Comments on: Tablets: A Prescription for Confusion

By: William Price

William Price — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 03:01:00 +0000

Yeah ,I agree it is too big to agree with the iPhone. But I think this made a great improvement over the months that have passed. The galaxy tab is one great device really.

By: Jonathan Frederickson

Jonathan Frederickson — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 13:51:28 +0000

I find most Apple evangelists to be jerks. And I’m glad to see there are Apple users who aren’t. :P

I have an iPad and a PC running Ubuntu… and it’s rather annoying to have to boot into Windows to sync/update/backup. Greater independence would be a huge plus. For my needs, however, it is the best tablet out there… at least until those MeeGo tablets come out.

By: Sam

Sam — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 00:30:01 +0000

I really like the iPad. Unfortunately it fails for me because:
1) it lacks USB ports
2) it doesn’t use the iPhone’s 3G connection
3) it’s no good for Skype
4) battery is not click in click out
5) screen is too glossy to make it a good eReader
6) lacks a mouse/stylus option for when you want to do real work on a remote desktop
So I use a Lenovo X201t instead. Does the job but is more weight/bulk/grunt than is really required and I miss out on the iPad/Android toy apps to play with. So my wish list is for a 12″ tablet PC that boots a PC OS and also Android. That way you can play with Android apps on long flights and also do real work. Aside from that it needs to be a good book reader, email client & Skype terminal. Battery change should be easy. It should have ability to find and use your phone for internet connectivity. Oh and it should multitask like a PC but doesn’t need an optical drive, buckets of RAM, the latest processor, killer graphics card for gaming etc. An HDMI port would be nice (for hotels and presentations) but not essential. There should be gigabit ethernet and a built in camera and microphone for Skype. Speakers need only be sufficient for Skype calls so it’s a big hands free phone. For music/movies I’d use headphones for better audio. Screen should be good for HD video but definitely not glossy as it needs to be a reasonable eReader as well. At the moment business flights are full of people carrying an iPad and a laptop. When the right device comes along that will change.

By: KenZ

KenZ — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 13:51:40 +0000

I like that there’s going to be competition here. I actually had a chance to use the iPad for some extended time this weekend. It works as advertized. However, it’s heavy and uncomfortable to hold. Unlike a netbook, you have to hold it up. The screen resolution is disappointing (although I expect the next gen to fix this). A 7 inch tablet with the same screen resolution would be better on both issues. Apple is saying they won’t, but luckily, the market will give me a choice!

By: Adam

Adam — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 12:47:01 +0000

That’s exactly why I have a tablet, and the only reason. I’m a software architect and having a tablet without a pen just doesn’t make sense with what I do. I need to do precise charts and sketches and write on the screen. I have a Windows 7 convertible tablet PC, and I simply couldn’t see a better way of working.

I agree that it’s each to their own..

By: Chris Davies

Chris Davies — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:39:28 +0000

On the flip side, the HP Slate 500 has a dual-mode touchscreen, and responds not only to finger-taps but to an active stylus. That means you can write into forms, take advantage of Windows’ (surprisingly accurate) handwriting recognition and use apps like OneNote that allow you to search handwritten notes without needing to convert them to text first.

Is that something every tablet user will want, or use? No, of course not, but there’s nonetheless a market for it. I agree that battery life is still an issue for Wintel slates, but that’s not to say they don’t have advantages for different audiences.

By: Byron

Byron — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:37:57 +0000

Yet Apple is advancing at a snail’s pace. If they do with the iPad what they’ve done with the iPhone (and by all indications they will), the iPad will be left in the dust in a year. The iPad 2 will be received with a big sigh of, “What, that’s it?”

The iPhone has already been blown away by many Android 2.2 devices (both hardware and software). The only thing that keeps its sales high at this point is a bit of momentum, but that won’t last forever. There’s no reason to believe the iPad won’t get similarly blown away by Android tablets.

Apple will continue to grow for about another year, but I wouldn’t hold onto any Apple stock much longer then that.

By: Chris Davies

Chris Davies — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:36:44 +0000

Part of the problem with convertible tablets is the physical hardware: you have to have a hinge that is sturdy enough to cope with frequent rotations. I’m not sure what sort of material Apple would be able to turn to in order to fulfil that as well as keep the notebook suitably waifish.

By: Chris Davies

Chris Davies — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:34:29 +0000

It’s certainly an easy way to gauge market penetration, but the issue with apps is that sheer number doesn’t necessarily indicate quality or range. If the App Store doesn’t have the one or two titles I particularly want, but the Android Market does, then I’ll opt for an Android-based tablet.

What I don’t think any app store manages to do well yet is help people find the best apps for their needs. That’s, ironically, even more significant on iOS because of the quantity of titles out there.

By: Chris Davies

Chris Davies — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:29:16 +0000

I’d disagree with your browsing comment; I find browsing on a 3.7″ to 4.3″ smartphone pretty comfortable, so 7″ would be positively spacious in comparison. The issue is navigation and control – that’s down to the precision of multitouch gestures like pinch-zoom, and whether things like text-reflow work as well as they can.

By: Chris Davies

Chris Davies — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:25:46 +0000

Very true, and I suppose I am basing my comments on assumptions rather than definitive intentions from Apple itself. Still, I think the yearly replacement cycle of the current iPod/iPhone ranges suggest Apple is most likely looking at a 12mo refresh on the iPad, and I would maintain that the WiFi-only/3G+WiFi variants are different SKUs of a single model.

Samsung, in contrast, are looking to different sizes, etc, which would – again, in my opinion – be different models of tablet. Now, if Apple announce a 7-inch iPad in a few months time, I’m quite happy to be proved wrong (though Steve Jobs comments would seem to indicate that’s not their intention); however my “market approach” comment wasn’t limited to just the iPad but a general summary of the state of the company’s refresh cycle across their CE lines.

By: AC

AC — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 11:20:07 +0000

“What must be remembered is that Samsung doesn’t intend to echo Apple’s market approach: a single model with what will probably be a yearly refresh cycle.”

How can we remember something that may not be true? That is, how do you know that Apple’s market approach will be a single model (already there are two models: one with Wifi and one without)? Had you said the same thing about the iPod seven months after its release, you’d be equally wrong. Moreover, given that the product’s been out for just over six months how can we “remember” that Apple’s using a yearly refresh cycle? That’s not to say you won’t be right, but no one can remember something that hasn’t had the opportunity to happen yet.

By: sola

sola — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 10:09:34 +0000

Currently I have 3 contenders for my Christmas Tegra2 tablet:
- Notion Ink Adam (worst price, best specs)
- Advent Vega (best price, medium/low specs)
- Toshiba Folio (medium price, medium specs)

Vega should start selling in Novemeber 1 in Dixons (UK). Adam should start selling in November (US), Folio should be selling in November (EU).

By: gman

gman — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 06:53:05 +0000

Nice long winded article.

iPad is the tablet market. The others are so far behind, it’s beyond bad. They come out with 1st gen, then Apple will show us 2nd gen. I’m no apple fanboy that’s for sure, but I can call a spade a spade. The “others” are guessing that there is a tablet market beyond the iPad. It’s totally unproven. It’s guessing. It’s wishful thinking. Personally? I would cry if I got a tablet for Christmas. Not tears of joy. It’s a useless platform for my uses. Could I use an eReader? Sure. With that, I want battery, not a web surfing device.

By: Marcos El Malo

Marcos El Malo — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 05:50:23 +0000

More power to you, Bobbity. One side does not fit all, and there is nothing wrong with choosing what you think will work best for you. I wish more people would just use what works for them instead of acting like companies are sports teams.

That said, I’m a Mac user (and will probably get an iPad at some point). I’m not going to list a hundred reasons why to try and convince anyone that the Mac is best. I use Macs for a totally subjective reason: I like them better. I’m not threatened by anyone liking another OS better for whatever reason they have. (I do find most android evangelists to be jerks, though. :) )

By: zwinga

zwinga — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 00:18:10 +0000

It’s really very simple. The Windows ecosystem is dying and the many millions of Windows developers are in denial. After all…they stand to lose their livelyhood.

The Apple ecosystem is victorious (at least for the next decade or whatever) and the Apple developers, like me, are laughing all the way to the bank, and making bit bucks.

Corporate IT, after so many years in a parasitic relationship with Microsoft, is being forced to change. Guys like me are going to take over and kick all the Microsofties out to the unemployment line.

THAT is why people refuse to consider the iPad.

By: micrapple

micrapple — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 22:32:36 +0000

The market is certainly a bit confused on these tablet trend. Company has been looking at Android for quite some time now and no-one really step up on the plate after all this time and that only the super cheap and small company are making cr@py Android tablet. It’s a risk for big manufacturer but a risk that these big company must take in order to profit. Samsung is the first big company to ball out and take this risk. I think it will work out for Samsung but a price adjustment is a must for the Galaxy S in order for it to enter the consumer friendly market.

By: AppsforiPads

AppsforiPads — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 22:29:38 +0000

I think the whole brouhaha will come down to APPS. Apple’s iPad has over 30,000 iPad apps available to their users, and hundreds more are released each week! There is NO way that another tablet is going to come back from that kind of deficit. Its simple business logistics… they missed the boat. Unless they introduce a pad or tablet that runs rings around the iPad they simply came late to the party.

By: chuckh

chuckh — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 21:38:29 +0000

When I use a machine I want it to make the task easier not more complicated. If one machine breaks often while being used and another machine does not break when used equally the latter is the better machine. I use a Windows computer and a Mac at work. Using Windows is like balancing a rock on a stick. The Mac is like setting a rock on the ground. I have work to do I no time to be constantly f***ing with poorly designed tools.

By: pneStarman

pneStarman — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 20:54:41 +0000

Tablets are best seen as an ADDITION to Traditional Keyboard/Mouse PCs. Windows7 Tablets are too bulky-expensive-power hungry and the iPad is also too expensive for casual use by most people. However, Android Tablets are already available from China on ebay for $99 for 7 inch models $199 for 10 inch models and a new 8 inch model that has 512mb of ram, a camera and Android 2.2 that will be able to be upgraded to 3.0 when it comes out. This is the kind of Tablet that will replace Textbooks, Magazines and Newspapers and be useful for Video, Flash Games, email and social network interaction.

By: Dinidu

Dinidu — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 20:46:40 +0000

Although I’m not a apple fan, with a 7″ tablet it is pretty hard to browse and videos look small.You won’t be carrying a tablet and a phone with you; it is too bulky.iPad is definitely home use only, but on the other hand 7″ tablets offer portability but not the screen real estate.

By: Bobbity

Bobbity — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 20:34:00 +0000

It may be awesome FOR YOU, but not all.

What frustrates me:
- Non removeable battery.
- non-standard port
- REQUIRES iTunes. Which I think is by far the silliest thing ever. The damn iPhone/iPad require host computers for music and what not. How infantile.

Why would you consider something that can’t update itself or download media (from non-itunes sources) a “smart”?

By: Bobbity

Bobbity — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 20:29:12 +0000

I’m waiting for the Archos 70. It’s just the right size for me, has (standard) USB ports with host functionality, decent specs and HDMI out, capacitive screen…

At $275 that’s not a bad deal at all.

By: morphoyle

morphoyle — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 19:36:14 +0000

Can you site examples on how/why the Apple ecosystem is “awesome”? I tried coming over from the “dark side” before, and I just don’t see how the Apple ecosystem is superior. It’s flashier, but I don’t really care about the polished surfaces or mirror effects. Of course, I’m also very technologically literate and can use a linux or windows based computer with out breaking it every five seconds….

By: Fill

Fill — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 18:47:05 +0000

It is interesting to see how Apple’s iPod business is driving innovation back to the Mac. For example, I don’t think there would have been an iPhone if there weren’t iPods, and there wouldn’t be an iPad without an iPhone, and there wouldn’t be a Macbook Air (current model) without the iPad, and you wouldn’t have the (coming) Mac app store without an iPhone/iPad app store, etc. Other manufacturers just don’t have that history to build upon. The best they can do is try to jump on the band wagon after Apple shows them that a market exists. But a tablet without an app store or an OS tailored for it is going to be a hard sell. And I’m disappointed with the specs. For example, HP’s Slate is smaller (just as heavy, though), half the battery life at best, no sensors that I could tell (accelerometer, ambient light, magnetic compass, etc.), no 3G and more expensive. And, as a developer, I know what you mean by Android’s fragmentation problems. Getting apps to work consistently across Android platforms is a pain.

By: Vincent Nguyen

Vincent Nguyen — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 17:13:56 +0000

Back in the early iPhone days, Jobs was and still is against a physical keyboard on the iPhone (which I agree 100%). Now, he’s clearly stated that using touch at an angle on a notebook isn’t ideal. It appears to me that 1) we’ll never see a macbook touch or 2) it’ll be some time in the distant future (MacBook Air 4th or 5th-gen?) where the MacBook Air can be twisted/folded into a tablet tablet — is that what we’re expecting?

By: Vincent Nguyen

Vincent Nguyen — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 17:08:57 +0000

Swype works well on smaller display. It’ll be interesting to experience it’s usefulness on larger display considering much more travel time between letters.

By: iPad user

iPad user — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 16:16:52 +0000

Apples ecosystem is awesome. Everything is there already and it works and is stable. Why wait untold years for an inferior product? Your logic eludes me. You have probably never used an apple product, you know what they say “once you go Mac, you never go back’. Come on over from the dark side.

By: BMK

BMK — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 14:41:02 +0000

Good column. Personally, I am waiting for a webOS tablet that can (hopefully) work in conjunction with a next gen H/Palm smartphone; ie: webOS 2.0. However it will need to have some sort of productivity suite on it so that I can accomplish real work. A keyboard dock would be stellar.

I am intrigued by the Samsung Galaxy Tab especially because it has Swype text input which I think is the best solution yet for on-the-go text input. It has a decent productivity suite and a keyboard/dock solution would make it quite powerful. The device is small enough that I can hold it with one hand and comfortably Swype with the other. However, I think that Android is quite fragmented and the marketplace is often restricted or limited for these devices, which is worrying.

Apple’s ecosystem is not for me, therefore the iPad is not a product that I am considering. However, I think that it is pushed the market nicely along and forced other manufacturers to up their game which is good for everybody.

It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out…I’m still half convinced that this whole niche will dry up in the next two years or so.