The Many Faces of Apple's Touchable Tablet
The ol' CouchGuy has expressed differences of opinion with Jason Schwarz of Seeking Alpha in the past, but never let it be said that he doesn't give a man his due when he's talking sense. Jason's latest prediction is, I think, a lot more likely to hit the target than when he bought into that old "Apple-branded TV set" rumor.
Most of the objections I've heard, however, come down to an inability to see where the market for this thing really is going to be found. It is not likely to be cheap. (Over $500 certainly, over $700 probably...) It is not exactly pocket-sized. It is not expected to have the much-discussed physical keyboard so many people appear to have as the star of their wet dreams. Can such a thing ever be more than a niche product — a rich man's toy?
Schwarz seems to think so. In fact, he's laying odds that what he calls the iTouch Tablet and I have been dubbing the iPad (just to avoid reusing the "touch" moniker) could well become Apple's flagship product. After reading his article, I'm siding with him. He has four reasons for his belief, and I'll let you read them in his words because they are pretty decent words and for the most part persuasive. I don't buy that we're going to see an iPad with no carrier exclusivity, though. But then, I'm still hoping for a Kindle-like deal with at least the first year of unlimited data built into the purchase price. That would mean AT&T again (with their almost ubiquitous Wi-Fi hotspots) or Verizon, I'd expect.
These days, the laptop is the new desktop, offering pretty much everything we used to require a desktop to do, plus portability. This is why laptop sales are through the roof compared to a few short years ago. The netbook is not the new laptop, despite the short term sales spike. It just doesn't have the cojones and never will.
The iPhone isn't quite the new laptop, either, but it is moving that way. Screen size and touchable real estate holds it back — and so does the perception that the damned thing is primarily a phone! The phone parts get in the way of really seeing what the iPhone means in the Grand Unified Apple Strategy. Look at the iPod Touch and you really get more of a hint. Add a microphone and a camera to the iPod Touch (which is exactly where Apple appears to be headed, and soon) and you see it even more. This is not just a phone and not just a music player — it is a data communication device with more facets than a brilliant-cut diamond. Eliminate the few weaknesses and enhance a few of the features and you could really have Apple's Crown Jewel at last.
I'm buying into the prediction for a massively successful Apple iPad because I can see that this is not just one device — it is a chameleon capable of satisfying the exact needs of a lot of different audiences. Versatility is one of the big selling points for the iPhone, and the iPad concept offers much more flexibility and a lot of strengths the iPhone itself does not possess. This may be that "Anything Machine" we all don't know we desperately want and need until we have it in our hands.
Let's look at the "iPad" from a lot of different angles, focusing each time on what one particular audience may see when they look at this multitalented machine.
MediaPad
This one is pretty obvious. Put a 10-inch screen on an iPod Touch and you have the best personal portable media experience available on the market. We get a big, bright screen that can be enjoyed by one or even more than one if they are fond of each other. Decent built-in speakers would be nice (though the third-parties will always offer more if you want it). Give it plenty of storage capacity, of course. (Apple did recently buy up all that lovely flash memory...) Apple's unmatched user interface and the already-present ability to buy, rent or download for free (talk about a boom time for video podcasters!) media directly from the device could be further enhanced here because the iPad would carry a more robust processor and more battery power, making streaming media practical in a way that the iPhone is denied. (Yes, I think Apple will add Flash when they don't have to settle for crippled Flash.)
BookPad
OK, also obvious. Kindle can't compete with the full-color bright and beautiful screen on this baby. The iPad can even allow embedding rich media (sound, music, animation, video) into primarily text-based works as it is appropriate to do so. (It could be the best textbook you will ever have — "updatable, animatable and non-imitatable" as the Battling Bard of Louisville might say!) In this size, the objections to reading on the iPhone screen go away. (And I think they are mostly going away anyway. I love reading on my iPod Touch!) I no longer think Apple needs to control the ebook market. There are lots of places to buy ebooks and this piece of hardware will inspire lots more to rise up. Let 'em all sell all they can move — Apple will sell the iPads. This is also the place to get the full-color magazine experience, too. You want to read Wired or Architectural Digest (yes, and Playboy) the way they were meant to be read? Can't do that on a Kindle. Can do that and then some on an iPad. Which device will you want your subscription sent to?
BusinessPad
iPhones will continue to offer pocket-sized convenience, but the iPad offers so much more that you will see it under the arm of anyone who needs business connectivity. Full-time connectivity for your business databases, compatibility with the inescapable Microsoft Outlook suite, the ability to distribute reports and self-updating database-linked documents without paper, a screen big enough to display any presentation formatted data you desire — all that is inevitable. But put on a camera that faces the user (I'd make it flip over the top so you can point it either way, but that's just me) and you have a portable virtual meeting machine that is unmatched. iChat conferencing with document sharing and collaborative features could be the killer app for the iPad in this market. And as apps were the making of the iPhone's success, so it will be with the iPad. App developers will flock to create every specialized business tool you need. (And you can probably run all the existing iPhone apps too in their own iPhone-size windows if you really need to do so.)
DataPad
The other side of this coin is the folks who are putting in all that data that the BusinessPad user group is pulling out and massaging. If you are a warehouse picker, an inventory worker, an assembly line or dock foreman, a health care worker, an insurance salesman or adjuster, a field service tech or cable installer, or a police officer you will be using an iPad sooner or later. The very ubiquity of the device will mean that specialized app developers will flock to it the way they have the iPhone, and the increased screen real estate means you can treat it like an electronic clipboard that's every bit as good as the one Geek Hero Wil Wheaton carted around occasionally in ST:TNG back in the day. The data wirelessly flows back and forth to a remote database as you go. Six months after the iPad comes out, your doctor will use one to tap in your symptoms directly to your chart, his assistant will use one to send your prescriptions to your favorite pharmacy, the pharmacist will use one to have you sign off that you've received all the scary drug interaction data, and the meter cop outside will use one to record the ticket she's giving you for double-parking.
CommPad
With a built-in video camera (flippable between front-facing and self-facing, please, O mighty Guru of Design), microphone, speakers and Bluetooth connectivity — and that lovely, lovely screen — why would you settle for just a phone? The iPad connects you with friends, family and the world wirelessly by text, voice or video. This is the mobile blogger's paradise and the stuck-in-the-70s phone company's nightmare. The smart phone companies will be emphasizing data and deemphasizing voice in the future, anyway. I can just Skype to any phone I need to reach, and iChat puts me in front of the world or just my BFF across the street from wherever I go. If you have to have that physical keyboard, a fold-up third party Bluetooth unit will probably be available from multiple vendors.
WebPad
Lest we forget, this thing has a browser, too — one that really does deliver on the promise of the whole WWW thing on the go. Your favorite sites, web-based services and applications, social networking, and support for the widest variety of web protocols is enabled by that faster processor and additional screen space and battery power.
ControlPad
Forget your "universal remotes" because this one is really universal. Apple TV and Macintosh remote control out of the box, of course, but almost everyone wil want to jump on this bandwagon and make their home theaters and appliances "iPad interactive". Monitoring my home webcams and security system or setting my DVR via iPad from anywhere would be a real treat, too. Inexpensive add-on third-party devices are already in the works to allow older infrared sensor devices to interact via wi-fi on the iPhone. It would be so much easier on the iPad.
GamePad
OK, if all of the above don't sell enough iPads to take this product through the roof, this will. Why settle for "gaming lite" on a phone or a handheld game unit when this puppy's heaver processor and better screen blow 'em all away. Touch and accelerometer controls can really shine with this much touchable surface to play with, and some real 3D acion is possible here, too. This is the perfect multi-player portable game platform, whether your opponent is across the couch or across the ocean. When the iPad hits, all the existing portables and most of the ones only rumored at this time can hang it up.
MyPad
Best of all, you don't have to choose which of these you want, the iPad is all of these devices and a lot more. Load it up to do what you want it to do. (Mine would be a MediaBookCommWebGamePad, with a few ControlPad goodies. Sue me... I have eclectic tastes.)
It won't be cheap, but it will do so much that it will be irresistable. Considering that it can replace a laptop, book reader, personal media device, handheld game system and more for 90% of what you would be doing with such devices, it actually comes out pretty cheap at an $800 price point.
This one can't get here fast enough. iPhone, meet the new King of the Cupertino Castle.You didn't know how badly you needed an iPhone until it was here. Now a whole lot of people who said they'd never care about a phone from Apple don't know how they lived without it. This is going to go down just like that, in spades.
Posted by Guy McLimore at 7/24/2009 10:54 PM 
Categories: Opinion,iPod,Rumors,Apple Tablet,Ebooks,iPhone,General Apple News
Categories: Opinion,iPod,Rumors,Apple Tablet,Ebooks,iPhone,General Apple News
I shudder when I think about how fragile a 10 inch glass screen will be. This thing will require a hardened case the size of a MacBook for protection when transported.
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I know lots of people who carry unprotected iPhones... but I agree the iPad will be more vulnerable. I use the original Elan Convertible flip case from Griffin on my 1G iPod Touch. It has a leather-covered thin metal plate that flops over to protect the screen and doubles as a stand. The new one for the 2G model, though, I don't like as well and if I upgraded I'd have to look elsewhere. I'd expect cases and holsters for the iPad. Personally, I want one that maximizes accessibility while minimizes the trouble of carrying it. If you wear the "tactical pants" Andy Ihnatko is always recommending, it's a cinch. Otherwise, I think I'd like an under-arm sling like a shoulder holster, such as the ones made by eHolster. Those are pretty sweet and having them make one to fit the iPad would be a sure bet once the device is out.
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Great run down of the uses for the iPad! Persuasive, well organized, best overview I've seen.
You've made such a compelling case-- I want one!
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Can we get in line now? In truth, I didn't really have myself convinced until I started pulling things together for this piece. Oh, I knew it would sell, but I didn't realize at first just how broad the market could be for the iPad. Originally, I wanted to see it done, but not necessarily to buy one right away. Now... well, I hope they can keep it under $800, but I would almost certainly consider dumping my plans to update my venerable white iBook in favor of this baby!
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Gus-
I agree completely with your assessment.
The iPad will be very big deal.
In fact, I recall a patent recently being issued to Apple for a 'flipable' 2-way camera... now what do you think they want THAT for ?
I believe the Dick Tracy video-phone concept is about to explode onto the scene...
Full disclosure- long on AAPL stock.
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I didn't know about the "flippable camera" patent! Hey, I'm thinking like an Apple engineer! Sweet! Got a link to that? I wish I had a nice block of Apple stock purchased pre-iPhone...!
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To Guy McLimore-
Regarding a rotating lens, here 'ya go:
www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/02/apple-hints-at/
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Oh, that's exactly what I was wanting! Let's hope that idea gets incorporated into the iPad -- or maybe even the next iPod Touch...
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The lighter, the better. 300 g or less would be great.
The smaller, the better. Pocketable would be great.
Firewire for repairs via Target Disk Mode.
At least two USB 2 ports for wireless remote control and pendrive.
Ethernet port.
Wifi.
Bluetooth.
Touch screen.
Full and true GPS (TomTom compatible).
Full Mac OS X for full blown presentations from NATIVE Apple Keynote and Microsoft PowerPoint via video-out port to videoprojectors (with VGA adapter cable).
Here it is:
iNetbook rerendered
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fotoboer/3226244527
First picture of:
Next Apple moves will be Books and Games…
http://spidouz.wordpress.com/2008/09/03/next-apple-moves-will-be-books-and-games
We need thousands for our University.
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I'm not sure I agree on the desirablity of all those ports, which will for sure make the thing larger and clunkier as well as a bigger battery drain. Maybe two accessory ports instead of one (allowing connection to external power/charging while another accessory is attached). Accessory ports will be one key to success, as they will allow peripheral devices used with custom software. Bluetooth and 802.11N wi-fi would be the main connectivity, though. Firewire? As an old IT guy who used his Powerbook to boot and repair systems in the field, I'd love that -- but that may be too much to ask for. USB2? Not sure this is the way to go. GPS? Oh, my yes.
But full Mac OS X? No, I can't see that. I don't want this to be a touchscreen version of a Macbook Pro -- I want a larger, more versatile version of an iPod Touch. There is no reason it can't have video out the same way that the iPod Touch does, and no reason at all software can't be available that is file compatible with the iWork suite without actually running a full version of OS X. I think full Mac OS X on this would be a mistake. We've already learned how much we can do with the iPhone/iPod Touch operating system. Easy ways to move data bak and forth and provide operability with OS X apps, yes. The ability to run OS X apps in a full version of the operating system, no. So it seems to me, at least.
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A 10" multitouch screen is ridiculous. It's far too big to be practical, and far too expensive, putting this device in a price category that won't sell much. It'll be Cube-like in its failure. Apple iterates in small steps. The next evolution of the iPhone and iPod touch will be a portable device with a 5" screen, which is two of the current 3.5" screens put together. That is far more likely as it is a small step, but has a screen large enough to compete with a Kindle, and is cheap enough and portable enough to be practical.
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There seems to be a lot of evidence that Apple is going with the larger screen. We'll have to wait to see what that does to the price. 10" diagonal screen size may be right at the ragged edge of easy portability. Too much? Not when you are using it, but it will affect how you can handle it when you are not using it. One of the best things about my iPod Touch it that it is always there when I want it, attached to my belt. Will I find carrying a 10" diagonal screen device as easy? No. Will the incredible versatility of such a device make people adjust to the size and reduced portability? In many cases, I think it will. In some, it will not (and those folks will stick with iPhones alone). Lots of people will own and use both, depending on the circumstanes. How much will the size hurt the device's acceptance? We'll probably know fairly soon.
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Apple Tablet may be launched this Christmas or possibly as early as September and might cost $800.00 with Verizon as the carrier. I hope this will be another great rally for apple earnings. I will buy one of this for sure. The iphone started to be too little to stay all the day looking things. I am a great fan of apple product so started collecting all the information (more than 200 sites) about Apple Tablet(News, Videos, Pics, Pre reviews, Rumors etc.,). If you are interested take a look at the below link
http://markthispage.blogspot.com/2009/07/apple-tablet-large-iphone-or-ipod-touch.html
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About being a:
Mediapad/Bookpad/BusinessPad/Commpad/Webpad...how is this device better than my Macbook Pro? I spend hours lying on my sofa with my laptop on my lap consuming all kinds of digital media. More sources for a variety of digital media would be great, but I love my 1900 x 1200 screen and multi-touch trackpad for controlling everything.
Controlpad: How is this so much better than my iPod touch?
Gamepad: How is this so much better than multiplayer gaming over a LAN or internet connection, again using my Macbook Pro?
I see a lot of hype on the Internet, a Mac tablet that everyone can project their greatest business/product fantasies on to. Fast-forward 2-3 years, when we have 4G connections on all our laptops, 1+ Terabyte HDDs, 8GB+ of RAM, 16+ hours real battery life, and greatly improved software services and content distribution systems. We also have super iPhones with multiple core processors and oodles of storage. Why the need for a third device, apart from specialized industrial or professional uses? I applaud the coming of an Apple tablet, but is it a mainstream "third portable screen/device" that will overshadow its larger and smaller siblings?
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