The Apple “iPad” is here!
January 28, 2010 | 2 Comments
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard by now that Apple presented their new tablet device. Or maybe, you just have a well-balanced, social life that you haven’t bothered reading up on all the latest tech news (you know, the kind that we nerds voraciously devour). In any case, Apple finally showed off their masterpiece yesterday, and on the whole, I have to say, they did a fine job with the device. They are calling it the “iPad” after months of speculation that it might be called “iSlate,” “iTablet,” “TabletMac,” or something-else.
Overall, the product looks like a giant iPhone (or iPod Touch). When it’s turned on, it provides a similar screen with various app icons and four main icons at the bottom. The device is 0.5 inch thick and has a 9.7 inch IPS display. Without going into technical details, the IPS display is just an LCD display that allows wider viewing angles. The tradeoff is that it tends to use more power to accomplish this. The iPad only weighs 1.5 pounds, making it highly portable. The battery is fully enclosed (cannot be swapped out) and provides 10 hours of continuous video and a month of standby! Similar to the iPhone, the iPad had bluetooth and Wifi with different versions also providing 3G access through AT&T (they appear to have beaten out Verizon). Also, the iPad has the same speaker/microphone and accelerometer/compass features as the iPhone.
Concerning the hardware, perhaps the most interesting thing is that the iPad is powered by a 1Ghz Apple A4 processor. This chip is described as a system-on-a-chip (SOC) that integrates the main processor, graphics silicon, memory controller, etc. all on once piece of silicon. It is also very frugal with power. Compare this with the estimated 600 Mhz chip on the iPhone 3GS.
Another interesting hardware is an accessory: In addition to the regular dock, a keyboard dock is also available which will allow for easier typing. This is something the iPhone needs.
What these various hardware specs allow is some very good multimedia capabilities. The demos that Steve Jobs and others showed all seemed to work smoothly with no hiccups. Animations and graphical transitions, fades, etc. all seemed smooth and polished. All of the standard apps including web browsing, contacts, email, maps, pictures, HD videos were super smooth. One of the bigger category of apps to note were the games. Apple is apparently making a clear statement that the device is a great environment for games. They allowed a few different vendors to demonstrate some very cool-looking games, all running smoothly with no hiccups. Overall, Steve Jobs indicated that the iPad will provide another golden opportunity for developers to cash-in on new apps (just as with the iPhone and iPod Touch).
Of the most anticipated capability of the new device was the ability to read newspapers and magazines in ditial print. And here, the iPad didn’t disappoint overall. They showed examples of viewing the New York Times in a “native”-type format (replicated the look of the newspaper). Of course, with the digital format, things like embedded videos are possible. With the iBooks app, one can use the iPad to read books just like Amazon’s Kindle and other e-readers. The app also allows you to store digital books on what looks like a wooden shelf (nice!). Although they didn’t go too much into details, you can supposedly change the size and fonts of each book’s texts. So far, they have lined up 5 publishing partners: Penguin, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Hachett Book Group. Books can be purchased through the new iBook Store.
Of Course, iTunes is also built-in. So, you can purchase and download music and videos just as you can on the iPhone and iPod.
Finally, I was very heartened by the fact that they included iWork. Each component of iWork can be purchased separately for $9.99, just like any other app through iTunes. As they were demo’d, these apps looked very impressive with a new user interface providing a lot of options. The addition of iWork should go a long way to making the Tablet a hit in the business arena. It will take other business apps and perhaps some other hardware suppport, but this is the first stepping stone.
So, although it didn’t have everything (e.g., camera), the iPad overall was another milestone in Apple’s legacy. It’ll likely be another runaway hit, much like the iPod and iPhone have been. There aren’t a whole lot of new things in the iPad, but what it has is the Apple commitment to quality and ease-of-use that people will gravitate toward. Well done, Apple!
Tags: Apple Tablet > iPad > iPhone > iPod > iWork > Magazine > Newspaper > Tablet
So, we finally know the name of the Apple Tablet: iPad
January 28, 2010 | No CommentsOn Wednesday, January 27, Apple finally unveiled their new tablet device and proclaimed to the world that they are calling it the “iPad.” This was after months of speculation in the blogosphere about what the device would be called. There were rumors of “iSlate” and “iTablet” as being possibilities, and although “iPad” did come up, I actually didn’t think it was a serious possibility because of its similarities to “iPod” – it could get a little confusing. But I’m sure Apple probably went back and forth on this with their marketing folks and finally came to the conclusion that it was an OK name (or maybe Steve Jobs just said, “I’m Steve Jobs; I know what’s good for the public; the name should be iPad”). And come to think of it, not many people mistake “Bull” for “Ball” or “Con” for “Can.” So, iPad it is.
It’s interesting how Apple seems to have gone out of its way to hide the name. They supposedly took out copyright names (through various insundry ways) on iSlate, TabletMac, and others (or so the rumors say). Maybe they also paid Bill Keller at the New York Times to “accidentally” spew out “Apple Slate.” Whatever the case may be, Apple did another fantastic job of keeping things quiet, resulting in the type of frenzied speculation and media coverage that you just can’t buy. All university business and marketing majors could learn a thing or two from watching Apple.
HP Slate: To Be Released Sometime this Year
January 26, 2010 | 2 CommentsThe video features the new HP Slate product. It’s essentially a promotional video by HP. This is the product that was briefly demonstrated by Steve Ballmer at CES 2010. They make it sound like they spent a lot of time researching user experience. They believe this is the one, ultimate device that everyone will use for all multimedia purposes.
They compare this to Amazon’s Kindle and the Sony e-reader, but there’s nothing new in that comparison. Obviously, the Kindle and the e-reader are not meant to be multimedia devices (they’re mainly for reading). So, there’s no point in comparing.
Finally, they indicate delivery of the device sometime in 2010 because they feel this is the right year where hardware can properly support the applications at a reasonable price. We’ll see.
I think they’re too little too late. Once the Apple Slate comes out, no-one’s going to pay attention to this thing, especially if the failure rate is anywhere similar to their laptops.
Tags: Amazon > e-reader > ereader > HP > Kindle > Multimedia > Slate > Sony
Can the Apple Tablet (iSlate) be a notebook replacement?
January 10, 2010 | 5 CommentsFor Apple to succeed with their Tablet (iSlate), they need to be able to do much more than just view magazines and videos. This is not the same situation as with the iPod where Apple can rely on commercial success with non-business users. With the cost of the Tablet rumored to be in the $600 to $1,000 range, they cannot afford to ignore the business crowd. Indeed, as with traditional PCs, selling to businesses can of course have a trickle down effect where people will buy for their homes as well.
People will argue that the form factor for the device (a single, flat screen) is not right for business users. As with the iPhone, people will argue that the lack of a physical keyboard will be detrimental to doing this. But that’s being shortsighted and also ignorant of some patents that Apple owns. There are potentially two possibilities here. Apple could use a new, articulating framework where raised bumps on the tablet could provide tactile feedback as a surrogate for an actual keyboard. Secondly, Apple (or a third party vendor) could produce a detachable keyboard for use with the Tablet when heavy-duty writing is required.
With the type of processor the Tablet is likely to have, there should be plenty of power for office applications. Indeed it shouldn’t be difficult to take the existing Apple office suite of tools to work on the new device. And if Microsoft is willing, they should be able to make their Office products work on it as well. While the OS used on the Tablet will likely not be a full Mac OS X, it should still be similar enough (same core) that it shouldn’t be a huge leap to make these office tools work.
The trick to using the Tablet with business applications is how well they can take advantage of the touch user interface. That is, how well can the various finger gestures can be used to simplify the use of these applications? This provides an opportunity where Apple can really shine. They have an opportunity here to truly innovate and lead the way in how these types of applications can be used. Although there will likely be a little bit of a learning curve, the payoff can be tremendous. I remember back in the early 1990s when I used to use fairly complex CAD programs mainly through the use of a series of pressing the function buttons (f1, f2, f3, etc.). I got so good at it that I would be pressing these buttons without thinking of the actual menus, but rather the outcome. That is, I wouldn’t focus on pressing buttons but the functionality that I wanted. In a way, it will be like learning a second language (similar to learning sign language).
Verizon and NVIDIA team-up to create a Tablet
January 7, 2010 | No CommentsNVIDIA and Verizon have teamed up to make a decent-looking tablet, but it’s just another one in a crowd that’s getting bigger and bigger. This one supposedly has 1080p HD resolution, uses a Motorola 4G wireless modem, and is Tegra-powered. No features are evident at the moment, but unless this has some surprising app, it’ll just be another bland tablet as a lot of others appear to be sporting HD resolutions these days.
More: Engadget
Entourage Edge shipping next month
January 7, 2010 | No CommentsThis is a little bit of different tablet device than the ones we’ve been seeing lately. It combines an e-ink screen with an LCD screen, and it looks similar to the Microsoft Courier Tablet concept. Potentially, this could provide some interesting possibilities, but it depends on how well the two screens are integrated together. If they are essentially separate screens used for different purposes, you can bet this will fail miserably.
More: Engadget
Meet the Sony Dash: The Latest Tablet to Debut at CES
January 7, 2010 | 1 Comment
Sorry Sony Walkman fans, but no new Walkman PMPs for you. This year, Sony launched the Dash, a tablet-like device they call a “personal Internet viewer.” If you’re familiar with the Chumby Internet radio player, the Dash is quite similar—in fact, Sony worked with Chumby to develop the Dash.
You can watch videos on upright on the Dash, like a TV, or lie it flat and use it a tabletop Web browser or e-reader. The difference between the Dash and other tablets, like the Lenovo IdeaPad U1 or the rumored Apple table t, is that it does not run on an OS. It is more of a giant touchscreen portable media player than a computer.
More: PCWorld
Ballmer introduces HP Tablet PC at CES
January 7, 2010 | No CommentsWell, he did it. After some anticipation, Steve Ballmer introduced the HP Tablet at CES 2010. And it was a let down because it was not the Microsoft Courier Tablet/Notepad some of us have been hoping for. The HP device was essentially a slab/slate PC running Windows 7 with touch controls. Ballmer didn’t go into details with the device, and frankly, I don’t care. 2010 is the year of the “true” Tablet, not the year of another attempt at a tablet PC.
The only bits of information that came out were that Ballmer showed the device running Amazon’s Kindle software for PCs and the screen looked to be about 10 inches. I’m actually kind of glad that it wasn’t the Courier because with the high failure rate that HP has with its laptops, I would hesitate to buy one. They make great, shiny-lookng devices, but somewhere along the way, HP lost their grip on quality control.
Mirasol shows prototype reader-like device playing back color video, might be headed for the Kindle
January 7, 2010 | No Comments
You know that Kindle you’re so in love with? Man, that’s so 2009. Mirasol showed up at CES with a display technology that’s been in the works for around a decade, and it has finally reached the point where ODMs and OEMs are talking shop about integrating said panel into all manners of future devices. In the past, the company has stuck to making screens for relatively minuscule devices, but its latest display is a 5.7-inch XGA color screen that would fit just perfectly within your next e-reader. We spoke at length with executives, and they’re currently predicting an ebook reader running Mirasol in Fall of this year.
More: Engadget
Microsoft and H.P. to Reveal Slate PC Ahead of Apple
January 6, 2010 | No CommentsIt could be one of Steve Ballmer’s riskiest trade show moves in years.
On Wednesday, Mr. Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, will unveil a novel take on a slate-type computer during his evening keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, according to people familiar with Microsoft’s plans. The slate will be made by Hewlett-Packard and possibly available by mid-year, these people said.
This product better be good because Apple is expected to unveil its take on the slate/tablet form factor later this month. If history holds, Apple will issue a product that surprises people in a few ways and that stands out from the crowd.
More: NY Times
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