A mouse and keyboard, even on a laptop, are too limiting for the way many people would like to do their job.
Students really need to write out lecture notes, not type, for effective learning and retention.
Doctors need to jot notes quickly while assessing patients.
Contractors, landscapers and many other professionals need to make tech notes and diagrams as they survey the site.
Musicians need to jot down a couple of bars of music that just popped into their heads.
True, they could do it on paper and later input it into the computer (or pay someone else to do so) but why not eliminate the middle step?
There are so many "vertical" markets for a properly implemented tablet that there is a great opportunity for the first company that does it right. ipod wasn't the first mp3 player but it is by far the best. If apple makes a truly elegant tablet they can cash in again.
A mouse and keyboard, even on a laptop, are too limiting for the way many people would like to do their job.
Students really need to write out lecture notes, not type, for effective learning and retention.
Doctors need to jot notes quickly while assessing patients.
Contractors, landscapers and many other professionals need to make tech notes and diagrams as they survey the site.
Musicians need to jot down a couple of bars of music that just popped into their heads.
True, they could do it on paper and later input it into the computer (or pay someone else to do so) but why not eliminate the middle step?
There are so many "vertical" markets for a properly implemented tablet that there is a great opportunity for the first company that does it right. ipod wasn't the first mp3 player but it is by far the best. If apple makes a truly elegant tablet they can cash in again.
One of the biggest problems for the tablet right now is that to build a "one size fits all" product prices you out of some of the markets that you want to get into, like education. There are "niche" products being developed for these markets to tap into the $ that is currently going into desktops and laptops. These are integrated hardware/software solutions to target the needs of these markets.
I agree that there is a lot of possibility for tablets, but I don't think that the time is here for a general purpose tablet, and if you could build one cheep enough then you might have to wait up to 5 years for a good enough software base to build up that supports your hardware to really sustain the hardware.
For myself I would like to have a 6 X 9X 0.5" tablet with the supporting software for doodling and text input, yet have it be robust enough to run PhotoShop and Painter. I would want a pressure sensitive stylus (possibly even tilt sensitive) and AirPort connectivity, no need for USB or FireWire if I can net install my software. A good financial App that synced to the one on my computer, as well as e-mail, address book, calendar, and a web browser. A lot of the software is already there, but may need to be tweaked for optimal pen based use.
I think that the first two Apps I mentioned are the "killer" apps for every day use. They can't just be a paint and word processor program, but a mixture of both of them. Possibly resurrecting the open doc model so that it is closer to how we use a sheet of paper when taking notes, a lot less rigid than a conventional word processor or text editor.
I really don't see the appeal of a tablet, but I guess that could be because I have never seen one that was executed upon correctly. I agree with @homenow, a tablet would be great for lots of small markets, but no one has created a product that could fulfill the many diverse goals that a Tablet product needs too.
The iPod has a simple foundation: Play MP3s. Apple wasn't the first to market, but they waited until the technology was there and created the best Mp3 player in the World. If Apple were to create a tablet, they would need to define it's basic goal and keep it simple. So far, no one has been able to do this with a tablet. I don't think it's possible because an tablet has to have such a broad feature set, but if anyone can do it Apple can. If they do it, hats off to them, because I really can't see it.
Comments
Maybe a PDA powered by a PPC 440GX?
just my opinion though.
Students really need to write out lecture notes, not type, for effective learning and retention.
Doctors need to jot notes quickly while assessing patients.
Contractors, landscapers and many other professionals need to make tech notes and diagrams as they survey the site.
Musicians need to jot down a couple of bars of music that just popped into their heads.
True, they could do it on paper and later input it into the computer (or pay someone else to do so) but why not eliminate the middle step?
There are so many "vertical" markets for a properly implemented tablet that there is a great opportunity for the first company that does it right. ipod wasn't the first mp3 player but it is by far the best. If apple makes a truly elegant tablet they can cash in again.
you get a lot more done typing than writing
Huge news flash. The computer is not a glorified typewriter anymore. There's lots more to computer interaction than text input through a keyboard.
Originally posted by ginjg
A mouse and keyboard, even on a laptop, are too limiting for the way many people would like to do their job.
Students really need to write out lecture notes, not type, for effective learning and retention.
Doctors need to jot notes quickly while assessing patients.
Contractors, landscapers and many other professionals need to make tech notes and diagrams as they survey the site.
Musicians need to jot down a couple of bars of music that just popped into their heads.
True, they could do it on paper and later input it into the computer (or pay someone else to do so) but why not eliminate the middle step?
There are so many "vertical" markets for a properly implemented tablet that there is a great opportunity for the first company that does it right. ipod wasn't the first mp3 player but it is by far the best. If apple makes a truly elegant tablet they can cash in again.
One of the biggest problems for the tablet right now is that to build a "one size fits all" product prices you out of some of the markets that you want to get into, like education. There are "niche" products being developed for these markets to tap into the $ that is currently going into desktops and laptops. These are integrated hardware/software solutions to target the needs of these markets.
I agree that there is a lot of possibility for tablets, but I don't think that the time is here for a general purpose tablet, and if you could build one cheep enough then you might have to wait up to 5 years for a good enough software base to build up that supports your hardware to really sustain the hardware.
For myself I would like to have a 6 X 9X 0.5" tablet with the supporting software for doodling and text input, yet have it be robust enough to run PhotoShop and Painter. I would want a pressure sensitive stylus (possibly even tilt sensitive) and AirPort connectivity, no need for USB or FireWire if I can net install my software. A good financial App that synced to the one on my computer, as well as e-mail, address book, calendar, and a web browser. A lot of the software is already there, but may need to be tweaked for optimal pen based use.
I think that the first two Apps I mentioned are the "killer" apps for every day use. They can't just be a paint and word processor program, but a mixture of both of them. Possibly resurrecting the open doc model so that it is closer to how we use a sheet of paper when taking notes, a lot less rigid than a conventional word processor or text editor.
The iPod has a simple foundation: Play MP3s. Apple wasn't the first to market, but they waited until the technology was there and created the best Mp3 player in the World. If Apple were to create a tablet, they would need to define it's basic goal and keep it simple. So far, no one has been able to do this with a tablet. I don't think it's possible because an tablet has to have such a broad feature set, but if anyone can do it Apple can. If they do it, hats off to them, because I really can't see it.