Refurb MBA's are $999. There is your Apple netbook.
I think they could do a tablet, but I am skeptical. I think the netbooks are faddish. People are buying because they are cheap.
I can see room for a tablet in my family as a 2nd/3rd computer for kids/wife/myself.
But white Macbooks are also $999 new and even cheaper at Macmall or Amazon or as a refurb.
I don't see much room for a tablet there.
A tablet would have to be more like a Touch/iPhone.
It would have to have advantages that netbooks and notebooks don't have. One awesome thing about the Touch is you can quickly and easily check email. In some ways it is more enjoyable than checking email on your pc. A tablet would have to bring advantages (like) this to the table-t.
I'm not sure how you are coming to this conclusion. Microsoft has been trying to push tablets for nearly 10 years now. The market has yet to receive them well. The only tablets offered now are built into notebooks with a hinge that bends backwards so that a notebook can be used as a tablet.
I don't consider those hybrids tablets. A true tablet, Apple-thin, is a different form-factor. Maybe not as thin as an iPod touch, but in the ballpark.
Not sure what you're saying - but I agree tablets in their current half-baked form haven't caught on. Apple could do for them what the iPhone did for smartphones. Sounds more than feasible to me.
When tablets were first introduced they were true slate tablets, they didn't sell. The hybrids came about because the slates did not sell.
Quote:
Originally Posted by walshbj
I don't consider those hybrids tablets. A true tablet, Apple-thin, is a different form-factor. Maybe not as thin as an iPod touch, but in the ballpark.
Not sure what you're saying - but I agree tablets in their current half-baked form haven't caught on. Apple could do for them what the iPhone did for smartphones. Sounds more than feasible to me.
When tablets were first introduced they were true slate tablets, they didn't sell. The hybrids came about because the slates did not sell.
That was a long time ago. Now we have multi-touch, bluetooth, wifi, rich media, etc. There are many more uses for a slate tablet than there were ten years ago.
There's huge commercial potential too. I'd much rather have a slate in a vehicle with a separate keyboard than a mounted laptop on which the keyboard couldn't be detached.
Jobs said it was a nascent market which means it is new, which is accurate. He said there's not a lot of them being sold, which was probably accurate at the time, but maybe less so now. Cook said "It's a category we watch, we've got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they're happy with." That's all about the newness of the market and the quality of the products currently there.
To me that all means this is a category that sucks and will suck right up until Apple enters and rules it.
They seem to be criticizing the existing products in the category, not the category itself.
I'm not sure how one pries out "Apple Not Making Netbooks" from those kinds of statements.
Did you really expect Jobs to say "Yeah, we think it's great. We'll be hitting the market with one in 18 months!"?
Jobs needs to take a fresh look at things. The ASUS eePC and the MSI Wind are very hot right now; so hot that traditional retailers like Office Depot and Best BUy now buy ASUS branded notebooks for their inventory to sell to customers. Newegg sells enormous amounts of netbooks.
Netbooks are cheap, durable, have decent performance and have a good quality display (YMMV depending on model).
Intel's new ATOM2 low power CPU that is coming out is a dual core CPU; it may not be clocked at 2.5 GHz like a Core2Duo, but it's quite a bit faster than the original ATOM.
Maybe Netbooks offered by ASUS, HP and Dell have high performance graphics hardware. I even saw an ASUS built HP model with an dedicated nVidia Geforce 9400M and an expresscard/34 slot... for $550. Wow the same graphics performance as the Macbook, with better battery life and an express card slot... for less than half the price.
BTW, Netbooks make great Hackintoshes....
Stevie doesn't want the Mac to be seen as a "poor man's" computer. Apple positions itself as a "high end" brand, when in fact they use the same hardware as 95% of PC notebooks and their machines are built by ASUS (Macbook) and Quanta (Macbook Pro).
Time to face reality Steve Jobs. People are broke. They want something small that doesn't cost a fortune. The Macbook Air sucks and is grossly overpriced.
Make a Apple Netbook for $500 or $600.
1.6 GHz Atom
nVidia 9400M graphics
8 or 10" display. I prefer 1440x900 resolution
Express card slot (not likely to happen though)
160GB or 250 GB 5,400 RPM SATA hard drive
USB 2.0 and firewire 400 ports
Mini Displayport out
There ya go. You'll sell a ton of them. Hell, I hate Macs and I would probably buy one for that price (I'm a Mac/PC IT administrator)
I am already sensing that many are expecting too much for too little, resulting in inevitable disappointment.
If you want OS X on a netbook I think a Hackintosh is the way to go. Just stay away from Acer Apsire Ones as their are no drivers from the built0in WiFi cards so you'll have to go external or replace the internal card.
Yeah. people (even smart ones that should know better), seem to always jump to "full" OS-X on some tiny device when the odds are strongly in favour of iPhone OS only. They also seem to want everything the iPhone lacks in a larger form factor, but for the same price as the original unsubsidised iPhone.
I think a fairly expensive, iPhone-esque tablet is a possibility but it will almost certainly be lacking in some ways also.
The thing I go back and forth on is whether it will have a cell radio at all. The visual of a person putting something the size of a paperback up to their head and talking on it just seems ludicrous and it won't get out of my head. On the other hand, this thing if it exists, would be a Kindle-killer, and the kindle has a radio, so who knows?
There is also the issue of whether or not you would still need an iPhone if you had one of these tablets. Other than the phone calls, I can't see why you would, but again, that image of a giant tablet held up against someone's head just seems so wrong. Even if people will use speakerphone or bluetooth, if they don't lock down the *possibility* of talking directly into it, some fool will do it almost certainly.
For a company that thrives on groovy design and being cool, imagery like that is death.
It's not about whether they sell, it's about whether Apple can make any money selling them at the price that people want to pay. It's about the margins.
The visual of a person putting something the size of a paperback up to their head and talking on it just seems ludicrous and it won't get out of my head.
I doubt you'd be able to call from this hypothetical device like a cell phone, though. It just seems like a lot of unnecessary hardware to put into one of these devices. VOIP via an app and some sort of headset, on the other hand, undoubtedly (as you mention).
Jobs said it was a nascent market which means it is new, which is accurate. He said there's not a lot of them being sold, which was probably accurate at the time, but maybe less so now. Cook said "It's a category we watch, we've got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they're happy with." That's all about the newness of the market and the quality of the products currently there.
To me that all means this is a category that sucks and will suck right up until Apple enters and rules it.
They seem to be criticizing the existing products in the category, not the category itself.
I'm not sure how one pries out "Apple Not Making Netbooks" from those kinds of statements.
Did you really expect Jobs to say "Yeah, we think it's great. We'll be hitting the market with one in 18 months!"?
Two upcoming tech developments could really make a future 'netbook' from Apple a big hit. Wireless power for devices and greater access to high-speed web access (via 3G or WiMax ). With the population of homeless and people "on foot" growing at an alarming rate, access to basic 'wired' services will be more realistic and necessary than ever before.
Netbook sales are growing in relation to itself, but in the over all market netbooks are not the biggest seller nor the most profitable product.
Notebooks are projected to sell roughly 155 million units this year, while netbooks are projected to sell 20 million units this year. Smartphones are projected to sell 198 million units this year. Notebooks are smartphones are far more profitable than netbooks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lakorai
Yeah Netbooks not selling well, ok Stevie
Jobs needs to take a fresh look at things. The ASUS eePC and the MSI Wind are very hot right now; so hot that traditional retailers like Office Depot and Best BUy now buy ASUS branded notebooks for their inventory to sell to customers. Newegg sells enormous amounts of netbooks.
Considering Apple mentioned that they do not know how to make a cheap notebook that is not a piece of junk I guess this netbook will start at $1000+
But I don't think they will go in cause Apple want to push the iPhone and iPod Touch as the future of mobile computing. Look at how capable the iPhone already and over the years, if the community grows towards the better, expect better apps
Apple doesn't know how to build a netbook for less than $1000.00??? Maybe they should contact HP. HP's 2140 mini is a very nice machine. Even better when they add the HD resolution LCD. I can buy it for $499.00. Therefore I could see Apple putting together a better machine for just a bit more. Why? The 2140 mini has an aluminum case, nice keyboard, great batter life, solid construction, upgradeable components....and unfortunately, Windows. Hence, Apple should be able to do something better for $699.00. I would bite. If they TRULY cannot do so, then they need to hire some new engineers.
Cook said "It's a category we watch, we've got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they're happy with." That's all about the newness of the market and the quality of the products currently there.
To me that all means this is a category that sucks and will suck right up until Apple enters and rules it.
They seem to be criticizing the existing products in the category, not the category itself.
Welcome to AI. I agree that this is the part we need to focus on. Not the will they or won't they argument that seems to be common.
What could/would Apple bring to the table for an Apple-branded netbook? Carrier lock-ins, like with the iPhone, for 3G that is subsidized heavily? Aluminium unibody or pressings, or just plastic molds? What CPU? What GPU? How much RAM? What kind of internal storage: SSD or HDD, 2.5" or 1.8"? Touchscreen? Reversible from notebook to touchpad? Would the OS come on a special partition on the internal storage or from a USB flash drive. Would it be an extension of your main PC only playing iTunes content or have a regular version of iTunes on it? Would the UI be iPhone-like, Mac or something in between? Would it have GPS? WOuld it have a TN or a better display type? Would it be LED backlit? Etc.....
Unless and until the iPhone/iPod touch UI gets materially better as a serious text input device, I still think the logical applications for this type of device are around entertainment and communication hybrids (where text input is tail, not dog).
To me, this makes it the perfect living room companion device, and also larger screen top opens up to more immersive entertainment apps (where device can overlay/compliment what's on TV, be a Wii-like controller, be a communications dashboard, connect back to home office Mac, be the wedge to Apple TV viewing form factor, support Second Life/VR types of apps, etc.).
Looks like every one is predicting their own thinking. If you remember Apple has a prototype patent with an iMac with a tablet inserted into it. I believe apple is releasing a tablet about the size of 3 iPhone or half a sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 which cold be inserted to the new iMac and also the tablet could work independently. Check it out it came from me first!
The current netbooks are too big, it doesn't make sense to get a nebook if you already have have a macbook or the air, it's not like they are pocketable like the ipod touch. I think Apple should develop something the size of the Vaio P and bring that Apple "touch" to it, for around 699-799. More powerful than an ipod, but less than a vaio p and also has a minidisplayport to connect to a monitor.
Apple doesn't know how to build a netbook for less than $1000.00??? Maybe they should contact HP. HP's 2140 mini is a very nice machine. Even better when they add the HD resolution LCD. I can buy it for $499.00. Therefore I could see Apple putting together a better machine for just a bit more. Why? The 2140 mini has an aluminum case, nice keyboard, great batter life, solid construction, upgradeable components....and unfortunately, Windows. Hence, Apple should be able to do something better for $699.00. I would bite. If they TRULY cannot do so, then they need to hire some new engineers.
Can't and won't are two different things. When Apple says they can't make a machine under x-price they are talking about making it and still making a profit that makes it viable to their market. They have decided to sell so many cheap machines at little to no direct profit and have to get SW providers to supplement costs by including a plethora of crapware. A new Mac only has the Machintosh HD icon on the desktop when you start it up for the first time. There is no trialware or limited SW in the entire system, unless you count Quicktime Pro. They don't even include iWork as a trial anymore.
HP and Dell do make some nice upper-tier machines but no one thinks of their brand as such because they have deluded their brand while still losing profit despite increased sales. When this happens companies have to make another brand to psychologically get people to see the new brand as better. The Japanese automakers did this after they first failed by brnading a luxury car under the old moniker.
Apple can, but they can't make it a viable option for them at this time. BTW, you mention that the HP comes with an HD resolution LCD, but you make no mention of the actual resolution, the viewing angle, display panel type or backlighting. There are cell phones and PMP that have HD resolutions. Notice that HDTVs start at 720 vertical lines and are well below the resolutions of computer displays.
It's going to be a touch panel the size of a 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper. Half an inch thick and very light. About a 13-14" diagonal screen (very thin bezel). Wifi and 3G. For text editing a full size onscreen keyboard will appear (bigger than a netbook keyboard). This new product category will eventually replace the laptop for most people - which will seem archaic in a few years. The iPhone is here to stay but this new product is a better size for surfing, email, text editing, music/photos/video, reading, remote controlling of media equipment, etc. It will run iPhone apps in floating widget-like windows. But there will be a new section on the AppStore for apps that are designed around this new product. Price: $1200-1500 and it will sell like hotcakes. It will be the next game changer for Apple.
If this comes to fruition I would not be surprised that it ends up looking like something you describe. It might be smaller and I suspect less than $1000, too.
Apple won't make one of these to replace the use of their notebook computers. It will fill what I'm sure they hope is a complimentary niche in the overall market.
Lastly, if Apple does develop and market such a device, you can probably guess that they will do a thorough shakedown of all the enabling technologies it will rely on. The technologies we see in the Touch / iPhone plus the new mulitouch inputs into the notebooks will need to be rock-solid first. In some respects, the existing devices are real world test beds for what will be needed in a tablet. And that's Apple's unique advantage in this market space... they are the only integrated software and hardware developer.
One thing I've had a hard time with on the endless tablet rumors... how do you propose to hold a 10 inch touch screen and still be able to use it? It's not even really an issue of weight... Try holding a spiral notebook with one hand for a hour.
I think people's obsession with a "full sized" touch pad is so overblown, and they haven't ever thought about what a pain in the ass it would be to use it.
My opinion is that if Apple even comes out with a larger sized touchpad it will be around 6 inches. To me, that just seems like the largest you coul really make something without it being cumbersome.
This is not going to be as flimsy as a spiral notebook. Think about people holding clipboards. It's not awkward at all. It gets held on your hand resting on your forearm. Or you can put it on your thighs while crouched on the couch, or rest it flat on a table. Any number of situations. If they're smart they'll also put some clip spots on it so it can be hooked to arms that can be mounted places.
I've considered the lack of tripod screw mounts on the bottom of laptops to be a big mistake for years.
Comments
I think they could do a tablet, but I am skeptical. I think the netbooks are faddish. People are buying because they are cheap.
I can see room for a tablet in my family as a 2nd/3rd computer for kids/wife/myself.
But white Macbooks are also $999 new and even cheaper at Macmall or Amazon or as a refurb.
I don't see much room for a tablet there.
A tablet would have to be more like a Touch/iPhone.
It would have to have advantages that netbooks and notebooks don't have. One awesome thing about the Touch is you can quickly and easily check email. In some ways it is more enjoyable than checking email on your pc. A tablet would have to bring advantages (like) this to the table-t.
A tablet would be more appliance-like.
I'm not sure how you are coming to this conclusion. Microsoft has been trying to push tablets for nearly 10 years now. The market has yet to receive them well. The only tablets offered now are built into notebooks with a hinge that bends backwards so that a notebook can be used as a tablet.
I don't consider those hybrids tablets. A true tablet, Apple-thin, is a different form-factor. Maybe not as thin as an iPod touch, but in the ballpark.
Not sure what you're saying - but I agree tablets in their current half-baked form haven't caught on. Apple could do for them what the iPhone did for smartphones. Sounds more than feasible to me.
I don't consider those hybrids tablets. A true tablet, Apple-thin, is a different form-factor. Maybe not as thin as an iPod touch, but in the ballpark.
Not sure what you're saying - but I agree tablets in their current half-baked form haven't caught on. Apple could do for them what the iPhone did for smartphones. Sounds more than feasible to me.
When tablets were first introduced they were true slate tablets, they didn't sell. The hybrids came about because the slates did not sell.
That was a long time ago. Now we have multi-touch, bluetooth, wifi, rich media, etc. There are many more uses for a slate tablet than there were ten years ago.
There's huge commercial potential too. I'd much rather have a slate in a vehicle with a separate keyboard than a mounted laptop on which the keyboard couldn't be detached.
Jobs said it was a nascent market which means it is new, which is accurate. He said there's not a lot of them being sold, which was probably accurate at the time, but maybe less so now. Cook said "It's a category we watch, we've got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they're happy with." That's all about the newness of the market and the quality of the products currently there.
To me that all means this is a category that sucks and will suck right up until Apple enters and rules it.
They seem to be criticizing the existing products in the category, not the category itself.
I'm not sure how one pries out "Apple Not Making Netbooks" from those kinds of statements.
Did you really expect Jobs to say "Yeah, we think it's great. We'll be hitting the market with one in 18 months!"?
Jobs needs to take a fresh look at things. The ASUS eePC and the MSI Wind are very hot right now; so hot that traditional retailers like Office Depot and Best BUy now buy ASUS branded notebooks for their inventory to sell to customers. Newegg sells enormous amounts of netbooks.
Netbooks are cheap, durable, have decent performance and have a good quality display (YMMV depending on model).
Intel's new ATOM2 low power CPU that is coming out is a dual core CPU; it may not be clocked at 2.5 GHz like a Core2Duo, but it's quite a bit faster than the original ATOM.
Maybe Netbooks offered by ASUS, HP and Dell have high performance graphics hardware. I even saw an ASUS built HP model with an dedicated nVidia Geforce 9400M and an expresscard/34 slot... for $550. Wow the same graphics performance as the Macbook, with better battery life and an express card slot... for less than half the price.
BTW, Netbooks make great Hackintoshes....
Stevie doesn't want the Mac to be seen as a "poor man's" computer. Apple positions itself as a "high end" brand, when in fact they use the same hardware as 95% of PC notebooks and their machines are built by ASUS (Macbook) and Quanta (Macbook Pro).
Time to face reality Steve Jobs. People are broke. They want something small that doesn't cost a fortune. The Macbook Air sucks and is grossly overpriced.
Make a Apple Netbook for $500 or $600.
1.6 GHz Atom
nVidia 9400M graphics
8 or 10" display. I prefer 1440x900 resolution
Express card slot (not likely to happen though)
160GB or 250 GB 5,400 RPM SATA hard drive
USB 2.0 and firewire 400 ports
Mini Displayport out
There ya go. You'll sell a ton of them. Hell, I hate Macs and I would probably buy one for that price (I'm a Mac/PC IT administrator)
I am already sensing that many are expecting too much for too little, resulting in inevitable disappointment.
If you want OS X on a netbook I think a Hackintosh is the way to go. Just stay away from Acer Apsire Ones as their are no drivers from the built0in WiFi cards so you'll have to go external or replace the internal card.
Yeah. people (even smart ones that should know better), seem to always jump to "full" OS-X on some tiny device when the odds are strongly in favour of iPhone OS only. They also seem to want everything the iPhone lacks in a larger form factor, but for the same price as the original unsubsidised iPhone.
I think a fairly expensive, iPhone-esque tablet is a possibility but it will almost certainly be lacking in some ways also.
The thing I go back and forth on is whether it will have a cell radio at all. The visual of a person putting something the size of a paperback up to their head and talking on it just seems ludicrous and it won't get out of my head. On the other hand, this thing if it exists, would be a Kindle-killer, and the kindle has a radio, so who knows?
There is also the issue of whether or not you would still need an iPhone if you had one of these tablets. Other than the phone calls, I can't see why you would, but again, that image of a giant tablet held up against someone's head just seems so wrong. Even if people will use speakerphone or bluetooth, if they don't lock down the *possibility* of talking directly into it, some fool will do it almost certainly.
For a company that thrives on groovy design and being cool, imagery like that is death.
Yeah Netbooks not selling well, ok Stevie ....
It's not about whether they sell, it's about whether Apple can make any money selling them at the price that people want to pay. It's about the margins.
The visual of a person putting something the size of a paperback up to their head and talking on it just seems ludicrous and it won't get out of my head.
I doubt you'd be able to call from this hypothetical device like a cell phone, though. It just seems like a lot of unnecessary hardware to put into one of these devices. VOIP via an app and some sort of headset, on the other hand, undoubtedly (as you mention).
But they never really said no to netbooks.
Jobs said it was a nascent market which means it is new, which is accurate. He said there's not a lot of them being sold, which was probably accurate at the time, but maybe less so now. Cook said "It's a category we watch, we've got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they're happy with." That's all about the newness of the market and the quality of the products currently there.
To me that all means this is a category that sucks and will suck right up until Apple enters and rules it.
They seem to be criticizing the existing products in the category, not the category itself.
I'm not sure how one pries out "Apple Not Making Netbooks" from those kinds of statements.
Did you really expect Jobs to say "Yeah, we think it's great. We'll be hitting the market with one in 18 months!"?
Two upcoming tech developments could really make a future 'netbook' from Apple a big hit. Wireless power for devices and greater access to high-speed web access (via 3G or WiMax ). With the population of homeless and people "on foot" growing at an alarming rate, access to basic 'wired' services will be more realistic and necessary than ever before.
Notebooks are projected to sell roughly 155 million units this year, while netbooks are projected to sell 20 million units this year. Smartphones are projected to sell 198 million units this year. Notebooks are smartphones are far more profitable than netbooks.
Yeah Netbooks not selling well, ok Stevie
Jobs needs to take a fresh look at things. The ASUS eePC and the MSI Wind are very hot right now; so hot that traditional retailers like Office Depot and Best BUy now buy ASUS branded notebooks for their inventory to sell to customers. Newegg sells enormous amounts of netbooks.
Considering Apple mentioned that they do not know how to make a cheap notebook that is not a piece of junk I guess this netbook will start at $1000+
But I don't think they will go in cause Apple want to push the iPhone and iPod Touch as the future of mobile computing. Look at how capable the iPhone already and over the years, if the community grows towards the better, expect better apps
Apple doesn't know how to build a netbook for less than $1000.00??? Maybe they should contact HP. HP's 2140 mini is a very nice machine. Even better when they add the HD resolution LCD. I can buy it for $499.00. Therefore I could see Apple putting together a better machine for just a bit more. Why? The 2140 mini has an aluminum case, nice keyboard, great batter life, solid construction, upgradeable components....and unfortunately, Windows. Hence, Apple should be able to do something better for $699.00. I would bite. If they TRULY cannot do so, then they need to hire some new engineers.
Cook said "It's a category we watch, we've got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they're happy with." That's all about the newness of the market and the quality of the products currently there.
To me that all means this is a category that sucks and will suck right up until Apple enters and rules it.
They seem to be criticizing the existing products in the category, not the category itself.
Welcome to AI. I agree that this is the part we need to focus on. Not the will they or won't they argument that seems to be common.
What could/would Apple bring to the table for an Apple-branded netbook? Carrier lock-ins, like with the iPhone, for 3G that is subsidized heavily? Aluminium unibody or pressings, or just plastic molds? What CPU? What GPU? How much RAM? What kind of internal storage: SSD or HDD, 2.5" or 1.8"? Touchscreen? Reversible from notebook to touchpad? Would the OS come on a special partition on the internal storage or from a USB flash drive. Would it be an extension of your main PC only playing iTunes content or have a regular version of iTunes on it? Would the UI be iPhone-like, Mac or something in between? Would it have GPS? WOuld it have a TN or a better display type? Would it be LED backlit? Etc.....
To me, this makes it the perfect living room companion device, and also larger screen top opens up to more immersive entertainment apps (where device can overlay/compliment what's on TV, be a Wii-like controller, be a communications dashboard, connect back to home office Mac, be the wedge to Apple TV viewing form factor, support Second Life/VR types of apps, etc.).
Blogged on this one at:
Apple, TV and the Smart Connected Living Room
http://bit.ly/FBEk
There is also a link at bottom of that post to analysis of Boxee/media center space.
Check it out if interested.
Mark
That would be 'appropriate', not 'ironic'.
Curse you Alanis Morrisette!
No. I'm aware of the definition of "ironic."
It's ironic that someone would think having the first post in a thread is a form of "success" by any standard.
Apple doesn't know how to build a netbook for less than $1000.00??? Maybe they should contact HP. HP's 2140 mini is a very nice machine. Even better when they add the HD resolution LCD. I can buy it for $499.00. Therefore I could see Apple putting together a better machine for just a bit more. Why? The 2140 mini has an aluminum case, nice keyboard, great batter life, solid construction, upgradeable components....and unfortunately, Windows. Hence, Apple should be able to do something better for $699.00. I would bite. If they TRULY cannot do so, then they need to hire some new engineers.
Can't and won't are two different things. When Apple says they can't make a machine under x-price they are talking about making it and still making a profit that makes it viable to their market. They have decided to sell so many cheap machines at little to no direct profit and have to get SW providers to supplement costs by including a plethora of crapware. A new Mac only has the Machintosh HD icon on the desktop when you start it up for the first time. There is no trialware or limited SW in the entire system, unless you count Quicktime Pro. They don't even include iWork as a trial anymore.
HP and Dell do make some nice upper-tier machines but no one thinks of their brand as such because they have deluded their brand while still losing profit despite increased sales. When this happens companies have to make another brand to psychologically get people to see the new brand as better. The Japanese automakers did this after they first failed by brnading a luxury car under the old moniker.
Apple can, but they can't make it a viable option for them at this time. BTW, you mention that the HP comes with an HD resolution LCD, but you make no mention of the actual resolution, the viewing angle, display panel type or backlighting. There are cell phones and PMP that have HD resolutions. Notice that HDTVs start at 720 vertical lines and are well below the resolutions of computer displays.
It's going to be a touch panel the size of a 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper. Half an inch thick and very light. About a 13-14" diagonal screen (very thin bezel). Wifi and 3G. For text editing a full size onscreen keyboard will appear (bigger than a netbook keyboard). This new product category will eventually replace the laptop for most people - which will seem archaic in a few years. The iPhone is here to stay but this new product is a better size for surfing, email, text editing, music/photos/video, reading, remote controlling of media equipment, etc. It will run iPhone apps in floating widget-like windows. But there will be a new section on the AppStore for apps that are designed around this new product. Price: $1200-1500 and it will sell like hotcakes. It will be the next game changer for Apple.
If this comes to fruition I would not be surprised that it ends up looking like something you describe. It might be smaller and I suspect less than $1000, too.
Apple won't make one of these to replace the use of their notebook computers. It will fill what I'm sure they hope is a complimentary niche in the overall market.
Lastly, if Apple does develop and market such a device, you can probably guess that they will do a thorough shakedown of all the enabling technologies it will rely on. The technologies we see in the Touch / iPhone plus the new mulitouch inputs into the notebooks will need to be rock-solid first. In some respects, the existing devices are real world test beds for what will be needed in a tablet. And that's Apple's unique advantage in this market space... they are the only integrated software and hardware developer.
One thing I've had a hard time with on the endless tablet rumors... how do you propose to hold a 10 inch touch screen and still be able to use it? It's not even really an issue of weight... Try holding a spiral notebook with one hand for a hour.
I think people's obsession with a "full sized" touch pad is so overblown, and they haven't ever thought about what a pain in the ass it would be to use it.
My opinion is that if Apple even comes out with a larger sized touchpad it will be around 6 inches. To me, that just seems like the largest you coul really make something without it being cumbersome.
This is not going to be as flimsy as a spiral notebook. Think about people holding clipboards. It's not awkward at all. It gets held on your hand resting on your forearm. Or you can put it on your thighs while crouched on the couch, or rest it flat on a table. Any number of situations. If they're smart they'll also put some clip spots on it so it can be hooked to arms that can be mounted places.
I've considered the lack of tripod screw mounts on the bottom of laptops to be a big mistake for years.