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Mac Tablet from OWC

This is a really interesting way forward for the Mac. It means that Apple don't have to do all the variants but companies can take the guts of what is already there and present it to the market in minority form factors that some people might want or just think are cool and so will fork out money for. It might just work, but having said that I wouldn't fork out hard earned cash to a company that may be here today and gone tomorrow because the support might just vanish.
 
shelterpaw said:
I guess Apple can test market a tablet for free now. HA! :p
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exactly what I was thinking! (you know apple is probably on the fence with releasing one of their own... so this is a perfect opportunity for them to see how well it holds up in the market) Although I believe it won't be true market research numbers due to that it isn't totally made from Apple -- that will probably make a bunch of people not wanting to buy it (even though it may well be a very good designed and tested product)
 
Because they are apparently being made from MacBooks, I wonder if these tablets will suffer from the same flickering-screen problems that have plagued the MacBooks themselves.
 
GO Penpoint

I remember trying out a GO tablet in the early nineties, running Penpoint OS. It blew me away at the time, and made me want a tablet ever since. PenPoint was designed for the pen, and it was extremely intuitive (and clean) to use.

I have a hard time seeing a vanilla+Ink OS X doing much for the experience.

Have a look at how many times during the day your fingers use the keyboard. The HIG are completely different wrt tablets as a general computer.

Having said that, I'd buy one the second they come out, since I've discarded the mouse for the pen anyway :) .

As far as taking notes on a tablet, well... I once wrote a 2,300 word article on my Palm, and the experience wasn't as bad as I thought, although the writing area was far too cramped for that amount of work.

If Apple releases a tablet (please), then the interface better have some radical changes -- especially in the shortcuts/gestures area. Having to hunt for a menu everytime you do anything with a pen is a pain.

Just my $.02.
 
Sounds sorta horrific or creepy. Sorta of the moment in a horror film where the heroes go what have they done? Tampering with things outside the realm of man.:eek:
 
Bonte said:
They buy a Macbook and mod it to a Tablet at twice the price, thats all.
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Before anyone thinks this isn't without precedent, the first Mac "laptops" were actually from third parties who'd buy a Mac Plus, gut it for parts (including the ROM), rebuild it in luggable form, and sell the result. Apple got its bite, the user got a laptop, everyone was happy.

I can't see Apple being keen on shutting this one down. It's not going to undercut them, and it'll allow them to enter a niche market without any investment on their part, using, effectively, their own products.

BTW, there's another way someone could build something like this, and in some ways it'd be cooler. Create a Wifi-based tablet that acts as little more than a console to an external computer, and give the Mac suitable drivers so it treats the tablet as its display and pointing device. Power consumption should be lower than for a full-blown laptop (and the real Mac can be plugged into the wall), and the device should be a lot cheaper.
 
Let's also not forget that Apple's likely getting licensing money from both parties. They have patents for a tablet Mac, and all. I would think they'd need to pay for a license for the OS, too, if Apple can argue that it's no longer Mac hardware.

I believe that Apple knew, and approved this product. They have lots to gain and little to lose.
 
MDMac said:
I really don't see a need for a tablet mac (or any tablet), personally. My needs have changed quite a bit over the past few years and I've been able to get along fine by getting a smart phone, a laptop, etc. There really isn't much "uncharted territory" that other widely-used devices haven't already claimed their own.:cool:
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BWhaler said:
I bet they don't sell 1,000 of them. Hell, maybe 500 is a better number.

There is a reason why Apple is not doing a tablet. And a reason why Microsoft can't give theirs away.

They should know better than to listen to the Mac community on this one. Everyone wants one, but nobody needs one, and surely no one is going to drop the 2K for it.

I'll take any and all bets that this product is toast within 12 months.
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I'm a traditional fine artist that does some digital stuff. Writing and drawing are more natural to me than keyboarding and mousing. I've owned Wacom tablets, but its clumsy to take a tablet and a laptop into the outdoors to work. I take quite a few notes and do alot of sketching. It would be nice if I could do both directly into a tablet, instead of scanning stuff. It would be one less step in my process. It would also take up less space, that's an advantage of digital over traditional art. A successful convergence of a tablet and laptop would make me very happy. I would definitely be interested in one.

However, the main obstacles I've seen is not the hardware--though the PC versions tend to be horribly underpowered. The software out there imho does not do a great job of mimicking traditional art skills. Its a completely different skill set. I run an older version of illustrator and you cant imagine how often I curse its clunkiness. So I think that part of the success of a tablet has to do with software, ease of use, and the right audience. Is there enough software out there (not just design and art) that can take advantage of the tablets unique input method? Will it be easy to use, and will it be marketed correctly to the right audience? I think there are other traditional artists who would buy into a tablet if these issues were addressed and if the hardware was powerful enough to run somethings like photoshop, etc.

Otherwise yes, this could be toast in 12 months.
 
To all those people who are saying tablets aren't important: WHO CARES? Just b/c you don't have a need for one doesn't mean other people don't. You probably don't need a scalpal, but I don't you hear anyone saying scalpals shouldn't be made. You can't assume everybody is exactly like you and uses and likes everything you do and doesn't use everything you don't.
 
well i sure never expected a company other than Apple to release a Mac Tablet.....i can't imagine as many people would buy it (more would buy from Apple i think)
 
fblack said:
I'm a traditional fine artist that does some digital stuff. Writing and drawing are more natural to me than keyboarding and mousing. I've owned Wacom tablets, but its clumsy to take a tablet and a laptop into the outdoors to work. I take quite a few notes and do alot of sketching. It would be nice if I could do both directly into a tablet, instead of scanning stuff. It would be one less step in my process. It would also take up less space, that's an advantage of digital over traditional art. A successful convergence of a tablet and laptop would make me very happy. I would definitely be interested in one.

However, the main obstacles I've seen is not the hardware--though the PC versions tend to be horribly underpowered. The software out there imho does not do a great job of mimicking traditional art skills. Its a completely different skill set. I run an older version of illustrator and you cant imagine how often I curse its clunkiness. So I think that part of the success of a tablet has to do with software, ease of use, and the right audience. Is there enough software out there (not just design and art) that can take advantage of the tablets unique input method? Will it be easy to use, and will it be marketed correctly to the right audience? I think there are other traditional artists who would buy into a tablet if these issues were addressed and if the hardware was powerful enough to run somethings like photoshop, etc.

Otherwise yes, this could be toast in 12 months.
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Have you ever tried Corel's Painter? I know many people online with Tablet PCs and Painter and they love them. Illustrator is not for traditional fine arts. Also to my knowledge, Painter isn't Universal yet.

If you can send in a Macbook and have them convert it to a tablet for you for a nominal fee, I'll be all for it. Hopefully they'll sell back the parts they can't use to Apple to make the prices not too exuberant. I'd pay up to $500 to convert my baby to a tablet.
 
this could be the start of a tradition, instaed of just apple annoucning new products and hardware at macworld, why not have 3rd party companies do it too? it generates more interest in the macworld expo, and thus more interest in Apple.

If anyone else has been to them, they would know that macworlds are ALWAYS crowded, particularly if its the first day. I predict that with the advent of OWC's annoucement we may see the Mascone center East and west opened up next year. (to accomidate the rapid influx of people)
 
I've got a T4010 at work too, nptski! Works great!

MS OneNote is great for taking notes at meetings and organizing/tracking projects too.

Like others, I'd buy a working Apple tablet in a minute...I've been hoping for one ever since His Steveness killed off the Newt....

PLEASE NOTE: The following comments are from someone who's been using Macs since 1986 and still uses them EVERYDAY! So please don't think that I don't like Apple [have lots of their stock... ;-)...] and love using OSX.... :)

NOW for my comments....

As for this 'new Axiotron/OWC tablet' I'm concerned about how well it will really work as a tablet compared to a WinXP TabletPC. It seems that they're relying on InkWell, which from my limited experience is a poor implementation compared to how well the Newt OS was on the MP2K series...but I guess this may be better than no OSX tablet....

No matter what you all think of MS and Windoz, the fact is that WinXP Tablet PC works very well and probably even better in Vista. I've had several tabletPC's in the past 2 years and they're very good machines.

In fact, after using several including the recent Sony UX90S microPC along with the Fujitsu T4010, it only makes me yawn at Apple's recent offerings.

Haven't seen anything really innovative design-wise from Apple in a long time...just the same old laptops that get a new chip, speed bump, widescreen [wow!!... ;-) ], black case color [cool... ;-) ] etc, but really nothing new, still just a laptop.

What I'd love to see is an Apple version of:

1) a 'convertible TabletPC' such as the Fujitsu T40xx series, where you can use it as a tablet OR a laptop, whichever way YOU want...

2) a micro-PC like the Sony UX series, similar to tabletPC, but small enough to take almost everywhere.....

3) a true subnote like either the Sony TX, Averatec AV-1150, Fujitsu P7xxx for those who don't need or what the features of items 1 and 2 above, but want a SMALL, LIGHT portable...

IF this were to happen (I doubt it, but one can hope...) then along with the other existing Apple computers, Apple users would really start to have some real choices of what hardware they'd like to use that fits THEIR needs...

Just my 2 cents....

Of course, YMMV.....

;)

Mark

nptski said:
As a real estate agent, I currently carry a Fujitsu T4010 to write contracts paperlessly. It is very cool and easy except for the windoze fight. I can email them efficiently to everyone that needs them and to the clients. They are legal as they become a tiff which is essentially a fax. The clients like it as it goes directly to their email account and they can print it if they need to. I can also print a hard copy at the site however I have never been asked.

I also use the tablet to fill out forms and sign them which is cool because it eliminates faxing generations. Marking up something or sketching something is fast and efficient as well. I ould buy a "Tabbook" (my term) in a minute. I currently run my R.E. vertical software in Parallels but have to print to sign so I have the Fujitisu at the ready in a bag in the car.
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barnaby said:
Graphics artists are more likely to use a tablet and a desktop. A laptop is not ideal for heavy graphics work. Maybe some niche graphics designers.

I don't understand why they'd need to revert to core duo. They have C2D chips that operate at lower wattage than CD's.

I can't see Apple going into this market unless they have some way of doing it better than it's being done now. You are right that it's a niche market. For anyone outside of that niche, it's a poor novelty at best with a premium price tag. Unless you regularly need to use a laptop standing, save your money.
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1) Thats my part of my point :)
2) I dunno why either, but all I know is that Lenovo decided to use a CD low-voltage chip in its new Thinkpad X60 Tablet and not a C2D chip. It would have been nice if it was C2D, but its not, and theres a reason for that. The point I was trying to make is that it would be extremely un-Apple for Apple to go back to a CD chip when theyve already transferred all the notebooks to C2D. Kinda like going back and trying to make a PowerBook G5 now.....
3) I want a tablet and I'm not going to use it standing. The point for students is that its somewhat more time-consuming to input an equation, even with the new Equation tool in MS Word 2007, than to handwrite it. Same goes for any kind of organization graph (like Inspiration) or chemistry or any non-linear work. I know I'd appreciate using one in high school to say the least.

As for doing it better than it is now...... ahem need I really say it but isnt OS X better than Windows, including Windows Tablet Edition? :p Especially cause tablets are suited for mobility, which means mobile internet, which means chaos and viruses for windows users but absolutely nada for us (PVPonline.com reference coming up, sry if offended :p) H.O.M.O.s? (Honorable Order of Macintosh Operators)..........
 
No one can read my handwriting... I'm pretty sure even the best handwriting recognition software would not be able to decipher my handwriting... So a tablet would therefore be useless for me:)
 
awesome....i was just about to splurge on the fujitsu p1510d tablet 8.9 inch, now i am definitly going to wait.

the reason why id like this is to be able to carry a portable machine, graphic work, high resolution, and the fact that i can web develop on a unix platform and keep everything in sync with my mbp.
 
As a graphic designer, starting to get into Painter type stuff as a hobby, I'm interested in a Mac tablet, especially if it Wacom 'Penabled' like it says. It depends on the price a lot for me, but from the specs they have posted it sounds like its based on the lower MacBook with the combo drive in it, which is £750. People on here have said the price for a ModBook would double, is that just a guess or is the extra cost going to double the price of a MacBook?
 
I know I've stated here in this very forum that I'd be first in line to buy a tablet Mac, but I have to say I'm extremely leery of buying a 3rd party mod. I've come to appreciate the Apple approach of controlling both hardware and software (Macs and OS X, iPods and iTunes).

They're going to have to really impress me before I bite on this.
 
interesting...

7on said:
Have you ever tried Corel's Painter? I know many people online with Tablet PCs and Painter and they love them. Illustrator is not for traditional fine arts. Also to my knowledge, Painter isn't Universal yet.

If you can send in a Macbook and have them convert it to a tablet for you for a nominal fee, I'll be all for it. Hopefully they'll sell back the parts they can't use to Apple to make the prices not too exuberant. I'd pay up to $500 to convert my baby to a tablet.
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I havent tried Painter since it was owned by Metacreations (7yrs, maybe?), it was ok back then but I didn't have my wacom yet. I'm sure its seriously improved now. But I havent had time or money to investigate recent upgrades. Illustrator when I was in school used to be touted as a drawing program, which I never really thought it was. The version I'm running is 10 so its more limited than current versions. But its interesting that you say there are people using Tablet PCs with Painter and no wacom. I'd really be curious about the performance. I may want to investigate that, that's good info thanks.
 
OMG, duh

Texas04 said:
Since when do other people.. companies make Mac hardware?

Furthermore since when do other people make computers that can run OS X.
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Um, they buy MacBooks.

Then MOD them.

Duh.

Why must people post ridiculous questions without even TRYING to think about them for half a second?
 
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