the tablet war is heating up

[Umbran]

Who is it out there that is so obsessed with thinness that a few milimeters is a purchase consideration, and why?

Consumers are not only driven by specifications that are relevant in a practical sense. To some (many, really) having The Best matters, especially if it calls for significant expenditure to get it, as being The Best is partial justification for the price tag.

That sometimes leads to splitting of hairs as to what qualifies as Best.

 

[falcarrion]

I think this is going to be like the iPod wars, yes there will be better cheaper products out there but because of marketing the pad wins, it hit first and has dug in.

I'm an owner of an Ipad and am extremely happy with it. But alot has happened in just the last few weeks. When the Ipad2 was release, Samsung stated that there Galaxy Tab wasn't good enough and went about retooling it in two sizes.
They picked up the gauntlet thrown down by Apple and are aggresively persuing it. Now Amazon recently anounced there AppStore for android. And if anyone can rival the Itunes app store, it will be Amazon. It will not be long before android app creators start selling there apps through Amazon. Motorola recently cut back on the production of the Xoom and no production runs are schedule after June. Some specualte that they are also retooling there Xoom to a thinner size. No matter how deeply Apple is dug in, the dogs are nipping at there heels.
For now I'm sticking with my Ipad but am keeping an open mind on the competition.

Update: Motorola annouced to today that they are not cutting back production on the Xoom as was earlier reported. Oops my bad.

 

[John Crichton]

Who is it out there that is so obsessed with thinness that a few milimeters is a purchase consideration, and why?

It's more weight and feel than anything else. At that size/depth the device's portability is high so durability then really comes in to play.

 

[Relique du Madde]

Now Amazon recently anounced there AppStore for android. And if anyone can rival the Itunes app store, it will be Amazon. It will not be long before android app creators start selling there apps through Amazon.

Actually, the interesting thing about Amazon Apps (beyond apple's attempt to sue them for the word "App"), is that many android devs ARE using it as a secondary point of purchase. What I heard is that some makers are placing the "standard free" admob version of the app in the Android Market while planning on placing the pay non-Ad version in Amazon Apps.

Update: Motorola annouced to today that they are not cutting back production on the Xoom as was earlier reported. Oops my bad.

It should be mentioned that the confusion about the Xoom partially is because Motorola announced last month (around when they released the Xoom) that they are making a "low price point" version of the Xoom that was expected at being either 7 inches or 8.1 inches. It's possible that this Xoom might have been the "thinned" "retooled" Xoom people thought Motorola was going to build.

 

[Umbran]

It's more weight and feel than anything else. At that size/depth the device's portability is high so durability then really comes in to play.

That small difference in depth doesn't change the portability much. It's the smaller screen that matters, to be notably more portable than the iPad, while still far more useful for applications than an smart phone.

 

[John Crichton]

That small difference in depth doesn't change the portability much. It's the smaller screen that matters, to be notably more portable than the iPad, while still far more useful for applications than an smart phone.

I have no idea what products you are trying to compare in this statement.

 

[Felon]

Consumers are not only driven by specifications that are relevant in a practical sense. To some (many, really) having The Best matters, especially if it calls for significant expenditure to get it, as being The Best is partial justification for the price tag.

If that milimeter thinness or two of thinness doesn't have some personal practical value to an individual, how can it have anything to do with qualifying a product as The Best? Because lines of form around the block for it, like cattle waiting to go into the chute? Because CNN or CNet does a bit on it? Popularity does equate to quality.

Sure, some people choose to follow the pied piper of media hype. Like any unattractive truth about human nature, acknowledging it is practical. Accepting it is lamentable. Embracing it is tragic.

 

[Felon]

It's more weight and feel than anything else. At that size/depth the device's portability is high so durability then really comes in to play.

I bought an ASUS EP121 Windows 7 tablet a couple weeks ago, and I certainly wish it was lighter, but not necessarily thinner. At a certain point, something's that's too thin leads to hand cramps (try hold an 8.5 x 11" piece of postcard-thin carboard for a length of time. I'd say when we're talking fractions of an inch, portability isn't really improved that much.

 

[John Crichton]

I bought an ASUS EP121 Windows 7 tablet a couple weeks ago, and I certainly wish it was lighter, but not necessarily thinner. At a certain point, something's that's too thin leads to hand cramps (try hold an 8.5 x 11" piece of postcard-thin carboard for a length of time. I'd say when we're talking fractions of an inch, portability isn't really improved that much.

That's what I meant.

 

[renau1g]

It isn't a war until they start shooting each other with bullets.

What about the Cold War? US and Soviets weren't shooting at each other directly

To some (many?) they associate Apple with their hip, cool lifestyle as opposed to actually using it for anything or needing it. I've asked a couple friends why they want an Ipad... their answers were like this amazingly funny video. "I need one b-b-b-bad"

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40AthIcKMbE]YouTube - Jake and Amir: iPad[/ame]