Geez, folks lighten up. The Apple bashers are sure out in force today. Until we actually see one and how it's touch screen works (or doesn't) it's a little premature to say it's an iPad killer or that it's DOA. Gut feeling is that it won't be much competition, but I say just let it play out. And if it pushes Apple to continue to stay 3 or 4 steps ahead, that's a good thing.
Most everybody already has a smartphone and/or PMP or MID... It needs a valid reason to additionally buy a tablet. What a tablet can do is add real productivity, unachievable on a 3.5 or 4" device. You need additional space, a more usable on-screen keyboard, additional GUI elements, etc.
If you look at the better productivity apps on the iPad, like OmniGraffle, OmniFocus, some Timesheet programs, and the iWork apps... you find that up to 30% of the screen real estate is occupied with menu bars, rulers, navigational elements, etc. Now port this experience to a screen having less than 50% of the surface area and it will fail, as there are only two ways to achieve it: 1. Make everything smaller and lose usability (fingers are no stylus, you always hit a bigger area), or 2. keep controls usable and leave less display area for actual documents/content. People do not hold tablets as close to the face as they hold phones (just check out people in trains and subways reading on any smartphone, they almost crawl into the things), therefor everything must be bigger. Not every buyer is less than 20 years old and has 200% eyesight, so more dpi do not help. There a basically two approaches to on-screen keyboards: 1. design them for thumb typing, or 2. design them for regular typing. I can type regularly on an iPad (I wrote hundreds of pages on mine) because it is big enough to do that. 7" hits the sour spot, too big for thumb typing and too small for regular typing. An external keyboard is mandatory for a 7" tablet, it is optional for a 10" tablet (and before you ask: I have worked with the Galaxy Tab and can make that statement). If an external keyboard is mandatory, I can buy a netbook or small laptop and get more horsepower for the same money, or just buy an iPod touch and hold it closer.
7" devices are certainly capable for media consumption, especially for video, since most of them are 16:9, a ratio that makes zero sense for productivity apps, as nearly everything humans produce (documents, pictures) is more 4:3 or 3:2. Just, with pretty capable 7" media players widely available for less than $200, what is the point of paying $500 and more?
And that is what several people have pointed out correctly: What is the point of an enterprise company like RIM creating a device most suitable for media consumption? Calling them fanboys for asking a relevant and obvious question is not really helpful. Apple did research 7" devices and chose not to build them. Don't you think they would have wanted that money, if it made any sense?
I watched it Onhka and he is giving the typical CEOspeak...I saw the sort of disbelief expression on the interviewer's face when he was talking about the consumer market in relation to Apple. But she didn't call him out on it!
I much prefer Stevo's direct approach! Thanks!
It may very well turn out that Apple will be more successful moving from consumer product(s) into enterprise...than MS, RIM, etc., find moving from enterprise into the consumer markets!
A little difficult when your bread and butter is sitting across from you.
My coin is on Apple. Somehow having to give 2-4-1 just doesn't seem to be a good business model for me. But that is what RIM may have to do, especially if they can find a way to share the screen across two Playbooks in order to match the iPad.
The Playbook has little chance of dethroning the iPad.
They don't have the HW specs (9.7" screen) nor the SW ecosystem. HDMI ports and cameras are more CE type of features that are unlikely to hold sway with people looking at Tablets IMO.
iOS 4.2 is shipping soon which brings AirPrint & AirPlay along with multitasking and end to end encryption to the iPad. Any BB advantage for Enterprise evaporates.
In fact, the Touch is so small, you can fit it in a shirt pocket. Which is exactly the tradeoff that makes the size worth it. Anything much larger-- too big to put in a shirt pocket-- means you lose the big advantage of that size, and just get the disadvantages of not big enough.
If you're going to go bigger than a phone, you might as well keep going until you get some real usability, instead of hanging out in the uncanny valley of too big to pocket, too small to get much done. I would say 7" is almost exactly the perfect awkward size, giving you the worst of both worlds.
I agree that 7" is perfectly awkward, especially with the large bezels found on tablets and eReaders.
If there is ever going to be a successful mid-size product it will be in the 5-6" range.
Look at the iPod touch. Take the current bezel sizes and wrap them around a screen exactly 50% larger in both dimensions. The result is a device with a screen 2.25 times as big that still fits in almost any pant or jacket pocket and sits comfortably in the palm of your hand.
Don't have to take may word on screen size usability. Here's what Gizmodo just said about the Samsung Galaxy Tab's 7" screen: "Here's the thing about tablets: Size is everything. Size is the whole point."
And apple doesn't copy other products? You don't think the ipod or the iphone are copies of other products?
There were mp3 players around when the iPod came out, and there was a nascent smartphone market when the iPhone came out. But I can't think of any product that either of these were copied from.
There were mp3 players around when the iPod came out, and there was a nascent smartphone market when the iPhone came out. But I can't think of any product that either of these were copied from.
It appears as if the LG Prada emerged few months before the iPhone. But by then, after years of development the iPhone design and specs were cast in concrete -- no time to copy anyone!
The "iPad" was not targeted at IT of "serious" companies. "PLAYbook" is, silly as it may sound.
One more time - it is not a PLAYbook, it is a Playbook, like sports teams use to hold their plays, their strategies and so forth. OTOH, in this day and age, simply repeating the same falsehood seems to work.
It appears as if the LG Prada emerged few months before the iPhone. But by then, after years of development the iPhone design and specs were cast in concrete -- no time to copy anyone!
Comments
Geez, folks lighten up. The Apple bashers are sure out in force today. Until we actually see one and how it's touch screen works (or doesn't) it's a little premature to say it's an iPad killer or that it's DOA. Gut feeling is that it won't be much competition, but I say just let it play out. And if it pushes Apple to continue to stay 3 or 4 steps ahead, that's a good thing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7hoAzojQh0 Video of the device in ACTION!
I don't see anything remarkable in that video -- horizontal scrolling seems a bit laggy.
I have been using iOS 4.2 on our iPads for about 10 weeks -- works fast and easy.
On 7" tablet, typing in Portrait mode is marginally better than on an iPhone.
In Landscape mode on a 7" tablet you lose half the screen to the keyboard -- and the keyboard is still too small.
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iPod Touch users might disagree with you.
Geez, you really try everything to twist reality?
Most everybody already has a smartphone and/or PMP or MID... It needs a valid reason to additionally buy a tablet. What a tablet can do is add real productivity, unachievable on a 3.5 or 4" device. You need additional space, a more usable on-screen keyboard, additional GUI elements, etc.
If you look at the better productivity apps on the iPad, like OmniGraffle, OmniFocus, some Timesheet programs, and the iWork apps... you find that up to 30% of the screen real estate is occupied with menu bars, rulers, navigational elements, etc. Now port this experience to a screen having less than 50% of the surface area and it will fail, as there are only two ways to achieve it: 1. Make everything smaller and lose usability (fingers are no stylus, you always hit a bigger area), or 2. keep controls usable and leave less display area for actual documents/content. People do not hold tablets as close to the face as they hold phones (just check out people in trains and subways reading on any smartphone, they almost crawl into the things), therefor everything must be bigger. Not every buyer is less than 20 years old and has 200% eyesight, so more dpi do not help. There a basically two approaches to on-screen keyboards: 1. design them for thumb typing, or 2. design them for regular typing. I can type regularly on an iPad (I wrote hundreds of pages on mine) because it is big enough to do that. 7" hits the sour spot, too big for thumb typing and too small for regular typing. An external keyboard is mandatory for a 7" tablet, it is optional for a 10" tablet (and before you ask: I have worked with the Galaxy Tab and can make that statement). If an external keyboard is mandatory, I can buy a netbook or small laptop and get more horsepower for the same money, or just buy an iPod touch and hold it closer.
7" devices are certainly capable for media consumption, especially for video, since most of them are 16:9, a ratio that makes zero sense for productivity apps, as nearly everything humans produce (documents, pictures) is more 4:3 or 3:2. Just, with pretty capable 7" media players widely available for less than $200, what is the point of paying $500 and more?
And that is what several people have pointed out correctly: What is the point of an enterprise company like RIM creating a device most suitable for media consumption? Calling them fanboys for asking a relevant and obvious question is not really helpful. Apple did research 7" devices and chose not to build them. Don't you think they would have wanted that money, if it made any sense?
I watched it Onhka and he is giving the typical CEOspeak...I saw the sort of disbelief expression on the interviewer's face when he was talking about the consumer market in relation to Apple. But she didn't call him out on it!
I much prefer Stevo's direct approach! Thanks!
It may very well turn out that Apple will be more successful moving from consumer product(s) into enterprise...than MS, RIM, etc., find moving from enterprise into the consumer markets!
A little difficult when your bread and butter is sitting across from you.
My coin is on Apple. Somehow having to give 2-4-1 just doesn't seem to be a good business model for me. But that is what RIM may have to do, especially if they can find a way to share the screen across two Playbooks in order to match the iPad.
Geez, you really try everything to twist reality?
Well, he (Steve-J) is a troll, formerly known as appl, formerly known as ... so that's pretty much what we expect from him.
They don't have the HW specs (9.7" screen) nor the SW ecosystem. HDMI ports and cameras are more CE type of features that are unlikely to hold sway with people looking at Tablets IMO.
iOS 4.2 is shipping soon which brings AirPrint & AirPlay along with multitasking and end to end encryption to the iPad. Any BB advantage for Enterprise evaporates.
Lastly, l don't know of anyone "crying" about the screen size of the iPhone.
I don't "cry" I do the only thing that can possibly make a difference: I vote with my wallet.
I find the iPhone screen too small.
I find the iPad too heavy to hold for long and way too big to go with me all the time.
Therefore I will not purchase either one.
Thats the silliest thing I've read yet. An Ipad is any better?
The "iPad" was not targeted at IT of "serious" companies. "PLAYbook" is, silly as it may sound.
In fact, the Touch is so small, you can fit it in a shirt pocket. Which is exactly the tradeoff that makes the size worth it. Anything much larger-- too big to put in a shirt pocket-- means you lose the big advantage of that size, and just get the disadvantages of not big enough.
If you're going to go bigger than a phone, you might as well keep going until you get some real usability, instead of hanging out in the uncanny valley of too big to pocket, too small to get much done. I would say 7" is almost exactly the perfect awkward size, giving you the worst of both worlds.
I agree that 7" is perfectly awkward, especially with the large bezels found on tablets and eReaders.
If there is ever going to be a successful mid-size product it will be in the 5-6" range.
Look at the iPod touch. Take the current bezel sizes and wrap them around a screen exactly 50% larger in both dimensions. The result is a device with a screen 2.25 times as big that still fits in almost any pant or jacket pocket and sits comfortably in the palm of your hand.
Don't have to take may word on screen size usability. Here's what Gizmodo just said about the Samsung Galaxy Tab's 7" screen: "Here's the thing about tablets: Size is everything. Size is the whole point."
http://gizmodo.com/5686161/samsung-g...le-train-wreck
I feel the writer of the gizmodo review was a bit too reticent in his criticism
The "iPad" was not targeted at IT of "serious" companies. "PLAYbook" is, silly as it may sound.
No doubt because BB feel they own that market already.
The biggest advantage of a 7" tablet, IMO, is that it can fit in lab coats and cargo pants.
I don't know if that is significant enough to offset the disadvantages -- as shown in the gizmodo article.
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Another company copying Apple products...hope they flop!!
Dude, that's kinda harsh.
And apple doesn't copy other products? You don't think the ipod or the iphone are copies of other products?
There were mp3 players around when the iPod came out, and there was a nascent smartphone market when the iPhone came out. But I can't think of any product that either of these were copied from.
The biggest advantage of a 7" tablet, IMO, is that it can fit in...cargo pants.
Right. For all those hipster managers who "think outside the box!"
There were mp3 players around when the iPod came out, and there was a nascent smartphone market when the iPhone came out. But I can't think of any product that either of these were copied from.
It appears as if the LG Prada emerged few months before the iPhone. But by then, after years of development the iPhone design and specs were cast in concrete -- no time to copy anyone!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LG_Prada_(KE850)
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Right. For all those hipster managers who "think outside the box!"
Er... Athletic coaches for the cargos! For the lab coats: doctors, nurses, scientists, pharmacists, technicians...
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The "iPad" was not targeted at IT of "serious" companies. "PLAYbook" is, silly as it may sound.
One more time - it is not a PLAYbook, it is a Playbook, like sports teams use to hold their plays, their strategies and so forth. OTOH, in this day and age, simply repeating the same falsehood seems to work.
It appears as if the LG Prada emerged few months before the iPhone. But by then, after years of development the iPhone design and specs were cast in concrete -- no time to copy anyone!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LG_Prada_(KE850)
.
I have vague memories of that little device. Seems to have fallen by the wayside...
And apple doesn't copy other products? You don't think the ipod or the iphone are copies of other products?
The answer is NO.
Mmmm.... maybe the appropriate name for these 7-inchers is Wedgies
Take your pick:
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Wedgies. Where did you get that for a name?