What is the Ultimate Role of the Apple Tablet?

[KnightWRX]

Who said anything about this going to AT&T's incompetent hands ? Hmmm?

Because it's the most obvious choice unless you want one version for the US and another for the rest of the world.

Not to mention if a few iPhone fans want one, they'd be darn pissed about having to now pay 2 different monthly bills to 2 cellphone carriers for what is essentially the same service.

3G and subsidies make no sense for a Tablet computer.

That's the one that blows me away - that Apple doesn't have at least the option for internal 3G on any computer systems. Three year old Dell, Lenovo and HP laptops have internal 3G options - but no Apples have them.

Bizarre.

(And note that the other laptops don't *require* a 3G plan, it's just a BTO option to have the radio installed in case you want a data plan. Verizon even has a "pay per day" plan - sign up for a day's access without any strings attached.)

Checking the Dell website, you have to choose which carrier you want upfront. I'd still rather just leave the option open, save the cash, and get a free USB stick with my monthly plan with my current carrier. I get the added benefit of being able to use the service on more than one computer.

And this seems to be a US only thing. It's not there on the Canada website, at least not for Inspirons.

 

[noahrobd]

4th Tuesday in January

The timing of this announcement may be even more evidence that this will be a very significant, history changing product AGAIN, (among the original Apple Computer, the Macintosh, the iPod and the iPhone)....

The expected date of the announcement: January 26, 2010 is the fourth Tuesday in the fourth week of January.

The original Macintosh went on sale on January 24, 1984: the fourth Tuesday in the fourth week of January.

 

[cmaier]

At least one of the points must be correct. Unsubsidized tablet can not cost less than $600 (considering that iPhone costs about that much). The price can only be reduced through subsity (i.e. data plan). Also it might be difficult to consume anything on such device without data plan

A tablet won't require as much miniaturization, and thus can use more mass market components.

 

[KnightWRX]

The timing of this announcement may be even more evidence that this will be a very significant, history changing product AGAIN, (among the original Apple Computer, the Macintosh, the iPod and the iPhone)....

The expected date of the announcement: January 26, 2010 is the fourth Tuesday in the fourth week of January.

The original Macintosh went on sale on January 24, 1984: the fourth Tuesday in the fourth week of January.

*sigh*. This I think wins the "Wishful thinking at an absurd level" award for this thread.

The product will determine if it's history changing, not the date it's announced on (or else we'd get tons of announcements on that date...).

A tablet won't require as much miniaturization, and thus can use more mass market components.

Not to mention that the unsubsidized iPhone without a cellphone sells for 199$ with no monthly fee or carrier attachment in a 8 GB version.

 

[neutrino23]

The tablet should subscribe to magazines and other online content. Deliver news and email, as well as organize pictures. If it videochats, that would be amazing. Presentations and papers would also be good target, but I have a hard time imagining writing a 5-10 page paper on a touch keyboard. I don't have much of an opinion on wi-fi vs network, but looking at the iphone, I'd be hard pressed to see anyone willing to take MORE of a load than the iphone per device. In the end, I see it as a fun, full touch screen, pumped up netbook, done the apple way. It will be awesome for those who need it (like the Air), but not impressive for much of anyone else.

The tablet will not be an ebook reader. To be a viable ebook reader, it needs at least the battery life of the kindle. It needs to last for days, not hours. This is impossible on an active screen as far as I know. Also, any type of lit screen is not conducive to reading for long periods of time.

I am very impressed with e-ink. I think it looks good. I played with the kindle, and my one wish with the tech was that the screen was more responsive, and a touch screen. Now THAT would be awesome way to go. 7 days of active battery life: touch screen, ebooks, papers, essays that can be read with ease, a keyboard of some type, basic picture/movie in that old school grayscale, chat, email...it would be awesome.

Take a look at Pixel Qi technology. It is just entering production. Claims to use far less power than an LCD and is viewable in direct sunlight. Don't know if this will be used but it is a benchmark showing what is possible.

 

[Mr. Gates]

I am thinking ( hoping ) it will be a little more open than a cell phone

 

[skinnylegs]

basic picture/movie in that old school grayscale, chat, email...it would be awesome.

That sounds about as exciting to me as command line stuff in DOS. Feel free to enter the 21st century.

 

[str1f3]

Ok, so you're just too cheap to pay for it, you hope Apple finds a way to give them away ?

People don't consider a 1299$ laptop cost prohibitive and don't need cellphone carriers to subsidize them. I'd hope an Apple tablet would be in the same boat at the price point they introduce them.

And Apple doesn't seem to mind the USB dongle sticking out of my Macbook giving me 3G access on it.

I said customers will consider it cost prohibitive because they will weigh it against a more powerful laptop. The iPhone 3G was able to sell far more than the original because of the lower upfront price. But thanks for trying to make it about me.

What does it matter whether or not Apple cares about your USB port? What you don't get is that Apple is going to want to sell it as an "out of the box Internet everywhere" computer. And no, Apple would not like the idea of their new, slim, sleek and revolutionary tablet out there to have an unsightly dongle sticking out of it.

 

[kingtj]

Raising my hand here!

I already own both a 2006 and 2008 version of the Mac Pro, a Macbook Pro notebook, and my kid has a little G4 Mac Mini in her bedroom . I use an iPhone and just got her a refurbished iPod Touch.

So you could say I'm one of those people who "owns all their stuff", I guess. I don't have an iMac, but I did at one point in time ... and would consider selling the 2006 Mac Pro one of these days and replacing it with a 27" iMac.

Anyway, I'm almost positive I'd be a buyer for one of these tablets, as long as Apple doesn't totally blow it. As others keep saying, book and magazine reading is one of the last holdouts from really "going digital" like music and movies have done. The Kindle was kind of the "version 1.0" product out there that moved them into the digital realm with a usable online store and the whole bit ... But like many people, I didn't see the Kindle as a "must have" product. It's kind of ugly looking, in my opinion, and looks to me like a product that doesn't do enough to justify carrying it around.

I mean, I can use my iPhone as an e-reader (and have done so already), and the only real flaw I've found is the fact it's a little bit too small of a display. It works but it's not ideal.

So a 10" tablet that combines good looks/styling with a really practical device for reading e-texts, and ability to buy new books or magazine subscriptions via iTunes? THAT could really work .... The kicker, though, is it HAS to perform the other tasks well that a person would pick one of these up and expect to be able to do with it. That means a good web browser and ability to type reasonably well on it. That means good wireless connectivity (not just wi-fi but 3G cellular options), and that means ability to video conference on it.

I think it's fine if it's not really a full blown OS X machine like a laptop, and doesn't even let you run a lot of business/productivity apps on it. I'll keep my Macbook Pro for that stuff. But it needs to at least feel like the *only* tool you need with you to do things on the Internet. And it'd be a big plus if it can act like a control surface to your OTHER devices, maybe via a bluetooth link? Imagine recording engineers using one as a virtual mixing board to their software, so they don't have to use up their screen space with a bunch of virtual sliders you have to drag around with a mouse? Or sure, allow it to become a universal remote control for your home theater, when it's within range and you don't want to use the tablet for anything else it offers?

As much as it probably a great device, I think people who will buy it will be people like me that have a great 27"iMac(aka desktop) and don't buy into laptops as they don't want to be without their files but with a tablet would happily couch surf, catch up on emails, or drag it along in their briefcase as an e-reader or to catch up on their Movie/TV series on the bus/train/plane to work or take with on holidays... or show the friends/parents the latest vacation pictures, etc.

It won't however replace the iPhone/smartphone. It will simply compete in that netbook/laptop space where it makes sense. Of course if they have some new killer feature or killer implementation of video conferencing, etc. that'd change things.

Sigh, some of us will probably end up owning ALL ( iMac, MacBook, iSlate, iPhone) and they're probably banking on it.

 

[kingtj]

re: internal 3G options

Well, technically, the Macbook Pros with the expresscard slots could use a cellular 3G expresscard type modem which slid all the way inside the slot, leaving nothing sticking out. That may have been about as seamless as they ever got.

That's the one that blows me away - that Apple doesn't have at least the option for internal 3G on any computer systems. Three year old Dell, Lenovo and HP laptops have internal 3G options - but no Apples have them.

Bizarre.

(And note that the other laptops don't *require* a 3G plan, it's just a BTO option to have the radio installed in case you want a data plan. Verizon even has a "pay per day" plan - sign up for a day's access without any strings attached.)

 

[skinnylegs]

I said customers will consider it cost prohibitive because they will weigh it against a more powerful laptop

Do you realize how *few* people actually need *fast* computers? The vast majority of people use their computers for email, web browsing, light word processing and *entertainment* (music, pictures, movies etc.).

Computing is going the way of the cloud. Throw away your floppy drives and embrace it.

 

[KnightWRX]

I said customers will consider it cost prohibitive because they will weigh it against a more powerful laptop. The iPhone 3G was able to sell far more than the original because of the lower upfront price. But thanks for trying to make it about me..

Wait, what ? I thought this tablet was supposed to be soooooo much better than laptops, yet if people have to pay for it, they'll just get a laptop ?

Seems you don't agree with the original article then. And seems people buying netbooks don't agree with you that if it's just a few dollars more, why not get a full laptop...

What does it matter whether or not Apple cares about your USB port? What you don't get is that Apple is going to want to sell it as an "out of the box Internet everywhere" computer. And no, Apple would not like the idea of their new, slim, sleek and revolutionary tablet out there to have an unsightly dongle sticking out of it.

Then why can you connect all sorts of 3rd party crap to the iPhone then ? Seems according to you, Apple doesn't like "sleek and revolutionary" products to have much connectivity at all. This is ridiculous.

 

[Thex1138]

Lcars

It would also be fun to have an LCARS menu system or something similar... just to mess around with...

 

[Rocketman]

That's the one that blows me away - that Apple doesn't have at least the option for internal 3G on any computer systems. Three year old Dell, Lenovo and HP laptops have internal 3G options - but no Apples have them.

Bizarre.

Agreed. In hindsight it is more understandable. Apple was "loyal" to AT&T and their network was slammed.

If you went to an Apple store as I did they suggested the Verizon USB dongle, in my case about 3 stores down, for laptops.

If they had an AT&T kiosk in the store customers might have subscribed to AT&T's laptop solution which would have burdoned the network more than it was already over-burdoned.

But not marketing it in SOME way is a missing feature so obvious it makes folks like us cringe.

The iPhone was "tailored" to employ 2.75G, 3G, wifi, and soon LTE. Apple is relentless in abandoning last minute's technology for "what's next".

My question is simple. When can we live in the now and still; use something we get used to 3 years later? We are humans. At some point the "interface" is more than how you make the device do what you want today, and spills over into how you have been TRAINED to use the device.

Use the "Sprint word processor" paradigm. Multiple interfaces for underlying similar functionalities.

Rocketman

 

[str1f3]

Wait, what ? I thought this tablet was supposed to be soooooo much better than laptops, yet if people have to pay for it, they'll just get a laptop ?

Who said it was supposed to be "soooooooo much better than laptops"? The point, at least those who think it's a computer, is that it gives average users a more intuitive touch interaction with a device rather than using the antiquated keyboard and mouse. Pricing them the same as a laptop will force it to unecessarily compete with the Macbook line and Apple probably wants this device to have a 3G card built in. It will split sales regardless if that happens. You're acting like it's somehow stingy to pay for it subsidized when it costs more than the base 13" MBP in the long run.

Then why can you connect all sorts of 3rd party crap to the iPhone then ? Seems according to you, Apple doesn't like "sleek and revolutionary" products to have much connectivity at all. This is ridiculous.

The reason why that "extra crap" can be added to the iPhone is for specific purposes that can't be built in like a credit card reader. It is not for the general function of the product like web access.

 

[KnightWRX]

Who said it was supposed to be "soooooooo much better than laptops"? The point, at least those who think it's a computer, is that it gives average users a more intuitive touch interaction with a device rather than using the antiquated keyboard and mouse.

The DF article says nothing about this. It doesn't matter what some people think. What matters is how Apple thinks. Apple always chooses one way or another. They don't try to satisfy everyone.

The opinion piece presented here talks that the Tablet should replace the laptop for most people. So yes, you are disagreeing by saying people wouldn't pay for it if it was unsubsidized.

And there's no reason it should cost iPhone level costs either. It could be a 399$ device, even though Apple would never sell it for this. Netbook level hardware isn't expensive at all.

The reason why that "extra crap" can be added to the iPhone is for specific purposes like a credit card reader. It is not for the general function of the product like web access.

Internet connectivity is a specific purpose no matter how much you don't want it to be.

 

[Sydde]

So I hope most of you realise Apple has a team going through all the web forums to compile the content for the purpose of calculating the most promising development vectors. In this particular environment, they weight against the nerd-geek-BOfH factor, so many of the ideas presented here will counter the actual trajectory of what will initially be a broad muggle market device. At some point, it will come back around in the direction of serious computer users, but that will probably take a while.

I personally like the painter's-palette suggestion that appears higher up in the thread: a loop near the corner that can lie flat against the back, swing out to fit over your thumb, or even serve as a sort of easel-prop partway out. That (ergonomics) is the kind of idea they pay attention to. They probably also have a big spy network slyly studying people to figure out what would work best.

 

[romz-rac]

Apple has reportedly told some of thier application developer to prepare there apps for full screen resolution and that the tablet will be running i=on a modified version of the iPhone OS yeah im upset too i thought that they were gonna run snow leopard on it

To tell the truth i hope apple surprises us with even the first product and the updates just like the iPod touch. The first 1 wusnt all that but look at the difference with the 3rd gen.

 

[cmaier]

Apple has reportedly told some of thier application developer to prepare there apps for full screen resolution and that the tablet will be running i=on a modified version of the iPhone OS yeah im upset too i thought that they were gonna run snow leopard on it

To tell the truth i hope apple surprises us with even the first product and the updates just like the iPod touch. The first 1 wusnt all that but look at the difference with the 3rd gen.

Just wow.

 

[Mr. Gates]

It would also be fun to have an LCARS menu system or something similar... just to mess around with...

What would it do? You can get a few tricorder App's ...none of them do anything at all

 

[str1f3]

The opinion piece presented here talks that the Tablet should replace the laptop for most people. So yes, you are disagreeing by saying people wouldn't pay for it if it was unsubsidized.

No again, what I'm saying is that you're forcing it to compete against one of their own products in initial price unecessarily when Apple probably already wants a data card built in. The Gruber article only adressed if it's capable enough to be a laptop alternative and not weighing the issues of pricing and subsidization.

Internet connectivity is a specific purpose no matter how much you don't want it to be.

If you take away the data plan it's just an iPod touch. The data plan is needed for the device or relegates many apps useless unless you're at your house on wifi. Apple is not going to build in additional hardware into the iPhone to make it a credit card reader and other stuff.

 

[cmaier]

What would it do?

Raise the shields. Engage warp factor 5. Scan for alien life forms.

 

[cmaier]

If you take away the data plan it's just an iPod touch. The data plan is needed for the device or relegates many apps useless unless you're at your house on wifi. Apple is not going to add additional hardware to make it a credit card reader and other stuff.

With all the smoke about ebooks, kindle killer, etc., it better have 3G built in. That's what lit a (compared to other ebook readers at the time) fire under kindle sales.

 

[Porco]

I am a complete 'floating voter' on the rumoured tablet. That is, I could be convinced it is great and want to buy one, or be totally uninterested in it, all depending on what it is capable of doing, and how.

If it's just a bigger iPhone / iPod Touch, I really don't think I'll care about it.

If it's all about 'the cloud', I don't care either. The cloud is not ready for everyone as it is, and I really don't need the internet to word process or stuff, thanks.

If it runs more than just iPhone / iPod Touch apps I am more interested, but it would depend greatly on features.

If it ran a fully working touch-based UI version of Snow Leopard and had a couple of USB ports I think I'd be running for my credit card to order the thing. But I kind of feel like that might be to conventional a thing for Apple to make.

The rumours that lead to think it's an attempt at a 'kindle-killer' have me a bit non-plussed, but I'd really like Apple to impress me and surprise me with this thing. So, fingers crossed.

 

[m828s]

The Kindle is an amazing device. I'm not that big of a reader so I don't own one, but I got my parents one for Christmas. They're both technology impaired and they find going on the store very easy to do, as well as using the device. Their e-ink or whatever it's called technology is meant for avid readers, as a backlit device like an iPhone would strain the eyes out.

Speaking of I know two other people who are new Kindle owners who love it, and a friend ordered his yesterday. I can name 11 people on the top of my head I know such as coworkers, friends, people I met in class, and family who own one without even thinking hard about it and they all love it.

Why the hatred for the Kindle? Just because there's no logo? If this thing is in the $500+ range and its main marketing purpose is reading ebooks I see it being another Apple TV. The average consumer won't want it.

I'll only consider buying one if it's open. I won't buy it if it's locked down to an iTunes application store, for a device that's a computer I should be able to tinker how I want and I should be able to get applications how/where I want without hacking the device.

Currently, Kindle users can only purchase from Amazon and read on Amazon's device (or their computer).

While I don't "hate" the Kindle, and think it's a great device, it's certainly the only reason I need to never own one.

I would call that "locked down."