Apple Tablet Computer?

[SiliconAddict]

No, why is this the case. Have we all forgotten about handwriting recognition. One can input text quite quickly with good handwriting recognition. .

The problem with handwriting recog is, as I've described it to some pro tablet PC friends, is that its bandwidth limited in terms of how fast you can input data. You write a line..then you have to wait for it to translate into text. Even if that is 1/2 a second the combined time you can scribble it still slower then a person who can type say an average of 30-40 words per second. MS gets around this by NOT converting into typed text (You can convert it though but by default it doesn't; a really half***ed approach of you ask me. I have yet to meet anyone who would rather decipher a person’s handwriting in an e-mail rather then read plain text. Ooops that quote for that land lor your new factory was actually a 9 instead of a 3. Sorry about that.

No where things will get interesting is voice recog. You CAN speak faster that one types or writes. But there is the obvious problem of do you really want to talk to your computer in public. Type out a document on a plane by talking and you more likely to get shoved out of the plane at 35,000 feet. That and the tech and system speed just isn’t there yet. Its close. I have IBM’s via voice on my computer here. I’ve dictated entire books out so I can have it on my Pocket PC in Palm reader format and it works pretty dang well after you train it. But you obviously get weird looks from your friends who show up and find you reading to yourself.

Those neural interface chips, iPlant?, can't come soon enough.

 

[Tulse]

If Steve really understood consumers.... Then Apple would not have languished at the bottom of the Computer manufactures in sales for their entire existence as a company.... 3 to 5 % market share.... WOW

You do realize that Jobs left the company in 1985, and didn't return until 1997? I hardly think the marketshare problem can be laid at his feet -- certainly Apple has developed far more respect and credibility since his return.

And as far as getting killed in the cell phone/pda market how could they possibly get killed any worse than they do in the desktop market.

Ask Palm how well things are working out in the PDA market. There is practically no one making money in that segment. Meanwhile, in spite of its market share, Apple routinely makes a profit.

Steve is not a god, and he has made some boneheaded decisions in the past. But staying out of the PDA market is not one of them.

 

[SallyWattle]

All things are possible

Online music was not much of a market which no one would invest in. Apple made it it's own. I think apple may be the only company to make a tablet computer a success.

 

[ArticulatedArm]

Now where things will get interesting is voice recog. You CAN speak faster that one types or writes. But there is the obvious problem of do you really want to talk to your computer in public. Type out a document on a plane by talking and you more likely to get shoved out of the plane at 35,000 feet. That and the tech and system speed just isn’t there yet. Its close. I have IBM’s via voice on my computer here. I’ve dictated entire books out so I can have it on my Pocket PC in Palm reader format and it works pretty dang well after you train it. But you obviously get weird looks from your friends who show up and find you reading to yourself.

I have a possible solution to this. I really think it could work.

Have you heard of a throat mic? They are used on small airplanes to keep the noise of the engine out while talking. It is like a choker with a mic built in. I think if this was designed properly and made ultra sensitive you could speak to your computer with the slightest whisper. You would also need to sheild the mics from outside voices -- to prevent other voices from being picked up by your computer -- but it seems doable.

Combine this with the pen input i mentioned before to edit mistakes while dictating and I think this could far surpass even keyboards as a method of controlling your computer and inputing information.

 

[ebunton]

I dispute this, because everyone gets hung up on the term PDA. Of course Apple aren't going to make a PDA, every damn phone is a PDA now. But then, every phone is soon going to become an mp3 player too, harddrives are coming to phones next year, and convergence will inevitably continue.

The iPod as a stand-alone device cannot compete long term with phones that can also play mp3s. Phones will eat the iPod just like they ate the PDA, no matter that they won't be as good, for the same reason - People have to carry a phone!

Apple knows this, thus the current deal with Motorola to put an iTunes variant on their phones.

The real issue is this: over the next 5 -10 years, a single device is going to emerge that is handheld, has a decent hard drive, definitely is a phone as well as a wireless internet capable device, connects wirelessly to most things and probably generally plays media and stores files. That's all Joe Blow will be carrying in 5-10 years, not five different freaking devices.

They may or may not still call it a "phone", but it will be much much more than that.

And I expect Apple wants a share of that market, because Apple has the design/interface smarts do it better. Constrained dimensions/powersupply call for elegant solutions, just as the iPod is an elegant solution.

Its not about making an "Apple" mp3 player or a phone or pda, its about the whole emerging handheld computing/media/communication device market, and whether Apple wants to build long term on the success of the iPod.

Great post... you have vision. iPod won't last forever... probably not even the next few years... certainly not only with the functions it has at the moment.
however, the question is whether this mystery screen is that replacement. I guess this next generation product needs the best qualities of a mobile phone, digital music player as well as those expected in today's pdas and more. Now, that said, I don't think that the screen is the answer.
Maybe the iPod in the next few generations will transform into the iPod/Phone/PDA. I can't see how Apple would release a remote control for Airtunes. I hypothesize that there is a very small market for a fancy remote control. however, a more useful multifunction device which can function as a remote, among other things, seems feasible... as long as there's demand for it. So what the heck is this tablet thingy?

 

[SiliconAddict]

Ask Palm how well things are working out in the PDA market. There is practically no one making money in that segment. Meanwhile, in spite of its market share, Apple routinely makes a profit.

Steve is not a god, and he has made some boneheaded decisions in the past. But staying out of the PDA market is not one of them.

Tell that to HP. They are doing DAMN well with their iPaq line of PDA's. (Never mind that I think the up coming line is going to bomb because of internal company reasons but that's another discussion for another day.)
The people who call the PDA dead are probably the same people that said Apple was dead 10 years ago. They are article writers who know are so in tune with tech that some routinely call iPaq's Palms.
Palm is making crap products in the PDA world. Not only that but you are getting more hardware for your buck from the Pocket PC and the end result is simple. People are buying cheapo PPC’s instead. I hope that song sounds familiar to Mac users because its starting to happen with Palm. The big diff is with smartphone. Palm may make a 90* turn to avoid what has happened to Apple. (Apple has done this with the iPod but too late to really snatch back any major PC market share.) Time will tell who will win in the end but I’m not overly confidant in Palm. They have made some seriously STUPID business decisions over the last four years. (Again sounds like Apple in some regards.)

 

[Squire]

Great post... you have vision. iPod won't last forever... probably not even the next few years... certainly not only with the functions it has at the moment.
however, the question is whether this mystery screen is that replacement. I guess this next generation product needs the best qualities of a mobile phone, digital music player as well as those expected in today's pdas and more. Now, that said, I don't think that the screen is the answer.
Maybe the iPod in the next few generations will transform into the iPod/Phone/PDA. I can't see how Apple would release a remote control for Airtunes. I hypothesize that there is a very small market for a fancy remote control. however, a more useful multifunction device which can function as a remote, among other things, seems feasible... as long as there's demand for it. So what the heck is this tablet thingy?

Speaking of phones/remote controls, there are already a few lines of 'smart' appliances here that can be controlled via cell phone. One very "cool" application (excuse the pun) is cell phone-controlled air conditioners made by Samsung and LG. On your way home from work, call up your A/C and set it to temperature x. When you walk through the door, you don't have to sweat your ass off.

Back to the tablet.

What if an iMac could be used with this docking screen, with a cinema display, or both? They could sell a headless iMac or sell the screen alone. Some might opt for the iMac first then, when hooked, splurge on the accompanying tablet or another Apple display. Others (i.e. iPod-using PC users) might go for the tablet to whet their Apple appetite and, once addicted to the style and simplicity, go for a complete system.

Crazy?

Squire

 

[EvanAgee]

New iMac design?

This may be a stretch, but here goes...

So, the new iMacs are supposed to be an all-in-one design where the computer itself is mounted to the back of the display, right? So, what if this is the new iMac and there's an additional piece, a base that goes with it to hold it upright? I may be wrong, but who knows. It makes sense for them to model it after the style of the iBook.

What does everyone else think?

 

[ArticulatedArm]

You mean the display is wireless, right?

If so, I think that is a great idea. It is only a matter of time before this is how all flat panel computers are. People don't want to be chained to a desk to use there computers anymore.

The only reason I can see why this couldn't be used now is because of the price of a wireless feature and battery life -- the bane of human existence.

 

[nmk]

You write a line..then you have to wait for it to translate into text. Even if that is 1/2 a second the combined time you can scribble it still slower then a person who can type say an average of 30-40 words per second

I'm sure you mean 30-40 words per minute. Anyway, the Newton could convert entire sentences to text in about a second, and that was six years ago. Apples handwriting recognition was far superior back then to anything that exists today. So you can't compare it to any contemporary products you may have recently tried by MS and gang. I haven't used inkwell, but I'm assuming it must be much faster than the Newton was. Anyway, like I said, I type at about 70 wpm, and I still find handwriting recognition convenient.

 

[zed2]

Why do we care about how fast you can write on the PDA?

If I was going to a meeting and knew that I Was to take notes using this iPADD then I would simple take a bluetooth keyboard with me or a USB one.

If Apple bring such a device to the world you can be sure that it would have bluetooth built in and support Apples own Bluetooth keyboard.

Of course I would still want to be able to enter data directly on the device but I think that would be a minimum, which is what I do for my Palm, otherwise I plug in the Palm keyboard and type away.

Cheers,

--Zed

 

[Smurfman]

Why will this work?? One Word: iPod

The tablet didn't work for anyone else, why would it work for Apple?

I think Apple is going for a different approach to the market share issue by utilizing popularity of the iPod and creating a Mac OS X device that is integrated with the iPod.

That is why this device (whatever it is) will work.

Awesome strategy, I think!

 

[Swinny]

I think it will a ipod/ibook thingy, aimed at kids, for email, making notes (inkwell should be easier than typing on a callular), playing music and video, 40Mb HD, wifi for streaming, IR remotecontrol for about $499

I'm with you on this 717!

Whats the main point in Wifi networks beyond moving about the house with ya laptop? Making a no hassle home network between all the computers in the house of course...at home we have one "server" machine that feeds the network wirelessly to 4 other computers...so file sharing, printer sharing etc is all very easy, and we didn't have to route cables all through the house, buy hubs blah blah blah and its all totally movable and hassle free...taking my family as a guide, at any one time my mum can be online on the PC downstairs ordering the weekly shop, my elder brother is surfing his car forums on his machine, i'm surfing/working on my machine and my younger brother is chatting/doing homework...we are rather lucky that we have 5 machines that can all be used at once so i'm never waiting for someone to finish playing a game or whatever before i can get 5 minutes on the PC to do some research etc...but 5 computers ain't cheap, and all that processing power is completly redundant considering that my iMac is the only machine ever used "in anger" (say iMovie editing, iDVD or something) and the rest are basically just web browsers/word processors!

A house buys its main "server" machine (ie an iMac G5 or Power Mac) which can serve media files etc...airport express handles all the net connections (with the server computer having control over access rights, setting iTMS song purchase limits per week etc)...the "tablets" themselves just look like widescreen iPods (why change such an iconic design that kids would love?) with an elongated dock that connects to keyboard/mouse to make a mini desktop - but can detach to work as a touchscreen tablet (and remote etc)...powerful enough to do word-processing (new cut-down Appleworks?), web, emailing, play audio/videos etc - but nowhere near as expensive as buying a full blown Laptop/Desktop for each kid...they could also easilly link to iPods for personal storage, be taken into school/college as work machines, and no doubt lots of other applications i haven't thought of.

...people talk so much about Apple having to make a cheap "Mac for the people", and how this should be a headless upgradeable iMac...but i'm not so sure. I think this thin-client approach would be great...the parents get a more powerful machine through which they can do everything you'd expect with a modern computer, and the Kids can have an "iMac mini" each to do their chatting/surfing/homework.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

Reading the posts here, it seems that there is a market for an "iPad" type of device. The Windows based units (I seriously thought about them) failed IMO because they too expensive, and offered nothing more than some of the less computers out there did.

Apple has a great history in reaching the consumers mind-share. Leading the technology. They had one of the first "consumer" digital cameras. They had one of the most advanced PDA's (Newton). SCSI and FW, found a home first on Apple.

Now with the iPod, they have defined what MP3 players should and can be. With an "iPad" they can do the same. With Airport Express, the iPad can be the controlling interface. In the past tablet computers were designed to replace the traditional computer. The answer for me and others is to have something that would be a bridge between the two.

 

[silvergunuk]

I Like You, You Like Me?

Anyone else heard of this Morphpad thing from Apple thats doing the rounds on the net?

 

[cryptochrome]

Granted, this idea makes a LOT of sense. Being able to just pick the screen up off your desk and take it anywhere in the house or nearby would be incredibly useful. As long as you have a built in prop to let it sit vertically, a power jack to charge it and extend its use off-desktop, and a USB port or two for keyboards and other controllers, you're set.

Indeed, the idea is a bit TOO obvious. And the problem is the obvious hardware limitations. Batteries are OK - but the bandwidth is not. I am not an expert on how displays work, but I do know they have dedicated cables because they're receiving signal (data) continuously, with zero latency and zero tolerance for collisions. Massive amounts of it. 802.11g couldn't possibly keep up with the raw signal. You could modify that so it's only sending the updated parts of the screen like VNC, but even then there would be problems with lost packets and things like video or continous effects. You could build the graphics card and controller into the display and thus be sending the raw display commands, but even that may not be enough. And none of these solutions satisfy the latency and collision problem. Never mind how much they would slow down the rest of your wireless network.

Would it be possible to do a low-power one-way broadcast on an empty non-802.11 band, as raw serial display updates? (Possibly as an H.264 data stream, but then wouldn't there be a decoding lag?) Then you would just be using the 802.11g bandwidth for sending back data from the touchscreen and verifying display state. That would solve all of these issues, but I'm not sure if it's legal, or if there are good bits of empty spectrum.

 

[sinisterdesign]

Anyone else heard of this Morphpad thing from Apple thats doing the rounds on the net?

"Apparently the Morph Pad is a musical interface technology introduced at NAMM as noted by one of our guests in the comment section.]"
- from MacObserver

...had to look it up. sounded interesting...

 

[cremaster]

Apple brings old mac tech out of retirement in a new 2004 model

And for the last time, no it's not a Newton!

It's the new Duo / Duo Dock 2004! Same great idea from back in the day just with a new stylish packaging and updated specs...

chew on that - try not to laugh too hard.

 

[Chomolungma]

Solving working professional needs rather than creating a new problem

I hope the manufacture of "Tablet PC", was attemping to solve a "real" problem in the working world. With the current line of product, it is hard to imagine what kinds of problem they were trying to solve. Ultimately, this directly reflects the appeal and sales of their products.
Most will agree that there is a need (how much?) to transcribe what we write or draw into an efile e.g. it is natural for a doctor to take notes of a patient's condition, and have this readily available for a specialist across the country in minutes, or an employee who wants to avoid typing because it makes unnecessary noise in the board room. Writing is slower than typing off course, but it is by far more convient in most cases.
To solve this problem, I propose building a tool that resemble a notepad bound in a leather folder, which looks like a commonly use tool in most profession. The leather folder opens up with a writing/drawing pad on one side that will look like a typical notepad. The feel maybe slightly different. It should have a NORMAL size specialize pen in the pen holder. The other side of the leather will house the "computer", as well as pockets that can store papers (irony). This leather folder should weigh no more than 4 lbs, and should be tough enough for most daily mishaps. There are many more features that are needed e.g. wireless connection, but are too numerous to mention.
I think this product will be welcome by many students, doctors, lawyers among others. Is the present technology powerful enough to create such a tool? I think we'll eventually have a tool to make our work much easier, even in a twelve hour a day work day.

 

[SiliconAddict]

I type at about 70 wpm, and I still find handwriting recognition convenient.

Oops. Ya. I wish 30-40 per second.

Don't get me wrong. I have a PDA and find it very convenient to have. In the appropriate places such a a quiet board room where someone is talking the last thing the room needs is a clickity, clickity, click, click, click going on while someone is talking. HWR IS the way to go in that instance.
The thing OEM's NEED to understand is that voice/handwriting recog, and keyboards all have their place in this world. The company that reliably integrates all 3 into a device that is smallish (think 12" PowerBook type small.) rugged, sexy, and not price prohibitive is going to make a ton o cash. Apple needs to be that person but again I don't think the hardware is there yet and I KNOW the implementation in software isn't there. This is definately a job for Apple to lead the market in refining a slowly growing segment. MS once again doesn't get it and tablet PC sales show this. Its time for apple to pick up the ball and run with it. Then do a little jig. Then spike it in MS's face.

 

[webman2k]

I'm hoping it's something I've wanted for years - simply a wireless touch screen. While your main computer is on, you can use it to log into another account (on the same machine). It would use all of the hardware on the main computer, and just display on this wireless pad. Could be cheap. it only needs the wireless hardware and a nice touch screen. No hard drive, graphics card needed.

 

[SiliconAddict]

And for the last time, no it's not a Newton!

It's the new Duo / Duo Dock 2004! Same great idea from back in the day just with a new stylish packaging and updated specs...

chew on that - try not to laugh too hard.

I won't laugh because I really wish Apple WOULD bring back the docking station.

 

[bored13]

I for one would buy this mac/tabletPC in a split second. I would run alias sketchbook pro, painter and photoshop and not worry about taking a sketchbook with me wherever I go and pencils, markers, pens etc. For a person like me who wants to do some artwork on the go for character designs, sketches, ideas, studies... this would be amazing. I am sure there are many people out there who want something like this for the same reasons as me. For those who have paid attention apple has been making headway into the cg market and this would be a perfect and logical addtition to the tools they offer.

 

[fawlty]

Indeed, the idea is a bit TOO obvious. And the problem is the obvious hardware limitations. Batteries are OK - but the bandwidth is not. I am not an expert on how displays work, but I do know they have dedicated cables because they're receiving signal (data) continuously, with zero latency and zero tolerance for collisions. Massive amounts of it. 802.11g couldn't possibly keep up with the raw signal. You could modify that so it's only sending the updated parts of the screen like VNC, but even then there would be problems with lost packets and things like video or continous effects. You could build the graphics card and controller into the display and thus be sending the raw display commands, but even that may not be enough. And none of these solutions satisfy the latency and collision problem. Never mind how much they would slow down the rest of your wireless network.

But if the processor and disk are attached to the back of the screen, only the keyboard, mouse and network need to be wireless - kind of like a laptop with a wireless docking station.

 

[moosecat]

I won't laugh because I really wish Apple WOULD bring back the docking station.

The Duo was ahead of its time. In business (or at least in law offices, where I have worked), the laptop-docking station combination is now extremely popular.

So maybe it's time for another Duo. Or, as the Italians would say, Duo Due'.