your doing is writing and stuff, not like your gonna edit video or even play games, give it a g3 to make it cheap...but ah whatever, i don't really care i would never buy one

[scem0]

It still seems like a bad idea to me... I just don't think it will sell,
unless apple can get the price down.

[stefman]

To me, a tablet would only be useful as a wireless touch screen instrument to surf the net.

Imagine sitting on the sofa and surfing and using the touch screen for the links and if there's need to input a new address or something it can be typed in with a virtual keyboard on the screen or with hand writting recongnition.

I have no use for hand writting my e-mails (my hand writting is terrible anyways) or any other docs.

That's the only tablet I would like to see come out from Apple.

[pyrotoaster]

Originally posted by scem0
It still seems like a bad idea to me... I just don't think it will sell, unless apple can get the price down.
Originally posted by howard
it would have to cost a lot less than 1500...and its a tablet? why a large processor? all your doing is writing and stuff, not like your gonna edit video or even play games, give it a g3 to make it cheap...but ah whatever, i don't really care i would never buy one
Those are both very good reasons for Apple to proceed with caution if they try to enter the tablet market, and I'm sure those are both reasons why Steve himself isn't sure about the whole thing.

But we're talking about Apple here. We should expect something new and different, or maybe something a little retro (in computer terms, about five to seven years back), or a mix of both.
What really sucks is that we'll have to wait and see.

[funkywhat2]

Originally posted by howard
it would have to cost a lot less than 1500...and its a tablet? why a large processor? all your doing is writing and stuff, not like your gonna edit video or even play games, give it a g3 to make it cheap...but ah whatever, i don't really care i would never buy one

Well, you know how you can buy a drawing tablet for editing photos, drawing, etc.? That's what I think this would be good for. But if your editing photos, then you want pro apps, for which you will want a pro processor.

[paulie]

Why not an iTablet that works WITH your existing Mac, rather than AS a Mac on its own. It should further integration with other digital devices.

Leave the iTablet on your coffee table, and it acts as a photo album or picture frame. Pick it up, use it as a remote control to play your iTunes library on speakers in your living room which are wired to your Mac through an iHub in the other room. Watch videos streamed to it over 802.11g, then pause the video to receive an instant message or a telephone call.

Why use pens and virtual keyboards to write email when voice recognition is starting to reach the level where its usable?

I think that is the market where Apple's iTablet could shine, as a piece of your digital home, not just as a laptop without a keyboard.

[backspinner]

two words: vertical markets

[PyroTurtle]

all i ask is that the proc be ast enough so the OS doesn't lag much...
a new OS for it....that could work....
personally, i'm kinda imagining an overgrown PDA as of right now....and i expect a PDA to have an external keyboad and fully sync everthing with my tower....maybe i'm just a little weird....i love stylus' but when i'mm traveling and want to pack lite, i used to just take my palm and its keyboard so if i had anyhting i had to do i just used wordsmith....i think it could be worth it, obviously it's not for hard core anyhting really....but the iPod form caftor would make it awesome....i agree with the "use it with the mac not to replace" stratagy...a nice stereo system in the tablet....or make a hookup that lets the tablet act as a remote to existing TV's, VCR's. DVD's, Stereos....done rambling for now....

[funkywhat2]

Originally posted by paulie
Why not an iTablet that works WITH your existing Mac, rather than AS a Mac on its own. It should further integration with other digital devices.

Leave the iTablet on your coffee table, and it acts as a photo album or picture frame. Pick it up, use it as a remote control to play your iTunes library on speakers in your living room which are wired to your Mac through an iHub in the other room. Watch videos streamed to it over 802.11g, then pause the video to receive an instant message or a telephone call.

Why use pens and virtual keyboards to write email when voice recognition is starting to reach the level where its usable?

I think that is the market where Apple's iTablet could shine, as a piece of your digital home, not just as a laptop without a keyboard.

You mean a Smart Display? Nah, it's too, Microsoftian. Besides, those things are slow and really expensive.

[DeusOmnis]

A tablet would be worthless, it would be less useful than a laptop. You cant make it less expensive than a laptop because all the things you would actually use it for would require processing power (photoshop, etc). Apple cant make a huge pda, because a pda needs to fit in the pocket to be useful, and confortable to use and carry. What apple will release, however, is a pda slightly larger than the current iPod. That would take off like a storm.

[esz]

I draw for my living. I own a cintiq. Very very happy with the tablet technology. Not so happy with weight and cables and non-portability. How many times I imagined the fusion of my powerbook and cintiq. If there is a big PLEASE than its mine. Even if it would have an 8 inch screen.

[jaykk]

If Apple can fit in a slimmed down version of Mac OS X, it will attract a lot of corp. users for sure. I am very saddened to see that not many people in IT field didnt even know that Mac is now Unix based, and these programers/IT people spend their day and night on Unix..So if apple can catch imagination of a few more users with a slimmed down version of OS X, we will see more switchers.

[MacWhispers]

Originally posted by backspinner
two words: vertical markets

Two words: Proprietary applications

Vertical markets with legitimate uses for narrow-focus handhelds or tablets are already using them, made mostly by Symbol or Fujitsu, respectively. This has been a steadily growing market since the early '90's, with the Epson EHT series handhelds responsible for mining hundreds of these applications, from maintenance tracking, to route delivery, to inventory, to... with a simple MS-DOS based programming environment. And, each usage, and even individual customers tend to have their own closed, proprietary, extremely focused application that runs on an equally focused "handheld."

So, in reality, the last place a highbrow Apple product would find success is in the vertical applications arena. Simple, rugged, and inexpensive are the keywords there.

The other sought-for market space, especially for the tablet PC, is the so-called "executive" market space... supposedly filled with millions of harried highly placed managers in suits, running around all day, wanting to carry around an over-sized $2,000 electronic note-taking machine. Right... For the record, if there even is such a commercially viable market space, it is already hugely a Wintel customer base. And, since a tablet will tend to be an adjunct machine to one or more Wintel PC's already owned by a customer, there is very little hope that Apple could find any substantial numbers at all in that space.

Apple knows this reality, as they are very capable of doing simple market research. So, there will not be a stripped down handheld coming from Cupertino, nor will we see a heavily bloated "tablet" of the type being promoted from Redmond.

That leaves either (A) a full-blown, OS X running mama of a handheld Mac.. or (B) a smallish, stripped down thin-client style tablet, as reasonable Mac products... as neither would bump head to head with the Wintel hegemony, or with the entrenched vertical application space. Either would tend to find its own, new, unexpected market.

I continue to get odd comments and facts from OEM and ODM sources upstream from Apple that don't fit with present products, at all, but that do (or could) fit with some new, smallish, carry around product.

I am convinced of one thing. If Apple brings either of these two sensible efforts to market, at premium but "reasonable" price points, the buyers will appear... from many, many different groups.

And, for the life of me... everything I sense from the supply channels hints at such a beast actually being in the works.

[3G4N]

Wasn't there some speculation about Wacom's involvement here?

...A scenario something like "We don't discuss unannounced products we are working on with Apple" when no one asked them about Apple...???

[harmless]

... I don't want a tablet (I already have an iBook).

Instead I really want an Apple PDA!

Sorry, Steve. ;-)


bye. Andreas.

[janey]

i want a 17" iTablet that resembles an AluBook

[harmless]

Originally posted by pyrotoaster
This tablet-device will most likely have a completely different form factor than that of Table-PCs and PDAs.

I don't see any useful formfactor between a Palm and an iBook.

If it's larger than a Palm, it won't fit in a pocket.

If it won't fit in a pocket, why make it smaller than an iBook, that nicely fits in a briefcase?


bye. Andreas.

[cgmpowers]

I personally would love to see a detachable screen on the iMac G4s. Imagine detaching the 15" or even the 17" and using that AS your tablet. The video display would run 802.11g wirelessly and you'd still control everything from your iMac. You could walk around the house or office and be wireless.

Sure this wouldn't be the 'on the go' pda/tablet but it'd still be very useful and definately a technology I'd want in my next iMac..

Christopher

[harmless]

Originally posted by paulie
Why use pens and virtual keyboards to write email when voice recognition is starting to reach the level where its usable?

Because talking to a machine sucks! :-)


bye. Andreas.

[kwockc]

These predictions aren't really predictions anymore. When the ipod first came out Steve Jobs said that Apple would continue to put efforts into creating hardware (assuming non-macs) that would fit into the digital hub strategy. That was 18 months ago. Something has to come soon.

[ennerseed]

Portable canvas, livingroom or train surfing, Quick and easy delivery of my projects to my clients "on something they can actually see them on!!"

If the edge is not more than 1/4 inch from the screen on all sides.

Give up a keyboard and mouse for weight and volume, of course.

I am so sold!

[squatch]

From what I can remember from reading an article last year (I believe it was one of Rothenberg's), I recall him saying that this would be the year of new Digital Lifestyle Devices. And with Steve stating at Macworld that this would be the year of the notebook, it leads me to believe that Apple is focusing on "smaller" things this year. :)
Of course, if the IBM 970 chip becomes reality, then that will blow that theory clear out of the water!! :p

[Toby O Notoby]

I'd actaully argue that, at least if you're like me, a Tablet Mac is a great idea but it has to be the right price and it probably wouldn't fly in America. Observe:

My at-home mac is an aging Prismo. I basically use it to sit on my couch and surf when the wife is watching American Idol. Now, if you could sell me a tablet to do that, great. Here's why: I live in Asia where a majority of the people ride public transport. While I can't take my PowerBook with me, I could take a bluetooth-enabled tablet and surf on the subway. Give it some iPod type features and I can now listen to music while I do it.

Now throw in a homepod-type device that hooks up to my stereo and plays mp3s beamed to it through WiFi. My entire CD collection is on a device no bigger than a paperback book on my coffee table.

Make it all for about US$800 (without the homepod) and I'm there.

[janey]

Originally posted by Toby O Notoby

My at-home mac is an aging Prismo. I basically use it to sit on my couch and surf when the wife is watching American Idol.
It's Pismo, not Prismo. just fyi.

[WannabeSQ]

I trust Apple to make something cool, that will be useful and make people flock to the stores to get one. I envision something barely able to be fit in a pocket, and be a sort of mini laptop when on the road, and at home is a "remote control" for your home Mac. Surf anywhere without a laptop, a combo of handwriting recognition, voice recognition, and virtual keyboard (to make everybody happy, possibly an add on keyboard) and I would have to rethink if I want a laptop and a desktop, and just get an iTablet and a desktop. It also means more airport extreme sales. I think Apple can make it work. After all, they made the iPod, when nobody thought we needed another mp3 player.

[HasanDaddy]

Personally,

I already backup all of my info on the iPod - pictures, documents, etc

The thing is, I can only access the tunes - I think it would be pretty cool to see my documents, pics, and movies, all on a small device

I don't think 8" is too much (especially widescreen).......for $1500 though, thats too much......$1000, I think I would do it

[iSegway]

I personally would love to see a detachable screen on the iMac G4s. Imagine detaching the 15" or even the 17" and using that AS your tablet.

This is a fantastic idea, one i had myself. I like the way you think, Christopher. :)

I don't understand the problem people have with a tablet. You don't have to have only one input(pen and screen). What is wrong with multiple ways of imputing information?

As a bare minimum, I would simply be happy with option to disconnect the monitor flip it over and reconnect it if I want to use a pen input.

Ideally I would think the more ways to input information the better. Why not incorperate them all as a standard? Pen, keyboard, voice... all of these offer unique benifits. And give the user more freedom.

The question is... are these technologies sophisticated enough to be useful at the moment. Parallax when using the pen. Too big of a border on the screen, as someone else mentioned( that would be annoying to me). Smooth, and fast pen applications. If anyone can perfect the design challenges it has got to be Jobs and company.

[xjohn]

I think it seems pretty clear that some sort of device like the ones described in this thread is being developed by apple.

It seems like there are several questions:

1) If such a device is in development, will apple decide that a big enough market exists to merit a release?

2) If they decide to release it, then when? I suppose that they wouldn't release such a product until at least the second half of this year. This kind of product seems fabulous, but also like a bit of a luxury, and it would do a lot better if economic conditions were more favorable (I'm assuming the economy will pick up by the second half of the year). My wish, however, is that they decide to release it tomorrow...:)

3) What are the features of the product? A lot of exciting possibilities have been thrown around in this thread. I personally would love to see (and buy) an 8-inch tablet-like device that could work in the home as some people have described, but that I could also pop in my bag as a too-big-for-my-pocket-but-smaller-than-my-ibook-uber-pda.

[lardlad]

Tablets are gay.

[dstorey]

People seem to keep mentioning using a OS X light or whatever. I don't think Apple would ever develop this, for one reason: look at the iPop, they have already developed a new OS for that, which far exceeds the needs of the iPod. The only reason for this is surely so it can be used in more devices to do more things. Having said that I dunno much about the OS on iPod. Any one got any info on it, what's it's name, capabilities etc. I wonder if its unix based as this would make sense.

[pyrotoaster]

Originally posted by kwokc
These predictions aren't really predictions anymore. When the ipod first came out Steve Jobs said that Apple would continue to put efforts into creating hardware (assuming non-macs) that would fit into the digital hub strategy. That was 18 months ago. Something has to come soon.
You're right, Apple's been updating exisiting products on an every six to eight month timeframe, and yet we're still waiting for this new device.

Something will come soon. Before fall, and the PowerPC 970.

[davy the bunny]

Originally posted by dstorey
People seem to keep mentioning using a OS X light or whatever. I don't think Apple would ever develop this, for one reason: look at the iPop, they have already developed a new OS for that, which far exceeds the needs of the iPod. The only reason for this is surely so it can be used in more devices to do more things. Having said that I dunno much about the OS on iPod. Any one got any info on it, what's it's name, capabilities etc. I wonder if its unix based as this would make sense.

iPop? It seems that I'm uninformed again, do you know where I can find out something about this iPop thing? I've never even heard of it. . .

[cocoa]

I would love a Apple Tablet, (I own a PbG4) as I work in a Hospital (med student), and as electronic clinical archives are starting to become more common, you can see plenty of tablet PC's with a WiFi link to the databases in the senior doctors hands..

[mcrain]

I wouldn't buy it unless it came bundled with software to "rip" dvd's you own a la iTunes to put into a movie play list that you could carry with you.

If I could have a device with 20 or more movies on it to watch, I'd be first in line.

Plus, something with that amount of data might need the FW800 bandwidth.

[jethroted]

I have been waiting for just this exact device! I am looking for a portable, mp3, mp4 audio/video player! With the ability for me to go online with. That's all I need on the road. 8" screen? Perfect size for such a device! As long as it has a dvd/cd drive of some sort to rip music & vid's, I think this would be an awsome piece of technology. Of course it would boot into osx only, so imagine how optimized it would be. I would get one for sure!

[Gus]

Originally posted by lardlad
Tablets are gay.

See this thread.

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?threadid=19829&highlight=official+gay+thread

Regards,
Gus

[Gus]

Originally posted by MacWhispers
Two words: Proprietary applications

Vertical markets with legitimate uses for narrow-focus handhelds or tablets are already using them, made mostly by Symbol or Fujitsu, respectively. This has been a steadily growing market since the early '90's, with the Epson EHT series handhelds responsible for mining hundreds of these applications, from maintenance tracking, to route delivery, to inventory, to... with a simple MS-DOS based programming environment. And, each usage, and even individual customers tend to have their own closed, proprietary, extremely focused application that runs on an equally focused "handheld."

So, in reality, the last place a highbrow Apple product would find success is in the vertical applications arena. Simple, rugged, and inexpensive are the keywords there.

The other sought-for market space, especially for the tablet PC, is the so-called "executive" market space... supposedly filled with millions of harried highly placed managers in suits, running around all day, wanting to carry around an over-sized $2,000 electronic note-taking machine. Right... For the record, if there even is such a commercially viable market space, it is already hugely a Wintel customer base. And, since a tablet will tend to be an adjunct machine to one or more Wintel PC's already owned by a customer, there is very little hope that Apple could find any substantial numbers at all in that space.

Apple knows this reality, as they are very capable of doing simple market research. So, there will not be a stripped down handheld coming from Cupertino, nor will we see a heavily bloated "tablet" of the type being promoted from Redmond.

That leaves either (A) a full-blown, OS X running mama of a handheld Mac.. or (B) a smallish, stripped down thin-client style tablet, as reasonable Mac products... as neither would bump head to head with the Wintel hegemony, or with the entrenched vertical application space. Either would tend to find its own, new, unexpected market.

I continue to get odd comments and facts from OEM and ODM sources upstream from Apple that don't fit with present products, at all, but that do (or could) fit with some new, smallish, carry around product.


Sorry for the long quote, but it is all relevant.

This vertical market you are referring to is not new to Apple with these devices. In fact, it is this precise market that the Newton 120-2100 were aimed at. The Newton was more successful than the books or articles would have you believe, and I know for a fact that hospitals, wharehouses, embassies and other large-volume corporate areas purchased the newton for all of the reasons you stated above. I imagine they would still be using the Newton if support had not been discontinued from Apple. It was the Newton's hybrid identification (Tablet or PDA?) that made it attractive to such a wide range of users. The price tag, however, especially at the $1199 that it sold for (the 2100) would not fly today. Of course, a Powerbook in 1997 would have set you back a cool $4500 for the bottom line machine-Powerbook 3400, anyone?

I think in order for Apple to be successsful in this area, they have to do what they always have done--make something that we need/want/will make life easier that we haven't realized that we need/want/will make our lives easier. The Macintosh, iMac, the iPod, heck even the QuickTake (for those that remember) were all along these veins. they sold/sell because they provide something that was already there, but filled a gap that existed.

My 2¢

Regards,
Gus

[MacManiac1224]

I agree that the Apple should not make a PDA or tablet device, tier is not really much of a market for it, and it will probaly only sell to mac users, so I think Apple is playing it smart.

[DharvaBinky]

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/Embedded/ce.NET/evaluation/news/fromms/mira.asp

Luv

Dharvabinky

[wchamlet]

I think most of you are not understanding what a tablet like device is for. It's not for casual use, it's not for games, and it's not a Web device. What it is is a portable tablet, to be used in business meetings, either as a presentation device, ie Keynote, or as a sketch tool. Alias Wavefront already has a program called Sketchbook Pro that is specifically made for Tablet PC's. It's a portable unit for artists to take with them anywhere they go. It's not as cumbersome as a Laptop, especially when you need to attach a Wacom tablet to it.

I for one would think about buying an Apple tablet only if Alias Wavefront releases Sketchbook Pro on it. But, if it uses Photoshop just fine, then I would be fine with that too. However, if the tablet can't hold more than 500 MB of ram, then it wouldn't be worth the money IMO.

[ryan]

I work as a contractor and when I was working on-site for a client a couple of months ago my boss at the time told me that one of his collegues said she had seen a Mac tablet demoed. He quized her about it and she swore she saw a Apple logo on a device that looked kind of a regular iBook/PowerBook but with a removeable screen.

Take it for what you want.

[Blackcat]

To me the ideal Mac Tablet is basically an iBook, minus the keyboard plus a 9" touchscreen.

These hybrid laplet devices are pointless because of their size, you might as well save the $$ on the big screen and twist-off hinge and a buy a proper laptop.

No, the tablet is 2nd computer that you drop in your bag to take notes in a meeting or surf on the sofa or play DVDs on the bus. It is more convenient than a laptop as you can use it anywhere.

I think the thing is to forget 'vertical markets' and just bring out a cool useful device for $1000. Aim it at everybody.

[swdrumcp]

The tablet would be perfect for a university setting. I would love to have a tablet to take notes on. A laptop is not practicle, becasue of the typing noise and ackward auditorium style seating.

The tablet would have to be quiet, and have a long battery life. Also should have a large drive for movies, music etc. But I dont think you need any drive, just use FW800 to connect to your mac, if you need a drive, then perhpas they should make an SE version. Airport is a must.

Just imagine sitting in class and your prof sends you information wirelesly or you do some research in class, all while taking your notes. Sounds good to me. Price it under1200 and I'd buy one.

[ncbill]

a pilot who has bought it for charting.

Loading a CD-ROM full of charts on the TabletPC saves him having to carry nearly a linear foot of paper charts.

He flies from east coast to Vegas several times a year, a grueling all-day flight.

With TabletPCs at $2000 (and not selling) and PocketPCs at $500 (and not selling like the <$150 Palm-based PDAs), where does Apple fit in?

The biggest hope people seem to have for the next iteration of the iPod is that Apple prices it cheaper - forget new features, price the 5GB iPod at $199 and watch it fly off the shelves.

Maybe, just maybe you could take the iBook and add a swivel hinge like the Toshiba to flip the screen outward.

But Apple has so much trouble with the current iBook hinge I truly wonder if it is within their current technical capabilities (my 4 month old iBook is at Applecare with total video failure, which usually means the video cable has broken as a result of the poor routing/strain relief through the hinge)

[yzedf]

Originally posted by mcrain
Plus, something with that amount of data might need the FW800 bandwidth.

You got a hdd that pushes data out that fast??? Much less a small form factor hdd that could write that fast? That is why there will be no FW800 for the iPod. The hdd can't keep up.

[Das]

Dang, as an artist, I would use the literal crap outta an apple tablet. If they managed to keep the heat (and price) down, I'd get one in a sec.

[Timothy]

Hey Arn...

Can I read anything into the idea that you made this a page 1 rumor instead of a page 2 rumor?

[pyrotoaster]

Originally posted by Gus
...The Newton was more successful than the books or articles would have you believe, and I know for a fact that hospitals, wharehouses, embassies and other large-volume corporate areas purchased the newton for all of the reasons you stated above. I imagine they would still be using the Newton if support had not been discontinued from Apple. It was the Newton's hybrid identification (Tablet or PDA?) that made it attractive to such a wide range of users. The price tag, however, especially at the $1199 that it sold for (the 2100) would not fly today. Of course, a Powerbook in 1997 would have set you back a cool $4500 for the bottom line machine-Powerbook 3400, anyone?

I think in order for Apple to be successsful in this area, they have to do what they always have done--make something that we need/want/will make life easier that we haven't realized that we need/want/will make our lives easier. The Macintosh, iMac, the iPod, heck even the QuickTake (for those that remember) were all along these veins. they sold/sell because they provide something that was already there, but filled a gap that existed.
Exactly! This is a great point. The Newton was more successful than most think (the eMate and MP2x00, in particular), and they were in the exact hybrid market Apple should be looking at now.
With today's new technology and lower prices, a new Newton would actually have a chance at being a major success.
And yes, I remember the QuickTakes (even though I never owned one). ;)

[railthinner]

From an article on MacObserver discussing a Lindows laptop:

http://www.macobserver.com/article/2003/02/21.7.shtml

"What many Mac users have found interesting, however, is the comparison Lindows made to both the "Apple iNote," and an interesting iBook. In the original press release issued by the company, the MobilePC is compared to four other portables. Included in that comparison was a US$1799 867 MHz Apple iBook, and verbiage in the PR said:

At only 2.9 pounds, the Lindows Mobile PC is the most affordable ultra-light laptop on the market today. Despite its small size, the 933 MHz Lindows Mobile PC features a 12.1" TFT screen, 256 MB RAM, USB 2.0, FireWire, Ethernet and a PCMCIA slot that allows consumers to add a range of features, like wireless networking. The Lindows Mobile PC has a similar shape, size and power as the new Apple iNote [emphasis TMO's] but costs less than half the price.

Mac users, and many other Observers, have noted that the specs and the price of the iBook actually referred to the US$1799 867 MHz 12" PowerBook G4, and not an iBook, and that there is, of course, no Apple iNote, at least not yet. Fortunately, Lindows corrected its Web site late yesterday to properly reference the PowerBook, and all references to "iNote" have also been deleted.'

[dongmin]

Apple definietly should not get into the Tablet market. Why? Because everyone has a different idea of what they want to do with it.

-Some people just want a laptop without the keyboard. What's the point? Others want a detachable screen, but is it even possible to send video signals wirelessly?

-Some people want a PDA with all the useless software that PDAs come with. There's a reason the PDA market is shrinking.

-Some people want a tablet for drawing on, for which they have a thing called the wacom tablet.

-Some people want something cheap, in the $500-800 range. Others are willing to shell out $1200-2000.

There is simply no clear and defined demand. The reason the iPod is so successful is because it addressed a very specific need and addressed it very well. People want to add all these extra features to the iPod--like a color screen, video playback, touch-screen, etc.--but those extra features will add a level of complexity, bulk, and cost that will compromise the design and useability of the iPod.

[rmac]

So I can definitely understand why artists would find this intriguing. I got a 9 x 12" Wacom tablet a few years ago for some studio art classes I was taking, but ended up using it very little. I'd imagine it'd be much easier and more natural to be drawing on the same surface that the image is coming from.

But for things like Photoshop, I always have one hand on the keyboard to change tools and settings. Then I can hide palletes and the like most of the time and use the screen for just the image.

This would seem to be even more important on a small screen. But then you almost need an external keyboard. Anyone have any ideas about another solution? Would need to be able to enter any key and simulate holding down modifier keys in various combinations.

[Grae]

Hey, this is just my thought, but what about making a PDA/Tablet hybrid type of device that is marketed toward the education sector? Students are, I think, more willing than business types to make the switch to Mac in the first place. Plus they need to take a lot of notes. Imagine a device with an attachable keyboard, for taking notes in English classes, but also the option for Inkwell/free writing input for math classes, where keyboards are impractical. Load it up with Wi-Fi and Rendezvous (for teachers to distribute worksheets and collect homework) and you've got something that would probably sell even BETTER to schools than the iBook already does. This would be a type of device that schools cannot get from Apple's rivals like Dell. So, if they want it, they would likely switch their lab computers to Apples too.

And, like the eMac, if it catches on they can easily open it up to anybody who wants one. Personally, I think this sounds like a good strategy for Apple, given their dedication to Wi-Fi, Rendezvous, and the education market. Anybody else have thoughts on this possibility?

[dongmin]

OK on second thought, I do see some possibilities for a tablet.

I can see Apple making some sort of slimmed-down version of the iBook. Take out the optical drive, keyboard, track pad, speakers, modem, ethernet, and 2nd usb port. Replace the hinged 12" screen with a smaller 800x600 LCD (not touch-sensitive) and put in a smaller battery and HD. And finally, include a bluetooth optical pen (http://www.otmtech.com/vpen.asp) that you can write on any surface. And voila, you have an 7" x 8.5" x .75" iTablet that should cost less and require minimal R&D.

The main advantage with this model is that they'd be recyling an existing hardware design. I don't think they should start from scratch to fill a very undefined market.

[gweedo]

I don't know. I think the whole tablet thing is just a product looking for a market. Can you think of a few people that could make use of it? Yes. Are any of those people in dire need to have it? I doubt it. It is a neat idea, but not a must have imho.

I just don't think it would be wise of Apple to devote resources to this right now. Maybe in time, when people have more mad-money to spend... but now? Come on.

[pkradd]

The tablet is not an possible education device, the iBook is. Also, think small, think different and think "maybe".

[yzedf]

Originally posted by gweedo
I don't know. I think the whole tablet thing is just a product looking for a market. Can you think of a few people that could make use of it? Yes. Are any of those people in dire need to have it? I doubt it. It is a neat idea, but not a must have imho.

I just don't think it would be wise of Apple to devote resources to this right now. Maybe in time, when people have more mad-money to spend... but now? Come on.

Tablet is a business product. A real one, ala the xserve.

At home, I see no uses at all. At work, I can't help but drool over the possibilities for meetings, conferences, road trips, sales calls etc. Cell phone and a tablet that could be docked in the office with a real mouse/keyboard/optical drive/speakers would be sweet. No more pda silliness.

IMHO, YMMV ;)

[Toe]

Folks, check these out, please:
http://t-mobile.com/products/handhelds/

If Apple produced something like any of those, but that ran OS X and that had a USB port, a firewire port, and a VGA port (meaning I could plug in a keyboard, mouse, and monitor, and that I could transfer files to other computers), I would pay $1500 for it. Even if it weighed twice as much.

It's stupid to have a laptop, a cellphone, and a PDA. What kind of portability is that? Why not combine all three? And if you want the luxuries of a desktop computer, why not have a cradle that you plug your iPad (or whatever) into and that then docks you to your keyboard, mouse, monitor, superdrive, etc.?

Why not have it all?

What would be really, really cool would be an iMac, where you press the Undock button, and the iPad slides out (or clicks out or something). All it contains then is the motherboard and the hard drive (or one of the hard drives). But it also has its own screen and cellphone.

How hard does that sound?

[cshapiro]

Originally posted by jaykk
If Apple can fit in a slimmed down version of Mac OS X, it will attract a lot of corp. users for sure. I am very saddened to see that not many people in IT field didnt even know that Mac is now Unix based, and these programers/IT people spend their day and night on Unix..So if apple can catch imagination of a few more users with a slimmed down version of OS X, we will see more switchers.

I am also disturbed that programers/IT people don't know that Mac OS X is Unix based. I showed my uncle who is a programmer OS X for the first time. He was impressed. I think that what apple needs to do is introduce people in the IT industry about OS X and what it can do.

I think everyone needs to stop thinking of the new product as fancily. Apple products always turn out to be simple, refined an beatiful.

Stop acting like PC users!

[blakespot]

Even CNet posted an item reporting that Apple was planning on introducing something portable aimed towards home entertainment... ranging from tablet to portable video pod.

Even CNet... Indeed. They have shown their intelligence with this recent article:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/ptech/02/21/lindows.notebook.reut/index.html

Where they refer to an Apple iNote (???) and then refer to the iBook, citing PowerBook specs and prices. It seem they're run by a group of 16-year-olds.


blakespot

[jgp]

If the rumor is true that the Apple tablet is just a big fat iPod, then I do not think that it will be successful. I sure do not want one! HOWEVER, I will snap up a 15 inch PowerBook that transforms into a tablet and can run a large external monitor. I really want to flip from horizonal to vertical as I do a great deal of document processing (best in vertical). The handwritting aspect is only maginally useful for me, perhaps for navigation. I still hold out hope that Apple will release something like this.

[MacFan25]

Originally posted by ncbill
a pilot who has bought it for charting.


What about doctors? They could probably use them for medical records, right?

[Gus]

Originally posted by Grae
Hey, this is just my thought, but what about making a PDA/Tablet hybrid type of device that is marketed toward the education sector? Students are, I think, more willing than business types to make the switch to Mac in the first place. Plus they need to take a lot of notes. Imagine a device with an attachable keyboard, for taking notes in English classes, but also the option for Inkwell/free writing input for math classes, where keyboards are impractical. Load it up with Wi-Fi and Rendezvous (for teachers to distribute worksheets and collect homework) and you've got something that would probably sell even BETTER to schools than the iBook already does. This would be a type of device that schools cannot get from Apple's rivals like Dell. So, if they want it, they would likely switch their lab computers to Apples too.

And, like the eMac, if it catches on they can easily open it up to anybody who wants one. Personally, I think this sounds like a good strategy for Apple, given their dedication to Wi-Fi, Rendezvous, and the education market. Anybody else have thoughts on this possibility?

While a good idea, focusing on the education market can be dangerous. The eMate was Apple's first attempt at what you are suggesting. It was, from the beginning, an education product (thus the name, eMate-education). It might have had a future if not for a few problems the eMate had:
1. Geared towards students-public schools-but priced in the range of an old used car-$799 (well, a used car back in the mid-90's)
2. Underpowered. The eMate actually was slower than its older cousin the Newton 2100.
3. Lack of expansion.
4. Difficulty in networking
5. Other such issues

Now, of course, all of these problems can easily be solved today, but the price point I think would still be an issue. As much as I love all things Apple, I really believe that they need to launch an all-out assault on the education market with DEEP discounts. Take a small hit in profit now to avoid a huge hit later.

By the way, I LOVED the eMate. Go rent Batman Returns. Silverstone has one scene where she uses one.

Regards,
Gus

[Centris 650]

I personally don't see a use for a tablet. I teach and do presentations as well as putting my undergrad degree to work with some graphics work. I barely have the need for a PDA. (Though if Apple released a PDA I'd snatch it up.) What I need is the 12" powerbook. Small, portable, powerful. Apple seems to have shifted from a finding niche markets to reaching as many people as possible. (Think about the iPod. It's for everyone. It was even mentioned on SNL.)

IF Apple is planning a Tablet I think they've got something up their sleeve.

[bigizzy]

Originally posted by dstorey
People seem to keep mentioning using a OS X light or whatever. I don't think Apple would ever develop this, for one reason: look at the iPop, they have already developed a new OS for that, which far exceeds the needs of the iPod. The only reason for this is surely so it can be used in more devices to do more things. Having said that I dunno much about the OS on iPod. Any one got any info on it, what's it's name, capabilities etc. I wonder if its unix based as this would make sense.


The OS used in Ipod is made by PIXO software and licenced by Apple. This is not owned by apple and from what I hear the two companies are not having the best of relationships at the moment.

Also this OS is not Unix based.

[dstorey]

Originally posted by davy the bunny
iPop? It seems that I'm uninformed again, do you know where I can find out something about this iPop thing? I've never even heard of it. . .

did you not know, its Apples reality tv, pop stars the rivals clone. People have to vote via email or iChat messages for their favorite singing and dancing iMac's to form a new manufactured pop group called iPop. The favorite iMac at the moment is the one with Holly from Red Drawf loaded on it. It's belived that their first tour will debute at Mac World Boston and will tour round the 52 mac stores later this fall. the first single will be a cover of 'It's a wonderfull world; by louis armstrong.....

or maybe it was a typo :rolleyes:

[yzedf]

Originally posted by Centris 650
What I need is the 12" powerbook. Small, portable, powerful.

12" PB is not powerful. Faster than the iBook, barely. No L3 cache, no zoom zoom.

[ogun7]

Originally posted by Das
Dang, as an artist, I would use the literal crap outta an apple tablet. If they managed to keep the heat (and price) down, I'd get one in a sec.

ME TOO!!! Alias Wavefront's Sketchbook would be the killer app for a proposed Apple Tablet (iPad? PowerPad anyone?)
AliasWavefront's Sketchbook page (http://www.aliaswavefront.com/en/products/sketchbook/info.shtml)

I'd pay $1500 - $2000 for this and I'm pretty sure most professional Mac-using artists would also.

[Centris 650]

Originally posted by yzedf
12" PB is not powerful. Faster than the iBook, barely. No L3 cache, no zoom zoom.

Ok let me make an adendum, "& affordable". The 12" PB is a great machine.

[nosch]

Prior to switching to Mac I had a lot of fun working with the Psion Handheld PC for many years. This is the best done Handheld I've ever seen. Unfortunatly the great Psion 5mx will be out of the market soon. It leaves behind a big gap and some companies have already smelled their chance and brought the keyboard back to the PDA (Sharp, Sony...).
None of this machines has the enormous usability of the EPOC powered Psion. There is a great chance for Apple to come up with a kind of aggregation of the hardware power and smallness of the iPod and a EPOC-like OS and software bundle, doing almost anything you has expected up to now from a laptop.
I never had a laptop and did all my work on the go with my (now a little outdated) Psion. And I know a lot of guys looking out for a comparable modern gadget too. BUT nobody of us would buy a tablet. (Some played around with a Palm - me too - and are going to throw it away.) So - a Apple PDA with a Keyboard would be a killer!

[scem0]

Originally posted by ogun7
ME TOO!!! Alias Wavefront's Sketchbook would be the killer app for a proposed Apple Tablet (iPad? PowerPad anyone?)
AliasWavefront's Sketchbook page (http://www.aliaswavefront.com/en/products/sketchbook/info.shtml)

I'd pay $1500 - $2000 for this and I'm pretty sure most professional Mac-using artists would also.

all 8 of them? Well, that is not true, of course, but all I'm trying to
say is that that isn't a big enough group of consumers for apple
to profit from. Especially if it is overpriced.

[pyrotoaster]

An Apple PDA might be nice, but it just isn't a good idea.
The PDA market is saturated and sales are shrinking.

That said, the Tablet market doesn't look so good either.
Even though a few recent posts have made a good case for a professional design tablet from Apple, the device's market isn't wide enough for a practical release.

The truth most likely lies somewhere between the PDA and the Tablet.
Think something along the lines of the Newton MessagePad 2100. A functional size capable of holding a small speaker, a decent size screen, connection ports, and one big hard drive.

[Aries 1B]

I fully expect Apple to release a Tablet computer. Those who can't imagine where/why on earth you'd need a Tablet when your trusty iBook or PowerBook is available should try standing up and walking around while trying to manipulate their portable. Then try and show someone something on the screen.

To those who can type faster than they can write, well, congratulations. I prefer handwriting to typing PARTICULARLY when it comes to a bloody spreadsheet! I'd much rather touch the cell and WRITE INTO THE CELL the information that I want there rather than sending the cursor there and then typing the data.

Before you damn the idea of handwriting on an Apple Tablet, I urge that you check out how well it worked before.

Beg or borrow (don't steal) an Apple Newton Message Pad 2000 or 2100. Try out the handwriting recognition and then *I dare you* to say you are content with Graffiti. Before Steve killed Newton, I was taking real time meeting minutes with my Newton 2000, had crucial product specifications on it, and I was Joe-Effective. Now I've got a Palm m515 with Documents To Go and I WILL CHEERFULLY SKIP THE LITTLE B****** ACROSS A LAKE if/when(!) Apple releases their Tablet/Newton replacement.

It would be wonderfully comfortable to have the Apple Operating System with me where ever I am.

Also, I don't think that Apple will release one size of Tablet anymore than they have released one size of Powerbook.

Thanks for listening.

Aries 1B

[hippo]

I think people are being a bit self-centered in their discussion: If I can't imagine buying a tablet, then it's a lousy product. If I can imagine using it, then its great.

I image education as the chief market. A tablet may be ideal for taking notes in lectures and classes. It's got to be small, to fit in available space in lecture halls, and it should support free-hand drawing as well as text. In addition, it could be used for annotating lecture notes and figures distributed by the teacher.

From a teachers point of view, it also may be ideal. I think a properly configured touch-screen device is ideal for presentations. I use a powerbook with a wacom tablet for powerpoint presentations. I like to "draw on" my slides to add focus, spontanaity and interaction. (Unfortunately, there is no "pen" function in v. 1.0 of keynote). A touch screen would be superior to a wacom tablet.

I can well imagine a tablet different from the PC variety. Specifically, I'd prefer one that could synch with 1 or 2 desktops or work on it's own. I don't think tablets are great as full-time computers for some types of work (digital photography, complex document preparation).

In short, think EDUCATION . Apple has to remain the innovation leader in the education market.

[Blackcat]

People keep saying "it needs to support drawing" or "it should allow note taking" or "it could run OS X lite" - I think this suggests a restricted product.

A successful Apple Tablet just needs to run Mac OS X like every other Mac. That way the user gets to choose its use, and developers don't need to learn new APIs.

The target market could be easily differentiated by size:

Consumers/Education 8" screen
Business 14" screen
Design Pro 16" screen

It should be keyboardless - All Tablet All The Time - if you prefer a keyboard you need a Powerbook or iBook. Hybrid "Laplets" aren't innovative enough to be must have items, but we all know how badly a Newton2 is desired.

One more killer feature? Make them usable as a monitor with DVI and video/audio in so that users can check DV or add a temporary 2nd screen to their Mac.

[macdiehard]

I thought of getting a tablet. I like the idea of using Franklin Covey Planner with a digital ink, taking notes in meetings etc.

Why I won't get one is because I'd still need a more powerful computer for other functions so I'd have to sync data all time (especially for email and such).

It would be cool just for the Franklin Covey Planner but then you are talking $2000 for an electronic planner.

I'd like to be able to take notes in a meeting in handwritten and later transform into text and import into my computer. An other sized PDA might work.

Also I see digital paper applications usinga logitech pen. You carry a notepad around and digital pen and sync with your computer.

I don't see Apple doing at as it is a vertical market application for enterprises.

[robodweeb]

Everytime I see this thread pop up, I see naysayers claim that it has no business use because, for example, people type faster than they write. While that may be true, extended writing of reports and emails are *not* the major activity business folk do. <b>Reading</b> reports and emails <b>is</b> the major activity and laptops are adequate but not optimal for this task. We need to be able to read these things, extract information out of them, and then re-use this information in another way (such as writing it in emails and reports). As we move around, from meeting to meeting, we also need to be able to collect information, store it, and use it later.

So, I want to be able to read emails, papers, reports, etc. and <b>highlight</b> them (just as with paper and a highlighter) and have the highlighted text automatically saved into, say, a Stickies file or multi-Clipboard, (which also automatically includes the source document path, name, and a timestamp). I'd also like the stylus for it to be something like an OTM VPen (http://www.otmtech.com/vpen.asp) that could double as a stylus and as a Bluetooth pen (for writing on paper and other surfaces) that would be recorded on this "tablet". [Note: I don't need to be able to draw on the tablet's screen or do extended writing ... I just need enough sensitivity for highlighting and basic navigation ... that should keep the cost of the screen down to a manageable level. For extended writing or drawing, I'd prefer to use a Bluetooth pen on paper so as to have an immediate hardcopy of it.]

I'd expect a base configuration to have a relatively full OS X foundation running on a moderate CPU (most folk don't edit videos and photos on the go so they shouldn't have to pay for it) and, say a 40Gb hard drive with a pressure-sensitive screen (maybe one hi-res for artists and a low/med-res for the rest of us). Now, add to the Bluetooth Airport Extreme, 10baseT (don't need 100baseT or gigabit), Firewire 400 and USB 2.0 (provide an optional "travel" keyboard) so that I can plug it in to my G4s at home and office (as well as the Windoze boxen I'm occasionally forced to use). Add a built-in microphone (maybe able to switch between omnidirectional and shotgun?) to collect voice annotations, record meetings, etc.(preferably in the highly compressed, yet high quality DSS format: ~10 hours in 64 Mb) Add an option for a (Bluetooth?) headphone to listen to these recordings (and any music, etc. you might have ... or even your Bluetooth cellphone!). Add a VGA port so that I can plug it into the many types of LCD projectors out there in the business world and give presentations (provide a Bluetooth mouse option). Build in the capability to auto-sync the tablet's files with digital hubs in your home and office.

Oh, I should add that I also teach and take classes ... the above system would really help me do my work there as well. Price it under $1500 (maybe an extra $3-500 for all the options) and stand back. Let Windows have the desktop and let Linux have the back office ... Apple has an opportunity to grab the space that PDAs have failed to conquer in helping us move between our multiple worlds with ease, function, and flair ...

The 12" Powerbook is a good step in this direction but look in on any generic meeting and you'll see most people using analog pens and pads of paper instead of their laptops. The laptop form factor has some benefits when working in one place for an extended period, but the most natural way of working on the go is closer to the tablet form factor. Give us a way to bridge analog and digital worlds, Apple, in the ways that only you can do!

<sigh>Now I have to go back to my worlds of paper, PDFs, highlighters, pens, etc. ... bummer ...

[Kwyjibo]

arn really wants a mac tablet i think and thats why MR has so much specualtion about it.

[Aries 1B]

"arn really wants a mac tablet i think and thats why MR has so much specualtion about it."


That may well be the case...

...or there may be something up at Cupertino.

For my money, the Tablet/PDA/v***1/v***2 bubbles have been some of the more interesting and entertaining flotsam floating on the sometimes turbulent Lake Rumors. New microprocessors would be nice, but a new working Tablet product line (small, medium & large) would be a leap into The Future.

The Keyboard is *so* 20th century....

Aries 1B

[uMacsoiMac]

To me, the tablet is the ideal "portable" computer. It's all about instant gratification of the user interface and the ultimate goal is to rival the versitality and ease-of-use of pen and paper.

The reason I say this is because a device this small and portable must serve the user's whimsical, on-the-fly requests. And if the user has to wait for the device, or think about how to make it work, it will fall along the wayside and not be used (see PDA note below). If the user needs to quickly jot down a note, the device should be able to HELP the user accomplish this, within a handful of seconds, utilizing the most natural and user friendly interface metaphore -- pen & paper. If the user is taking meeting minutes or composing an email, obviously a keyboard of some sort is in order. It must satisfy the user's demands by assisting with things most commonly done AWAY from a computer without penalizing the user for using the device.

The reason PDAs are currently slumping is because they are trying to expand beyond their true usefulness. Something with that size of screen, memory and computing power is really only good for tracking contacts and appointments. And once the novelty has worn off, who's going to pay $300-$500 for an electronic day planner that's more cumbersome to use than a paper version?

To be successful, an Apple Tablet must be small enough to take with you where ever you go (how many of you actually take your laptops to meetings?) but powerful enough to satisfy the task at hand. They should be an extension of your workhorse computer and not be billed as a computer replacement. The device must have instant-on capabilities, a high resolution screen large enough to actually display some data and an EXTREMELY low-latency GUI. The key is recognizing that the utility of this thing is directly proportional to the speed of it's user interface -- the more responsive and "snappy" this thing is, the more often it will be used.

The other issue is price point. If someone spends $1000, they expect to get $1000 of value out of it -- not just a cool gadget.

This can be successful if done right -- just think of the iPod. Before it came out, who though an MP3 player would have staying power? But it was done right -- elegance, simplicity, cool gadget power and a good price point. It flourishes because it does a specific job and it does it well. (Side note -- now that the iPod is trying to branch off and hold contact information, etc, I think it's muddying the waters a bit and may do more harm than good.)

If Apple can make a tablet that exceeds everyone's expectations of what a tablet should be and can help a person (that's away from their computer) manage and complete their tasks, then I believe not only will they sell them by the truckload but they will also define a new computing paradigm.

Sorry for the long post -- I've been waiting for something like this for nearly 20 years!

Thanks,
Scott Bontrager
uMacsoiMac@mac.com

[WannabeSQ]

Very nice post. I couldn't agree more. An easy to use interface and high portability is the key. I believe apple can do this. Like I said earlier, for many people this would be more useful than a laptop. I hope it doesn't hurt notebook sales, but it is a possibility. It is perfect for people who need the power and upgradability/expandability of a Powermac, but also need portability, and don't wish to try to sync 2 macs together (like me for instance) It would be even cooler if it was still more useful to be almost a computer replacement, but a simple "portable tablet would be great. Take notes on it, listen to music whatever, then sync with either firewire, bluetooth or airport extreme. Sign me up if its under a grand.

[lavardera]

Right now Apple is following the pattern of naming the Pro user computers Power..., as in PowerMac and PowerBook, and the consumer models as i..., iMac and iBook, and iPod. So to fill out the offerings I am referring to this sketch concept as the PowerPod. Everybody seems to have great hopes for the iPod to grow into a multifunction device, so I am looking towards that in spirit if not fact.

What I am thinking of is basically a Powerbook reduced to its smallest possible form factor, but trying to use the technologies that Apple is already using today as much as is possible. So, I am thinking it will run OSx just like a full fledged Macintosh, and be able to use the full range of technology used by the other Macintosh offerings. Here is the idea:

Ok, first we are going to loose the keyboard, the clamshell paradigm, and go back to something more similar to the MessagePad 2100 form factor. We are going to leverage the Inkwell technology to drop the keyboard on the go, and use a screen that takes pen input. This will be a little smaller than the tablets now being introduced in the Windows world, but more mobile. The critical dimension is about 5" by about 8", 3/4 inch thick at the most, better if as thin as an ipod. Small enough that you can hold it gripped between your thumb and fingers resting in your palm and address it with a pen in the other hand. The screen will be a wide screen format, software rotatable. I am not sure of the pixel density, but I am thinking 800x480 would be a minimum to be useful for web browsing and email on the go.

To get it this small I think Apple should leverage the iPod harddrive. 20g is available now - not long ago Powerbooks were coming with 15g hard drives so the size is workable. 40g iPods are on the horizon as the drives have been mentioned on the toshiba web site, so larger drives could be readily available. No built in optical drive of course, and the battery should also borrow from the iPods technology in the quest to make it smaller with a long runtime. The screen perhaps could be one of the new types which don't require backlighting in bright light for the sake of battery life. Seeing them on PDAs they never looked as good as a powerbook screen so I am a little doubtful about that.

Now a little Mac slate will be useless if we can't connect it in the usual way, so I propose it have the usual slew of Powerbook ports with some small modifications. First and formost - DVI. This thing should have 32mb of video memory, enough to drive the 23" Cinema Display. It should use the most energy efficient chip set from ATI or Nvidia with battery consumption taking precedence over Quake framerates. They should be able to have it go into a low energy mode while only driving the small on board display. The DVI port will allow it to drive projectors and with Apples DVI to ADC box, to connect to their handsome lcd monitors. Now you have a reasonable platform to work with in the office. Next, one USB port. Thats all you need on the run, and after you have it plugged into your Apple Monitor you will have the usual two on hand. One combo FireWire, and Power supply port. Thats right, just like the iPod it will rely on the Firewire port for its power supply connection, but unlike the iPod the PowerPod's firewire powersupply plug will feature a pass through socket to plug in an external device at the same time. We are leveraging a good technology to save space. Then a combo ethernet/modem port. Yes, you know you can plug an RJ11 plug into a n RJ45 socket - it just fits in the middle. Rather than waste space for two sockets that are rarely used at the same time while on the go, they are replaced by an auto sensing socket that handles both functions. Next is a sound out jack, and elsewhere on the unit a headphone jack. All these ports will line up, iBook style along the top back edge of the unit rather than the side. In the wireless world it should probably come equipped with bluetooth, and have the usual Airport option. Now it has all the connectivity of a powerbook, it is running a full version of OSx and it is connectable to a full size screen for legitimate work at a desktop. On the go it it will will have all the connectivity of a Powerbook and a fraction of the weight and size. The pen based interface with Inkwell will be more than sufficient for on the go web browsing and email, and the ability to drive a projector or large monitor for Keynote presentations is there as well. It is also bound to open up the market for small keyboards, as well as portable mice.

There are three modes of use then. One as a tablet or slate, or whatever you would like to call it. The second as a "desktop" connected portable. The third mode would be using a dock, or base station ala the Powerbook Duo. This would provide an elegant way to plug your PowerPod into your desktop workstation and avoid making all the individual cable connections. Rather than the vcr tape paradigm used for the Duo, I think this is another opportunity to leverage existing technology - the lcd iMac to be exact. Using the iMac as a mule for a docking station is a natural. The PowerPod unit can settle into a holder on the adjustable arm where all the ports on the back could plug in. The units small screen would be facing out and could still be used as a small monitor with all the great adjustability of the iMac. It should not weigh too much more than the iMacs large 17" display. The base unit would supply power, and could have built in DVI to ADC hardware allowing you to connect the Apple ADC displays directly to the base. The base would also have an optical drive, and an additional 3 1/2" hard drive, both items that could be optioned up in different configurations including a DVD burning superdrive. All the other usual ports could be present in the usual locations at the back of the hemisphere base. An alternative method of making the connection would be a broad docking connector across the bottom, similar to the Duos connector. The upside of this is you could offer direct access to the PowerPods motherboard for possible system upgrades within the base - a slot? The downside is creating new, more complicated technology.

Thats the concept. The segment of Powerbook users that have always sought out the smallest possible machine has always been a strong and faithful contingent. That combined with the almost obsessively faithful Newton users, and the Japanese users may spell a market large enough to make this a viable product. What do you think? How would you use such a device? What processor do you think it should carry? An energy thrifty and speedy G3, or a balls out Final Cut Pro bustin G4? How about Ram expandability - slots add size? How about the price point - what should the PowerPod alone come in at - less than a 12 Powerbook? What should a unit plus a base station be - about the same as a 17" Powerbook?

attached sketch: The foreground shows the unit laying flat with its integral stand folded. I am imagining it would have a screen cover of some sort - similar to the MessagePad 2100 that folded around and flat against the back of the unit so it could be out of the way completely.

The middle ground shows the unit standing up on the integral stand. I am imagining detent stops in the stands range which would give you several viewing angles. This would allow you to connect your desktop cables to the ports along the top back of the unit. Kind of crazy to work on such a small screen, but with a larger monitor attached it makes a good place to stow your mail window and ichats buddy window.

In the back you can see the iMac based docking station in the background, with the Powerpod docked into the adjustable holder. Is'nt it cute! A tinsy winsy iMac! This station would offer serious desktop connectivity. A viable workstation depending on the processor on board.

[Blackcat]

Originally posted by lavardera
neat stuff


Yes yes! You described *exactly* my perfect Tablet Mac. Simple, powerful with lots of potential!

[nosch]

...your concept is great but a shot right in the back of various Apple departements. Your fantasy machine is a monster collecting a lot of parts from other machines. But where is the wall breaking new usability? And what about the price? I guess there won't be a lot of peaople out there spending 1500 $ for a "powerbook without keyboard".
Look at the market, look at the mass of people fighting with terrible small palms (a lot of apple users do because of the only syncing that works till now). There is a big demand for a small thing, that really fills the gap between the desktops and the papers. Millions of people feel it but don't find something that fullfills their need. Cause no Sony, no Palm an no Sharp is smart enough to bring the best technologies together. Apple could do it. - A real digital assistant, small, powerfull and simple to use. Prized much lower than 700 $. Based on iPod, Newton or whatever. But really for to go - not for walking through the penthouse.

[lavardera]

I understand where you are coming from Nosch, but I find it doubtful that Apple will introduce yet another operating system. Revive NewtonOS? Maybe, but looks doubtful. Expand the iPods small OS. Perhaps, but only as an adjunct to another function like MP3 player or video player. I can't see them getting into a PDA like device when the prices are plunging and the existing players are struggling. But a sub-laptop sized device running the current MacOS and all the software already available is a no-brainer.

[Blackcat]

Originally posted by lavardera
I understand where you are coming from Nosch, but I find it doubtful that Apple will introduce yet another operating system. Revive NewtonOS? Maybe, but looks doubtful. Expand the iPods small OS. Perhaps, but only as an adjunct to another function like MP3 player or video player. I can't see them getting into a PDA like device when the prices are plunging and the existing players are struggling. But a sub-laptop sized device running the current MacOS and all the software already available is a no-brainer.

It's built isn't it really?

iBook - remove the keyboard, add a touchscreen THATS IT! No new OS, no new m/b and you have it done.

Okay, they can improve things by shrinking the screen, improving the battery etc but it's not a massive project.

As soon as you get into custom OSs you get 2 fatal problems: 1) cost, 2) developer support. With tools like Project Builder and REALbasic so easy to use, what Mac user would buy a tablet their own stuff won't run on?

I love my Ti800, but nice 8" Tablet would be much more useful in meetings and when traveling.

[lavardera]

Originally posted by Blackcat
It's built isn't it really?

iBook - remove the keyboard, add a touchscreen THATS IT! No new OS, no new m/b and you have it done.

That's it really. Split the ibook in half. Drop the cd drive half, split the drive space between the ipod drive and a more compact battery. The touch screen is not rocket science any more. Inkwell is already up and running as an interface for pen entry. The rest works like a waccom cintiq on screen.

I know its not as easy as chainsawing it in half, but you can see all the parts are there and the reduction in size is not a stretch. It makes sense to leverage existing engineering ala the PB12.

[Toe]

Hey folks, check this out! Go to:
http://w4.siemens.de/FuI/en/news/
and scroll down to "A pocket-sized keyboard." Apple could potentially use something like that in place of a keyboard.

For more info:
http://www.google.com/search?q=siemens+virtual+keyboard

As an alternative, PDA's often have covers, right? Why not have the cover fold-down and fold out, revealing a flat-button keyboard? I don't mean flat-keys like on the current Apple laptops, but just a sheet of metal with letters printed on it... touch-sensitive.

Either scenario gives you a PDA-sized device with a full-sized keyboard. Basically just an iBook without the optical drive, and with a smaller screen and one of the above keyboards.

[GrandShenlong]

about the microkeyboard thing...

why don't you have an Apple Tablet (iLeaf?) with an integral stand, and have virtual keyboard emitter built into the bezel. Have it adjustable, so you can "virtual-type" with the thing laying flat, and with the stand fully extended. Thus, you'd get rid of the bulk of the keyboard, but still have a viable keyboard option for those who want one without compromising screen real estate. I mean, most people don't type furiously with one hand while walking to and fro. THe keyboard would be fully usable when on a flat surface (though no touch-typing feedback.)

and... i agree with the "make it small" mentality, i mean... a PB w/o a keyboard... yeah, that has wow factor, but cradling a 15" screen that weighs 6 pounds in your arm, while walking, just isn't my thing. I'd like to see something about 8-10" (OLED?), touchscreen, 20GB HDD, Bluetooth, 802.11g, 802.16a-e (pick one). That'd be the tablet for me.


my .02

[MaxArturo]

Hey if that's a fact bring it on and I'll buy it. Better than a laptop though I say.

[Toe]

Originally posted by GrandShenlong
and... i agree with the "make it small" mentality, i mean... a PB w/o a keyboard... yeah, that has wow factor, but cradling a 15" screen that weighs 6 pounds in your arm, while walking, just isn't my thing. I'd like to see something about 8-10" (OLED?), touchscreen, 20GB HDD, Bluetooth, 802.11g, 802.16a-e (pick one). That'd be the tablet for me. Add in cellular phone (or whatever protocol) and you have my vote... as in my dollars.

BTW, has everyone seen this?
http://www.envestco2.com/macwhispers/archives/000041.php

Sounds like it could be our iPad!

[Toe]

While we're investigating the possible, how far do you think we are from using glasses instead of screens? The advantages are pretty clear... you can have an effective 80" screen with minimal weight and cost.

Here are some current glasses:
http://vidsyn.com/iglasses.htm

And here's some eyeball-tracking technology:
http://www.eyegaze.com/doc/cathuniv.htm

Have there been any rumors of Apple getting into this realm? Seems like a great place for them to be the vanguard... or else IBM will do it (they're already advertising it, though they haven't produced anything).

[GovernmentAgent]

I would like a tablet which is the removable screen of a Powerbook. I would cozy up in my favorite chair to read, surf, look at pictures. Others might draw. So put the horsepower of the Powerbook in the screen and leave the keyboard section for the keyboard and other stuff that the engineers figure out does not need to to be included in the screen/tablet. The 12" Powerbook would be perfect for this.

[yzedf]

Originally posted by macphoria
I agree with Steve's initial statement about whether tablet device would be successful. "Do you want to handwrite all your e-mail?" totally makes sense.

It is so much faster to type than to write, although being able to handwrite has some advantages, such as adding human touch, scribbling or drawing, being able to write in random locations for thought organization, etc. Still, I think efficiency is the most important issue when it comes to communication and typing is the best way to go. Even PDA devices that support handwriting recognition sell separate portable keyboards, and that's saying something about consumers' tendencies.

However, because tablet functionality is not entirely without merit, I think it would be interesting if Apple introduced a LAPTOP with screen that can be used as a tablet. Perhaps something similar to one of PC laptop that can twist its display around and be used as a tablet.

Or (it just occurred to me)

Maybe a tablet with touch screen keyboard as part of the display? But it would probably require large screen to accomodate the touch screen keyboard. I don't know. But whatever tablet device it might be, I strongly believe keyboard needs to be integrated.

Think more.

Docking station with your cd-rw drive, keyboard, mouse, extra firewire and/or usb ports, and it charges the tablet.

That and a program with a keyboard display.

Think of how cool it would be to do a presentation with Keynote, where the pointer can be used on the tablet to be shown over the projector, as well as running the presentation itself.

In the business world, tablets could be king in 3-5 years. I don't think so in the personal space. And that is why Jobs is hesitant. He knows Apple can't hack it against the PC companies when dealing with corporate accounts.

[Blackcat]

Originally posted by yzedf

That and a program with a keyboard display.


I'd be very happy for Apple to license Mouseki from me :D

[iSegway]

Originally posted by Toe
While we're investigating the possible, how far do you think we are from using glasses instead of screens? The advantages are pretty clear... you can have an effective 80" screen with minimal weight and cost.

Here are some current glasses:
http://vidsyn.com/iglasses.htm

And here's some eyeball-tracking technology:
http://www.eyegaze.com/doc/cathuniv.htm

Have there been any rumors of Apple getting into this realm? Seems like a great place for them to be the vanguard... or else IBM will do it (they're already advertising it, though they haven't produced anything).


Here is my favorite... Microoptical (http://www.microopticalcorp.com/Products/HomePage.html)

Also notice the video on this page.

Here is a prototype, i guess, that is shown in a article from the press section..

prototype? (http://www.electronicsweekly.co.uk/issue/techview.asp?vpath=/articles/2002/11/06/tech04.htm)

The great thing about it is it would allow you to not need a monitor on every portable device. Digicams, MP3 players, video cameras. home TV, laptops.

[GrandShenlong]

DUDE!

I saw something just like those a few years ago on this Discovery Channel show: Beyond 2000 (like i said... a few years ago)...

and I'd been wondering where I hypothetically get a pair. Thanks, but I think these are way too first-gen to use with an iLeaf or iPad.

[iSegway]

Discovery Channel show: Beyond 2000

I miss that show! That was a great show.


I just wonder why the "big shots" like sony and the rest of the TV makers aren't putting all their money into this. These guys seem like a small company.

Oh, wait, now I know... it might destroy their business. If this was perfected it would destroy the market for huge 80 inch plasma TV's.

Lets hope this company doesn't get bought out and this technology put on the back shelf.

[GrandShenlong]

it won't ruin that market, it's just that the market for these things is way too small.

think about it... have a screen floating in front of you when you're crossing the street (like the businessmen do in the commercials)... and WHAM!

and also... input devices. I can imagine that there could be a glove version of the keyboard for touch-typists, but there is no viable input device for text input on the road or on foot.
Don't say handwriting recognition... have you ever tried to write without looking at your writing space, while walking, and while trying to make out a translucent 80-inch screen floating in front that stoplight that just changed colors? it would be a doozy, to put it nicely.
No... until someone invents an input device that's easy-to-use, doesn't look like crap, easily activated/deactivated (e.g. you point to some point of interest, and computer registers your hand motion as "Quit Without Saving" or "End Call"), AND gives the functionality of a keyboard, these goggles/eyepieces just aren't going to fly. (they're neat, though. I'd buy one if theyd bump the resolution up to 1024x1280)

P.S. - such eyepieces/tablets-you-can-scribble-on-while-on-the-road currently have a high nerd factor (especially if the user is a bit awkward is accomodating the new I/O scheme)

[iSegway]

"""think about it... have a screen floating in front of you when you're crossing the street (like the businessmen do in the commercials)... and WHAM!"""

In its current configuration yes. But I think there is a lot of advancment yet to be made. If this concept had the money thrown at it that large corporations have like Sony and all the other TV and monitor companies have. I don't think they want to do it though because one pair of Uber glasses could replace every monitor you have. I have 3 TV's and a computer monitor not to mention all the smaller devices that have monitors.

Does anyone know how OLED's might be applied to something like this? Or nanotechnology? I envision a monitor that could track across your glasses and follow a small tablet "pad" with out a monitor on it. Also consider headsup display configuration that would over-write your surroundings like a fighter pilot.

"""and also... input devices. I can imagine that there could be a glove version of the keyboard for touch-typists, but there is no viable input device for text input on the road or on foot."""

Why not voice recognition?

[Kid Red]

Originally posted by iSegway
I miss that show! That was a great show.


I just wonder why the "big shots" like sony and the rest of the TV makers aren't putting all their money into this. These guys seem like a small company.


HAHAHA, I was about to reply and say the same thing! Every Thursday night I was there! I loved that show and still can't figure out why it was canceled. It was a UK show right? Maybe they stopped it leaving Discovery no choice.

[iSegway]

There is TechTV now, I wonder if that is any good. Anyone know if there is a show comparable to beyond 2000. Another good one was called "the next step" I think. Scientific American was pretty good. I don't even know if it is still on now. Havn't see it in awhile. It had that guy freom MASH hosting it.

[squatch]

Eh, they have something called Tomorrow's World which is ok...but the music on it and the floating kid blowing bubbles annoys the heck out of me!! :D

[iMook]

voice recognition? maybe.
Still, you'll need a mouse replacement, and that commercial for HUD computer with the guy yelling at the pigeon really discourages hope in voice-activated free-ranging navigation (a.k.a. verbal mouse)

[MetallicPenguin]

no, actually I saw beyond 2000 on my menu guide on my tv (techtv)

[Mlobo01]

I did a sketch on photoshop about the tablet, the topic is a hot one, It began as a rendering then quickly became a crash-course in engineering & product developement, i ran into serious aesthetic issues, i cant imagine the enginnering
issues that will arise if they try and develop it,
but whatever they come up with Im sure it will be a kick-As* product, highly conceptualized and refined with new apps. unique to this tablet,
One person's input regarded it as a tool for students and Dr.s but Im sure there must be other groups this item can be useful to, whether as a tool or a luxury. I did a portrait mode aswell,
for myself Im sure I would not buy it until I experience it 3D-imensionally, Im sure new apps have to me made for it, so until someone doesnt start conceptualizing or generating possible apps, we are going to be in an ambigous state.
http://www.spymac.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=18338&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500

[Toe]

Originally posted by Mlobo01
One person's input regarded it as a tool for students and Dr.s but Im sure there must be other groups this item can be useful to, whether as a tool or a luxury.
I can't think of who wouldn't find a fully functional computer-in-a-tablet useful.

I have a PowerBook, a cellphone, and would like a PDA but think that's just too much junk to carry around. And I'm not some mobile businessman... I just like my tech to be available to me where ever and when ever I choose.

If my computer were the size of a cellphone and had a phone in it, I'd take it everywhere. And then when I got home, I could plug it into a nice big screen and Bluetooth a keyboard and mouse if I wanted.

Why is this seen as a niche market, when a $400, single-function iPod is such a successful product? And a $100-600 phone... and a $100-600 PDA?

If an iPad has all the functions of a PB, minus the optical drive (which you could always jack in, and which could also double as your set-top DVD player and home stereo), then who wouldn't want one?

[AtlantaGuy]

Yes, there are Mac-Realtors and yes, there is a growing market among Realtors for tablet computers. Show the wannabees how to do it, SJ!

http://www.hp.com/sbso/solutions/real/tablet_review.html

http://realtytimes.com/rtnews/rtapages/20021115_tabletPC.htm

[iMook]

mlobo01, that is one TINY tablet (by current tablet standards). Looks pretty nice, though I'd prefer clear plastic side handle plates and a thinner bezel

instead of thinking radical, why doesn't Apple just turn the 12" Albook into a tablet? Make the keyboard/touchpad wireless, and you'd have a nice (albeit unoriginal) tablet computer.

[Mlobo01]

I agree with you entirely, the Apple Tablet has to be more practical than the idea I rendered. I started off doing a photoshop exercise and then quickly turned into a crash course in product development and seudo-engineering after posting my sketches on http://www.spymac.com/ I received so much feedback some good some so-so, the things I realized for myself is that this item presented a ton a issues to be addressed that if ever Apple makes it, it has to be one HELL of a product, for 1) it has to be as functional as the iPod, as endearing as the iBook, or as productive as any of the desktops, possibly supply a service that it would be better on it than your desktop or laptop. 2) I read postings on apple ordering new plastic enclosures (5x7x1 inches) can that be a new iPod or a possible iPad? or neither??the return of Steve S. from Palm! For me if the Tablet is the size of an iBook I would just use my iBook, I dont really care for handwriting anything, I prefer a mouse and the graphic pen.
I just got a hint of what problems they would be presented with, but Apple is always famous for improving rustic ideas like this Tablet into actual innovation. Im not sure I would buy one, at least not until I try it at an Apple store, I use my computer as an extension of my easel. if I do anything artisitic it would be on my desktop in the privacy of my home, I can always do so much more on a desktop or laptop than I would do on one of these tablets except if they come up with excellent software to match this would-be product. peace Mario:)

[Winston Smith]

Originally posted by paulie
Why not an iTablet that works WITH your existing Mac, rather than AS a Mac on its own. It should further integration with other digital devices.

Leave the iTablet on your coffee table, and it acts as a photo album or picture frame. Pick it up, use it as a remote control to play your iTunes library on speakers in your living room which are wired to your Mac through an iHub in the other room. Watch videos streamed to it over 802.11g, then pause the video to receive an instant message or a telephone call.

Why use pens and virtual keyboards to write email when voice recognition is starting to reach the level where its usable?

I think that is the market where Apple's iTablet could shine, as a piece of your digital home, not just as a laptop without a keyboard.

Take it one stage further and think of this as a device that communicates with your Mac and other home entertainment kit through 802.11alphabet.
This then allows you to stretch out and listen to your iTunes library through a Hi-Fi, show your Mum your holiday snaps on the TV or your latest movie of the kids. Then it can act as a conduit from a satelite box to your Mac to create a PVR, surf the web, check E-Mail, dictate replies through the triangulated mic setup a patent has been applied for.
This could then create a totally connected home at least entertainment wise.
Call it the Airhub perhaps and make loads selling phono leads attatched to Airport cards, Scarts attached to Airport cards etc.
I'll buy:D :cool:

[Toe]

Originally posted by Winston Smith
Take it one stage further and think of this as a device that communicates with your Mac and other home entertainment kit through 802.11alphabet.
This then allows you to stretch out and listen to your iTunes library through a Hi-Fi, show your Mum your holiday snaps on the TV or your latest movie of the kids. Then it can act as a conduit from a satelite box to your Mac to create a PVR, surf the web, check E-Mail, dictate replies through the triangulated mic setup a patent has been applied for. This sounds a LOT like the tablets they use on Star Trek. Toss in eBook Reader capabilities too (should be a snap).

If Apple could produce a "dumb" tablet that just displayed PDF/.doc/.rtf, displayed photos, played MP3s, read e-mail, and browsed web-pages; and if it cost $200, the market would be huge.

Imagine in the office (or school!) environment never carrying around piles of paper and notepads, but instead carrying a tablet. If someone wants to give you a copy of something, they just beam it to your tablet (think Rendezvous!). The more I think of it, the more it looks like iChat would be integral to this tablet... it could even be an iChablet or something. ;)

The problem is, I can see Apple producing dumb tablets that cost $600, and then we'd have another Newton, just waiting for someone else to come along with a crappy $100 version that everyone would buy.

[iMook]

I don't think Apple would create such a tangled web of disparate connections, products, and functions just so they could push their new iTablet as a digital media hub and portable screen. I mean, Crestron has had large touchpad uber-remotes for years, and there are Windows devices which are ready for such things. Viewsonic's $1000 porta-screen lets you surf, click, yadda yadda yadda from the comfort of your couch, bed, etc.

To have these two technologies converge isn't too hard, but to entice Tom, Dick, and Harry to buy the miscellaneous equipment needed to connect such a convergence device with the rest of your home is no small chore. Ideally, electronics makers would gradually phase home networking into their devices (WiFi, Wireless-G, etc.), standardize their connections (e.g. FireWire home theater), and put everything on an easily accessible, yet very capable, modular network.

Only then could Apple release a blockbuster product that lets users access this already-established network five times easier and more reliably than competing technology. (and encase it in brushed aluminum and white-backed Lucite:D )


Of course, such a product would come at no small price.
Persuading people who are uncomfortable with/unaccustommed to the network itself to buy such a thing (iTablet) for "convenience" and to one-up the Joneses is another nightmare in and of itself.

[Tyke]

Apple's chances of serious growth in the education market will only come about with cheap portable hardware for students.

Look at the Maine project, that is a serious success story for Macs in education, but not every school board has $50Mil lurking in a closet.

The whole concept of a tablet is a laptop using the cheapest, slowest, ie most power efficient components (runs all day), losing unnecessary features like optical drives custom engineered hinges, keyboards. It'll be a device thats supported either through a schools wireless infrastructure (WiFi) or a home users existing Mac ie. Docking. Something that is designed more for the digestion of knowledge than the creation. OS X is probably a shoe in as there just ain't enough developers to support this market.

As someone else mentioned, just like the StarTrek pads, except slightly thicker and including a hard drive.

Price range 100-150 $ less than the lowest ibook. With a bit more discount for the huge Education orders Apple will expect from this. Sorry i just don't think they'll ever bet the mass market and take on Palm at the $200 mark.

Cheers from the Tyke...

[Toe]

Mac Whispers now says (http://www.envestco2.com/macwhispers/archives/000047.php) that the 5"x7"x1" case has an opening "that effectively includes one entire face" of the enclosure.

This sounds more and more like a tablet.

I have those little, yellow, lined paper tablets that look like mini legal-pads. I just measured one and found that it is 5"x7" (excluding the binding at the top). Hm!

[uMacsoiMac]

Here's an idea I thought of before, but there really wasn't a platform that would do it justice. The Mac Tablet, however, would be absolutely perfect! *** Apple, are you listening? ***

How many times have you made a list on your palm (handspring in my case) of things you want to buy the next time you are at WalMart, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.? But, a week later when you actually go there, you've got so much going on that you forget that you even made that list. What if your spiffy new Apple Tablet either had a built-in GPS receiver (or had the capability to add one via an expansion slot like a Visor) and you could receive reminders based on your LOCATION!

You could either add new locations via lat/long, or when you are out and about you could say I am at XYZ store. Then you could create a list or reminder that says hey, the next time I'm at Home Depot don't forget to pick up some super glue and more AAA batteries.

What do you think -- would you buy it?

-- Scott

[jethroted]

Well I made a "prototype" of this device out of pictures of ipods/imacs/ibooks. laid them out in quark, and printed and folded it together. It looks cool, but it doesn't look like it will be able to fit an optical device of any kind. :( I really want to be able to rip music and movies on it. I'll post pictures of it when I get home.

[jethroted]

Here is a crappy mock up I made in photoshop. The actual one I made and printed looks more to scale. Again, I'll post it when I get home.

[jethroted]

OK, I made it home, and here is my "prototype". I'd like to see how close this is to what actually comes out.

[jethroted]

#2

[Thanatoast]

Of course, you couldn't hold it with your thumb like that, how hard is it to hold in the palm of your hand? Is it comfortable? That'll be a big issue.

[jethroted]

Originally posted by Thanatoast
Of course, you couldn't hold it with your thumb like that, how hard is it to hold in the palm of your hand? Is it comfortable? That'll be a big issue.

Well it really depends on how much space is along the edge of the screen. My sample is 5x7x1, but I guessed on how much border there would be to hold on to. I think it needs a bit more. I know it means a smaller screen, but you do have to be able to hold it.

[Mlobo01]

The picture shows one of the factors I was faced with, which is the Border of the item, it can be somewhat wider in order not to get the fingers on the screen, holding or touching the screen too much just to hold it will cause problems over time and the sensitivity may diminish?
but I do like the size, I was at circuit city and saw the Latest Sony Clie, with a digital camera and flip screen mounted (4x(.75)x6) an amazing item with features to compliment its classical Sony design ideology. The only thing that deppreciated this product was the garish Windows OS, that distanced me right away from the PDA.
But keep on designing, someone eventually will get it close enough. kindly Mario

[Hawthorne]

Originally posted by Mlobo01

but I do like the size, I was at circuit city and saw the Latest Sony Clie, with a digital camera and flip screen mounted (4x(.75)x6) an amazing item with features to compliment its classical Sony design ideology. The only thing that deppreciated this product was the garish Windows OS, that distanced me right away from the PDA.
But keep on designing, someone eventually will get it close enough. kindly Mario

According to Sony's website (http://www.sony.com) their Clie devices use Palm OS. Now, it's a more vibrant/garish version than what my Handspring uses, but it is Palm.

[Mlobo01]

I think its great to see it in 3D, Can you try and connect a wire to the false ports on the side, even if its with tape to see how it feels while its connected? And do you think the port can be at the bottom using the position you are holding
the prototype? or on the other side? and see how it handles or looks? I think you may have started a trend, I may build one and post my observations, but I will look out for yours.
About the Palm OS; it looks fiendishly like XP
so I didnt look at it closely, I never delt with Palm but the colors need to be toned down a bit.
One thing about the Pdas width is that they are narrow enough that you can hold them by the edges in the standard portrait mode, thats why touching the screens is kept to a minimal, on a 5 or 7 inch width plus 1 inch depth, its necessary to hold it using your thumb or if you keep the thumb on the border being narrow, would it be akward? I think if its kept in Horizontal mode like you have in the pic + adding half an inch to just that side making a total of 1 inch on that side alone, that would keep the screen large enough and you would only loose about 3/5 of an inch diagonally and you would get a better hold on it? thanks for all Mario

[d46799]

The whole tablet thing is a *bad idea*. The fact that Microsoft came out with this first should tell us something. Its roughly laptop sized, yet without a keyboard?! That would be like Ford coming out with a car without a steering wheel, breaks, or accelerator....you can call that bold and innovative, or you can call it stupid. Tablet might still be somewhat functional for a small number of people that don't know how to type and don't care to learn, but I'd never use it, nor would anybody who routinely does things such as: e-mail, word processing, spreadsheets, graphic design/typography, etc. I might understand if it was meant to be a carry-along, portable device that fits easily in your pocket, but the tablets I've seen don't have the portability of the Palm, so just what is the purpose? Its just a bad idea! Leave it to MicroShaft to come up with this crap. Let them get the shaft on this one. We don't need laptops without keyboards.

[Mlobo01]

the idea here is to get a notion of what Apple might develop if they decide to go forth on any type of tablet product and not whether its a good one or not, anyone can say any product is not a good idea until they find an use for it then they are the firsts ones buying it, the winning factor in any product Apple develops will always be the superior OS and the apps that will come with it, Apple doesnt have that resistance
to any idea, for example;with the fruit colored iMacs 2 years ago they re-invented the desktop and many are still trying to follow up ( the all-in-one concept ) Im sure someone said at the time;"that will never work, its this and that", in the end its hard to determine what will be a hit or miss. we are just fans speculating on a possibility, which in itself is fun. I dont do product development but doing sketches on photoshop and sharing ideas has made me learn something, whether its about sculpture,drawing, science etc. It has shifted my perspective somewhat. Any pda out there has all the features we've discussed here, you can go out there and obtain it today, but what would the Apple tablet have that will make me and you go buy it beside the apparent OS etc?and whether to use it as a tool or a toy, I think thats one of the directions of this thread. A really good question would be; should Apple not pursue this concept because the Insipids at MS came up with a big PDA re-named the Tablet and miss out on a hit like the iPod? OR should Apple try and in the end make something outstanding?
They do that everyday! just look at iTunes, can someone really say" I prefer Windows Media Player! after experiencing clarity, functionality and elegance?. Im sure if Apple develops this Tablet it will be a Phenomenal product! they have always surprised everyone and brought innovation to the table at the same time. We are curious as to how they will solve some of the knick knacks we've been addressing here.
Peace Mario

[jethroted]

Originally posted by d46799
The whole tablet thing is a *bad idea*. The fact that Microsoft came out with this first should tell us something. Its roughly laptop sized, yet without a keyboard?! That would be like Ford coming out with a car without a steering wheel, breaks, or accelerator....you can call that bold and innovative, or you can call it stupid. Tablet might still be somewhat functional for a small number of people that don't know how to type and don't care to learn, but I'd never use it, nor would anybody who routinely does things such as: e-mail, word processing, spreadsheets, graphic design/typography, etc. I might understand if it was meant to be a carry-along, portable device that fits easily in your pocket, but the tablets I've seen don't have the portability of the Palm, so just what is the purpose? Its just a bad idea! Leave it to MicroShaft to come up with this crap. Let them get the shaft on this one. We don't need laptops without keyboards.

I don't think this item is going to be for typing kind of apps. I would bet this will be a web browsing/music listening/movie watching device. things that don't really need typing skills. It will probably come with a dock with a keyboard anyway.

[jethroted]

Originally posted by Mlobo01
I think its great to see it in 3D, Can you try and connect a wire to the false ports on the side, even if its with tape to see how it feels while its connected? And do you think the port can be at the bottom using the position you are holding
the prototype? or on the other side? and see how it handles or looks? I think you may have started a trend, I may build one and post my observations, but I will look out for yours.
About the Palm OS; it looks fiendishly like XP
so I didnt look at it closely, I never delt with Palm but the colors need to be toned down a bit.
One thing about the Pdas width is that they are narrow enough that you can hold them by the edges in the standard portrait mode, thats why touching the screens is kept to a minimal, on a 5 or 7 inch width plus 1 inch depth, its necessary to hold it using your thumb or if you keep the thumb on the border being narrow, would it be akward? I think if its kept in Horizontal mode like you have in the pic + adding half an inch to just that side making a total of 1 inch on that side alone, that would keep the screen large enough and you would only loose about 3/5 of an inch diagonally and you would get a better hold on it? thanks for all Mario

It's hard to get a feel for something when it has no weight. The cable really throws it off balance because it has more mass than my card paper box. So here is a picture of it with a cable anyways.

[jethroted]

woops, forgot the image!

[kainjow]

Looks like it will be called the iNote....

[jethroted]

Originally posted by kainjow
Looks like it will be called the iNote....

I called it "iTab" on the "prototype". I didn't know what else to call it.

[Toe]

Perhaps we're over-featuring by imagining an iBook without a keyboard or optical. Maybe it's just an iChat client...

jethroted, how long till that thing's due back at Blockbuster? :p

kainjow, why do you say iNote... is there a new rumor somewhere?

[Mlobo01]

http://www.spymac.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=18331&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500
Portrait mode, but still can be made horizontal way. less center of gravity! and thanks for the wire view. Mario

[kainjow]

Well on the article about Lindows laptop it compared it to the Apple iNote but they took all references to "Apple iNote" down from the article that was posted previously.

[Aaron]

Rather than comparing to the 'other' tablets why not do an 'Apple' type solution:

- 8.5 x 11 screen (or that dimension less printer margins)
- have it display a touch sensitive keyboard in data entry mode
- pressure sensitive for painting and the like
- bluetooth for external keyboard and mouse (along with a stand so you can use it as your desktop machine too!)
- wifi networking
- all features and functionality of a notebook except keyboard

Really all a tablet should be is something properly proportioned to replace a writing pad that allows multiple forms of entry, storage, and networking. In other words the bottom half of a notebook with the keyboard replaced by the screen.

Even better, from Apple's standpoint, other than the touch sensitive screen and some trivial programming for the touch sensitive keyboard application, they're just doing another notebook!

And in tune with their current naming scheme call the thing something like "iPad"

[Toe]

Is there such a thing as a foldable LCD? I know it has been conceived, but don't know if any are in production.

It seems like that'd be a great way to get a big screen into a small package.

As an alternative, how about two screens, one on each side of a clamshell? That way you could view on both screens (with a small gap for border), or the top could be a screen and the bottom a touch-keyboard. You could minimize the border gap by doing a fold-under like the iBook and latest PowerBooks.

[jethroted]

Originally posted by Toe
Is there such a thing as a foldable LCD? I know it has been conceived, but don't know if any are in production.

It seems like that'd be a great way to get a big screen into a small package.

As an alternative, how about two screens, one on each side of a clamshell? That way you could view on both screens (with a small gap for border), or the top could be a screen and the bottom a touch-keyboard. You could minimize the border gap by doing a fold-under like the iBook and latest PowerBooks.

I don't know about the folding LCD, but that dual LSD screen sounds cool.

[Toe]

Originally posted by jethroted
that dual LSD screen sounds cool. I guess that'd be the iTrip....
:D

[jethroted]

Originally posted by Toe
I guess that'd be the iTrip....
:D

Uh make that a LCD screen. :rolleyes: I'll leave that for fun.

[sr_con]

there is just one button on the device, it's transparent and the screen goes beneath it, letting it change behaviours and is also clickable.

[Matt The Moose]

I recently bought an ipaq. And then took it back due to pocket windows being bad to the point of unusable. There are two problems which plague the Palm/PocketPC.

1) They need an ugly screen protector

2) The OSs suck

To answer point 2 first; a possible "OSX-lite" metioned earlier could fly on a cheap, low-power underclocked G3, and adding a 1.8" Tosh HD would push the boundaries of the PDA market.

There was once a small British PDA manufacturer called Psion. Sadly they are no more, but that is another story... They made clam-shells which were highly robust, opening out to have a 16:9 aspect wide screen on one side of the hinge and a small-but-just-about-useable keyboard on the other. Apple could easily adopt this type of design; no ugly screen protector, and a built-in keyboard. The keyb is a bit small for typing large quantities, but foldables exist: adding bluetooth to them is no big deal.

To sell in viable quantities, it would (of course) sport everything the top-of-the-range ipaq/palm/whatevers have (802.11; bluetooth; IrDA, etc, etc) and more (firewire, HD, more RAM to name but a few) and cost $1000 or less. It would also have impeccable Windoze support, so that the M$ victims using them would stop and think "Hey, my PDA is easier to use than my PC. Next time I get a new computer, I'll consider a Mac."

I think it's feasable (mainly 'cos I want one), but the chances are pretty low. It'd be nice though, and very Apple. They could even have the glowing apple on the outside of the case :)

[Mlobo01]

This was done on photoshop 7.0 and its a combo of the different ideas presented on this thread
The left side of the tablet is slightly wider than the rest of the sides so you an hold on to it well,
independent Trash, so its out of the Dock, simple up and down volume or brightness control, I have a portrait mode too that i will post later. this size is not 5x7x1 as you can see by the size of the CD, but i think they can do a slot loading item, and using the drive usually found in iPods, or if its tray loading it will save mechanical issues. peace Mario

[Mlobo01]

This docking station is for the portrait mode, i think that if its connected to the computer its always more convinient to just drop it on the docking station, than to always look for the wire,
it keeps the workplace organized and like the iPod it can recharge at the same time, also it can be designed so this docking station has speakers or more ports, the tablet can have 2 input jacks like the fruit colored iMacs in case you wanna share music via headphones. Mario

[iSegway]

Personally, I am very much PRO tablet. I am a PC user but drool over Mac product design. I was extremely torn when i laid down a lot of cash for a top-of-the-line pc. I am an artist so it made it an especially tough decision. As I see it there are about equal positives and negatives for either decision... BUT, if Jobs were to set his boys to work on a tablet mac in the "slate" style, that was essentially the newest 17 inch powerbook G4 with the screen flipped over, I would go mac and never come back.

If Jobs really wanted to clinch the deal, he could find some way to make the "slate" style 17 in. powerbook G4 tablet wih an Oled screen to make an even thinner form factor. :D Just dreamin here.


BTW, I am very confused by the dimensions of this device, if it is intended to be some kind of tablet. It seems way too thick and way too small in length and width to be used to write on.

And finally... is it just me... or does a keyboard seem really archaic? There has got to be a better way. The thing I like about a tablet is that it is a more intuitive, or even intimate, way of interacting with a computer. As it is now with a keyboard and mouse you feel detached from the computer. If this means of interacting with a computer is explored and refined, i feel that in the not too distant future a mouse and keyboard will seem almost ridiculous. This is a post of mine from the recent voice recogniton thread that i feel applies here as well. It helps illustrate( ;0) ) some possibilities with a tablet.

"Ok, here is the problem... no one wants to write out all their emails by hand on a tablet pc, right?

Well, what if you used voice recognition and pen input together? Would both of these combined be better, or equivalent to typing?

Now keep in mind I have never used a voice recognition program so I don't know if they use a system like this or not.

So... here is what I envision..

Tablet pc using stylus for punctiation, either touch screen icons for comma, period, etc. etc.. Or you could manually write those puntuatationmarks in. This could also be used for odd(made-up) words or markings.

Now, VR is say 90% accurate, right? So how about if when you spoke each word, multiple words that were similar were displayed in a list below the words dictated? So you say "cat", the program types the word "chat" on the screen accidentally but lists several words that you could have meant underneath, in the order of probability. So, listed below Chat, is cat , flat, rat, spat, mat( these are just examples). So out of the list you would just touch the actual word with your stylus and it would be selected rather than the word accidentally dictated. This system still might be slow, I don't know.

Now, another idea I have that deals with background noise is a device that pilots use.... It is called a "throat mic". Pretty self explanatory right? It is a mike that is worn like a choker, you know those tight black band-like things that girls wear but with microphones built into it. This is used to get rid of the background noise of the aircraft motor. So why not use that for this application? I envision ultra sensitive mircophones built in these throat mics, so you could essentially whisper if you were around other people. This system might even be almost inaudible to someone around you at a coffee shop or at work or whatever. Now ideally this would be bluetooth enabled to get rid of those nasty cords. It could also have earphones coming off of the throat mic "choker" to your ears. I don't lnow if this could be made small enough to not look ridiculous while wearing it or not. Who knows, it might even beome fashionable! :P

A more unusual idea, and one that I am not aware of being tried, is to create an entire language that is ideally suited for voice recognition. Does anyone know if this has been toyed with? Would there be any benefits to trying something like this? Or are the problems more so with the speaker rather than the language itself? If a language could be created that made inaccuracies almost nonexistant, it could become an international language shared by all countries. I know... this idea is little far-fetched. :P"

[Mlobo01]

I was thinking the same thing aswell, why limit the experience to a pda type of product when you already have the initiate 17inch in which you can make into an users delight, im an illustrator that has been using a iMac DV for over a year, now and sweat the PowerMac g4, and the PB17, but a 17inch tablet would be the ultimate, but considering the clues about a smaller tablet or a new iPod, resolving issues in a small package makes everyone think harder than to actually say the tablet will be 17inch,
its much easier but you learn less. Ill post a new sketch later using the same sketch, but instead use a drawer for a possible trackpad and clicker
instead of the drive, or put the drive on top
(horizontal mode)or eliminate the drive altogether and stick with the 5x7x1 ratio given
Peace

[lavardera]

a 17" tablet would have plenty of room for a virtual keyboard at the bottom of the screen, a trackpad too!

[Toe]

Rumor has it that apple is close to releasing a bluetooth keyboard and mouse (http://www.envestco2.com/macwhispers/archives/000042.php). Although I can think of several cool keyboard designs for a tablet, the most ergonomic and lightest solution would be no keyboard. If you want to type... walk over to the nearest bluetooth keyboard, sync it up, and you're off.

Or, as we've said, activate a virtual keyboard in part of the display. With a 5x7, if it is turned horizontally, you can squeeze both hands onto it with some room to spare (or I can, at least). Even vertically, you can peck on a tiny keyboard, though it would be like... well, like those tiny keyboards on some current PDAs.

As for a 17" model, that sounds both expensive and fragile. I can't see a 17" tablet surviving unharmed for even a year in most peoples' hands. But Apple has shown an increasing willingness to produce multiple versions of portable devices with different features and sizes. Perhaps we could all have our perfect cake. Or perhaps Apple's releasing a new iPod and we're all just dreaming....

[iSegway]

As for a 17" model, that sounds both expensive and fragile. I can't see a 17" tablet surviving unharmed for even a year in most peoples' hands. But Apple has shown an increasing willingness to produce multiple versions of portable devices with different features and sizes. Perhaps we could all have our perfect cake. Or perhaps Apple's releasing a new iPod and we're all just dreaming....

I was thinking about this. What if the battery of the tablet(or any laptop) was not inside of the enclosure, but had a flat enclosure for itself. So imagine a battery in the shape and size similar to the LCD part of the 17 inch powerbook. So when you were not using the tablet you could just remove the battery from the bottom of the tablet and place it over the screen for protection? This might even allow for a modular type battery system. If you used your tablet(or laptop) for serious amounts of time during the day you could have multiple flat trays. So like 2 or 3 flat panels that stack on top of each other. If you didn't need that much power with you just use the one. If I'm not explaining this well enough let me know. lol

[jethroted]

You guys are missing the point. Steve jobs has said he DOES NOT like the tablet. He is NOT making a tablet here. Rather He is making a hybrid by mixing an ipod with a tablet to make a digital media device used for watching movies on the go, listening to music, and possibly surfing the net. It is too small to be much more. We are not likely to see a "Tablet" from Apple soon. If you want to burn movies/music and take them where ever you go, this should be the device for you. I will be getting one.

[Toe]

Originally posted by jethroted
...Rather He is making a hybrid by mixing an ipod with a tablet to make a digital media device used for watching movies on the go, listening to music, and possibly surfing the net.... You forgot iChat (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/02/20030227234459.shtml). With cameras being all the rage on mobile devices these days, wouldn't that be a coups if Apple produced a small media device that's also a video phone?

[jethroted]

Originally posted by Toe
You forgot iChat (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/02/20030227234459.shtml). With cameras being all the rage on mobile devices these days, wouldn't that be a coups if Apple produced a small media device that's also a video phone?

Well, that might be asking a bit much. It would be cool, except there would be no one to video phone with.

[robMaurizi]

I work with educational technology here at UVM and there was a presentation recently by a fellow from Motion Computing (selling tablets through Dell), and the response was HUGE...

All of the faculty who saw it were blown away by the ability to have something so small & flat that will run all of your classroom software (powerpoint, browsers, etc.) and be able to plug it into a projector, etc... Furthermore, it had the ability to push content directly to other tablets in the same room-- Imagine a professor with some slides on a screen that they're referring to, and they can push them to each student in the classroom at once!

Some of the folks here bought several of these tablets that day so that we can play with them and see how they really work... I'm pretty psyched to see them, but I know Apple can make something better than any Wintel manufacturer can make.

Apple has always been somewhat of a player in the education markets, but has been losing ground lately. A powerPad (iPad, iTab, powerTab, iCallItSomethingElse), offered at a good educational price (under $1000) would be a dynamite way to get right back into that market. Get them right into the hands of students & faculty alike, and they're blowing Windows' settlement out of the water :-)

Many of the recent developments in OS X point to this sort of thing: Inkwell, Rendezvous, AirPortX, Bluetooth point to something small & portable on the horizon, and this should really be it.

My $.02

-Rob

[iSegway]

You guys are missing the point. Steve jobs has said he DOES NOT like the tablet. He is NOT making a tablet here.

I don't think that is quite what he said. I thought he said something like 'who wants to write all their emails by hand' and he didn't know if people really wanted it. I just can't imagine Jobs saying 'oh yea, we are working on one right now - it is revolutionary!'. I am not that familiar with how he does things though. I thought he was very secretive about things that they plan. Am I wrong? Would he have said they were working on it at that moment?

When I watched the clip of him revealing the new 17 inch powerbook I couldn't help but feel that he wished he had something more revolutionary to reveal. Especially with the buzz for a mac tablet. My impression is that he feels like he missed the tablet boat a bit to even make the statements he did.


Rather He is making a hybrid by mixing an ipod with a tablet to make a digital media device used for watching movies on the go, listening to music, and possibly surfing the net. It is too small to be much more. We are not likely to see a "Tablet" from Apple soon. If you want to burn movies/music and take them where ever you go, this should be the device for you. I will be getting one.

I just don't understand having all these seperate devices. The ipod, a laptop, and whatever this is. Who watches movies on the go?

Wouldnt you much rather have a full on laptop/tablet than this 5 by 7 thing? Wouldn't you rather have a really small Ipod rather than this 5 by 7 thing? You might be right about Jobs not being sold on a tablet and this is just a half-hearted effort to appease mac faithuls that do want such a device. Unfortunately I feel this doesn't really please anyone.

Does anyone have any idea what a device like this might cost?

[Mlobo01]

touchpad & clicker in a drawer feature, it can be possible to write on it or use a keyboard that shoots from underneath aswell, ill work on that sketch later. peace

[avus]

I am not sold on the whole idea of Tablet PC, as I can control interface or input data faster by a keyboard and a mouse (or track pad) than a tablet. However, I would like to have an Apple notebook that is truly portable - about half the weight of the current Powerbook 12 inch. So, I welcome ANY Apple devices that measure at 5x7x1.

Another company which isn't on the "Tablet PC" bandwagon is Sony (one reason is that Sony is so pissed at MS - not just from the XBox, but MS's attempt to control consumer electronics in general with their crappy OS). However, I laughed at their attempt to make an user rotate a Vaio (7.1 inch model) 90 degree to the right, hold the unit at the bottom, AND use the right thumb to operate the joystick instead of the trackpad. My right hand almost hurts while looking at the picture, and this awkward arrangement will make left-handed folks REALLY happy, I am sure.

http://www.vaio.sony.co.jp/Products/PCG-U101/Images/feat2_img04.jpg

Apple can do better than this, can't they?

[iSegway]

Another company which isn't on the "Tablet PC" bandwagon is Sony (one reason is that Sony is so pissed at MS - not just from the XBox, but MS's attempt to control consumer electronics in general with their crappy OS).
That isn't a bad concept though. Why not just take all the power books and add an optional pen input screen? This would seem to please eveyone.
Personally I don't care about walking and writing at the same time. I am sure there are others that would, though. I just like the ability to draw with a pen directly on the screen, or navigate with a pen.
I am not sold on the whole idea of Tablet PC, as I can control interface or input data faster by a keyboard and a mouse (or track pad) than a tablet. However, I would like to have an Apple notebook that is truly portable - about half the weight of the current Powerbook 12 inch. So, I welcome ANY Apple devices that measure at 5x7x1.
Why would you like a device like this? Would you just like a really high quality PDA? What types of things would you want to use it for?

[Mlobo01]

I think that a Powerbook is just too superior to all laptops out there and pdas and tablets that its interesting that we are asking for something smaller and more portable, for one I woudnt mind carrying a powerbook 15inch, It has everything you can ever need, even a dvd-burner! seriously how heavy is 4 pounds or so?
or how uncomfortable is a laptop to carry? we are falling into the Sony ideology that all electronics have to be reduced to the size of a cigarrette box! too small or too portable is not necesarilly better! its not always practicle and it leads to questionable battery mentallity, just a quick look on the craftsmanship of a PB and you know instantly its a superior product! now the inside counts too, wether its OS 9 or X, its still stable enough to be clasiified as a true OS, but if a smaller item is made be sure it will be as well divised as the PB, the notion that most people dont want to write their emails is a matter of personal practice, Gameboy has been around for years and it only has 4 buttons and a direction wheel but its been very popular and functional and of course it uses no keyboard nor joystick but this has never stopped its success even with the advent of xbox, sega and playstations which are vastly better machines. the point being is that if Apple makes something like a tablet it will a product that will find users, thats the pattern
of all apple products, i.e what was the use of an iPod 10 years ago when there was no Mp3s nor cd-w? so when mp3s were rising Apple came out with the 5G iPod! instead of a miserly 128mb player, I have in my collection 2Gs worth of favorite music of all time, I would have room plus more. That was then, and its only now when all companies are catching up, making iPod wanna-bes, that was a visionary idea, so this might be aswell, and thats what we have in our collective Apple psyche, that these products are forward oriented, that is what causes the perplexity and the hype. Thanks Mario

[iSegway]

I think that a Powerbook is just too superior to all laptops out there and pdas and tablets that its interesting that we are asking for something smaller and more portable, for one I woudnt mind carrying a powerbook 15inch, It has everything you can ever need, even a dvd-burner! seriously how heavy is 4 pounds or so?

I think it is more about how you can carry such a device and how durable it is. How comfortable it is to carry.

The problem I have is needing all these seperate devices that do the same thing to various degrees but share many of the same components. I believe that Computers need to become more modular. Rather than having four seperate devices that have many redundant components that are various sizes, I believe that need to find a way that gets rid of the redundancy.

cell phone
digital camera
digital camcorder
Ipod
PDA
8 by 7 inch tablet uber-PDA, mini notebook
Notebook
Full power home pc
high quality monitor
big screen television

All of these devices share almost the exact same components.

I would like to see someone come along and design a whole digital lifestyle that got rid of this redundancy as much as possible.

The most important thing is ths, if this was perfected it could replace every monitor in every device.MicroOpticalWearable display (http://www.microopticalcorp.com/Products/HomePage.html) MicroOptical prototype (http://www.electronicsweekly.co.uk/issue/techview.asp?vpath=/articles/2002/11/06/tech04.htm)

[Mlobo01]

I did this sketch on PS7 last week for fun as a screensaver on Spymac...

[iSegway]

LOL

Nice art work you have been showing us here.

[Mlobo01]

I started some of these as exercises in photoshop, I have posted some on spymac and I have learned a lot from the feedback from everyone, not only about photoshop but in product design etc, I know that some of these threads can get very heated and emotional
but I wouldnt have it any other way, we all love these machines, they are our toys or tools, for myself I wish I can make a living of my machine and leave my airport job as a parttime, but thats my goal for the future. To me this Tablet item is a puzzle I would like to solve, I would like to come very close to it if it comes out, just for kicks. I would love to have the 20 or the 23 inch display, to do my art in, Im a classical painter and a very private artist, I dont think I could ever enjoy working on a document seen through some eyewear gadget nor do I like to do my art outside, the more stuff you put together the more things can go wrong, I dont always use my cellphone, nor camera, Im very specific in my activities, Aesthetically speaking I dont like my phone looking like a early 80s phone nor my camera like a kids slide 3D viewer, Sony is very adept in compressing all these items and still making it look good, but Sony does not have an OS, we all know that, whats the likelyhood that Sony and Apple ever contribute so at least we get a decent looking item?(if its an item that incorporates many) who knows, we know the OS on it would not be an issue. For now the tablet item is the subject for speculation and investigation,which is the nature of this thread, its like trying to guess what are we getting for Christmas. I think the initial stages of any product design looks something like these threads, some negative some positive, I appreciate all. Mario

[Sherif Iskander]

Peeps,

One of my very few posts here. but I figured maybe if we look for what problem a tablet would solve we could be close. Imagine this. A small 5X7 tablet that includes WiFi, Bluetooth and a decent sized Hard Disk. You would pair this tablet with all your computers and cell phones. On it's hard disk would be all your docs and folders. You can use it a standalone device remote control screen, or Home Directory for your paired computers. So picture this. You walk into your office, put this tablet on a charger somewhere and use it as an external disk thorugh WiFi. You're on a train, your powerbook is in your briefcase, but this tablet let's you access it without bringing it out. You're at home watching TV, want to check your mail, this tablet let's you check it through your iMac in the den. In a few words this tablet would hold all your data, act as an extrernal hard disk for your desktop, laptop, digital camera and iTunes. It would also act as a simple browser, MPS player etc in standalone mode as well as provide remote access for your computing resources at home or the office.. Guess this would be taking this tablet paradigm one step further... Just my 2c worth..

[MacCoaster]

Originally posted by dongmin
Apple definietly should not get into the Tablet market. Why? Because everyone has a different idea of what they want to do with it.

-Some people just want a laptop without the keyboard. What's the point? Others want a detachable screen, but is it even possible to send video signals wirelessly?

-Some people want a PDA with all the useless software that PDAs come with. There's a reason the PDA market is shrinking.

-Some people want a tablet for drawing on, for which they have a thing called the wacom tablet.

-Some people want something cheap, in the $500-800 range. Others are willing to shell out $1200-2000.

There is simply no clear and defined demand. The reason the iPod is so successful is because it addressed a very specific need and addressed it very well. People want to add all these extra features to the iPod--like a color screen, video playback, touch-screen, etc.--but those extra features will add a level of complexity, bulk, and cost that will compromise the design and useability of the iPod.
That is the beauty of Windows XP Tablet PC Edition along with the myriad tablets we have.

Alias has a sketching app for Tablets. Those artists who use that app is probably using some Tablets that do without keyboards.

Some prefer twist-into-a-laptop-and-back-to-a-tablet to have the best of both worlds.

You have SO MANY options.

[Mlobo01]

I wrote before that ten years ago the iPod would of been useless, since Mp3s were non exsistent, when mp3s where getting a little more popular and people began to see the brilliance of them, Apple decided to build a player with not 128mbs of memory but with 5gigs of storage, thats a massive amount of storage even in todays standards for an mp3 player. The point is that this item however ambivalent people might be about it has the potential to be a forward oriented product similar to the iPod, that this thread had gone long enough is evidence that it is stirring a lot of emotions. Whats more perplexing is the resistance to this product, its like if this item not yet created has so much power over me or you? 15 years ago when some of us where enjoying the tick-tock of Word or the banality of Pong, who knew that we where going to enjoy iTunes?, who was it that demanded speakers on their computers otherwise they would'nt proceed a step further inputing data into their dumb terminals? items like these always find users. I was at CompUSA today and got a chance to see one of those generic tablets, what a waste of energy, but I bet you someone finds it amazing or even functional?, I dont, specially after experiencing the Power book, but there are those out there that find paintings of Elvis on velvet to be outstanding pieces of art? when you get exposed to something good you learn. From the primitives of MS we got a tired overgrown pda, from Apple we can expect a Future-geared item, that is if they build it, if not Im more than happy with the items we have now, which are years ahead of anything MS can dish out of their o'erteemed wombs. Peace Mario:cool:

[Toby O Notoby]

Picture of the iTablet!!

http://www.techimo.com/photo/showphoto.php?photo=3318&size=big&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500

Of course, it's not made by Apple and runs on windows, but it's still an iTablet.

[Mlobo01]

and I mean that in a condescending way, The only thing going for them is the translucent case
but the craftsmanship is shotty, the black border has no purpose, and to boot its running the crayola OS (pun intended), a poor imitation of the iMac flat panel, this is from people who do not have any taste and have design issues, sorry you can name it "i" whatever its still not a paletteable dish for me. you psyched me out, I thought you obtained a pic of the real thing! I seen this posted on spymac.com. But thanks anyway for posting a reference for us to expect better than.
Peace

[MacKid]

Just my quick whimsical fantasies, but I would really like to see a true "mini-pc". I know Apple dissed them when releasing the 12-inch PB, praising the fact that it's so small with so many features, but I would like one of those types, in real Apple style, with the same computer-cropped-to-keyboard style in the 12-inch, while taking out everything but AirPort Extreme, BlueTooth, and FireWire, so that I can transfer quick files back and forth between my computer and the "Mini", and for larger files, I have the FireWire, and for quick printing or syncing a PDA or whatever, I have the BlueTooth. I am sick and tired of having to dig and heave, pulling out my old fat iBook 300MHz and plopping it on my desk, then hardly being able to see the professor. I would really like just a simple "Mini", no bigger than the PB-sized keyboard, and running OS X (or some version minus some of the eye-candy, if necessary).


Sorry, my first post in a long time and I just wanted to get that out. . . :eek:

[Winston Smith]

Take a look at mac very interesting news......http://www.spymac.com

[Mlobo01]

Best news yet, please go back and read some of my posts and sketches...

[cubist]

Because Spymac doesn't have any way to reference an article with an URL, their top story tomorrow may be something else, and people looking at this thread ("The thread that wouldn't die") will not know what we're talking about:
From Spymac:
Apple Tablet to compete in new Home Portable market

Apple is developing a consumer-level tablet system...

The unnamed tablet system -- featuring an 8.4" backlit TFT-display and built-in Airport Extreme -- will be marketed as a 'Home Portable' ... battery life is said to be targeted for up to five hours and the unit is operated via touchscreen and displayed keyboard. A docking station, which will include an external keyboard and mouse, will be available for an additional charge.

Current prototypes are wrapped in a dull black casing and feature an Infra-Red port, though such capability is said to be for internal use and will most likely not make it to production. ...


If this is too much of a quote, perhaps one of the moderators can chop it down and/or provide an URL to the article.

[cubist]

At any rate, with a battery life of a mere 5 hours, this is definitely not a PDA... tho many of us may use it as one!

[reyesmac]

If this device does not allow the user to easily play MAME arcade games on it or any other console emulation programs, it will fail.
Just imaging how cool it would be to carry around a device that would let you play any arcade video game you ever liked.

[Winston Smith]

So this morning I post a link to Spymac tonight I discover page one is seriously lacking and MacWhispers http://www.envestco2.com/macwhispers/archives/000053.php
has detailed info AND its in production then Looprumours has more: http://www.looprumors.com/

Whats more read these two links and Spymac (get there before its gone!)
and I think you'll all agree you read it here first:D

[cubist]

Winston Smith?

Perhaps I should reregister as Emmanuel Goldstein.

[mangoman]

Ahhh, the ol' PDA rumors... Just wish they were true..

[Winston Smith]

Originally posted by cubist
Winston Smith?

Perhaps I should reregister as Emmanuel Goldstein.

Doubleplusgood

[Sun Baked]

People should be excited with the rumors swirling around product intro near WWDC... :rolleyes:

Now there are two products rolling out soon according to ... there is one entering production and one in final supplier bidding.

Strange when Apple has just tossed a couple of products out the door recently with little fanfare.