Apple to Release Subsidized Tablet Through Verizon Later This Year?

[j5045096]

a tablet. so what. Remember all those tablet pentium 3's acer and Toshiba were pushing about 4 years ago? Never caught on. Apple will do it right though and have everybody wowed but what would you need it for anyway? You wouldn't take it everywhere. You wouldn't pull it out when you're bored at dinner. You wouldn't show your friends your funny iFart app and justify that as a reason for carrying it on you. I see two people who'd buy it: 1) people who don't need it and 2) people who own or want to own a Kindle-type device (closely related to people who don't need it).

the concept of the Kindle is kinda cool I guess but I could never own one. I can't write in it; bend it; fall asleep reading it and wake up to find drool on pages. Yeah it's awesome to have tons of books stored - an entire library but the thing isn't bulletproof. I would never take it out and sit at the beach or by a pool with it. I wouldn't stuff it in my backpack for a nice break on a long bikeride. ...so yeah I'll play with one at Best Buy or wherever but I'm not buying it. No different to me than this tablet which will undoubtedly be aimed at the Kindle and knowing America will be the hot item of Christmas 09 or 10 and you'll hear stories of people getting trampled on trying to buy it for their 4th grader.

 

[shawnce]

If anything...

I don't see an exclusive contract with Verizon but simply Verizon choosing to sell a subsidized Apple tablet with a data plan contract of 2 or so years. Likely AT&T would have the option to do a similar thing if they decided to also sell the Apple tablet subsidized. Also I don't expect a requirement for a wireless data plan for an Applet tablet since it will have WiF (of course it would be unsubsidized).

..of course who knows Apple's exact plans, if any at all (they may just be shopping around the idea to see if it makes business sense).

 

[mrobmsu]

The primary market for this device would be mac owners of other devices. This media pad would be an excellent additional interface device for a wide range of activities for people who already had a MacBook, iMac, apple tv for things like music/video creation etc.

I think its more likely that the tablet will be marketed to an audience that has not purchased Mac devices previously, much as the iPod/iPhone brought new consumers to the Apple brand. This may also be why Apple has chosen Verizon as the carrier, to expand their brand coverage to another service provider. Though I doubt very much the Verizon angle. . .

 

[mrgreen4242]

I'm tired of hearing Apple claim they can't sell a $4-500 netbook and "maintain the user experience". I have a Dell mini 9 hackintosh that runs WONDERFULLY. Even paying for the Box Set, it's a sub-$500 computer (with 2gb RAM and 32gb SSD), and that was last years pricing. The same money would buy you even more now/later this year.

That means Apple could sell it WITH iWork and get Dells profit margin PLUS $169, which is over 50% of the hardwawre cost. They could (and should) make a 10" Atom based netbook, offer just one model with 32gb SSD, 2gb RAM, Wifi/BT, webcam, etc and sell it for $499 and make a tidy profit. Call it a MacBook mini, go down to a single Mac mini model at the same price point (this $600 and $800 mini pricing is stupid, too - they started at $400 when they introduced that model and should have stayed there) and market them together. In fact, they should base them both on the Atom, but put the dual core atom in the desktop mini, along with a 2.5", optical drive, etc.

It's complete rubbish that they aren't doing this. All that said, I would love to see a ~6" media pad device based on OSX mobile. Sort of a supersize iPod touch, which doesn't compete in the netbook marketspace at all.

 

[mrobmsu]

Ok, I get what you're saying, but I don't really understand the problem. I pay for my house's water and electricity on 2 different bills. Is that somehow a problem for me? Do I not 'like' it and wish it was one bill? Not really.

I mean, I don't really understand why it would be a problem for people.

EDIT:



Ok, I'm starting to understand what you both are saying.

I'm just surprised by it. I set up my Bank of America account to automatically pay my bills and that's pretty much it. I just check it to make sure it worked right every now and then.

You all make it sound like you spend hours on this stuff. Am I doing something wrong? Am I supposed to be spending time thinking about my phone bill? Because I don't.

For me its about redundancy. I'm already paying Comcast for my internet service at home, it was a bitter pill to pay ATT for iPhone internet access. I just won't ante up again for a third device having web access--I still think its amoral/unethical to have to pay twice (Comcast and ATT) for web access.

 

[mavfan11]

"claiming that Apple can not deliver a netbook or low-end notebook at the $399 or $499 price point currently offered by others that still maintains a satisfactory user experience."

I love Apple but why not tell the truth? What they're really saying is that they can't build enough profit margin into a netbook because the other guys have clearly demonstrated what it costs, parts-wise, to put one together and Hackintoshers have shown OSX runs great on a $300 Dell Mini so Apple couldn't get away with charging the $700-$800 they'd like to if all that was inside was a 1.6ghz atom, 160gb hdd and a gb of RAM. Yeah, they could make the keyboard and trackpad better for a better "user experience" but not $400-$500 worth.

(oops, mrgreen beat me to it)

 

[Lepton]

Tablet and a slot

Take an iPod Touch, make it three times wider so it has a screen about 7.5 inches. Ok, go 10 inches if you really need to. Now you have a great WiFi NetPad. Add a slot like for an Express Card which accepts data interface cards from all the wireless companies, which hooks to the internal antennas so the card doesn't stick out.

Sell it WiFi only, and also let all providers bundle it with their card and data package if they like, subsidizing the hardware if they like. A winnah!

I also expect from an Apple NetPad: BT keyboard and mouse support, no hardware keyboard, stylus support, Ink technology. Data only - no cell phone support for the tablet (so AT&T keeps its exclusive on that with the iPhone yet this tablet can be sold by all comers).

 

[Scottsdale]

I think this analyst is missing the big picture even if right about Verizon. Apple is not so stupid as to lose out on massive potential by only selling it as a subsidized 3G device. I don't even think it would be exclusively tied to Verizon. I believe that IF Verizon got the deal that Apple would have negotiated BOTH a nice subsidy and LOWER data service price. At the same time people would most certainly be able to pay full price and use it either with wifi or another carrier. I think Apple has already learned about LIMITATIONS of full sales potential with exclusivity. Apple is smarter than this. At the same time, I do believe that the AT&T relationship is so strained that Apple is looking to do business elsewhere in the future. AT&T has truly screwed Apple's iPhone customers time and time again.

I look forward to the iTablet!

 

[DaBrain]

Please, oh, please don't finally create a kick-ass tablet computer and then couple its sale to a %$@#%$@#% data contract that I have to sign up for.

Totally agree! No way would I open my self up to yet another monthly bill! Make it Wi-Fi with optional 3G or whatever and I'd be interested.

 

[Aquia33]

That just seems weird to me. You move a fair amount of your U.S. user base to AT&T then offer a subsidized device on Verizon? There's no way I'm going to have an AT&T contract and a Verizon contract. I don't mind if they want to use the Verizon network but I'm not going to have two cell data plans that I pay monthly for.

I agree, I would purchace this device if there were a family package plan for it and my iphone(s) and available on ATT. I moved from Verizon because of the iPhone and don't want to go back or have both. Hell, I just got rid of my Verizon land line and went totally wireless using an xLink box and my iPhone.

 

[nefster]

a tablet. so what. Remember all those tablet pentium 3's acer and Toshiba were pushing about 4 years ago? Never caught on. Apple will do it right though and have everybody wowed but what would you need it for anyway? You wouldn't take it everywhere. You wouldn't pull it out when you're bored at dinner. You wouldn't show your friends your funny iFart app and justify that as a reason for carrying it on you. I see two people who'd buy it: 1) people who don't need it and 2) people who own or want to own a Kindle-type device (closely related to people who don't need it).

the concept of the Kindle is kinda cool I guess but I could never own one. I can't write in it; bend it; fall asleep reading it and wake up to find drool on pages. Yeah it's awesome to have tons of books stored - an entire library but the thing isn't bulletproof. I would never take it out and sit at the beach or by a pool with it. I wouldn't stuff it in my backpack for a nice break on a long bikeride. ...so yeah I'll play with one at Best Buy or wherever but I'm not buying it. No different to me than this tablet which will undoubtedly be aimed at the Kindle and knowing America will be the hot item of Christmas 09 or 10 and you'll hear stories of people getting trampled on trying to buy it for their 4th grader.

I'm one of those people who would buy it (or have my work buy it). I work in primary care and currently use my iPhone for data collection on patients. I also do presentations, which would be great to do on a tablet device so I don't have to lug a laptop which is overkill for presentation needs. Finally, there are many times when I use my iPhone at home where I wish I had more screen real-estate but don't want to go my iMac to get it. Then add students (notes, text books, audio lectures, recording) and you have a pretty substantial market for these things.

The reason they haven't caught on is because the current tablets suck at two things: a. interface is clumsy (stylus, poor screen response), b. too big and heavy. If Apple can change this with an iPod touch-like device this will be a massive hit.

 

[SpinThis!]

What they're really saying is that they can't build enough profit margin into a netbook because the other guys have clearly demonstrated what it costs, parts-wise, to put one together and Hackintoshers have shown OSX runs great on a $300 Dell Mini

Runs great and up to Apple's standards are subjective.

People are forgetting the real reason people use Apple hardware: Mac OS X. You're not only paying for better hardware, you're paying for way better software. Subtract *at least* $300 from the price of Apple's hardware for a more realistic comparison of what you're getting compared to a PC and it's actually not that much more. If you don't want to pay for decent software, fair enough—there's Windows and even Linux for that. People want OS X for Linux pricing... sorry guys, that's not the way you do business.

 

[SandynJosh]

The problem, for me, would be keeping up with two different wireless contracts, two different bills, two different end-points, etc. Just let me tether my Tablet to my iPhone and I'm good. No need for dead-end CDMA radios in next-gen Mac tech products.

...and what if the plan at Verizon is for it's existing customers to continue using their existing brand X phones, on whatever plan they have and add a iTablet on a pay-as-you-go use plan. It would be inexpensive and not as all an issue since the voice phone aspect is not the dominate use for the device.

So, then, you might ask, why would someone want to carry two devices instead of one; a la the iPhone? Most students and business people already do carry more then one thing. Currently I carry a simple cell phone and a planner/meeting note book. Often I add my MacBook Pro to the load.

Since I have various needs that an iPhone would be a less-than-perfect solution, I can see how an iTablet might replace one of my current devices. I see it as adapting technology to how one works, while also adapting one's work to the best technology. The final mix of the two may be something we cannot imagine today.

 

[j5045096]

I'm one of those people who would buy it (or have my work buy it). I work in primary care and currently use my iPhone for data collection on patients. I also do presentations, which would be great to do on a tablet device so I don't have to lug a laptop which is overkill for presentation needs. Finally, there are many times when I use my iPhone at home where I wish I had more screen real-estate but don't want to go my iMac to get it. Then add students (notes, text books, audio lectures, recording) and you have a pretty substantial market for these things.

The reason they haven't caught on is because the current tablets suck at two things: a. interface is clumsy (stylus, poor screen response), b. too big and heavy. If Apple can change this with an iPod touch-like device this will be a massive hit.

I could see the use in primary care. I could but that's a specialized need...and therefore a specialized tool. You're talking sales in the thousands each year for that kind of need, not the 10's of millions like Apple would want. I could see you justified in your purchase but for most this is another gadget that'll end up on craigslist when it gets old.

 

[0098386]

What's a "Verizon"?

 

[tirerim]

I don't think iPhone users would be the target market, as likely if this is just a bigger iPhone then it would be unnecessary for you to have both (especially if you also have a laptop), unless you're a fanboy and just want one of each of Apple's devices just for the hell of it.

Bingo. I don't have an iPhone, because AT&T doesn't have service in my apartment, and all the people I talk to frequently are in-network (i.e. free) on Verizon. But I would like something the size of a netbook to carry around with me. Depending on the pricing of a data plan, it might or might not be worth it to have that; the main thing is to have something big enough to actually do work on with at least WiFi. For my purposes, a MacBook Air wouldn't be bad, but something smaller, lighter, and much cheaper would be much better.

 

[andiwm2003]

I'm one of those people who would buy it (or have my work buy it). I work in primary care and currently use my iPhone for data collection on patients. I also do presentations, which would be great to do on a tablet device so I don't have to lug a laptop which is overkill for presentation needs. Finally, there are many times when I use my iPhone at home where I wish I had more screen real-estate but don't want to go my iMac to get it. Then add students (notes, text books, audio lectures, recording) and you have a pretty substantial market for these things.

The reason they haven't caught on is because the current tablets suck at two things: a. interface is clumsy (stylus, poor screen response), b. too big and heavy. If Apple can change this with an iPod touch-like device this will be a massive hit.

second that. i use my iphone for email at home because i don't wanrt to wake my MBP every 20 min just to check email, check the weather forecast. also i'd like to surf the web while sitting in the backyard or do ebay stuff and read an ebook. all of this i can do on my iphone/itouch but it would be so much better to do it on a 10" screen. add movies and some office function to it and it's a winner.

 

[mrobmsu]

The market for an Apple tablet would be a home-bound, entertainment-communication device, negating the need for extreme portability. Think kitchen control hub meets iPhone--a small wireless device occupying the kitchen counter/desk, used to look up recipes, check/send messages from the kids/spouse, shoot quick emails, etc. Not a business device or something to keep at work--strictly a small device for the tech unsavvy (grammas and non-tech aware stay at home moms and dads, first time computer users--if they still exist).

 

[RyanR.]

Forgive me if this has been said....

I'm down with the tablet idea. I don't know about verizon but at least I'd be on 3G. ATT sucks in my area although is getting better.

I would love this and gladly pay $800. That is with a few requirements.

- Full OSX + iLife
- Desktop stand.
- BlueTooth or usb keyboard and mouse capable

I could use it on the go or on a desk top at home. I know there is some way of hooking up your macbook this way w/ an external monitor but this would cut out the monitor maybe even have it to ware you can hook up a monitor....

 

[Bevz]

I'll throw in my 2-penneth:

The tablet idea is very cool but i do struggle to think of too many useful applications for it and who it's aimed at...

1) If it's going for the laptop/netbook market i think it may be a little awkward to type on it... If you're on the train or indeed have the thing sat on your lap, using a completely flat tablet would seem to be a little awkward not to mention an LCD screen would look utterly crap at that acute angle...
2) If it's going for the kindle market it will certainly fail if it's got an LCD or LED screen as they are not suited to reading for long periods wheras the kindle screen is a "proper" ebook screen that can be read for hours without too much eye strain... Not to mention i really don't think the human race is ready to give up books no matter how great an idea the ebook is...
3) If it's going for the iPhone / iPod Touch market; WTF! Well, that would just be madness as no one wants a BIGGER iPhone or Touch...

Talk of linking it with a data contract with a mobile phone company just make me shudder even more....

I'd love to see apple do one as i'd love to see who on earth they'd be marketing it at...

 

[dicklacara]

How is a tablet anything but a niche device? Handwriting recognition is clunky compared to typing, and holding a tablet in one hand while inputting with the other seems awkward to say the least. Alternately, putting it flat on one's lap or on a table would be an ergonomic nightmare. Multitouch screens are great for iPhone-sized devices. We can thumb type and wipe it off easily when it gets smudged.

For larger devices, I think the returns are diminishing and a keyboard/trackpad becomes much more usable and versatile...

I'd like to put in my vote for less tablet rumors, more 12", 3lb, $999 Macbook Mini rumors.

I disagree. MultiTouch screens are the future. The hardware keyboard is an anachronistic relic of the 19th century. There are many things you can do on a MultiTouch screen that just aren't possible on a hard keyboard. The converse is not true!

An Apple tablet device could have several configurations including an option for a 2nd MultiTouch screen module attached clamshell style. Through software, the device could, alternately, be used as:

1) A traditional clamshell laptop: Vertical MultiTouch screen display and Horizontal MultiTouch screen keyboard.

2) A traditional Tablet (vertical or horizontal) with a single MultiTouch screen display/keyboard combo.

3) An enhanced tablet with 2 MultiTouch screen displays that lie flat (horizontal) or upright (vertical, on the wall?). A light table for design or photo manipulation would be great for this use.

4) An enhanced keyboard with 2 MultiTouch screen displays that lie flat and show multiple custom keyboards. This use would be as auxiliary keyboards to a computer connected via BT or WiFi. Great for controlling home theater, home security, or professional broadcast musicians' equipment, etc.

5) Two (or more) separate tablets (traditional or enhanced) that interface using the Internet, WiFi, BT. Think of the possibilities for education, medical, and gaming.

The great thing is it could do all/any combination of these things at the whim of the software developers.

I want this device!

 

[hayesk]

I love Apple but why not tell the truth? What they're really saying is that they can't build enough profit margin into a netbook because the other guys have clearly demonstrated what it costs, parts-wise, to put one together and Hackintoshers have shown OSX runs great on a $300 Dell Mini so Apple couldn't get away with charging the $700-$800 they'd like to if all that was inside was a 1.6ghz atom, 160gb hdd and a gb of RAM. Yeah, they could make the keyboard and trackpad better for a better "user experience" but not $400-$500 worth.

How much do you think it costs (per copy sold) for Apple to develop MacOS X? I'll give you a hint: more than $129.

Hackintoshers who buy a retail copy of MacOS X think they're in the clear because they've paid for the OS, but in reality, Apple lost money on that deal. Apple hasn't acted because Hackintoshes are a very tiny niche. If this practice catches on, Apple will do one or more of the following:
- build in product activation to prove it's being run on an Apple computer
- label retail copies as "upgrades" and require an original disc that came with your Mac to install
- raise prices to the true cost to develop MacOS X + retail markup ($400? $500? who knows)

 

[Anuba]

I'm tired of hearing Apple claim they can't sell a $4-500 netbook and "maintain the user experience". I have a Dell mini 9 hackintosh that runs WONDERFULLY.

What they mean is that they can't sell a $400-500 netbook while maintaining their filthy margins. Apple wouldn't settle for Dell's margins even if their netbook were to come out of the same factory. In order for Apple to sell it at $400-500 the manufacturing cost would have to be negative 300 bucks.

They'd want $800-1000 for theirs and that just doesn't fly in the netbook market. The sales pitch would be awful.

- So, a thousand bucks huh?
- Yeah.
- Why?
- Well... it's the Porsche of netbooks.
- Really? It was made by Porsche??
- No.
- But it was made in Germany?
- No.
- Poland?
- No... China.
- Eh? What the hell? Does it have any expensive custom parts?
- Nah, just the usual Atom processor, a small hard drive and some Broadcom crap.
- So it's really kind of like a Dell?
- Yeah.
- OK, bye.

So, sure, they could've made a netbook two years ago. The reason why it's taking so long is that they're racking their brains trying to come up with excuses to charge double for it. I guess the only thing they've come up with is to make it subsidized so that you pay $400 and Verizon pays $600 and then charge you $1200 for those $600 over a period of 24 months...

 

[joeshell383]

What's a "Verizon"?

When GTE and Bell Atlantic merged, they decided to choose a brand new name for the combined company instead of using either of the existing names. They made up the word Verizon for the new combined company.

From Wikipedia:

The name "Verizon," a portmanteau, is derived by combining the word "veritas," a Latin term that means "truth," and the word "horizon." Together, they are supposed to conjure images of reliability, certainty, leadership, and limitless possibilities.

 

[whooleytoo]

I disagree. MultiTouch screens are the future. The hardware keyboard is an anachronistic relic of the 19th century. There are many things you can do on a MultiTouch screen that just aren't possible on a hard keyboard. The converse is not true!

Ehhh.. touch-type fast, accurately, comfortably and at length?

Virtual keypads such as on the iPhone are probably fine on small portable devices, simply because their hardware keyboards are too small to be much better! On the desktop, the keyboard is going nowhere.